Khim Hang, a Cambodian woman, has married a five-month-old calf, because she is convinced that the animal is actually her deceased husband, reincarnated.
“I noted that he (the calf) licked my hair, then my neck, then kissed me so that really made me believe that he is my husband,” Hang told Reuters (video above).
The 74-year-old now lives with the calf, sharing a bed. “I believe that he (the calf) is my husband because whatever he does when he goes upstairs…it is in exactly the same way as he (my husband) did when he was alive,” she told news agencies.
Her children, too, believe the calf to be a reincarnation of their father, who passed away over a year ago. Their son, Tol Vandy, said that the calf only licks the arms of his relatives, “Because he is my father I cannot leave him far away from here in case someone hurts him.” Daughter Lim Rith said that he really “loves his children” and his behaviour greatly resembles her father’s.
Hang has taken a vow to take care of the calf for the rest of her life. “I told my children when I die they can’t sell him. And they must continue to take care of him until he dies. Then they must burn or bury him like they would a human body,” she said.
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