TINKU, THE RITUALISTIC COMBAT
Every year, at the beginning of May, the country folk from the north of Potosi meet for the Tinku.
Of Quechua origin, Tinku means ‘meeting, union, equilibrium', but it could also be used for 'combat', as we will see further on.
The purpose of these festivities, deeply anchored in the indigenous traditions of this region of the Altiplano, is to give praise to the gods of fruit to provide future successful harvests. First of all, Pachamana, goddess of the land, is honored as the giver of fertility, but, like in most parts of Bolivia, Jesus and the Holy Trinity also have their place in these celebrations.
The most famous Tinku happens in Macha, a small isolated village on the Altiplano, where some 3000 villagers meet.
They arrive on foot, dressed in their traditional costumes, of which the most singular element is, for men, the montera, a hard leather helmet which is a reminder of the copper helmet of the conquistadors.
For two to three days, they dance, sing, drink in excess and ...fight!
First, each community, accompanied by charangos (small little ten strings guitar) and zampoñas (panpipes) meets in the streets.
Women stand in the middle of a circle and as they starst the huayños (very high traditional songs), the men turn in a circle around the women around them stamping the ground rhythmically with their feet.
All the men, and most of the women take part in these celebrations, consuming large amounts of ‘puro' (almost pure alcohol), beer or chicha (corn alcohol). As the hours go by, people get drunker and drunker, and on the second day, fighting takes the place of the dancing.
In these fights, two men confront , surrounded by a circle of spectators. They fight each other, punching , flaying the arms wildly, trying to hit their opponent on the head or torso (some fighters carry a stone in their hand to give more strength to their punches).
These often very violent fights, can be judged in different ways.
From a traditional point of view, Tinku is a ceremonial rite, which unites more than separates. A fighter does not fight to squash the other one, they fight "to live", not "to the death".
From the physical confrontation of two persons arises life, which represents fertility and reproduction. The blood of the fighter is seen as a sacrifice, donated to the land, the mother, to fertilize, obtain favors and promise good future crops.
From a pragmatic point of view, Tinku is a space for social regulation, as it allows communities to solve disputes (personal rivalries or quarrels about land.)
In the last few days, violence becomes the norm and fights turn collective. Then only the police with teargas can dispel the participants.
Tinku is, to date, one of the most intact traditions of the Altiplano and, as such, arises a lot of curiosity, but the violence that is intrinsic to this festival can shock the traveler and make him feel like an intruder.
For all these reasons, Tinku cannot be seen as a tourist attraction, and we do not organize trips to the northern villages of Potosi at that time of the year.
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