TITLE: A Game of Buzkashi

Buzkashi is a favorite game of the Tajik people living on the high, dry Pamir plateau, between the Pamir and Karakoram mountains in the Himalayas. It is played on horseback on a vast, ill-defined plain, "the pitch", to celebrate an important village event -- in this case a wedding. The objective is for one of the riders, "the players", to get the carcase of a ram (minus its head), 'the ball', into a pit, "the goal", at either end of the pitch -- other players attempt to block the player with the ball and/or to steal the ball from him. A player who achieves this gets a prize from "the Sponsors" -- in this case the parents of the bride and groom. The game is fast-moving, rough, and the rules appear unclear and somewhat lax, yet it is a vibrant element of the community, little changed for centuries, and an exciting spectacle set against the backdrop of the snow-covered peaks.

AUTHOR: John Eaton (United States)