A video footage of very young Thai Buddhist monks engaging in a brutal one-on-one bare-knuckle punching match emerged recently online.
The clip of the boys in robes duking it out was reportedly filmed in Udon Thani, northern Thailand, according to Daily Mail.
The kids, around seven or eight years old, are shown hitting each other with kicks and punches while a couple of older monks watch the fight. One monk, who seemed to mediate the match, is seen occasionally separating them only to let them go at each other again.
“They start fight club when they’re young. It’s a good way to make them tough,” the referee was quoted as saying.
The video, uploaded by a Thai Buddhist monk named Khun Kampon, shows a rare display of martial arts discipline practiced by young students of a Buddhist monastery.
Martial arts has long been a part of Buddhist tradition, with many disciplines, such as the Shaolin Kung Fu. said to be developed in Ancient Chinese temples. Monks particularly practice Kung Fu regularly to train the mind and body. In Thailand’s monasteries, boys aged eight and above can take temporary vows, allowing orphans to be novice monks without actually being ordained which can be attained at age 20.
