In Peru, whoever wants peace prepares for war and above all gives big potatoes to a costumed stranger. THE annual Takanakuy festival gathered hundreds of competitors on Monday, December 25, near the city of Cusco, to participate in a traditional combat ritual aimed at settling old scores before the end of the year.
Takanakuy combines the indigenous words “takay”, meaning fight, and “nakuy”, meaning mutual, and is celebrated every year around Christmas. A Youtube channel dedicated to this festival is followed by nearly 700,000 people.
“Community justice”
The event acts as a kind of “community justice” to calm latent conflicts between residents. Everyone can come and resolve a family quarrel, a question of honor, a property conflict… by hitting the other!
The participants, mainly men, wear traditional clothing and compete one-on-one in the center of a circle formed by the public. The fight takes place bare-knuckle and the duels are supervised by referees.
Proponents of Takanakuy claim that this tradition would promote unity within the community. By allowing people to let go of their anger for a day, it would help start the new year in peace. Who wants to try?