BUNGY HISTORYThe First Generation:
Bungy as we know it all started with a small group of individuals who have been throwing themselves from huge towers for centuries with nothing more than a few vines tied to their feet - the people of Vanuatu in the Pacific.
Vanuatu:
'Land-diving' on Pentecost Island originated hundreds, perhaps thousands of years ago. Local legend has it that a woman who was repeatedly abused and mistreated by her husband Tamalie ran away from him, only to be caught time and time again, punished, then given more of the same treatment.
She finally climbed up one of the tallest banyan trees to escape from her husband's abuse, he following hard on her heels. When she reached the top she dared him to join her, mocking his cowardice. She then jumped out of the tree, having been smart enough to tie vines to her ankles beforehand. Tamalie, taunted by his wife's accusations of cowardice and not noticing the vines around her ankles, was astonished to see her land on her feet and threw himself after her - succeeding only in falling to his death.
The event was subsequently reconstructed annually, initially only including the village woman. Shortly after, the men took over in order to address their historical shaming and to prove their courage to the woman, and eventually the jump became the premier annual custom coinciding with the Yam harvest on Pentecost Island. Today the event is totally male-dominated. The tower is divided into twelve sections which represent the various parts of the human anatomy from the feet to the forehead - constructed over a period of 10 days - and this is where the final, supreme jump is performed.
To ward off evil spirits, including that of Tamalie, who is thought to reside in the tower until the jump is completed, jumpers sleep under the tower at night. While the construction of the tower is a communal effort, the process is supervised by a chosen "elite" individual who performs the penultimate dive from the highest part of the tower and in whose whose hands (or ankles!) the very success or failure of the yam harvest depends. The newly-circumcised younger boys jump from the lower levels in order to be attain the status of manhood while the more experienced divers work their way up higher every year.
Preparation of the vines is crucial as they are relied upon to save lives. If they are cut too long when fully stretched the diver will catapult into the ground, but if they are cut too short he will crash through the tower. So, they have to be precisely the right age, have the right amount of "give" and elasticity to enable the divers head to graze the softened earth 30 metres below without giving him a headache. They don't use calculators and officially there are no practice sessions; instead, years of custom calculations are used.
Before each dive, a ritual is performed during which the jumper can step down anytime without any shame and disgrace. After raising his hands to still a swaying, chanting crowd, the diver gives a short monologue on a personal or family matter that he is concerned about. After the speech, the singing, dancing and swaying crowd picks up the tempo. The jumper plucks a feather from his hair, releases some leaves from his belt and claps his hands above his head to announce he is ready.
Wearing nothing other than a penis sheath and the vines for protection he freefalls into space crossing his arms across his chest in a gesture of confidence as well as being the natural action of protection for the body. If his meticulous preparation is accurate the diving platform slowly collapses, the vines pull taut, his head clears the ground by inches and he lands safely on his feet to jubilant cheers from the crowd, having proven to everyone - especially the village woman - his heroism.
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