People around the
world look at animals and birds in their own way. In India, from time
immemorial, we see them as fellow beings with whom we share the earth. Animals
have been traditionally considered sacred and are worshipped as vehicles of
deities or as deities themselves in Indian culture. They are considered as
impetuses of growth, spurs of love and harmony, and symbols of the culture
itself. One of the aspects that makes Indian culture incomparable is its belief
of sacredness of animals. Our culture respects and reveres life in all its
forms.
E. M. Forster, a
noted English novelist has opined that “Indians believe that birds, animals,
and human beings – as indeed everything else – are an integral part of
divinity. This is the central belief of all Indian religious and cultural
thought and thus, all forms of life must be respected equally. Thus human
beings and elephants, horses, cattle and birds like mynah, the peacock, the
parrot and the koel are woven into many fables and religious treatises. Water
creatures like crocodile, the turtle and fish are considered sacred and are
associated with sacred rivers like the Ganga and Yamuna. India’s belief that
animals, birds and sea creatures are sacred is a dominant and beautiful aspect
of Indian culture for millenniums. They are earthly and spiritual companions of
human beings and this equal sharers of the world and its resources.” Indian
history have references that many famed emperors included animals and birds in
their emblems and encouraged their artists to incorporate animal themes in
their art and architecture. Many of the festivals of India are observed in
honour of animals and to celebrate their power.
It is promising that
our country has many organisations such as Animal Welfare Board of India, PETA
India, In Defence of Animals India, Animal Rights Fund, People for Animals
India, Pet Animal Welfare Society India, etc. to promote animal welfare and the
right of all animals to be treated with respect. They play an instrumental role
in ensuring animal safety and improving the quality of life of animals in the
country. However, it is a let-down to note that some of their animal welfare measures
hurt the cultural sentiments of the people. This includes their legal efforts
to ban traditional animal sports such as Kambala of Karnataka, Jallikattu of
Tamil Nadu, Maramadi of Kerala, Buffalo fights in Assam, etc. which are
centuries old and a part of the cultural ethos of the regions. Among these, the
ban of Jallikattu by the Supreme Court of India has created an uproar in the
Tamil community and has dampened the spirit of the Pongal festival. The Supreme
Court ruling in May 2014 in favour of a petition by the Animal Welfare Board of
India states that “the sport known as Jallikattu is a barbaric event involving
unnecessary pain and suffering for the animals.” The court has said that the
bulls are “severely harmed” and declared it as an offence under the Prevention
of Cruelty to the Animals Act. The judgement refers the sport as “unnecessary
and non-essential” and also as mere “amusement and entertainment” to the human
participants and spectators. It also says that there is no sufficient evidence
of the sport to have any religious importance.
Jallikattu is one of
the oldest ancient sports in India and a traditional part of Pongal
celebrations in Tamil Nadu, usually played on the second or third days of the harvest
festival. The sport is a part of Tamil tradition called ‘Yeru Thazhuvuthal’ (meaning: to embrace bulls) and was very
popular among Tamil warriors in the Sangam era. The term ‘Jallikattu’ was
coined from the Tamil terms ‘salli kaasu’ (meaning:
coins) and ‘kattu’ (meaning:
package). The name changed to ‘Jallikattu’ later in the colonial period. The
sport was a display of courage and according to folklores, the successful
matadors were chosen as grooms for women during those days. Jallikattu is
conventionally played by communities that take pride in their martial history. The
taming of the bull on rampage without any weapons is considered as a mark of virility.
The sport has three variants – Vati Manju Virattu, Veli Virattu and Vatam Manjuvirattu.
Jallikattu bulls are fed a nutritive diet and given regular exercise to make
them strong and competent for the event. They are much more than prized
possessions for its owners and are treated with dignity and love. They name
their bulls afters the Gods associated with their ancestry. The ambience of the
event is electrifying with tens of thousands of people flooding the pitch with
eager faces to catch a glimpse of the majestic bulls decked with coloured
powder, ribbons, and garlands. The prize money is tied on the glistening horns
of the bulls in a package. Young men, cheered on by the crowd, make attempts to
pounce on the running bulls trying to hold the bull’s hump, move along with the
bull without falling and getting hurt. The bulls try to get away and shake off
the fighters. It requires valour, quick reflexes and a fleet foot to tame the bull
and grab the prize money.
Picture
(a) Picture (b)
Jallikattu is more
than 5000 years old and its history can be traced back to the Indus Valley
Civilization making the sport one of the ancient living traditions in the world.
Picture (a) shows a well-preserved seal made of stone which is on display at
the National Museum, New Delhi. The seal was discovered in 1930’s at Mohenjo-daro
and scholars comment that it can be dated to 2000 B.C and illustrates bull
fighting predominant during the Indus Valley Civilization. It enlivens a
dynamic scene of bull fighting showing a ferocious bull in action and men
thrown in the air as they try to control it. Undoubtedly, the bull is the
champion. Picture (b) is a stone carving which was found in Attur in Tamil Nadu
in 1976 that portrays a bull taming event. The art shows a matador taking on a
bull and snatching the prize tied on its horn. The sculpture is assessed to be
more than 400 years old and is preserved in Salem District Museum, Tamil Nadu.
There are a number of rock paintings in the village of Karikkiyur in Tamil Nadu
that show men chasing bulls. Another cave painting that shows a man trying to
control a bull, which is estimated to be about 1500 years old, has been
discovered at Kalluthu Mettupatti between Madurai and Dindigul.
There are mentions
of bull fighting or bull baiting in Mahabharata as well. The epic cites Lord
Krishna controlling a violent bull in the atrium of King Kamsa’s palace. In
another chapter, Lord Krishna tames seven bulls to marry Princess Naganajiti,
daughter of King Nagnajit of Kosala Kingdom which later prospered into a
tradition in the Velir Kingdom of Tamil Nadu. The tradition was observed as a
Yadava festival where a Yadava boy had to prove his mettle by fighting a bull
to marry a Yadava girl. There are many proofs
in literature that Lord Krishna started the practice of bull fighting about
2000 years ago. Nalluruththiranar, a legendary poet of Sangam Tamil literature has
written about bull fighting in his poems relating to the pastoral culture of
Tamil Nadu. In his poems, he compares the bulls to heroes – black bull to Lord
Krishna, white bull to Lord Balarama, and so on. He has also given a graphical depiction
of bull fighting and has written that it was practised by the Ayar community.
Bull fighting is a
popular sport in Spain, France and Latin American countries. It is a ‘blood
sport’ which often involves slow and painful deaths of the bulls causing
violence against animals. The Spanish legislature has recently granted bull
fighting constitutional protection in view of its significance in their
cultural heritage. Jallikattu is totally ‘bloodless’ when compared to bull
fighting in the West. Jallikattu, in all its three variants do not involve any
cruelty to the bulls. The bulls are not killed unlike in Spanish bull fighting
and fatalities suffered by the bulls are a rarity. Of course, accidents to
human participants can happen, like in any other sporting events. It is
disappointing to note that the animal rights activists see Jallikattu only as
a sport and display of brutality. The
Supreme Court’s ban of Jallikattu damages the ethnic feelings of the Tamil
community. Dr. S. Revathy, lyricist and activist comments on the ban as, “The
reasons are one-dimensional. The decision has been made by people who have
obviously not interacted with the families involved in this sport. They have
been doing it for generations. I have personally seen them treat their animals
with love and care. They shower money on them and their lives revolve around
those bulls. Alleging mistreatment and abuse without any proof is wrong. In the
name of animal rights, human rights are being violated.”
The Supreme Court’s judgement
holds that Jallikattu was never a part of the Tamil history and fails to refer
any literature related on the subject. Also, the lengthy judgement do not have
a single excerpt on the rules of Jallikattu. The rules of the sport states that
the bull should be caught only by its hump and the successful matador is
supposed to hold on to a running bull for a minimum of 30 seconds or 15 meters.
The Animal Welfare Board of India claims that Jallikattu involves abuses to the bulls
like fracture of tail bones, ear cutting, biting and twisting of tails, beating
bulls with sticks, forcing them to drink alcohol, poking bulls with knives,
etc. However, these acts are totally aberrant to Jallikattu. The ban not only
flutters the code of Tamil culture but also triggers mass slaughter of the
Jallikattu bulls. It has been estimated that more than 1000 bulls were sold
across the state after the ban came into effect in May 2014. There is a high
demand for the meat as they are well kept and well fed with nourishing food. Jallikattu
bulls belong to ‘Pulikulam’, an indigenous breed of cattle with distinct
characteristics which is presently on the verge of extinction. Each villages
used to have commercial breeding bulls for reproduction, once upon a time. But
the demand for breeding bulls has dwindled when low-cost artificial
insemination was introduced by the Government. This has caused a drastic fall
in the number of uncastrated Jallikattu bulls across Tamil Nadu. The ban makes
the situation even worse as the sale and slaughter of the bulls would lead to
extinction of ‘desi’ cattle breeds and thwart genetic diversity of native
cattle species.
Along with having an
all-inclusive legislation to protect our animals, it is also essential that we
uphold our invaluable tradition and culture. Article 51A (f) in the Constitution
of India 1949 endorses safeguarding of the rich heritage of our composite culture.
This includes valuing and respecting cultures from all strata of the society. The
Supreme Court’s order to ban Jallikattu is indisputably a hitch to the free
expression of Tamil culture. Jallikattu adds colour and life to the culture and
tourism of Tamil Nadu. A ban is not a solution, instead, necessary precautions
and guidelines to prevent any type of abuse to the bulls and injuries to the
human participants and spectators should be implemented. Safe standards such as
medically certified bulls, fenced arena, avoidance of cruelty to the bulls, skilled
participants, well-organised events, etc. should be considered when organising
the event. Our deep-rooted culture and tradition should not be sacrificed to cope
with modern day standards. It is our responsibility to keep our glorious history
unbroken for the coming generation.
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