Enduring physical torture, dueling with lions, jumping from a height of 30m, wearing gloves full of poisonous ants… are terrifying adult rites for men.
Torture: The Mandan tribe of North Dakota has a holiday called Okipa that celebrates the creation of the earth. During this festival, 8-year-old boys will undergo painful rituals to mark the first step into becoming a real man. They had to fast for many days, then hung with ropes hooked to their bodies. Whoever endures it without much struggle will become one of the chieftains of the Mandan.
Killing serfs: According to Spartan tradition, young men are trained in combat skills for 10 years. Then, at the age of 17, they had to undergo one final ritual. These young men were released into an area to stalk and kill any serfs or slaves. Those who fail will be punished by whipping or other torture methods.
Lion Fighting: The Masaai tradition of lion fighting in Kenya and Tanzania has ceased to exist, but before that, the only way to become a real man was to stab a lion to death. . Young men will have to be circumcised, then go in groups or alone to hunt and kill a lion.
Experiencing hallucinations: The Algonqui force young men to use large amounts of poisons that affect their bodies and minds, those who pass through this ritual while still sober are considered qualified as a real man. They were quarantined for 20 days and ate a powerful hallucinogen called Wysoccan. This substance sometimes causes amnesia, symbolizing the erasure of childhood memories.
Pointed stick fighting : Male members of the Fulani tribe of West Africa are recognized as adults only after participating in a sharp stick fight. Each person will use a knife to sharpen the tip of the stick, then face another person. The player will have 3 attacks, whoever attacks the hardest and groans the least wins. The loser must perform this ritual again if he wants to be recognized by the tribe.
Wearing Poison Ant Gloves: The Satare-Mawe tribe in the Brazilian Amazon insert dozens of bullet ants (ants so poisonous that their bites hurt like bullets) into a glove made of leaves. Teenagers must wear these gloves and endure the bites for 10 minutes, repeated 19 times if they want to be recognized as adults. Often the pain will persist for many months after the ritual is complete.
Carving crocodile scales on people: With the people living next to the Sepik River in Papua New Guinea, teenagers will only be considered adults after suffering cuts that leave scars in the shape of crocodile scales. This tribe believes that the crocodile god will swallow all the immature things of a teenager, and spit out a real man. In addition, the teenagers had to undergo a ritual to strengthen their spirits, in which they were called and treated like a woman.
Bungee jumping with forest rope: Teenage boys of the Vanuatu tribe living on Pentecost Island have to perform a ritual to jump from a 30m high tower to the ground with only a forest rope tied to their feet. The closer they get to the ground, the more appreciated they are. Many people have been seriously injured or even killed after this terrifying coming-of-age ceremony.
Blood Ritual: The Matausa people of Papua New Guinea perform many rituals to ward off female influences on men. Teenagers had to poke a thin reed in their throats to vomit out all that was in their stomachs, and then a similar reed was inserted into their noses to flush out the bad effects. In the end, they suffered multiple stab wounds to their tongues, allowing the blood to purify them and become real men, inheriting the power of their fathers.