Now THAT’S a bullwhip! Dozens lash each other with dried bull penises in 400-year-old Nicaraguan tradition
- ‘Chinegros’ battles see rivals whip each other in the name of their town’s saint
Every year in Nicaragua dozens take part in a bizarre ritual which sees them whip each other with dried bull penises, lashing their opponents until they concede – all in the name of their town’s patron saint.
Whether to atone for their sins or for a taste of adrenalin, the four-centuries-old religious tradition is known as the dance of the ‘chinegros’, and can be performed by men, children and some women.
It is held to mark Saint John the Baptist’s day in San Juan de Oriente, a municipality in the south of the Central American country.
Challengers, who don’t wear protective gear and are sometimes topless, lash each other with ‘chilillos’, which are made with the dissected penis of a bull.
Videos from the event show how the weapon is capable of ripping a piece of skin on contact, with scores of competitors sustaining cuts and other injuries from the battles which huge crowds gather to watch.
Challengers, who don’t wear protective gear and are sometimes topless, lash eachother with ‘chilillos’, which are made with the dissected penis of a bull
Some suffered from cuts and bruises to their heads after they faced off against opponents with no protective gear
One man sustained sever bruising during his battle, which he proudly showed to the cameras
The makeshift whips are almost like swords, featuring what can be described hand guards
Challengers lunge at each other and keep fighting until one cannot bare the pain and gives up
The chilillos are capable of tearing a person’s skin on contact, with fighters sustaining cuts and
The makeshift whips are almost like swords, featuring what can be described hand guards which are seemingly made out of leather – the only protection offered to fighters.
Footage shows male fighters lashing each other with the homemade weapons – and some coming out of the battles worse than others.
Deep cuts and even scars can be seen on the backs of fighters, who are face off and bare the pain until one of them concedes, raising their chilillo in the air to surrender.
The violent dance is believed to have been performed in the town, which is of indigenous origin, since 1585.
Video shows male fighters lashing each other with the homemade weapons as crowds gather
Noel Amilcar Gallegos, a Chinegros researcher of more than 20 years, explained that a whip is seen as a sacrifice dedicated to Saint John
Around 60 per cent of its 3,000 inhabitants are said to have partaken in the sport during their lifetimes.
‘Apart from our tradition, it is part of our promises. Of course it hurts, but at the moment it is being forged,’ Julio Cesar Potosme, 36 – who has been fighting rivals for almost half his life – told news agency EFE at last year’s celebrations.
Noel Amilcar Gallegos, a Chinegros researcher of more than 20 years, explained that a whip is seen as a sacrifice dedicated to Saint John, La Prensa Latina reports.
Fighters were seen showing off their scars after the dramatic battles came to an end
Around 60 per cent of its 3,000 inhabitants are said to have partaken in the sport during their lifetimes
While some historians point to the name of the ritual as evidence it arrived with African slaves, Gallegos argues that it already existed in pre-colonial times before being adapted.
‘It was modified in the sense that it was no longer self-inflicted, but rather a contest, two people of the same size and possibly of the same age.
‘This was given in gratitude for a favor, to the patron saint,’ the researcher said.
‘It is a tradition of the people of San Juan, a tradition that we have been rooting since we were children. It is a game and it is a promise.
He added: ‘Anyone would say that it is a savagery, that this should not exist, but yes, only the people of San Juan have this.’
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