From the history of “Gushingiri”

Among people of Tajik origin, the battle for the belt is known by different names. In addition to kushti, wrestling, wrestling, chukhain is also a popular sport with other names. In particular, it is associated with the interpretations of “Ilonhost” among the Ossetians, “zuronpatula” among the people of Western Kurdistan, “kurash” in Uzbekistan, “kures” in Kazakhstan and in Kyrgyzstan, and “kamari” among the peoples of Azerbaijan and the Caucasus, “kesting” or “kestingiri” among the Vakhon-Badakhshan peoples of Tajikistan, “kosti” or “kostin” is popular among the Bartang people, GBAO and other names of struggle referring to different languages and peoples in different regions of the Asian continent.

Gushtingiri or Gushtin itself is derived from the Sanskrit word “kushti” which means belt. During the time of Zoroastrianism, the Zoroastrian belt was called Kushti. The origin of this word comes from kushtigiri or wrestling for the belt.

Kushti or gushtin means taking the belt from each other, which gradually turned into gushtin and gushtigiri. In the Pahlavi language this word is pronounced and used in the form of “kustig”, and in the Tajik language in the form of kushti and today as “gushtin”.

In many historical sources the fight of two people, two wrestlers is called kushti, which comes from the word kushtigiri.

It should be noted that Pahlavani fighters have always had their status of a symbol of heroism, fighters against oppression and slavery in the oral art of the people and works of poets and writers. For example, Abu Ali ibn Sino (Avicenna) in his famous work “Al-Qanon” tells about the benefits of treatment by physical exercises, including wrestling: “A person who regularly engages in physical exercises does not need any medicine”. That is, gushtingiri in Tajik civilization is a treatment for a strong body, spirit and courage of a person.

This sport has an ancient history and plays a special role in the development of upbringing and education of the people. In Tajikistan, the first rule of Gushtingiri was developed in 1963 by Y.Y. Abramov. During 1993-2022, the Gushtingiri rules were completely changed at the request of the countries of the region. On June 22, 2022, the International Gushingiri Federation was organized and registered in Zurich, Switzerland. It is hoped that the new International Gushingiri Rules can provide a sound basis for the further development of Gushingiri as a national sport in the world.

Muhammad Abdurahman is a professor.