[In Karnataka State in southern India, the
authorities have banned the ritual sacrifice of sheep in which shepherds would
throw one in their flock off a hill, in an attempt to protect the rest. Still,
on Saturday, shepherds continued the practice, and at least four sheep were
tossed off a hill in a village, Mailapur, during an annual celebration of the
Mailaralingeshwar temple there, the newspaper The Hindu reported.]
By Nida Najar
 |
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Indians in Chennai
protested a ban on a bull wrestling festival in Chennai on Thursday,
paralyzing the streets.
Credit Reuters
|
NEW
DELHI — Streets throughout
the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India were brought to a standstill on
Thursday as protests over a ban on a traditional bull wrestling festival
entered their third day.
Protesters say the rite, Jallikattu, is part
of their cultural identity, and they are urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to
overturn a Supreme Court ban on the practice. PETA India has said that bulls
were given alcohol and abused for the festival, in which men win prizes if they
successfully hold onto the hump of a bull for a particular distance or length
of time.. The prime minister said in a statement on Thursday that he
appreciated the rite’s cultural significance, but noted that the high court is
reviewing its ruling.
Jallikattu is just one of several
centuries-old cultural traditions that have come to underline a new constant in
India: the tension between the hold of established cultural practices and new
efforts by activists to safeguard rights, whether minority, individual or
animal.
Seventeen people died and about 1,100 people
were injured in the festivals from 2010 to 2014, according to PETA India, which
tallied injuries and deaths reported in local news media. Here are other
rituals that have come under scrutiny recently:
The
Human Pyramids of Dahi Handi
This Hindu festival culminates in young boys’
climbing to the top of huge, precarious human pyramids, then smashing jugs of
buttermilk as a tribute to the god Krishna.
The practice is as unsafe as it sounds. About
225 people were injured during celebrations in Mumbai in 2012, and two people
were killed in Maharashtra State, according to The Press Trust of India.
In 2014, the Mumbai High Court restricted the
minimum age for participation to 18, limited the height of pyramids to 20 feet,
and required the use of helmets. The community protested those rules, but in
August of last year, the Supreme Court upheld them.
Throwing
Sheep
In Karnataka State in southern India, the
authorities have banned the ritual sacrifice of sheep in which shepherds would
throw one in their flock off a hill, in an attempt to protect the rest. Still,
on Saturday, shepherds continued the practice, and at least four sheep were
tossed off a hill in a village, Mailapur, during an annual celebration of the
Mailaralingeshwar temple there, the newspaper The Hindu reported.
Santhara,
a Fast to the Death
In August 2015, the Rajasthan High Court
declared this ritual of the ancient Jain faith, in which some devotees
voluntarily fast to the death, to be a form of suicide, which is illegal in
India. The decision led to outrage from the roughly six million Jains, who also
tend to be wealthy and influential urban Indians, determined to protect a
custom meant to free its adherents from the cycle of rebirth and death. The
decision was appealed to the Supreme Court, and weeks later, the high court
suspended the state-level ban while it waited to hear the appeal. Child welfare
advocates called for a spiritual leader and the parents of a 13-year-old girl
to be prosecuted after the girl, Aradhana Samdariya, died in October 2016 after
a 68-day fast.
Worshiping
Scorpions
In a village in Karnataka, residents have a
slight riff on the Hindu festival of Nag Panchami, marked by its worship of
snakes. On the festival of Nag Panchami in Kandkur, devotees of Kondammai, said
to be a scorpion goddess, pay tribute to her by allowing scorpions to run over
their bodies. Though no court case has been filed, health officials have called
the practice dangerous, particularly for children.
A health official said people were urged not
to touch the scorpions, to no avail, The Hindu reported in August, so doctors
were kept on standby to deal with any emergencies.
Correction: January 20, 2017
An earlier version of this article referred
incorrectly to the Jallikattu tradition. Men win prizes by successfully holding
onto the hump of a bull for a particular distance or length of time, not by
wrestling a bull to the ground.
Follow Nida Najar on Twitter @nidanajar.
