Indonesia Travel Guide by Lonely Planet

Author:Lonely Planet
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lonely Planet

PASOLA: LET THE BATTLES BEGIN

A riotous tournament between two teams of spear-wielding, ikat-clad horsemen, the Pasola has to be one of the most extravagant (and bloodiest) harvest festivals in Asia. Held annually in February and March, it takes the form of a ritual battle – not so much a quarrel between opposing forces as a need for human blood to run to keep the spirits happy and bring a good harvest. The riders gallop at each other, hurling their holas (spears) at rival riders (it’s not permitted to use a spear as a lance). Despite the blunt spears, there will be blood, and sometimes deaths still do occur. Accidentally, of course.

Pasola takes place in four areas, its exact timing determined by the arrival on nearby coasts of a certain type of sea worm called nyale . Two days before the main events, brutal boxing matches called pajura are held, the combatants’ fists bound in razor-sharp local grasses.

Before the Pasola can begin, priests in full ceremonial dress must first wade into the ocean to examine the worms at dawn; they’re usually found on the eighth or ninth day after a full moon. Fighting begins on the beach, and continues further inland later that same day. Opposing ‘armies’ are drawn from coastal and inland villages.

In February, Pasola is celebrated in the Kodi area (centred on Kampung Tosi) and the Lemboya area (Kampung Sodan); in March it’s in the Wanokaka area (Kampung Waigalli) and the remote Gaura area, west of Lamboya (Kampung Ubu Olehka). Call hotels in Waingapu or Waikabubak to find out the approximate dates before travelling to Sumba, or log onto www.lavalontouristinfo.com and call Edwin Lerrick at Lavalon ( Click here ) in Kupang. He always knows the score in NTT.

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