Ankeliya (Sri Lanka)
- Name of sport (game): Ankeliya
- Place of practice (continent, state, nation):
Sri Lanka (coastal area)
- History:
A game of hook tugging that has also become lesser known over the years. Similar to Porakeliya, this is a religious ritual for Goddess Pattini.
According to Robert Knox, the great sociologist of 17th-century Sri Lanka, it was a symbolic game that symbolized the sexual power of men. It seems that the men who symbolically unleashed their sexual energy in the presence of the Goddess Pattini worked tirelessly for themselves, thus seeking the happiness, comfort and prosperity they needed in their lives. It is a folk sport that aims to bring peace to the village, country and countryside, not just entertainment. - Description:
The game requires two teams, one of which represents Goddess Pattini and the other her spouse or another male deity. Both teams approach the other in the Angpitiya (tugging field) with a buffalo horn attached to each other. The teams tug at each other until the horn breaks. The team whose horn breaks first loses.
- Sources of information :
- Gallery:
