YANGON, Sept 5 — In a country consumed by conflict, a sport defined by brutality dominates: Myanmar’s lethwei martial art, where headbutts are encouraged and knock-out blows are the aim of the game.

“I can’t live without fighting,” said 19-year-old Su Luck, who enters the ring under the paradoxical pseudonym “Peace Prize”.

“I have never once considered giving up this passion,” she said.

Lethwei is traditional Burmese boxing, distinct from Thai kickboxing because head blows are permitted and fighters compete bareknuckle, fists protected only with wraps of thin gauze.

It is known as the “Art of Nine Limbs” because each contenders’ two fists, elbows, knees and feet as well as head are considered viable weapons to take down opponents.

In a country where many have been dragged into the five-year-old civil war, the popularity of a tooth-and-nail national sport is obvious to some.

“It’s not only a sport, it’s our art of self-defence,” said veteran fighter and coach Saw Kyaw Thein Tuu.

“Guns are of no use if they run out of bullets on the battlefield,” the 73-year-old added.

“This art will help them defend and fight enemies anytime.”

But others find the ring not a training ground for hostility but a space for the zen of self-improvement.

“Even when I take hits to the face, I accept it as my own weakness, as a sign that I still have more to learn,” said Su Luck, who dreams of becoming a schoolteacher.

She is a rising star in the sport, which is dominated by men.

“I never think I’ve become perfect,” Su Luck added.