Inbuan (Mizo Wrestling)
Traditional wrestling of the Mizo people from India's Mizoram. It is fought in three rounds, and kicking, leaving the marked area or bending the knees is not allowed.
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About Inbuan (Mizo Wrestling)
Inbuan is a traditional wrestling of the Mizo people from the Indian state of Mizoram. Irwin Lalmuanpuii Hnamte and Mercy K. Khaute write in an article for the Delhi Journal of Contemporary Law that its exact origin is not known. According to them, oral tradition links it to the time when the Mizo settled on the plains, and to a tale of two strong men who wrestled over an unyielding post when chief Fanai's house was built. The authors translate the original name Inbanphawi as lifting the post of a house foundation. According to the authors, written sources suggest that from 1871 to 1940 inbuan was a permanent night activity of young men. It was practised in the zawlbuku, the dormitory of unmarried men. After the zawlbuku declined, it became a youth sport at burial grounds. English Wikipedia places its beginning in the 13th to 14th century, when the Mizo came to the Burmese state of Chin, and mentions a match in the village of Dungtlang in 1750. According to Hnamte and Khaute, matches have three rounds of 30 to 60 seconds. Kicking, stepping out of the marked area and bending the knees are forbidden. They say a match is won by bringing the opponent to the ground and lifting is not required, but a round also ends when a wrestler is lifted off the ground.
History
Hnamte and Khaute state that the expression a inbuan means to wrestle in Mizo tradition and is used for evenly matched opponents. According to them, inbuan was a night exercise in the zawlbuku, the dormitory of unmarried men, in which married men and guests staying overnight also took part. According to the authors, written sources suggest that from 1871 to 1940 it was a permanent night activity of young men. After the zawlbuku declined, wrestling took place mainly at burial grounds during funeral gatherings. English Wikipedia places the beginning of inbuan in the 13th to 14th century, when the Mizo came to the Burmese state of Chin, and mentions a match in the village of Dungtlang in 1750. The website The Indian Tribal gives 1750 as the time when inbuan began to be played, and according to folklore every newcomer to a village had to wrestle its strongest man.
Technique
According to Hnamte and Khaute, wrestlers traditionally embraced each other and tried to lift the opponent. Later, for a more comfortable grip, a thick cloth belt around the waist came into use. According to the authors, skill matters more than strength, as a skilful wrestler can overcome a stronger opponent by steering his fall or working with the legs. The cry inban phawiin aw warns an opponent who uses excessive strength or too tight a grip. The website The Indian Tribal quotes a wrestler according to whom the legs can be used to loosen the opponent's grip, but kicking is strictly forbidden.
Training
According to Hnamte and Khaute, boys in the zawlbuku, the dormitory of unmarried men, were trained in wrestling and other skills. Inbuan was a night exercise there, in which married men also took part.
Competition
According to Hnamte and Khaute, a match is a duel of two players and winners advance by knockout. It has three rounds of 30 to 60 seconds, or ends when a wrestler is lifted off the ground. It is won by bringing the opponent down, and according to the authors lifting is not required. Kicking, stepping out of the marked area and bending the knees are forbidden. A whistle starts the match and replaced the traditional cry aw, aw, aw. The rules come from the 2008 rules of the Mizoram Wrestling Association. English Wikipedia, by contrast, states that whoever lifts the opponent off the ground wins, and that wrestling takes place in a circle 15 to 16 feet in diameter.
Today
According to Hnamte and Khaute, after Mizoram became a state inbuan was mainly a sport of festivals and special occasions, and state championships run by the government helped revive its popularity. The Mizoram Indigenous Games Association also organises competitions. According to the authors, the Indian government recognised inbuan for its cultural importance. The authors add that inbuan and other traditional Mizo sports are losing ground to modern sports, and propose a legal definition of traditional sports and their governing bodies.
Did you know
Hnamte and Khaute translate the original name Inbanphawi as lifting the post of a house foundation, and according to them inbuan gradually developed from it. In 1984 the Tribal Research Institute in Aizawl published a work on Mizo indigenous games in which every game, inbuan included, has its own chapter with rules.
Frequently asked questions
How is inbuan won?
According to Hnamte and Khaute's article, by bringing the opponent to the ground, lifting is not required, but a round also ends with a lift off the ground. English Wikipedia says whoever lifts the opponent wins.
What is forbidden in inbuan?
According to Hnamte and Khaute, kicking, stepping out of the marked area and bending the knees.
Where was inbuan practised in the past?
According to Hnamte and Khaute, in the zawlbuku, the dormitory of unmarried men, where it was a night exercise. After the zawlbuku declined, people wrestled mainly at burial grounds.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.