Miracle Baby Becomes Healing Sensation In Cambodia

Kong Keng, a two-year-old boy from Khnor village in Cambodia with
mysterious healing power, is now the new sensation in town. Thousands
of people are travelling from as far as Laos and Vietnam and into the
small village believing that even a glimpse of Kong will help cure
their ailments, according toCambodia Daily. Kong, for many, appears to
be the last ray of hope in a nation with one of the worst health care
systems in the world.

Hundreds of people throng outside the little boy's single-room wooden
home every single day, scrambling to get a gaze and touch from him.
It's a motley crowd of handicapped people in wheelchairs, and ailing,
dying patients on stretchers.

Phat Soen, Kong's 21-year-old mother, brings the boy out and places a
row of eucalyptus balm bottles in front of him. She then guides his
hand over each bottle - his touch is believed to transfer healing
powers to the balm. The toddler's healing powers were discovered by an
accidental healing 'miracle' that occurred a few months ago.

"The miracle happened to my brother," said Sung Bahn, Kong's uncle.
"He was paralyzed from the waist down after a motorcycle accident.
Doctors couldn't cure him and neither could the Kru Khmers
(traditional Cambodian healers)."

"He went to visit his nephew and the boy asked him, 'What's the
matter?' The man told him that he couldn't walk, so the boy found some
leaves to make into a tea for the old man to drink. He drank the tea,
got up, and began walking perfectly."

Naturally, such a miraculous event couldn't remain a secret for long -
the whole village was buzzing about it, and within two weeks the story
was covered by national newspapers and TV channels.

"Twenty thousand people have come here in the last month hoping to be
cured," said village head, Sou Hen. "Over 1,000 people have received
effective treatment from the magic boy so far. I have seen people who
were dumb speak, and others who were paralyzed get up and walk."

Kong is now practically royalty in the sleepy little village of Khnor.
The entire community helps in managing the boy's visitors.
Loudspeakers crackle with regular updates, like: "The magic boy is
sleeping, so please keep quiet so he doesn't get angry." Or, "The boy
is with his mother collecting magic herbs and will return in two
hours."

According to locals, Kong acts as a medium for an elemental spirit
with healing powers. "I don't know why my boy is magic, he just is,"
said his father, Bahn, 25. "The child cured his uncle, the news spread
and now thousands have come. We give the magic leaves away free of
charge, but to get on the waiting list people have to donate $1 to
local Buddhist temples. Supplies are limited and sometimes they have
to wait a few days."

The leaves might be free of cost, but a meeting with the Kong himself
isn't. "If they want to see the boy personally, we charge them $2 or
$3," said Bahn. That might not sound like much, but it actually is a
big deal in a nation where the average wage is $3 a day. Bahn, who is
a rice farmer, earns around $1,000 a year. But his son's healing
powers have earned him $2,500 in the past month alone.