11 STRANGE CULTURAL RITUALS AROUND THE WORLD

While some rituals are as simple as a solitary, private prayer, others, especially those involving a larger group, can be exceedingly violent and brutal. Here are some of the most strange taboo traditions from throughout the world. Please keep in mind that this list is not in any specific order.

Image of man practicing cannibalism and necrophagy

1. Cannibalism and Necrophagy The Aghori Babas of Varanasi, India, are famed for devouring the dead. They think that the biggest fear that humans experience is the fear of their own deaths, and that this fear is a barrier to spiritual enlightenment. By addressing it, one can reach enlightenment.

According to Hinduism, five persons cannot be cremated: holy men, children, pregnant or unmarried women, and those who died of leprosy or snake bites. These victims are set adrift down the Ganges, where the Aghori take them from the water and ritually devour them.

Image of Native Americans sun dance

2. The Sun Dance Native Americans are known to undertake a variety of ceremonies in honour of the Earth's spirits. The rituals are a way of praying to the Great Spirit and devoting oneself while maintaining intimate contact with the Tree of Life. The skin of the participants' chests is punctured with a skewer, and a rope ties the skewer to a pole that depicts the Tree of Life. The participants then wriggle back and forth in an attempt to remove themselves from the skewer, which, it should be noted, is still embedded in their flesh. This dance might take several hours to complete.

Image of man from the Shi’a sect of Islam carrying out the ritual of self-flagellation (getty images)

3. Self-Flagellation Every year during the Holy Month of Muharram, followers of the Shi'a branch of Islam perform the rite of mass self-flagellation to remember the martyrdom of Hussein, Prophet Muhammad's grandson. The guys lash their bodies with blades hooked to chains in what can only be described as a horrible show. They do not appear to feel the discomfort when in their religious trance.

Image of men preparing for Gkol (Bunlap vine jumping ritual) gotten from Carters News Agency

4. Vine Jumping Bunlap, a community on an island in the Pacific archipelago, has a peculiar ceremony called Gkol, or land-diving—a type of predecessor to bungee leaping. As males come up to volunteer for the leap, the people sing and dance together, while some beat drums. They wrap vines around their ankles and jump from extremely high wooden structures built just for this rite. The players, obviously unconcerned about the possibility of damaged bones, simply rush forward head-first. The vines tying to the tower break the fall. It is claimed that a higher jump ensures a larger blessing from the gods.

Image of woman allegedly possessed by evil spirits in south-western Nigeria (gotten from alarmy)

5. Voodoo and Spiritual Possession Vodoo is a religion practiced in some regions of West Africa. One of its ceremonies includes transforming someone into a vessel or medium. The individual in issue is led into the jungle to commune with the Earth Spirit, Sakpata. The spirit takes possession of the body, overwhelming the individual and rendering him or her unconscious. They stay in this state for three days without food or drink, until they are ultimately brought back to awareness following another round of ceremonies.

An image of a sky burial ritual taking place at Tibet.

6. Sky Burials Buddhists in Tibet undertake a peculiar religious ceremony known as Jhator, or sky burial. Buddhists believe in rebirth, which indicates that there is no need to keep a body after death because the soul has passed on to another place. As a result, the remains of the deceased are brought to open fields, generally at extremely high elevations, and left as alms for scavengers such as vultures. A professional chops the corpse into pieces and scatters it about to be digested in order to dispose of the body as rapidly as possible.

A man walking on fire for the Nine Emperor Gods Festival in Taoist

7. Fire Walking The Nine Emperor Gods Festival is a Taoist ceremony held in Penang, Malaysia. One of the purifying practices is walking barefoot over flaming coals. Because fire is said to cleanse impurities and expel bad forces, walking across it represents a man's power and determination to rid himself of evil. Hundreds of believers wade through the flames, sometimes carrying deities in a daring gesture.

An image of the Famadihana ritual in Madagascar.

8. Dancing With the Dead Famadihana, which translates as "The Turning of the Bones," is a traditional celebration held in Madagascar. Participants believe that the sooner the corpse decomposes, the quicker the spirit enters the afterlife. As a result, they dig up their loved ones, dance with their bodies around the grave to live music, and then rebury them. This strange practice is performed every two to seven years.

An image of two men during the impalement ritual in Phuket, Thailand.

9. Impaling A most severe rite takes place at the annual Vegetarian Festival in Phuket, Thailand. Participants in this incredibly violent sport are required to put spears, knives, swords, hooks, and even weapons through their cheeks. During the rite, gods are said to inhabit their bodies, protecting them from harm and providing good luck to the community.

An image of banana and corpse ashes (a ritual meal for the Yanomami people)

10. Death Rites The Amazonian Yanomami tribe is one of the world's most primitive. Death, in their opinion, is not a natural event. The corpse is burnt, and the ashes are mixed with fermented banana. The tribespeople then ingest this concoction to ensure that the spirit of the departed person lives on among them.

An image of a man's back with scarification marks.

11. Scarification

Kaningara tribe in Papua New Guinea undertakes a gory bodily modification ceremony to deepen the spiritual connection between them and their surroundings. One of these traditional events is performed in Haus Tambaran, also known as "The Spirit House." For two months, the teenagers live in solitude in Haus Tambaran. Following this period of seclusion, they prepare for an initiation ritual that marks their passage into manhood. Sharp pieces of bamboo are used to brand their bodies by a skilled cutter. The resultant designs resemble the skin of a crocodile, which is based on the belief that crocodiles are the creators of humanity. The markings represent the tooth marks left by the soul of the crocodile when it ate the young boy's body and vomited him as an adult.