Buddhist monk sets himself on fire to protest against the slaughter of cattle in Sri Lanka

Monk set himself on fire toda y in Sri Lankan town of Kandy

He was protesting against the killing of cattle for meat

A Buddhist monk has suffered serious injuries after setting himself on fire to protest against the slaughter of cattle.



Sri Lankan police said the monk set himself on fire today near the famed Temple of Buddha's Tooth Relic in the central town of Kandy.

He reportedly had told other monks that he was burning himself to protest the killing of cattle for meat.



Scroll down for video



Horrific: A Sri Lankan Buddhist monk set fire to himself outside the sacred Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, Sri Lanka today

The monk was brought to Colombo National Hospital in the capital with serious injuries.



Buddhism, Sri Lanka's state religion, opposes the killing of any life. Nearly 75 percent of Sri Lankans are Buddhists.

Many Buddhists in Sri Lanka do eat meat, but most avoid beef because they consider cows sacred.

In February, a Tibetan protester in monk's robes doused himself with gasoline, set himself ablaze and chanted anti-China slogans as he ran down a street in Nepal's capital.

Injured: Doctors are pictured helping to treat the monk in hospital

His demonstration outside the Buddhist holy site, the Boudhanath stupa, was the latest in a string of self-immolations protesting China's rule over Tibet.



Witnesses in Nepal said the man entered a cafe in Kathmandu's Boudhanath district - home to many Tibetan Buddhist temples and monasteries - and asked to use the bathroom.

Protest: A Tibetan monk burns after he set himself on fire in Kathmandu, Nepal in February. It was the latest in a string of self-immolations protesting China's rule over Tibet

Street protest: The man appeared to be about 21 years old and was taken to hospital After spending some time there, he went onto the street and lit himself on fire. He ran a few steps, covered in flames and chanting slogans against China, before collapsing in front of the mammoth Boudhanath stupa, one of the holiest Buddhist sites in the world, surrounded by prayer wheels and decorated with colourful streams of prayer flags.





