Lake Natron - Tanzania (Video)

Lake Natron is situated in East Africa, in northern Tanzania, on the border with Kenya. In the Lake - 56 kilometers in length and a width of 24 - salted warm water, making this beautiful pink flamingos nest. In the south- eastern shore of Lake Volcano is Gela height of about three kilometers. Once upon a time there lived hominids, the ancestors of modern man. Now in this fascinating its wild beauty along the shores of the lake edge of a tribe living Salei, which belong to the people of the Maasai.
In Tanzania, there are about 20,000. Salei live in a remote area with few roads. They, like all the Maasai are pastoralists and are at the expense of milk, blood and meat of cows and sheep. This is a semi- people who move from place to place in search of better pastures.

Salei tribe is divided into several groups, each of them are male or female about the same age.

Controlled most of the Masai in East Africa for several centuries. They achieved this through a strong army and the ability to fight. Legend has it that they adopted the techniques of war in Africa have lost Roman legion. Warrior caste has always been a privileged. Until now, this caste is preserved, although the Masai are now peaceful way of life.

Warriors at the age of 15 to 25 years living outside settlements in the field. There, they learn to hold a spear, bow and arrows and hunt. This army of Salei, which should always be in readiness in case of foreign attack.

Young soldiers are particularly beautiful costume jewelry and a lot of white beads and beads. Decorations include hand and foot bracelets, earrings, rings, nose, hair, beads, necklaces, belts, shoulder pads. A distinctive feature of the soldiers - long hair. Guys who could not grow hair, replace them chignon of long fibers, woven into braids.

After the ... Now they can stay in their own home and get married. This usually happens when the boys performed 20-25 years. To permanently give up the life of soldiers, they should take part in the ceremony, the existing eight centuries. During the ceremony, young men will dance war dances and war songs sung for the last time in my life.

Holiday Eunoto held every seven years. To it must prepare, gain strength. For this young taking part in the ritual Olpul. This feast of meat held in a secret canyon, where the rest of the tribe have no right to appear. Canyon is a narrow passage in the rocks at one end of which sparkles with a waterfall. Here the soldiers eat imatori, a special soup. Broth is thoroughly mixed with the milk and add herbal tincture. Masai imatori prepare for so many centuries and believe in it the secret of their valor. Recipe for herbal tinctures is kept secret and passed down from generation to generation.

This year a group of young soldiers commanded by the son of the leader - Nkorisa. He was twenty-two years. Nkorisa supervised preparation imatori. Eating meat, the young man talked about the future of family life.
... - It must be beautiful - with the white teeth, black gums and gently curved legs ... Well, these are the criteria of female beauty in tribal Salei. 20 -year-old Kupente reasoned like a child: ... Hearing these words, young men laughing.

CEREMONY EUNOTO.

The next day, after imatori eaten, the soldiers are going on a long journey. They will walk about a hundred miles around Lake Natron, along the foot of the volcano, Gela, which is called the Masai Mountain of God. They will go to a sacred place, Manayata. Here, many centuries is a sacred holiday Eunoto. The journey takes several days.

In Manayate young warriors must be cleansed from mortal works and prepare for the life of shepherds and fathers of families. Go to the next age category, called ilkiponi, symbolized by the shaving of the head. This makes the mother - young soldiers.

During the holiday watching the elders. Girlfriends of soldiers here, too. During Eunoto guys choose their wives.

The girls are ready to get married, are a special ritual circumcision, after which they put on the necklace in the form of large round hard collars.

Manners at the Maasai rather loose, they share their wives with men aged. If you come to a head of household members ( those who served with him in the ... It is true that a woman has the right to refuse to sleep with a friend of her husband if she did not like. Maasai have no such thing as jealousy. Nashura bride Nkorisy says simply: ... So I would be more fun, and all the work around the house difficult to perform one ...

Have excellent prospects Nkorisy. He inherits the family herd and eventually becomes the leader of a father. His friend, Mushuri, the situation is worse. He has not picked a bride. At his parents' eight children, but few cows and sheep - for the bride may not be enough, so that Mushuri, perhaps waiting for the fate of a bachelor.

SACRIFICE OF THE BLACK BULL.

At the ceremony Eunoto there about three thousand, eight hundred of these soldiers. The elders watch the proceedings, sitting on the dais. They have huge headwear of bright feathers and lion's mane.

Eunoto begins with the hunt. The soldiers try to kill a lion. Anyway, in the old days it was so. These days, the soldiers imitate hunting. One of them depicts a lion wearing a hat from the Lion's Mane. Others leap around him with spears.

By tradition, every soldier must kill a lion, but these days it is rare. Lions live in the reserve, and is forbidden to kill them. The authorities are allowed to kill a lion, only if their population increases, and the predators killing sheep Maasai.

Especially for Eunoto married men of the tribe build a so-called house Osingiry. This is a large round hut made ​​of clay. There are only entitled to enter the soldiers, not yet know the woman. The house Osingiry Leybon gives each soldier a drink sacred drink, infused with hallucinogenic plants. If you come into the house Osigiry young man who knew the woman, he will be cursed.

Boys take off jewelry that symbolize their belonging to the caste of warriors, and dismiss his long hair, especially for the second day of the holiday painted with red ocher. In the red -painted their bodies.

Then the boys start to dance, which is called impatiya. They jump and whirl. Soon they will exchange their spears into long sticks shepherds symbolize wisdom. During the dance, some young men fall into a state of trance ( embashonu ), which lasts a few minutes. Embashony helps to achieve the sacred drink, which the soldiers were drinking in the house Osingiry. Boys fall to the ground, their bodies shaking shiver, some breath flowing foam. Embashona passes as quickly as it starts.
At Lake Natron salt warm water, making this beautiful pink flamingos nest.