[BALINESE CULTURE] THE COCK FIGHTING

One of the old culture in Bali is cockfighting. This cockfighting attract many balinese to come to the arena to see the fight.. unfortunately, gambling always took a large part of this interesting attraction, and as many balinese broke-up because of this cock-fighting, so in 1981, the Indonesian government banned gambling. Normaly, cock-fights have a ceremonial purpose, and the government's ban includes an exemption - three rounds of a cockfight may be carried out for the purpose of ritually spilling blood, an important appeasement of the demons that accompanies Hindu temple festivals. A cockfight is not just allowed at every Balinese temple festival or religious ceremony, it is required. The blood is an offering to the hungry forces of evil, the butas and kalas.

All photos taken using :
Camera : Nikon D700
Lens : Nikkor AF-D 80-200 mm F2,8