Limelight The last bullfight By Lubna Abdel Aziz Resplendent in his magnificent red and gold satin 'traje de luces' (suit of lights), amidst a flourish of trumpets, he marched on to the Plaza del Toros. The hysterical crowds fell silent as they spotted their adored sun god amongst the parade of footmen. He seemed the same -- confident, defiant, impeccable as usual in his white shirt, narrow red tie, red sash knotted at the waist, pink knee-high stockings, black ballet-style slippers, black astrakhan two-cornered hat and of course the symbolic pig-tail coleta attached to his hair, denoting matador, the star bullfighter. Today however, it was to be clipped, for the legendary El Cordobés, was to fight his last bullfight. It was June 1st 2002 when, at La Corrida in Nimes, France, El Cordobés, bade farewell to his multitude of aficionados. His son, Manuel stepped up to the centre of the arena to clip his father's coleta -- El Cordobés has retired. The crowds burst into one hysterical scream. The Spanish world, extending from the South of France, the Iberian Peninsula all the way to Latin America is in mourning. It was a long and exciting journey for Spain's premier bullfighter, Manuel Benitez Perez, who at 66, seemed half his age. He grew up in Palma del Rio, near Cordoba, hence his nickname, El Cordobés -- the man from Cordoba. In April 1957 at the Madrid arena, the security guards rushed to arrest a young espontaneo, a spontaneous bullfighter who jumped across the barriers to face the bull. No one knew then that he was to be the future king of the bullring for almost half a century. What is it, this bullfighting? Is it an art -- this primitive and cruel encounter between man and beast unique to the Spanish world! Historians trace it to pre-historic days when early man hunted animals for his survival. Why has it flourished in the Iberian Peninsula and its dominions alone? The answer remains inconclusive, mystifying. Some classicists believe that for hundreds of years, herds of fierce toros bravos, or brave bulls, roamed wild in Iberia. Iberian tribes in pre- historic Spain may have used bulls in their religious ceremonies. The Romans imported them for Coliseum spectacles because of their ferocity. Others claim it was the Arabs, not the Romans who stimulated the sport, supposedly around 1090 when El Cid Campeador fought in the first organised bull festival. It quickly caught on, becoming a favourite pastime by Christians, Arabs, nobles and kings. No feast was complete without bullfighting. Others claim it was a Celtic custom brought to the islands when the Celts invaded it 200 BC, and bulls were sacrificed to the gods in their temple. We know for a fact that bullfighting took place on the island of Crete 2000 BC, but there is no trace of it today. Whatever the origins, no other people adopted it and retained it to this day, except the Spanish. Why the Bull? Surely it is a madman who will face a 550- kilogramme beast and fight it to the kill. Perhaps weary of wars and killing one another, Spanish noblemen looked around in search of other prey. Their Iberian Peninsula was rich with wild animals, but the real challenge came from this awesome beast, as noble and as brave as its adversary, who would rather die fighting than flee. Conceivably, that is how, in a remote corner of mediaeval Spain, the national and unique spectacle of bullfighting was born. Not everyone engaged in or thrilled at the spectacle. Pope Pious V was appalled at the unconscionable carnage and forbade the practice in 1567. Though deeply religious, the people ignored the Papal decree. Fray Luis de Leon, mystic writer and philosopher wrote to the Pope: "The bullfights are in the blood of the Spanish people and they cannot be stopped without grave consequences." The new Pope, Gregory XIII was forced to recant the decree in 1572. Tauro-machia (bullfighting) could not be stopped. The first professional fighter of historic significance was a man of humble origins, Francisco Romero in 1726. The people transformed this simple man into a legend whose skills are still praised in popular ballads to this day. Other legends followed: Romero, Rafael, Molinari, Belmonte, Joselito "El Gallo", Manolete, Dominguin, Ordonez and now El Cordobés. Franco prohibited women from becoming matadors, but following his death in 1975, with 'women's lib' sprouting everywhere, it was not long before women joined the bullring. Female matadors have been few; most famous among them Christina Sanchez retired after a couple of seasons in 1999 because her male counterparts proved crueler than the bull, refusing even to share billing with her. Celebrated in their every form of art, novels, films, music, song and the fine arts, Spanish painters such as Dali, de Goya, Picasso, have created great paintings honoring the bullfight. Writers from other lands, such as Ernest Hemingway were bewitched by the art and spirit of the sport. After watching his first bullfight in 1923, it became the reigning passion of Hemingway's life. His manifesto on bullfighting Death in the Afternoon is considered the bible of the sport. His novel The Sun Also Rises, adapted for the screen in 1957, with Tyrone Power and Ava Gardner, describes his post-war expatriates following the bulls and the bullfighters throughout Spain. Tyrone Power had previously portrayed a matador, Juan Gallardo in Rouben Mamoulian's classic Blood and Sand (1941), with screen siren Rita Hayworth as Dona Sol, based on the novel by Vincent Blasco Ibanez.. So, what is this thing called bullfighting? Mario Carrion, a bullfighter himself, describes it thus: "As he would in dancing, the bullfighter must control his movements, maintaining the rhythm, not of music, but of danger. It is a show of human skill and courage versus sheer brute force." It is indeed a show, the grandest, most spectacular, exciting show with music, costumes, skill, valour and a winner at the end. A mistake could mean death to the star of the show. Cries of Olé are for the manner, the form, the grace, the wit, the dexterity of the performance. The killing of the bull is of little consequence. At the close of the spectacle, the matador performs the terce del muerte -- the finale of the show -- the death of the bull. The matador is then applauded, "showered with flowers, hats, cushions, and anything else at hand". They wave white handkerchiefs, signalling the president to award the matador with a trophy -- an ear, or two, or a tail. Sometimes if the bull is exceptionally brave or strong and the matador is unable to kill it, the bull may be spared, allowed to return to its stud farm to live out its life in peace and comfort. And so it is with El Cordobés, one of the lucky ones, able to retire after years of glory and live in luxury and splendour with his French wife Martine, his children and grandchildren. Bullfighting? A show? A dance? A sport? A tradition? Celtic in origin? Phoenician? Greek? Roman? Carthaginian? Arab? All have conquered Spain throughout its recorded history, yet none of these peoples have adopted an activity remotely related to the bullfight. Spain itself, a Western European country, despite the Pyrenes Mountains' barrier to land travel, shares its language of Latin roots with France, Italy and Portugal, but retains a unique character of its own in customs, dance, music, costumes, foods and of course, the bullfight. Still, why in Spain men die trying to kill a bull is puzzling. Defenders claim that the rest of the world kills hundreds of bulls a day in order to eat them. Spain remains unique, colourful, enchanting with its sunny climate, fabulous Mediterranean beaches, fairy tale alcazars (castles), flamenco dances and above all, its spectacular bullfights which will continue to exist long after El Cordobés.
