Near Tulamben village in Bali, a battle is
taking place in the shadow of Mount Agung.
With crops destroyed and tourists fled, the
area has become as sluggish as the lava from
the volcano, whose recent eruption brought
thousands of villagers’ livelihoods to a
screeching halt.
But the atmosphere betrays nothing of
the grim situation. Instead, the air is thick
with cheering; bets are thrust from hand
to hand in the gathered crowd. The people
are keen to forget, however briefly, the
fatigue of their newest hardship amid the
excitement of a good match. It’s over in three
more moves – with a spatter of blood, the
victorious cock mauls its opponent.
To the Balinese, it’s the blood that’s most
important in cockfights, not the fortunes
that rise and fall with each match. With
roots in Hindu ceremonies called tabuh rah,
the ancient tradition of pitting fowl against
one another is thought to purify agricultural
land, glorify the gods, and appease evil
spirits by watering the ground with the
blood of the vanquished rooster. Even today,
such men-only ceremonies are widely held
in temples across the region.
“The philosophy of cockfighting is based
on the ritual of a blood sacrifice, but has
since developed into putting metal spurs
on combative roosters – to ensure greater
blood loss during the brawl – and taken on
high entertainment value,” says 70-year-old
Hindu leader I Wayan Subada.Secular cockfighting might be largely outlawed, but its religious
counterpart lives on. We look at the bird behind this ancient
agricultural rite so proudly bred by Indonesia’s villagers
Cock of the Roost
REGAL BIRDS
Text Sutanta Aditya
WILDLIFE
cockfighting: an ancient spectator sport
ȑ Chickens are first
domesticated in China
ȑ The red junglefowl is
domesticated in Asiaȑ Cockfighting begins in
Iran and spreads to Asia
and the Middle Eastȑ Cockfighting is wildly
popular across the Indus
Valley and Southeast Asiaȑ Cockfighting spreads
to the Mediterranean,
Europe and the Americasabout 6000 bce about 5000 bce 5th century bceRed Junglefowl
(Gallus gallus)
Order: Galliformes
Family: Phasianidae
Genus: Gallus
Reproduction: Mating and egg-laying
Life Span: 30 years in captivity
Location: India, China, Southeast Asia
Behaviour: Using sharp leg spurs, males battle
to the death over territory}
right Two men prepare
their roosters for a
fight. After the eruption
of Mount Agung,
cockfighting surged in
popularity in the areaIMAGE © SHUTTERSTOCK
DATA SOURCES: GENOMICS, MURNIS, TRISHA SERTORI, AVICULTURE EUROPE, QUATR, ADIP
about 3000 bce 16th century bce