Jeshyn Day in Herat. 4B019
- Categories
- Special Collections > Blair Brainard Peace Corps in Afghanistan Photographic Collection
- Subject
- Jeshyn--Herat--Afghanistan
- Identifier
- Brainard_4B019.jpg
- Description
- This was a demonstration of Buzkashee. Buzkashee was considered the national game of Afghanistan. Generally it was performed in the north of Afghanistan among the Uzbek, Turkoman, and other Central Asian tribes living in Afghanistan. It was not local to Herat at all, but nonetheless very interesting. Buzkashee literally means dragging or pulling (kashee) the goat (buz). The game is played with two teams on horseback and a headless goat in the center of the field. The object of the game is to pick-up the goat and carry it to the other teams goal and drop it there. Of course the other team tries to take the goat away from the first team and drop in in their goal. There aren't many, if any rules to the game, and as you can imagine it can get pretty rough, at least as rough as pro football before people got worried about concussions.
