Each clan’s elders decide on the time for initiating their own sons,
and a bull is slaughtered at clan level to confirm with the others
on the time..
During the coming of age ceremony, boys are circumcised while
wearing and sitting on Red Maasai sheep skins;
As part of wedding ceremonies, the man must find a pure Red
Maasai sheep (signified by its red color, long ears and clear eyes)
and present it to his future Mother-in-Law who is then referred to
as “Paker”, literally meaning “the one who has been given sheep.”
Another sheep is slaughtered for the wedding;
The bride is given a calabash full of milk and a gourd that is filled
with the fat from a signet bull slaughtered to seal the wedding as
the bride will belong completely to the new husband. If the fat from
the bull is not enough then a Red Maasai Sheep Ram is slaughtered whose tail fat is used to fill the gourd. ; The bride drinks the
milk to assuage her fears about going to the new home and uses
the fat to moisture her skin with the fat to relax her.
When a child is born, a sheep is slaughtered, and when someone
dies, sheep or cattle fat is smeared on their mouths as a sign of
respect; and
When we slaughter for warriors, we choose only one color which
they say is straight, also when someone is sick, then they slaughter
an animal that is healthy, with all the eyes. There is a special steer
(castrated bull) is slaughtered and a part of the skin is used as an
ornament tied around the upper hand like a bungle, a good signifier of wealth we pride in. The color has to be accepted by the community and that it must have full ears, and intact eyes.
The Samburu
Community
Protocol about
the Samburu
Indigenous
Livestock Breeds
and their
Rights to their
Indigenous
Livestock Genetic
Resources and
Role in Global
Biodiversity
Management
Notably, whilst mixed breeds can be used in lean times, the pure indigenous breeds are more highly valued for use in our ceremonies.
Our culture and animal breeds are integral to who we are as a People.
Without our indigenous breeds we will have lost a critical part of our
collective bio-cultural heritage, and without our culture our indigenous
breeds are less likely to be conserved.
OUR WAY OF LIFE CONTRIBUTES TO THE
CONSERVATION OF IMPORTANT ENVIRONMENTAL
RESOURCES
We live in an area of the world that is incredibly rich in plants, wildlife
and other environmental resources. Many parts of the world used to be
populated by wild animals that ranged across the land, but have been
depopulated because of the actions of man. In contrast, wherever possible we live alongside important animals such as lions, elephants, zebras,
gazelles, klipspringers and wild dogs. Near watering holes and swampy
areas you will also see bustards, the world’s heaviest bird, as well as
hornbills and birds of prey such as eagles and waterbucks. The numbers
of tourists who come to admire our wildlife and to understand our culture
attest to the area’s cultural and biological diversity.
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