What is bullet ant ritual?
The Sateré-Mawé people of Brazil use intentional bullet ant stings as part of their initiation rites to become warriors. The ants are first rendered unconscious by submerging them in a natural sedative, and then 80 of them are woven into gloves made of leaves (which resembles a large oven mitt), stingers facing inward.
What tribe uses bullet ants?
Tribal Initiation – The indigenous tribe, The Satere-Mawe located in the Amazon Rainforest, use the Bullet Ant as an initiation ritual. For a boy to become a warrior, he must use the bullet ant stings intentionally.
Where does the bullet ant glove ritual take place?
Fortaleza
Fortaleza, Pará, Brazil—The ceremony begins in the village of Fortaleza, on the Andirá River. An old Sateré man blows smoke in woven straw gloves, full of tucandeira ants (Paraponera clavata), which can measure up to 2.5 centimeters in length.
Why is the bullet ant ritual important?
Basically, the bullet ant’s sting is rated as the most painful among all known insects. This ritual marks the transition into adulthood for the males of the tribe. Once hundreds of ants are gathered the ants are then brought to the tribe’s medicine man where he drugs them allowing him to place them in the woven gloves.
Why does bullet ant hurt so much?
Like others on this list, Bullet Ants are not instinctively aggressive, but become so when as a defense mechanism. Their sting releases poneratoxin, a neurotoxic peptide that causes severe muscle contractions, a burning sensation, and great pain.
Where is Sateré-Mawé?
The Sateré-Mawé live in the region of the mid Amazon River, on the border of the States of Amazonas and Pará.
What is Sateré-Mawé initiation?
The Sateré-Mawé Coming Of Age Tradition: Bullet Ant Initiation. When the boys in the Sateré-Mawé tribe turn 13, they enter the jungle to find and harvest bullet ants (around one-inch long) that will be used for the ceremony. A tribe leader then sedates the ants by submerging them in an herbal solution.
What is the Satere-Mawe bullet ant ritual?
The Satere-mawe Bullet Ant Ritual. 0. The Satere-Mawe is an indigenous Indian tribe located in the Amazon. I first heard of this tribe while watching ‘The Venom Hunter’ on the Discovery Channel. Within the Satere-Mawe tribe suffering stings from multiple bullet ants is a rite of passage to initiate young males into manhood (Lentz & Nash, n.d.).
Why did the Satere-Mawe use bullet ant stings?
The Satere-Mawe tribe of Brazil believes that every adult in the community must experience the worst pain the jungle has to offer and they use intentional bullet ant stings as a part of their ritual, which all the boys of the tribe should endure to be accepted as a man.
What do The Mawé believe about the bullet ant?
The Mawé believe that any boy who wants to become a man must experience the worst pain the jungle has to offer: the sting of Paraponera clavata, the bullet ant. The bullet ant is a species of ant with the most painful sting of any insect. True to its name, the ant supposedly has a sting that feels comparable to being shot with a bullet.
Are bullet ants more painful than a wasp?
The Sateré-Mawé tribe in Brazil have a ritual where they subject themselves to the sting of over 120 bullet ants, which have a sting 30 times more painful than that of a wasp.