lens culture
The Fight
Albert Leeflang

The Fight

Balinese cockfight or Tajen, illegal by law, is deeply embedded in Balinese culture, and very much alive today. Anthropologist Clifford Geertz describes in his essay "Deep Play", the rituals of betting and concludes that the cockfight is the Balinese comment on themselves, as it embodies the network of social relationships in kin and village that govern traditional Balinese life. PHOTO The Balinese cockfight in northern Bali. Indonesia. 2016

Photos
7
Status
Public
Created
Mar 10, 2019
Updated
Apr 02, 2025
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Tags
#Indonesia #Bali #Northern Bali #Bali Culture #Cockfight #Betting #Balinese Village #Photography #Black And White Photography #Documentary Photography

Photos (7)

The ring created with an earth surface with marked areas that define the position of the various stages of the fight ceremony.
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Cover
The cocks for each fight are “carefully” selected to create an even or fair fight. This process prior to a fight takes place in the ring with various handlers and owners seeking a matching opponent.
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The “asil” or jungle cock is the basic strain for the fighting cock with color, size, bone thickness, plumage and temperament being the key characteristics.
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A “tadji” or spur, a razor sharp pointed steel, 4 inched long sword is fixed to the foot and leg of the cock by winding a long string. This is a specialized job which only a few man in the village know how to do.
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The spur is tightly fixed in a precise manner. The angle and the forward position of the sword depends on the “handicap” or not of the cock and his oponent.
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In search of an “suitable” oponent, and thus a match, a handler intruduces his cock to other cocks to force a reaction.
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A cockfight is in foremost a blood sacrifice offered to the demons to still their hunger. The owner of the winning cock takes the carcass of the looser home to eat.
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