Monks pray during a Buddhist ceremony celebrating World Vesak Day in Nakhon Pathom province on the outskirts of Bangkok May 10, 2006. Buddhist monks in Thailand are too tired to receive early morning alms because they are staying up late to watch the World Cup, a Thai newspaper reported on Wednesday. The Nation quoted a woman in the northern city of Chiang Mai who said her birthday celebrations were ruined because monks at a city temple were not awake to receive her morning offering, a mandatory religious ritual in the predominately Buddhist country. The woman, who declined to be identified, said she was told by a senior monk that most of his young colleagues were still asleep because they had stayed up to watch the games which can go on well past midnight. The Sangha Council, which oversees the tens of thousands of Buddhist temples in Thailand, has not banned monks from watching the World Cup but said it should not interfere with religious activities. Chiang Mai chief monk Phra Thep Wisuthikhun said he had received complaints about "inappropriate behavior" at seven temples in the province. "It is the duty of the abbot of each temple to supervise the behavior of young monks, making sure that their religious activities will not be affected by the games," he said. In neighboring Cambodia, some 40,000 monks have been warned they could be defrocked if they became too excited while watching the games. "If they make noise or cheer as they watch, they will lose their monkhood," Phnom Penh patriarch Non Nget said. (Agencies)

本周三，泰国一家报纸报道，泰国的和尚们因熬夜观战世界杯，以至于累的起不来接受清晨布施。 《民族报》在报道中引用了来自北部城市清迈的一位女子的话，她说，由于当地一所寺院的和尚没有起来接受她的清晨布施，她的生日宴会都泡汤了。清晨布施在佛教盛行的泰国是一项必须举行的宗教仪式。 这名不愿透露姓名的女子说，一位年长的和尚告诉她大多数年轻和尚还在睡觉，因为他们前一天晚上看了一个通宵的世界杯。 僧伽理事会总管泰国的几万个寺院，理事会并没有禁止和尚们看世界杯赛，但理事会表示，和尚们不应因此影响正常的宗教活动。 清迈市高僧Phra Thep Wisuthikhun说，清迈地区已有七所寺院因“不当行为”而遭到投诉。他说：“监督年轻僧侣的行为是每个寺院住持的职责，要保证僧侣们的宗教活动不受世界杯赛的影响。” 在邻国柬埔寨，约四万名和尚受到警告，如果他们在看世界杯时过于兴奋，将会被解除僧职。 金边长老Non Nget说：“如果和尚们在看比赛时乱喊乱叫或欢呼喝彩，他们就做不成和尚了。” (英语点津姗姗编辑)