Pacu Jawi

Padang is located in Indonesia, on the west of Sumatra Island. Every year after the rice harvest, the villagers hold a series of festivals, among which Pacu Jawi is the most exciting and popular. The history of bull racing dates back hundreds of years, and it is much-anticipated entertainment for the simple villagers.

"Pacu" in Indonesian, or more precisely in the Minangkabau language, means "racing", while "Jawi" means "bull".

The race is held four times a year in four districts, namely Paraigan, Rambatan, Lima Kaum, and Sungai Tarab.

After the location is decided by the chiefs, the selected district council will arrange everything to welcome the participants from each district.

On the day of the competition, the bulls are dressed up, with their names on their necks. After a worship ceremony, they are brought to the arena to prepare for the competition.

A pair of bulls are led to the starting point. The farmers steady the bulls, hang the ploughs on them, then tie the two ploughs with a rope. The rider then steps onto the plough. When he is ready, at the rider's call, the farmers let go, and the pair of bulls dash forward as if their lives depended on it. To make the bulls run faster, the rider reaches out, catches the bulls by the tail, puts it in his mouth, and bites it. When the bulls feel the pain, they run faster.

Interestingly, the race is not about speed and strength. It is about making sure the pair of bulls keep their balance and run parallel to the finish line, while the rider does his best to pose for the crowd. With mud splashing around at high speed, it is not easy for the rider to balance himself on his bare feet, and it is even more challenging to strike a beautiful pose. As a result, the rider and the bulls create many exciting moments, some thrilling, some wonderful, and some funny, causing the audience to laugh. It is highly entertaining.

When the event starts, villagers young and old from the surrounding area go to the arena, which has been transformed from a rice paddy into the racing track. It is a lively location, with children running around, vendors, spectators, and traditional music playing over the loudspeakers. The whole event feels like a carnival. It is worth mentioning that there can be nearly 500 to 800 bulls competing at the peak of the race, so it is easy to imagine the atmosphere.

The bull race is also a time for traders and farmers to conduct business, to sell and buy livestock. Bulls that often win the competition can rise to more than twice the market price. The status of the rider and the bulls is also elevated.

Traditionally, the significance of the bull race was not only to provide entertainment for the villagers, but also to bring the residents of each prefecture together and promote social integration. In addition, merchants use the opportunity to do business, improve economic activity, and achieve several social development goals. More importantly, bull racing is becoming increasingly popular among domestic and foreign photographers, as well as cultural workers. It has become a new selling point for tourism, thus promoting tourism.

Photographing bull racing is tense and exciting, especially when standing face to face with the bulls. The situation is more "dangerous". When the bulls rush towards the photographer, in an instant, you have to focus, compose, and press the shutter. It is more exciting than words can describe, and you have to experience it yourself to understand. Unfortunately, sometimes accidents arise from the excitement, such as when a bull runs into the crowd. When people panic and run around, collisions can occur. Interestingly, after that, the audience will gather again and continue watching the race. There have been many occasions where photographers were knocked down by bulls, resulting in injuries. In one more serious incident, a bull's horn pierced through a photographer's belly and killed the photographer. Thankfully, such incidents rarely happen anymore. The authorities have set up a safety perimeter, and the audience and photographers cannot step into it.

Interestingly, in order to get a good angle, as the saying goes, "take the bull by its horn", photographers are still willing to take the risk.

Minangkabau

Padang is also the birthplace of the Minangkabau, who are the main ethnic group there. "Minang" means "victory" in Malay, and "Kabau" means buffalo.

Minangkabau is a matrilineal society, which means that in a family, the mother or grandmother is in charge of many things. To this day, many families in Padang still follow this system.

There is a very interesting history behind the name Minangkabau.

According to legend, this was a place where the Javanese and Minangkabau fought over land. After some deliberation between the two sides, they came up with a different way to settle the dispute. Instead of the usual sword-fighting war, they decided to use two buffaloes to fight each other. Whichever side's buffalo won would have the right to own the land.

The Javanese chose a very strong buffalo, while the Minangkabau chose a young, unweaned buffalo. On the eve of the competition, the Minangkabau starved the young buffalo for a few days and then tied two very sharp knives to its horns.

When the two buffaloes met, the little buffalo was so hungry that it thought the big buffalo had milk to satisfy its hunger. It immediately lunged forward and stabbed the sharp knives into the big buffalo's stomach, killing it.

Victory went to the wise strategy of the Minangkabau people.

This legend is still popular today and has had a profound impact on Minangkabau culture. Their roofs are built like the sharp horns of a buffalo; hence the allusion.