Strange cow dung throwing festival in India

The small Indian village of Gummatapura is famous around the world for its unique way of ending the annual Diwali celebration with a bustling cow dung battle known as "Gorehabba".

Spain has La Tomatina, the famous battle of tomatoes, Italy has the traditional Battle of Ivrea Oranges and India has Gorehabba, the battle of cow dung to end the important Diwali festival .

If you hear it for the first time, many people may think that it is like an insult about the festival, but if you understand the importance and meaning of cow dung in Indian culture , the meaning will be different.

Cow dung in India has a special meaning.

Cow dung in a country with a population of more than 1.3 billion people is special, even prized so much that companies use it as an ingredient in beauty products, arts and crafts, and even cosmetics. radiation-repelling device. Therefore, throwing cow dung at people is no longer uncomfortable for the hundreds of people participating in Gorehabba.

The day of the cow dung battle begins with the gathering of "ammunition" from cow-owning houses in the village of Gummatapura, located on the border between the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Manure is loaded onto tractors richly decorated with marigold flowers and delivered to a local temple, where priests perform a blessing ceremony.

After that, the "lucky cow dung" will be sent to an empty area of ​​the village of Gummatapura, and the " darers " ready to go topless rush there to prepare to launch. This was a fierce battle, with shards of excrement flying everywhere.

For young men participating in Gorehabba, hurdles and being " hurled " by cow dung, this is both a joy and a belief in the benefits of "ammunition".

Cow dung is collected at an open ground before the Gorehabba festival in Gumatapura village, south of Bangalore. (Photo: AFP).

Many festival-goers believe that just touching cow dung has been blessed, you can cure all diseases and have a great chance of becoming the person who never gets sick.

Many people from all over India still flock to the village of Gumatapura every year to attend the cow dung throwing festival, believing it to be both fun and beneficial to health.

"If there is a disease, we will be cured," said Mahesh, a local resident who attended the cow dung festival.

Locals believe that the origin of the battle of cow dung comes from one of the gods born in cow dung named Beereshwara Swamy .

The rope is not the only famous cow dung battle in India. The people of Kairuppala, a village in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, also participate in the epic cow dung cake battle every year.

Some Hindus believe that cows and everything from them are sacred and have the effect of purifying the house. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is also a Hindu, has pushed for the protection of the animal. Many states in India have long banned the slaughter of cows for meat.

Many people have recommended cow urine as a remedy to prevent and treat COVID-19 and many other diseases. India is also looking to encourage the production of toothpaste, shampoo and mosquito repellent from cow waste.