Editors Only Story
Samburu Rites of Passage
2019
Circumcision ceremony marks the end of one generation and the beginning of the next for the Samburu in Kenya. Boys become men as the current morans or warriors become young elders. It takes place once every 15-20 years, where the Samburu gather for months far from their homes in their respective clans. The Samburu practice gerontocracy, where their society is governed by male elders. In order to gain respect in their community, the boys and men must move up the social hierarchy. Becoming a moran is one of the important stages in this process. The boys spend this time bonding with one another to strengthen kinship as age-old rituals take place, each doused with meaning.
During pre-circumcision, the initiates wear blackened sheepskin and gather as a unit to sing lebarta. It is a song announcing their readiness, and to obtain blessings from Ngai, their God. Some Morans enter a trance like state during this time as others support to avoid harm. Sharp tools in the temporary village are also blessed by the elders so that the cutting will go successfully without a flinch. A day before the circumcision, the boys step out of their daily shoes into handmade cowhide shoes for the remainder of the ceremonies. At the final stage before circumcision, the initiates sit over their past as their mother shaves off the last of their hair. The milk they cleanse their hair with is mixed with water collected from a sacred source from the mountains where they believe Ngai lives. The stool they bend over is their mother’s, carved and given to her by her husband at marriage. The grass they wear, also from the mountains, signify that they are pure and ready. It is a poignant moment when the boys bid farewell to their childhood before becoming a moran. When the circumcision is complete, two branches are erected at the entrance of their manyatta to mark that there are newly circumcised men in the household.
These images taken were that of L’Masula clan. The L’Masula are the first of the many clans to get initiated, as they are considered by the Samburu to be the keepers of tradition and closest to Ngai. I've formed a relationship with members of this community over the course of several years. But as a woman and an outsider, I was not allowed to be present at their circumcision. Days of discussions took place with the elders before permission was granted to photograph their pre-circumcision rituals. It was a pivotal moment when my presence became a part of the changes taking place in this community. Their decision had weight, and a reassuring gesture to balance tradition with what is steadily becoming a modernized community.
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