Milk and sacrifice: a rare glimpse into a Maasai rite of passage

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In June, thousands of Maasai gathered in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania to celebrate Enkipaata, the first of three rites of passage every Maasai man must go through. Photographer MR, who asked to remain anonymous, was given rare access to the ceremony

MR in Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Main image: Kerika holds a black staff symbolising his role as a traditional leader, or alaigwanani. Photograph: MR

  • Thousands of Maasai gather in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in northern Tanzania in June to celebrate Enkipaata, the first of three rites of passage that every Maasai male must go through in his lifetime
    A large gathering of Maasai people outside carrying sticks and flags

  • Enkipaata, which means ‘going around in circles’ in the Maa language, is celebrated by the semi-nomadic herders every 17 to 20 years. The last one was held in 2007. More than 4,000 boys from villages in the conservation area, aged 9-18, took part this year. The ceremony begins their journey to adulthood
    A crowd of male Maasai line up next to a lake and mountains

  • After a period of singing and dancing and a night in the Ngorongoro crater, the boys walk to Oloirobi village where they are blessed by Maasai elders. The Maasai are facing eviction from the conservation area to make way for a game reserve. ‘Enkipaata is very important for us because it fosters a sense of cultural preservation and unites the entire community, building solidarity, understanding and a sense of belonging,’ says a Maasai elder, who requested anonymity
    A crowd is seen from a distance at the foot of a mountain

  • Kerika, 12, at the front of the line, has been selected to lead this year’s cohort of youngsters taking part in Enkipaata. He will lead this group for the rest of their lives, representing their views when important decisions are made among the Maasai community in the region
    A boy leads a line of male Maasai carrying sticks and flags

  • Kerika greets some of the younger boys going through Enkipaata
    A group of boys, two are shaking hands

  • Once the greetings are over, the boys head to the boma – a traditional Maasai compound – to receive a blessing
    A group of male Maasai

  • The blessing involves milk mixed with water and herbs being thrown over the boys
    Milk and water is thrown by two people over a boy at the front of a line of boys

  • When the three-day ceremony is finished the boys will be circumcised and will become warriors
    A group of male Maasai

  • A piece of sacrificed cow’s hide is placed on the middle finger of the boys’ hand, considered the most important moment of Enkipaata
    A small piece of cow hide is placed on a boy's finger.

  • Another part of the ceremony involves some of the youngest boys throwing cow dung at women who do not have children. It is believed that mud thrown by virgin boys will help them conceive
    Two women sitting on the ground are each cradled by another woman

  • Kerika is among the first boys to receive a plate of meat from a cow sacrificed for the ceremony
    A boy at the front of a line of boys holds out a plate to be filled

  • In about seven years Kerika will go through the Eunoto ceremony, which begins the transition from warrior to elder. At least another seven years after that, he will officially become a Maasai elder. Once all 4,000 boys have gone through all three rites of passage, another Enkipaati will be held. In 2018, the three initiation ceremonies were added to Unesco’s list of intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding
    A portrait of a boy

  • The ceremony ends in prayer and the boys head home. Those unable to travel to Ngorongoro for the ceremony can receive a blessing from one of the elders as they pass through their villages
    A crowd of Maasai people carrying sticks
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