Residents of three villages in Nakhon Sawan province in Thailand paraded a plush toy of the popular robot cat Doraemon in place of a real cat as part of a rainmaking ritual, as the country experiences a dry spell.
Traditionally, the Hae Nang Maew Ceremony (Cat Parading ceremony) uses a live cat. However, during the recent ritual in late April, villagers opted for Doraemon as a suitable substitute.
According to The Straits Times, the story gained viral attention on Japanese X/Twitter after Dr. Tarin Clanuwat, a research scientist with a PhD in Japanese Literature from Waseda University, shared a picture of the event on the site on April 29.
タイでは数ヶ月全然雨が降らないので、雨乞い儀式が行われた。本当は猫を入れないといけないけど、可哀想なのでドラえもんにしたそうです。早く雨降るといいね。 pic.twitter.com/M7jc8w40OM
— tkasasagi 🐻 (@tkasasagi) April 29, 2024
An X/Twitter thread posted on May 1 featured videos of media reports from Thailand regarding the ritual. Poster @sighyam wrote, “Thailand is taking this news very seriously. There is concern over the legitimacy of the rain dance. It is said that the tradition requires a female cat, however, Doraemon is a male cat. The news presenter said they should’ve used Dorami instead.”
With no rain for several months in many areas of Thailand and a record breaking heatwave, a rain-making ceremony was held. Traditionally, a real cat would be used, but it seems the locals decided on Doraemon instead—a modern twist against animal cruelty. pic.twitter.com/Ida9WFAPzq
— yammi (@sighyam) May 1, 2024
According to past news reports and blogs, Doraemon has been appearing in these ceremonies for years.
It was clarified in the thread that the rainmaking ritual does not involve sacrificing any cats. The cat is traditionally placed in a cage, paraded around, and splashed with water. The ceremony is performed when the planting season approaches. According to The ASEAN Magazine, the Hae Nang Maew ceremony uses cats because “cats are animals scared of rain, and if a cat cries out during the ceremony, it means that rain is imminent.”
Image credit: Shin-Ei Animation/TV Asahi
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Rayan Sayyed is a staff writer for IGN India with a primary focus on Asian entertainment spanning from anime, manga, games to films and dramas from the East. You can reach out to him at rayan_sayyed@ign.com, or find him on Twitter @rayanaver and Instagram @rayansayyed.
