Rewriting tradition with compassion, not cruelty

Tradition is often used to justify cruelty towards our fellow animals. People defend harmful practices by calling them cultural, religious, or national customs, as though that makes them unchangeable. Some of these traditions go back generations, but that doesn’t mean they should continue.

Traditions change. They always have.

Take Christmas. What began as Saturnalia, a Roman winter festival of feasting and gift-giving, was later absorbed into Christian celebrations. Over the centuries, it has been reshaped by religion, monarchy, marketing, and mass media. Today, countless people mark the season with Christmas jumpers, crackers, or Mariah Carey playlists.

Few of us would link any of that to ancient Roman rites – but that’s the nature of tradition. It adapts, and we adapt with it.

Across the world, people are starting to question customs that harm non-human animals and discovering that it’s possible to preserve what matters without causing suffering.

Let’s take a closer look.

When tradition causes harm

When thinking of a tradition that causes harm to our animal kin, many of us turn our thoughts to bullfighting – a ritualised form of animal suffering where bulls are taunted, stabbed, and eventually killed in front of a crowd.

The type of bullfighting most people are familiar with is Spanish-style, currently legal in Spain, Portugal, southern France, Mexico, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, and – for now – Colombia (where a full ban is set to come into effect in 2027).

Spanish bullfighting is often romanticised as a “dance of death” between a human matador and a powerful bull. But the reality is far from a fair contest.

Each bullfight unfolds over three distinct stages, known as “Acts.” From the outset, the odds are stacked against the bull.

First, picadors on horseback drive long lances into the bull’s neck muscles, causing deep wounds and significant blood loss. Then, banderilleros plunge barbed sticks into the bull’s back, further weakening him.

By the time the matador enters for the final act, the bull is no longer a formidable opponent as he is disorientated, exhausted, and severely injured.

Supporters describe bullfighting as art. But there’s little bravery in facing an animal who has been systematically broken down. Critics call it what it is – torture dressed up as tradition.

Each year, tens of thousands of bulls are forced to endure this violence in the name of entertainment and cultural identity.

Animal advocates have pushed back for years. In some Spanish regions, including Catalonia and the Canary Islands, bullfighting has been banned. But in other parts of Spain and across Latin America, authorities have been reluctant to commit to an outright ban, often citing cultural heritage and economic impact.

In 2024, Mexico City introduced a new law requiring bullfights to be bloodless – replacing sharp weapons with harmless props. Under the new rules, bulls can no longer be injured or killed in the ring.

It’s a step forward, but not a complete victory. Even without bloodshed, bulls will still suffer from fear, stress, exhaustion, and the unnatural conditions of performance. Swapping real violence for symbolic spectacle may reduce harm – but it doesn’t eliminate it. Still, it does signify a culture shift.

Suffering in the name of spirituality

Bullfighting isn’t the only ritualised practice where animals are made to suffer in the name of tradition. Around the world, similar concerns arise in spiritual and religious observances. These are a few examples:

Gadhimai Festival, Nepal

The Gadhimai festival began around 1759 and is one of the world’s largest religious animal sacrifices. Held every five years in southern Nepal, the festival has historically involved the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of animals – buffaloes, goats, chickens, pigeons and more – to honour Gadhimai, the goddess of power. Participants believe that the sacrifices can end evil and bring prosperity.

​Over recent decades, the Gadhimai Festival has drawn significant international criticism. In 2009, an estimated half a million animals were murdered during the festival. Campaigners and organisations such as the Humane Society International India helped to halve these numbers to a quarter of a million in 2014 and 2019.

In 2014, the Supreme Court of India directed the Indian Government to make it illegal for animals to transported across the border into Nepal for slaughter in Gadhimai. Later, in 2019, the Supreme Court of Nepal ruled to ban live animal sacrifices at the festival. However, these rulings have been largely ignored.

In 2024, thousands of buffaloes, goats, and pigeons were slaughtered at Gadhimai, despite Supreme Court rulings against live animal sacrifice. Investigators reported around 1,500 buffaloes killed inside the temple, with thousands more animals dying nearby – often behind high fences and smoke screens.

The resurgence of mass sacrifices at Gadhimai highlights the challenges in reconciling deeply rooted cultural traditions with evolving perspectives on animal rights.

Eid al-Adha, Global – and other religious and cultural holidays

In Islamic tradition, Eid al-Adha involves the slaughter (Qurbani) of animals such as sheep, goats, or cows to commemorate Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son in obedience to God. The flesh is typically distributed among family, friends, and those in need.

This religious observance is sacred to many, but it has also prompted reflection and discussion – both within and outside Muslim communities – about the ethical implications of animal sacrifice (this video explores many of the key considerations in depth).

Some Muslims have proposed symbolic forms of Qurbani, such as donating money or plant-based food to the poor, as a more compassionate expression of the festival’s values of generosity and devotion.

Others have raised ethical concerns about the realities of modern supply chains. In countries where industrial animal agriculture dominates, the Eid sacrifice can unwittingly support systems involving long-distance transport, rough handling, and overcrowding.

These concerns are not unique to Eid al-Adha.

In many parts of the world, other religious and cultural holidays also involve the killing of animals on an industrial scale – it’s just not talked about as directly. Millions of turkeys are slaughtered each year at Christmas. Lambs, most less than six months old, are a traditional part of Easter meals. Fishes are eaten in vast numbers during Lent.

It’s easy to single out the visible rituals of one religion, but harder to examine the quiet, everyday normalisation of animal suffering within other religions and traditions.

Recognising these parallels doesn’t diminish anyone’s beliefs, but it invites us all to ask the same question: how can we honour the values behind our traditions without harming our fellow beings?

Kapparot, United States and Israel

Kapparot is a ritual performed by some Orthodox Jewish communities before Yom Kippur. Traditionally, participants would swing a chicken or rooster over their heads before killing them as a symbolic transfer of sins.

Jewish and non-Jewish animal welfare advocates and rabbis have challenged this practice, arguing that cruelty has no place in religious observance. Many now perform the ritual using money instead of animals, donating it to charity after the symbolic act.

Animal offerings in Shinto and other ancestral traditions

In parts of Japan, Korea and China, ancestral and Shinto traditions have included animal offerings, such as the sacrifice of pigs. These practices are fading in many regions, replaced by symbolic food offerings made of rice, fruit or tofu.

However, some cultural events and traditions persist.

Yulin Dog Meat Festival, China

While not a religious festival, the Yulin Lychee and Dog Meat Festival is framed as a cultural event by some supporters. Thousands of dogs are killed and eaten during the festival, often under horrific conditions.

This event is relatively new – the Humane Society reports that dog flesh traders set it up as a commercial event in 2009 to reverse their dwindling sales.

Public opinion in China is shifting. Surveys suggest a growing majority oppose the consumption of dog and cat flesh (both of which are currently consumed by some throughout the year). Activists rescue dogs each year, and the government has signalled changes – removing dogs from the official list of ‘livestock’ animals. The future of the festival remains uncertain, but the pressure is mounting.

Jallikattu, Tamil Nadu, India

Jallikattu is a bull-taming sport held during the Pongal festival in Tamil Nadu. Bulls are released into a crowd of men who try to grab their humps and ride them or wrestle them to the ground. The animals are often frightened, injured or even killed.

Despite a Supreme Court ban in 2014 on grounds of cruelty, the sport was reinstated following mass protests – locals say it is an ancient tradition “symbolic of Tamilian pride”. Animal rights organisations continue to campaign for its abolition or reform.

Finding cruelty-free alternatives

So how can communities honour tradition without harming our fellow animals?

It’s not a simple shift.

Many cultures see the abuse or killing of animals in ritual or celebratory contexts as necessary, meaningful, and even virtuous. These acts are tied to identity, pride, strength, courage, belonging. “It’s how we’ve always done it” can carry a powerful emotional and cultural weight.

For some, questioning these practices feels like questioning an entire way of life.

And when calls for change come from outside a community, they’re often met with suspicion. There are vital conversations to be had about cultural imperialism or multiculturalism and animal ethics. There’s also a danger of focusing on minority group practices that harm our animal kin, when mainstream cultural practices cause widespread suffering every single day.

We must try to look at the full picture.

Across every culture, faith, and region, people from within ask the same questions. People who understand the history, who live the traditions – and who are working to change them from the inside. Often quietly. Often at great personal cost.

This isn’t about one group imposing values on another.

It’s about acknowledging that any one culture doesn’t own compassion, and that care for our fellow beings can transcend borders, beliefs, and backgrounds. It’s also about recognising that evolving a tradition doesn’t erase it. It can renew it.

The good news is that change is already happening. Here are some examples:

Robotic elephants in Kerala, India

Elephants have long been used in religious festivals in Kerala, where they are paraded through the streets, adorned with decorative gear. But behind the scenes, many elephants suffer severe abuse.

In 2023, a Kerala temple made headlines by replacing its live elephant with a life-sized mechanical one. The robotic elephant was built by animal rights groups and allowed the spectacle to continue without harming any living beings.

This symbolic step showed that technology and compassion can work together.

Bloodless bullfighting in Mexico City

We’ve already touched on this above, but in Mexico City, bloodless bullfighting means matadors now perform with fake weapons in a choreographed event that retains the ceremonial feel of the spectacle without real violence.

Although there have been mixed reactions to this shift, it is an important statement that there are ways to preserve cultural identity without cruelty.

Reimagining the Kots Kaal Pato festival, Mexico

In Citilcum, the Kots Kaal Pato festival was once known for stringing live animals – ducks and iguanas – onto piñatas and throwing them from heights.

Following criticism, protests, and efforts from the Humane Society International Mexico, the town revamped the event. It now features sports competitions and music, celebrating community without harming animals.

Symbolic religious sacrifices

As mentioned earlier, many religious rituals involving animal sacrifice have moved towards symbolic alternatives:

• During Eid, some families now make financial donations instead of slaughter.
• In Kapparot, participants swing coins rather than chickens.
• In Nepal, temple authorities at Gadhimai have encouraged worshippers to offer coconuts, pumpkins, and other symbolic substitutes.

These shifts don’t strip rituals of their meaning. They reinforce the underlying values – compassion, community, generosity, reverence – without bloodshed.

Community celebrations with plant-based foods

In many parts of the world, festivals are beginning to shift their focus from animal-based feasts to plant-based celebrations:

• More harvest and seasonal festivals in the UK and the US feature vegan food stalls and cooking demos.
• Buddhist temples in Taiwan and Thailand often host vegetarian festivals, such as the Nine Emperor Gods Festival, which has become a popular public event.
• In Ethiopia, Orthodox Christians fast from animal-derived products for long periods, with communal meals based on pulses, grains and vegetables.

Changing traditions

Even deeply embedded traditions can change. It often starts with individuals inside the culture who ask different questions:

• Is this still who we want to be?
• Can we honour our ancestors while doing better for future generations?
• What values are we trying to protect, and is there a better way to do so?

These are powerful starting points. They allow tradition to become a living dialogue, not a fixed script.

What you can do

If you belong to a community that practices traditions involving animal cruelty (and most of us do):

• Start conversations. Ask how your tradition might be adapted.
• Offer examples from similar cultures that have changed.
• Suggest symbolic or plant-based alternatives.
• Focus on the values behind the tradition – respect, gratitude, renewal – and how they could be expressed without harm.

If you’re outside those communities:

• Listen first. Learn the cultural and spiritual meanings behind the practice.
• Support local advocates who are leading the change.
• Share stories of positive change, not just criticism.
• Avoid condemnation. Focus on compassion and curiosity.

Conclusion

Tradition doesn’t excuse cruelty – and cruelty doesn’t have to be part of tradition.

All around the world, people are finding new ways to honour their customs without harming our fellow animals. They’re choosing robotic elephants over captive ones. Offering coconuts instead of goats. Dancing in the streets rather than killing in the name of culture.

These changes don’t erase tradition. They evolve it. They show that the heart of a ritual can remain, even as the practice becomes kinder.

So, the next time someone says, “It’s what we’ve always done,” try asking:
What are we really trying to preserve – and could we do it with compassion instead?