In the Ticuna Indian tribe, when a girl first begins to menstruate, she it separated from the rest of the tribe, and sequestered in a small room where only the elder women of the tribe are allowed to see her. They spend the time there educating her about the myths, history and stories of the tribe - a process that can take up to six months.
After that is finished, she is painted entirely black, and the symbol of her clan is painted on her chest. Then, all of her hair is pulled out by hand (though, in more recent years, the girls have the option of simply having their hair shorn). She emerges from the room, and it dressed in traditional garments; her eyes are covered, and then begins the four day period in which she is not allowed to sleep at all. During the day, as the tribe sings and chants and plays all sorts of instruments as she (assisted by a man on either side of her) continuously jumps back and forth over a campfire.
At the end of the four days, she and an infant from the tribe are carried to the river and placed in it, to represent the symbolic cleanse of her childhood. After this, she is officially considered an adult.
No comments:
Post a Comment