By Dr. Sinclair N. Grey III

Anyone who is a student of different cultures will have to conclude that American customs and traditions are vastly different from many places throughout the world. With that said, one can never say that one’s culture is more superior to another, especially when one doesn’t understand what makes other cultures so different. Traditions and rituals are passed down from generation to generation and without the American people understanding the purpose of certain traditions and rituals, they will remain in the dark.

For example, in the Surma tribe in Ethiopia, young girls as early as 12-years-old undergo a scarring ceremony in order to be beautiful. That’s right, they are sliced as part of a ceremony.

In a story published in the Daily Mail, “Young girls are being cut with knives and razor blades to create prominent scars considered beautiful in tribal societies in Ethiopia.”

Photographer Eric Lafforgue witnessed a 12-year-old girl undergoing the ceremony. Lafforgue said the girl’s skin was stretched for 10 minutes while her mother was cutting it with a razor blade. The expression on the girl’s face was stoic and when he asked her about the pain, the girl said ‘she was close to collapse.’

“A girl’s eagerness to tolerate pain is also seen as an indication of her emotional maturity and willingness to bear children, Mr. Lafforgue said after spending time with the tribe.”

Note: Scarification is considered different from female genital mutilation.

Those within the Surma tribe consider scarification a form of art.

Once the scarring takes place, some of the girls will seek to make the scarring more prominent by agitating it.

“Across Ethiopia other tribes also practice scarification, with Bodi women using metal to scar their bodies, often producing coil patterns around their shoulders.”

What seems odd to one group isn’t odd to another. Even though many Americans cannot grasp the concept of scarification, they must respect cultures, customs, and traditions.

Source

Dr. Sinclair N. Grey III is a speaker, author, and success coach. Contact him at www.sinclairgrey.org drgrey@sinclairgrey.org or on Twitter @drsinclairgrey.org

