Japan - Horimono

In Japanese medieval times, criminals would be branded with a tattoo on their forehead to show society that they are criminals. Criminals later on would form a gang known as the Yakuza. It is like the Italian mafia only it's the Japanese version. Today, the Yakuza hold a special tradition where they wear tattoos on their whole body, called a Horimono. The tattoos are meant to bring fear and to show others how much pain they could bear. It shows their strength and perseverance. These tattoos are not only feared, but they are also praised for their beauty and intricate patterns. It can take up to ten years and tens of thousands of dollars to complete a Horimono. Hope you guys enjoy this video

Thailand - Do's & Don'ts

Although the population of Thailand are very tolerant people, there are many 'do's and don'ts that visitors need to remember when in the country.

First of all, public affection is frowned upon, it goes as far as holding hands, but no more than that. Secondly, you cannot touch anyone on the head, as the head is seen as the highest part of the body, literally and figuratively, and because of this, it is also a very bad thing to sit or step on a pillow as that is where the head lies. It is also considered rude to point the sole of your foot at another person, so if you're sitting down, you cannot have your sole facing out; this is because the sole of your foot is the lowest part of your body, and therefore considered to be taboo.

Of course, the same good manners that are employed in your own country, are also considered good manners in Thailand too, the obvious ones being to say thank you, or help people when needed. However some extra taboos are things such as, taking off your shoes before entering a home or especially a temple, don't ever disrespect the royal family as they are considered very high in status, and avoid getting angry over anything, as that is seen as very rude and disrespectful.

Thailand - Pa Dong Tribe

In Thailand, there is a traditional tribe where the women are known as Giraffe women because of their unique necks caused by the coil of the rings. This tribe has taken refuge in the country in order to avoid persecution from the Burmese government. As you watch the video below, you will get to know the details of why they are being persecuted. The Pa Dong tribe are humble and kind people. Their refuge in Thailand has lead them to become a tourist destination, where foreigners are intrigued by their customs. The girls are the only ones who wear the neck rings. They start this process when they are young because their bones are most flexible. The girls do this as they believe that beauty is worth the pain. The long neck look is an illusion. This is because the the heavy rings around their neck pushes the shoulder down, and therefore the neck looks elongated. The rings are a tribal identity for the women. The women don't see that the rings prevent them to who they might be but rather the rings represent who they are. Hope you all enjoy this video.

Indian head wobble

Every culture and race comes with a certain stereotype. These stereotypes can be used to identify who we are. We can have a laugh about it, and similar to our other post about Russians and their vodka we have decided to focus on an amazing phenomenon known as the Indian head wobble.

The head wobble is like a body language that Indians use to communicate. You can say several things with just a simple head wobble, for example, a fast and continuous head wobble means that the person really understands. The more vigorous the wobbling, the more understanding there is. A quick wobble from side to side means "yes" or "alright". A slow soft wobble, sometimes accompanied by a smile, is a sign of friendship.

There are also a lot of other dialects in India, but fortunately for them, with a simple gesture of the head wobble people instantly understand what this act means; actions do speak louder then words after all.

For more details about this topic please follow the link below.

Eunuchs In India

Life isn't as always 'straight' as we want it to be.


Life may seem confusing, even more so when we talk about gender. It is assumed that everyone is born to be a boy or a girl. When they grow up they conform to societies expectations.

But what if you were born between this line of gender, or later in life you may find yourself steering off this path.

This leads itself to another realm.

Today's post delves itself into another realm as I came across an article on Eunuchs. Eunuchs are people, generally males who have castrated their manhood in order to become a woman. On some cases it can be about baby boys who were born with a dysfunctional genitalia.

Like all occupations, they hold a status in our society. In India, Eunuchs have an occupation that stems into the tradition and value belief systems of its society. They play a vital role and are paid handsomely for their work, which is having a duty to give blessings at weddings and new births.
 
The following article talks more into detail about Eunuchs history.


http://www.thingsasian.com/stories-photos/2022

Witch doctors

Who do you go to when you're feeling sick and in need for medical advice? Who do you go to see when you have financial and personal problems? In our society we often have someone for everything. Teachers to teach students. Accountants to deal with our money. Mechanics to deal with our cars and so on.

In African societies, witch doctors are part of their daily lives. We may feel skeptical about them and may not believe in witch doctors because of its practices which conflicts with science.

The following article tells us a chilling story about a the owner of a farm and how he went bankrupt. He also provides details about witch doctors and their practices. It opens up a discussion and lets us get involve with the debate.

For example, if the practices of the witch doctors do not work then how else did people back in the medieval times get through?

Hope you enjoy the article just as much as we did. Tell us what you think.

http://www.squidoo.com/africanwitchdoctors

Marriage in Africa

In today's post we will look at marriage customs within a particular tribe in Africa.

The Wundabi tribe annually hold a beauty contest for men as a custom for the women of the tribe to choose their husbands.

The family hierarchy in the tribe on the male side is not traditional when it comes to monogamy, but rather they are given the chance to try and win over another wife in this contest. From a feminist point of view this might seem outrageous, but surprisingly the women have the upper hand, and are allowed to find a new husband, however have to stay monogamous.

In this beauty contest, as featured in the video below, men must adorn themselves with make up, dance and dress up to show their masculinity and attractiveness. The women are the main audience and they choose who they want to be with.

It makes me think of all the cheesy pick up lines that guys would try to say to girls and how girls try to impress guys with their looks and personality. I think the Wundabi tribes way is much more entertaining and worth the effort.

Beauty in Africa

We'd just like to take note that this post is not aimed at generalizing the idea of beauty in African culture.

Our main focus for this post is on a video that we have come across about the Mursi Tribe of Southern Ethiopia. It features a woman exploring the tribes customs and values where she reveals the ideas behind the lip plate (see video below).

This lip plate is the tribes symbol for beauty, where the bigger the lip plate, the more beautiful you are.

In a way this parallels itself to western culture as well as we go from a simple piercing of the ears to extreme mutilation, for example having surgery to create elf ears, or more so as we know, the famous snake man and tiger man.

Bound Feet in China

I came across an article about an old custom where women in china had their feet bound. It was a custom that was outlawed in 1949 during the Cultural Revolution in China.

The bound feet had many meanings. Economically it meant that the women would be considered to be from a higher class and that she was also the property of the family. Socially the girl would be beautiful, the smaller the feet the more attractive and appealing she was.

What struck me the most was that the women would have to endure the pain as they wobbled to get from place to place, and needed help from others to get around. Above all, they were still expected to do the house work and take care of their children. This makes me value my feet more.

What do you think about this old tradition of class and beauty?

Click here for more information on bound feet