Coming up first time: Yabusame-Tent Pegging Horseshow, an equestrian event of Japanese, Indian horseback mounted martial arts
Yabusame - Japanese horse-back mounted archery is an 800-year-old ritual in Japan. An archer dressed in samurai hunting clothes and riding a galloping horse has a few seconds to fire arrows. Tent pegging is an Indian cavalry sport of ancient origin.
NEW DELHI: For the first time, India would witness a combined horseshow performance of Japanese traditional martial art Yabusame featuring an archer dressed in Samurai firing arrows at targets from a galloping horse, and India’s Tent pegging, a cavalry sport of ancient origin widely played in India. To be organised on December 18 at the Army Polo and Riding Club (APRC) Ground in New Delhi this year, the Yabusame-Tent Pegging Horseshow is a fusion of equestrian events originating from Japan and India.
Yabusame is an 800-year-old ritual in Japan. In this a horse gallops, carrying an archer dressed in samurai hunting clothes. They only have a few seconds to fire three arrows. Cheers erupt when the sound of an arrow hitting wood signals success. This is all part of the thrill of Yabusame, Japanese mounted archery.
According to Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), Yabusame, established in the 12th century, is both a martial art and entertainment for the deities. This Shinto activity is usually held at shrines, but in Tsuwano, in the remote mountains of Shimane Prefecture, is the only place in Japan with a surviving, single-purpose Yabusame ground.
A regular feature in Japan, the stone-faced embankment running the length of the course is crowned with pine trees and cherry trees, and the festival takes place when the cherry blossoms are near their peak.
Yabusame-Tent Pegging Horseshow is the closing event in the series of events the Steering Committee of 70th Anniversary of the Establishment of Japan-India Diplomatic Relations has been organising during the current year. The year 2022 is being celebrated as 70th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between India and Japan. The committee includes representation from the Embassy of Japan in India, Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry India (JCCII), Japan Foundation New Delhi, Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) New Delhi, JICA India Office, and NTD Delhi Office.
Yabusame-Tent Pegging Horseshow aims to commemorate the long-standing establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and India. Their strong association across 70 years has created some inspiring moments and memories while building a long-term partnership together. With shared values, enduring trust, and convergence of interests, India and Japan now look forward to embarking on a journey that will continue inspiring peers for a shared prosperity.
India’s Tent pegging is a cavalry sport of ancient origin widely played in India. This fast and dramatic sport, in which riders carrying a lance or sword must spear and pick up a peg from the ground while at full gallop, can truly be said to belong to Asia.
According to the Equestrian Federation of India, the Cavalrymen have practised the game since at the least the 4th Century BC, and Asian empires were responsible for introducing the sport to other parts of the world. By all accounts the sport developed as a cavalry training exercise designed to develop a soldier’s prowess with sword and lance from the back of his horse, but what is less certain is whether it was used as a general training method or for a specific combat situation. The tests rarely involved jumping obstacles, though participants may well have had to negotiate ditches and rivers on their long rides.
