“It takes one day to destroy a house, but to build a new one will take a months; perhaps a year. If we destroy our own culture and ways of life to construct a new one, it will initially take a thousand of years (Maasai society statement).”
In many traditions/culture, the rite of passage is a process in which an individual experience movement or change from an affixed position in society to another position that an individuals can easily describe their change as a passage into a new realm of living. Therefore, adolescent is a time of transition from being a child to being seen as an adults whereby the male or female undergoes and experience dynamic changes to their physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and social being. Lerner et al, (2004, p.3), define adolescent as “a period of transition spanning the second decade of life during which a person’s biological, psychological, and social characteristics undergone change in an interrelated manner and the person goes from being childlike to adult like.”
For many cultures around the world, this stage in life is celebrate in a variety of ways, namely feasts, ceremonies and rituals. This is always an excited time for the youth as reaching this milestone in life, usually results in more independence, responsibility and sexual maturity. Although there are many ceremonies for the Maasai culture, the scope of this article will explore and focus primarily on their practices of circumcision, both sexes as an initiation rite of passage into an adulthood when these particular youth reach the puberty stages. In addition to the issue highlighted above, in this modern time, the Maasai traditions of female circumcision has generated much controversy especially in western world where this cultural practices is seen as “barbaric” and is seen as nothing more but a mutilation to the female genitalia. This issue will also be addressed and analyze in this paper.
The Maasai are East African people who live in Southern part of Kenya and Northern Tanzania. They are well known international because of their strong cultural system, powerful physical appearances, warrior reputation and colorful traditional dress. “Perhaps they are so well known because of their tall elegant muscular feature or their fierce, brave, stubborn and arrogant reputation or it may be because of their simple but distinctive appearance with ochre-covered warriors, proudly holding their spears and wearing their bright blood red shoulder cloak (shuka)” (beautiful warrior, 2001, p.25).
The Maasai tribal people are semi-nomadic cattle raising people who reside with many communities in Eastern Africa. They are an indigenous African tribe located primarily in Kenya and Tanzania (encyclopedia, p.105). They share the similar cultural tradition with other indigenous people throughout the world and in that, they still try to maintain their traditional way of life and believe. The following statement is a Maasai believes and gleaned from Maasai rituals (Encyclopedia, p.39). “It takes one day to destroy a house, but to build a new one will take months, perhaps years. If we destroy our way of life to construct a new one, it will take a thousand of years.”
This means that the Maasai people believe that the maintenances and perpetuation of their culture is very important to them, and that their culture has existed for many thousands of years. However, as we will soon see, they have experienced outside interference from western society because of their cultural practices. According to the Maasai tribal tradition, genital circumcision is often performed on both sexes as they reach the maturity age. To the Maasai young boys, the word emorate (circumcision) sounds like sweet erotic music loaded with promises of heroic deeds. It means the end of low-status of boyhood and the entrance into the world of the morans (warrior). From being hard work that enjoys very little respect, they rise to the top of society whereby people see you as a warrior. In this way, the boys become the young, strong, courageous, protectors and provider of their people. They become everything that every young man wherever he lives longs to be. After the act of circumcision, both boys and girls are to assume new responsibilities in their community including the right to marry, hold land and cattle for themselves. The boys generally look forward to this initiation rite as it means that they can prepare to become warriors.
Generally, Maasai male undergoes the rite of circumcision beginning in their early teens to late teens; it all depends on the consent of their elders and parents. Circumcision is a “removing of all or part of the foreskin of the penis usually with a knife” (O’Neil, 2004). There are many rituals a lad must partake in order to prove he is ready before the actual genital operation. Telirit ole Saitot, in his autobiography (Jenkins, 2003) explained that: “my father continued to tell us and every one of us kept quite. The pain you feel is a symbolic. There is a deeper meaning in all this. Circumcision means a break between childhood and adulthood. For the first time in your life you are regarded as a grown up, a complete man or woman. You will be expecting to give and not just to receive.” During the operation, the boys must be brave and must show no fear because being afraid will result in future negative consequences for those particular boys. For example, no one will choose a person who kicked the knife for a position of leadership (Jenkins, 2003).
After the boy is circumcised and heals from his operation, he receives gift and gain respect from the whole tribe, for his new status and courage. “The circumcision in the society usually heralds a whole new life, new dress and ornamentation, new behavior and a new freedom that the youth never had when they were boys or girls” (Johnson 1975, p.112). The ceremonies vary among the clans, but common to all is the fact that the boys are “shaved of hair on all parts of their bodies and all jewelry, body ornaments, and other objects they have fastened to their bodies are removed.” Therefore, they are stripped naked and ready for their rebirth into the adult world. They are then daubed in patterns of white chalk, red ochre and black charcoal, and spend the night dancing to celebrate the change while their girl-friends never move away from them, waiting for the change that will allow their boyfriends to declare an intention that may lead to strong future relationship or marrying.
Early in the day, an ox, goats and sheep from each boy’s family is slaughtered and everybody feasts. In preparation for the feasts, honey has been collected and also beer and traditional wine have been brewed. This is consumed in great quantities by the elders and the oldorobo circumciser; all of whom frequently become intoxicated to the point of unconsciousness. The mothers and the fathers of the boys usually start dancing from the sunset until the sunrise in the morning, chanting and singing the war songs all night long to celebrate the days their youngsters become men and warriors in society.
Although the other African societies considered the circumcision as the cleanliness or other purpose, the Maasai people’s circumcision has a great different, it has a great value that mean a break between a childhood to adulthood whereby an individual will be respected and considered as a mature and a complete man or woman. You will be expected to help other and not just to be helped. You must protect your family and not just to be protected, and your wise judgment will for the first time, be taken into consideration in society (merker, 1904, p.62-3).
Female circumcision has long been a part of the lives of many young Muslim, Christian, Jewish and other African girls. It has different significant transition or its an important event or achievement, both regarded as having great meaning in live of an individual. The Maasai girls are often circumcised during puberty as a rite of passage into adulthood. The circumcision for the girls involves the removal of all or part of external female genitals, such as “the cutting a way of the whole clitoris together with labia majora and the labia minora” (Whiting, 2003). Whiting goes on to say that “only a girl is circumcised to be considered ready for marriage and the community shuns those who refuse the procedure.” Unlike the boys, the girls are permitted to cry during the operation as their circumcision seem to be much severe than that of the boys. However, this traditional ritual of the female circumcision has generated much attention and controversy in recent years because western society deems this operation to be “barbaric” act imposed upon the female.
In the western world, Maasai female circumcision has become known as female Genital Mutilation (FGM) or Female Genital Cutting (FGC). The US department of state (2001) declared that “many Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are actively trying to eliminating these practices through education, awareness campaigns, legislative lobbying and advocacy for the alternatives rite of passage to adulthood for the young girls rather than this severe system.” The report goes on in states that “the united states, Netherlands, Austria and Germany have supported NGOs and other organizations in the campaign against the practices.” As a result of all this aggressive and persistent lobbying from western society, World Health organization and the national Governments to address the female circumcision issue, Kenyan government outlawed this traditional Maasai female initiation into adulthood. However, there is a resistant from the Maasai as the practices of female circumcision are still being performed secretly on the female youth despite the illegality and sanctions against it. Even though the Kenyan government recently banned the practices, parents are still risking jail terms and heavy fines to put their daughters through this rite of passage (Whiting, 2003).
Modern civilization is forcing many of these activities of Maasai, but the passage into manhood still remains a significant step even today. Rite of passage in the Maasai culture is difficult. However, the practices of female circumcision have come under fire from western society in recent time. Once again, western society, world health organization had determined what is “good” and what is “bad” for an indigenous people without consulting the Maasai tribal leaders for their opinions on the issue at hand. As usual, the outlawed practices go underground and performed secretly by those people who maintain their cultural customs, practices and identities. Therefore, it is very interested to note that an attempt by Kenyan government to stamp out these practices had failed primarily because of the fact that it is a Maasai women who defended the practices, not men.
The Maasai are still very proud and independent people who have survived despite incredible pressures but their greatest challenges remain ahead. Rite of passage or youth transition around the globe differ roughly in many culture/traditions. There are people who underwent this through smooth transition while there are some people whose their transition is very critical to the stage of adulthood, but some people still backing up their traditions/culture as an interested transition to adulthood though it’s very skeptical. Therefore, it’s very true that most societies in the world had different rite of passage and in most societies, rite of passage is an interesting period where changes are even seen visible by other as a true transition to the next step of life.
You can reach the author at peterreat@yahoo.com
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