Thousands pay respects to dead whale in Vietnam
越南：数千人向死鲸致敬

Monday, April 5, 2004 Posted: 1432 GMT (2232 HKT)

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HANOI, Vietnam (AP) -- Thousands of Vietnamese are making pilgrimages to a beach in southern Vietnam to worship a dead whale.
越南，河内----数千越南人涌至越南南方的一个海滩，以朝拜一头死鲸。

☆ pilgrimage 朝拜, 朝圣
    worship 崇拜, 尊敬

More than a thousand people -- many from hundreds of miles distant -- have journeyed to burn incense near the whale carcass discovered on the beach Friday, said a police officer in the Thanh Phu District of Ben Tre province.
Ben Tre省hanh Phu地区警官说：周五，超过千人--其中很多来自于数百英里之外--经过长途跋涉，来到海滩上，在死鲸尸体旁焚香。

☆ incense 熏香，熏香的烟
    carcass 尸体，残骸

Many villagers, especially fishermen, worship the giant mammals and believe a dead whale washing ashore is a sign of good fishing to come.
很多村民，尤其是渔民，都有崇拜大型哺乳动物的习俗。他们相信，冲上岸的死鲸是捕捞丰收的标志。

☆ mammals 哺乳动物
    ashore 岸上的

The 82-foot whale has started to decompose, but it could take weeks to decay completely, said the officer, who identified himself only as Minh. The villagers plan to use the bones to build a temple to honor the whale, he said.

☆ decompose 腐烂

A smaller whale washed ashore last month in the same area, about 100 miles southwest of Ho Chi Minh City, and the villagers have since built a shrine for it, Minh said.

☆shrine  神殿，庙宇