Wednesday, May 31, 2006
The Masked Marauders
Masked men have been running through my city chanting, beating drums and evoking their natural right to beat anyone with a three foot long stick. Some masks are crudely made out of cardboard while others are more ornate. There are 12 separate groups of masked marauders and each group consists of nearly 100 men. These groups make the community cower in fear which is principally due to the aforementioned beatings; though there is some talk that they possess unnatural spirits which one is wise to avoid. Somehow the combination of spirits and beatings bring rain though I can’t say that I understand it - but then again, I didn’t major in meteorology.
I described these people as masked men but the term ‘men’ is a very liberal interpretation. In truth, the majority of this group is made children and young adults. If I were to estimate the percentage breakdown, I would say: 20% ages 3-9; 40% ages 10 -17; 30% ages 17 -24; 10% ages 25 and up. For imagery’s sake I invite you to picture 100 masked teenagers running through the neighborhood at 9pm chanting and yelling and waiting to beat someone to the point of drawing blood – should s/he be unfortunate enough to be caught outside their house.
It should also be stated that this is an ancient tradition that has the full support of the community.
What is described above is the Ciconsi, a right of passage into manhood that is considerably more extreme than a bar mitzvah. Each seven, nine, or eleven years (depending of the community) males wishing to become men take to the sacred wilderness for nearly three months. During these three months they sleep in the elements, learn the histories and traditions of the tribe and are ritualistically circumcised. During these three months communication is cut to anyone not inside their group. The participants including, children as young as three years old, leave their families and loved ones for three months. Participants postpone work, school, family and anything else that conflicts with this passage to manhood. During the end of this time they return at night for the running, chanting and beatings. At the end of the three months the members of the Circonsi returned to town during the day and lead a procession to mango tree and shaded area enclosed by a straw fence. The newly made men were all veiled as they entered the enclosed circle. It was at this time that the ceremony began, mothers and wives flooded into the enclosed area and attempted to find their loved one by finding the right covered person to unveil.
It was an exciting and truly joyous event for the participating family’s as they were now reunited with children they had not seen for three months. The participants truly vary in age from the very young to the very old, though I was struck at how many children there were. More to the point, the ceremony left me shocked at the number of mothers who willing let there three year old go into the wilderness for three months to be placed in the care of a relatively small number of responsible adults. Understandably, cultural norms are different and perhaps it is not entirely fair to judge traditions from an outside perspective, but I cannot help making the comparison.
While I was at the ceremony I tried to picture a soccer mom sending her little seven year old to live in the woods for three months to brave the elements and isolation with only several guys over twenty-five. This just could not happen in America. I recall mothers crying as they put their 12 year old on a bus for a two week summer camp. Mothers cry as their 18 year old leaves for a college two hours away, even though the child is assured to visit regularly and is equipped with a cell phone and internet, which make constant communication easy.
The idea of leaving a kid in the wilderness is extreme in any case and a bit more dangerous in Africa on account of the things that live in the wilderness. But maybe there is some method to their madness. Instead of keeping the youngsters extra close while they are young, they send them out into the wilderness. Instead of fighting the transition from dependence to maturity young adults are content and respect their parents in a way that went out of style in the 60’s. Instead of moving thousands of miles away to a poor country in a less than stable region of West Africa against their parents wishes, young adults choose to live with and help support their family; and instead of disregarding the elderly they are held in the highest esteem. I do not want to finish this entry with any big comparison or insight into which value structure is better or more important- because such a broad question can never be answered with meaningful results, so instead I will end with my approach toward child rearing that I may one day employ: I will neither send my kid into the African Bush to fend for himself nor coddle them in. Maybe if I can instill this notion of moderation they’ll stay away from inner-city schools and the third world of West-Africa.*
*The last sentence is a subtle joke referencing the paths my sister and I took in spite/or because of great parenting
I described these people as masked men but the term ‘men’ is a very liberal interpretation. In truth, the majority of this group is made children and young adults. If I were to estimate the percentage breakdown, I would say: 20% ages 3-9; 40% ages 10 -17; 30% ages 17 -24; 10% ages 25 and up. For imagery’s sake I invite you to picture 100 masked teenagers running through the neighborhood at 9pm chanting and yelling and waiting to beat someone to the point of drawing blood – should s/he be unfortunate enough to be caught outside their house.
It should also be stated that this is an ancient tradition that has the full support of the community.
What is described above is the Ciconsi, a right of passage into manhood that is considerably more extreme than a bar mitzvah. Each seven, nine, or eleven years (depending of the community) males wishing to become men take to the sacred wilderness for nearly three months. During these three months they sleep in the elements, learn the histories and traditions of the tribe and are ritualistically circumcised. During these three months communication is cut to anyone not inside their group. The participants including, children as young as three years old, leave their families and loved ones for three months. Participants postpone work, school, family and anything else that conflicts with this passage to manhood. During the end of this time they return at night for the running, chanting and beatings. At the end of the three months the members of the Circonsi returned to town during the day and lead a procession to mango tree and shaded area enclosed by a straw fence. The newly made men were all veiled as they entered the enclosed circle. It was at this time that the ceremony began, mothers and wives flooded into the enclosed area and attempted to find their loved one by finding the right covered person to unveil.
It was an exciting and truly joyous event for the participating family’s as they were now reunited with children they had not seen for three months. The participants truly vary in age from the very young to the very old, though I was struck at how many children there were. More to the point, the ceremony left me shocked at the number of mothers who willing let there three year old go into the wilderness for three months to be placed in the care of a relatively small number of responsible adults. Understandably, cultural norms are different and perhaps it is not entirely fair to judge traditions from an outside perspective, but I cannot help making the comparison.
While I was at the ceremony I tried to picture a soccer mom sending her little seven year old to live in the woods for three months to brave the elements and isolation with only several guys over twenty-five. This just could not happen in America. I recall mothers crying as they put their 12 year old on a bus for a two week summer camp. Mothers cry as their 18 year old leaves for a college two hours away, even though the child is assured to visit regularly and is equipped with a cell phone and internet, which make constant communication easy.
The idea of leaving a kid in the wilderness is extreme in any case and a bit more dangerous in Africa on account of the things that live in the wilderness. But maybe there is some method to their madness. Instead of keeping the youngsters extra close while they are young, they send them out into the wilderness. Instead of fighting the transition from dependence to maturity young adults are content and respect their parents in a way that went out of style in the 60’s. Instead of moving thousands of miles away to a poor country in a less than stable region of West Africa against their parents wishes, young adults choose to live with and help support their family; and instead of disregarding the elderly they are held in the highest esteem. I do not want to finish this entry with any big comparison or insight into which value structure is better or more important- because such a broad question can never be answered with meaningful results, so instead I will end with my approach toward child rearing that I may one day employ: I will neither send my kid into the African Bush to fend for himself nor coddle them in. Maybe if I can instill this notion of moderation they’ll stay away from inner-city schools and the third world of West-Africa.*
*The last sentence is a subtle joke referencing the paths my sister and I took in spite/or because of great parenting
