A tribal ceremony during which young women are whipped in order to show the sacrifices they make for men is revealed in a series of photographs, according to a report by Dailymail.
The strange ceremony takes place among the Hamar tribe people of Ethiopia. According to the people of the tribe, scars demonstrate a woman's capacity for love, and if they fall on hard times later in life it allows them to call on those who whipped them for help.
After the ceremony the boy becomes a man, and is allowed to marry.
The brutal tradition is known as Ukuli Bula, and was captured by photographer Jeremy Hunter. Instead of fleeing, women beg men to whip them again during the ceremony, held in the Omo River Valley.
A key element of the ceremony is the whipping of young women who are family members or relatives of the boy undertaking the Rite-of-Passage.
The women trumpet and sing, extolling the virtues of the Jumper, declaring their love for him and for their desire to be marked by the whip.
They coat their bodies with butter to lessen the effect of the whipping which is only carried out by Maza - those who have already undergone this Rite-of-Passage.
The ceremony tends to unite the family and is a demonstration of the womenís capacity for love, and in later life - perhaps when they've become widowed - they will look to the boys who whipped them years before to request help.
The scars on her back are said to be proof of her sacrifice for the man, and it is therefore impossible for the man to refuse her needs in hard times or emergencies.
Hamar women of the Lower Omo Valley, Southern Ethiopia willingly submit themselves to be whipped during the ceremony of Ukuli Bula .
To reach manhood, Hamar boys must undergo two rituals: circumcision and a leap over the bulls. This determines whether the young Hamar male is ready to make the social jump from youth to adulthood.
After a successful bull-jump - always naked - the Hamar boy, now a Maz - a mature member of the society - may get married.
At every ceremony around two hundred members of the Hamar (also spelt Hamer) participate in this life-changing event.
source:tori news
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