Walking with the Masai

‘Jump with us! Jump with us!’ the warriors called from the top of the anthill. So, up I went. Perched on a thin ridge between them, it was more precarious than I’d hoped – but they tied a cloak around me, handed me a club, and I jumped.

We’d met our two guides at the hotel with the Masai greeting ‘Sopa’ and walked the mile or so to their village, as other Masai men joined us. They identified plants along the way; the Sandpaper plant with leaves like Fine grade, Morning Glory whose leaves cool you, another to rub on as insect repellent and one that produces the red dye used in Masai clothing.

I walked with Sassini – and I asked him why his hair was in dreadlocks when all his colleagues had shaved heads. All those that live in the village shave their heads: men, women and children alike. But when boys reach 15 years, they are circumcised in a special ceremony and then sent into the bush for at least 3 years – they mustn’t return to the village. And to show pain or discomfort during the circumcision brings shame on their family. ‘While in the bush, we grow our hair. Our head isn’t shaved again until we marry.’

Sassini explains traditions

‘So you are not married?’

‘No, but soon... My parents will arrange a dowry, usually 4 or 5 cattle, with the girl’s family and then there will be a marriage ceremony. I will get my own hut in the village and start a family.’

‘So, you have a girlfriend?’

‘No, I’ve seen a girl I like and have spoken to my parents but I’m not allowed to speak to her.’

Goat Corral

Eventually we reach the village of around 200 people, all descendants of Sassini’s grandfather, a fenced collection of huts built around a central square. The Masai are herders and during the day take their cattle and goats out into the bush – we’d seen them grazing alongside the elephants and wildebeest. But at night, they bring them into the centre of the village to protect them from predators – the goats are particularly vulnerable and are kept in corrals of thorny acacia to protect them from leopards. But still, a leopard got in three times in the last month and killed goats.

The men are generally the herders; the women seem to do everything else. It’s women that build the huts, driving stakes into the ground to form a square, weaving branches between them and then packing the walls with a mixture of mud, straw and dung. They are small – even I had to duck to go inside. There is a small room for very young animals then a central fire pit beside the parent’s bed and a bedroom for the children. The houses gradually deteriorate so that every 9 years or so, the entire village moves and is rebuilt elsewhere. ‘But we don’t move far – the school is a permanent building and the children still need to walk there.’

Sassini sat beside the fire in his parent’s house and explained that children stay with their parents until they are six and then go to live with their grandparents to learn the Masai traditions. But, they all go to school from this age, boys and girls, where they learn English, Swahili and their own language, as well as math, etc.

Masai women dance with Carol

Every morning, they drink a mixture of milk and blood, both drawn from cattle. It occurred to me I’d like to try a taste, but I thought better of it! As we sat, a small child came in from school. ‘Is this your brother?’ I asked Sassini. “No, it’s my sister!”

As we enter the village, the men group together and start to sing: a pulsating drone, like the buzz of a summer’s day. Then, one at a time, they step forward and leap up and down. Each one jumps a metre or so off the ground. This dancing is usually reserved for special occasions and seems very competitive. The women sing and dance too and invite Carol to join in.

I ask Sassini how they protect their animals from predators. ‘It’s our life, he says, but we look at it as a game. We are fierce warriors.’ Nevertheless they are forbidden from killing any female animal. ‘We would have to face the elders to explain our actions and they are unlikely to forgive us.’

It was sunset as we left the village, with herders bringing the animals in for the night, hoping to keep the leopards at bay…

Bob jumps with Masai Warriors