Used as a form of initiation into adulthood and a sign of beauty or membership of a specific clan, scarification is a way for tribes to wear their identities on their faces. The ceremony is a process ...

IBADAN, Nigeria — The wail of 6-week-old Quari Babaola cut through the air like the blade that had just sliced through his chin. His mother Kafilat shuddered but kept a determined grip on the tiny ...

'Emmanuel finally lifts the smoldering stick, preparing to sear human flesh. I suck air and try to look cool.... It’s time to receive the mark of the Maasai.' MALULA, TANZANIA – I’m on my knees, ...

It would not involve tortuous scarification, the filing of teeth, circumcision, or the use of mind-altering drugs, but the idea of a universal coming-of-age ritual that ushers young people into ...