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The Birman cat
descends from cats that were venerated as gods in the Buddhist
temples. In Burma, the Burmese cats are held to be sacred. The
Birman cat descends from cats that were venerated as gods in the
Buddhist temples.
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The Buddhist priests believed that the
faithful returned to earth in the form of a cat. In Buddhism, it is believed that on the death of a person who had reached the
highest levels of spirituality the soul entered the body of a
cat. It remained there until the cat died, when the soul entered
paradise. Even today, in some Asiatic sanctuaries, divine powers
are attributed to the cat and it is believed that in the
hereafter the soul of cat speaks to Buddha in favor of its owner
that still lives on earth.
In
Buddhist temples across Asia, cats are kept as mousers. Among
the most charming of Japanese cats is Maneki-Neko, a small cat
believed to ensure happiness and good luck. Japanese Buddhists
venerate cats after their death. The temple of Go - To - Ku - Ji
in Tokyo is dedicated to cats. Vested priests serve the temple
and intone chants for feline souls. Crowded into the temple are
sculptures paintings and relief carvings of cats. In each of
these, the cat has a paw raised as if in greeting, the classical
pose of the cat Maneki -Neko. Cats continue to be worshiped as
deities in countries such as Thailand and China.
The power of
cats to see in the dark was also considered useful to hold evil
spirits at way, since it was usually thought that eyes of cat
were more active at night, the walls of many Asiatic houses were
adorned with images of cats. In England, a black cat sitting in a
house on a wedding day is thought to bring good luck. In
Thailand, a Diamond eyed cat is believed to be a symbol of good
luck. In South America, the Incas revered sacred cats,
representations of which can be seen in pre-Columbian Peruvian
artifacts.
The earliest representations of domestic cat were
Egyptian tomb paintings and sculpture. By the 5th century B.C.,
images of cats appeared on Greek coins, and later they were
depicted in Roman mosaics and paintings and on earthenware, coins
and shields.
Some Interesting
Facts About Cats
Cats have reputation for having nine lives. Cats are
very affectionate towards human beings with the Siamese breed of
cats believed to be the most affectionate towards people. Cats can recognize
footsteps of their owner from hundreds of feet away. Cats are
easy to care for as compared to dogs. Outdoor cats bury their feces.
Cats groom themselves with their saliva. The cats tongue, saliva
and paws help in grooming cats themselves. Cats groom themselves
about twenty times in a day. Kittens start cleaning or
grooming themselves at the age of one month. All cats generally
do not need bath. Cats are easiest to care out of all domestic
animals.
Cats are
the most independent domestic animals. Cats do not need care and attention. Cats are also small in size. Cats
also exercise themselves. Cats are most playful out of all
domestic animals. Kittens play themselves by batting and tossing
small objects, hunting and by jumping in and out of boxes. Cats
love to hide in cardboard boxes, drawer or laundry basket.
Kittens begin playing with toys at the age of four weeks and
their enjoyment becomes more elaborate as they grow. Kittens that
have free access to a terrace or garden will amuse themselves
by running after a butterfly, bug, insect or leaf.
Cats enjoy being stroked by their owner. The gestation period of a cat is
63days. The average litter of cats consists of four
kittens. Kittens are born blind, deaf and helpless. The eyes of
kitten open at eight to ten days of age, and they begin to be
weaned about six weeks after birth. The senses of kitten begin
to function ten to twelve days after birth. Soon after birth
the mother cat licks her kittens, this action cleans them and
helps stimulate their circulation. After birth of kittens, the
mother cat take them to safe places. Scientific studies have
shown that stroking a pet cat or kitten and playing with a pet
cat or kitten reduce stress and anxiety and lowers the blood
pressure of its owner.
About the author:I am owner and webmaster of website
http://www.catswelfare.org. Iam
working in SPCA Mumbai for the past seven years. I am also a cat
dentist.
