Bull Jump Ceremony by Tommaso Vecchi

The Bull Jump is a ritual which represents the rite of passage in the life of a young boy (Ukuli), who, from a child develops into a man (Maza). 

Magazine

Our printed editions, circulating throughout various galleries, festivals and agencies are dipped in creativity.

The spirit of DODHO’s printed edition is first and foremost an opportunity to connect with a photographic audience that values the beauty of print and those photographers exhibited within the pages of this magazine.

We invite professional and amateur photographers from all around the world to share their work in our printed edition.

https://www.dodho.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ban25e32.jpg

The Bull Jump is a ritual which represents the rite of passage in the life of a young boy (Ukuli), who, from a child develops into a man (Maza). 

One has to go through this process in order to get married. If he is successful, it means that the boy is responsible enough and ready to start his own family. The ceremony commences with a very long dance which lasts through a whole afternoon.  This is executed by the women of the village who are in some way or another related to the young Ukuli.  The dance is a veritable feast, with trumpets, rattles and chants. 

Once the dance is over it is then the turn of the village men who would have already successfully gone through this ritual. At this point, the tradition becomes visceral, for the women ask the men to whip them. The men consent, tearing flesh after every strike.  

The women are proud of the scars for these are symbolical of the strong bond between the women and their relatives. In fact, it is the women who ask to be whipped and it is also they who decide when to stop this brutal act. Subsequent to this, the young Ukuli is covered in sand and dung which is believed to give him strength.

Before the actual jump, there is another rite, one that features the village men who put their bracelets inside a long stick. With their hands joined, they need to get them out in one solitary effort. Unless they manage this, the ceremony is stalled.

Cows and bulls are then lined up and kept in position by the village men. The jumper needs to leap over them for four successive times without falling in order to be successful. After this endless ritual, the young Hamar is free to marry.  

The Ukuli, which means the young initiated man, after having jumped over the bulls successfully, becomes a Cherkari (a social phrase that is a sort of a brand name which he carries for just eight days). After this period he will move on to the Maza stage and remains at that phase until he gets married when he becomes a Danza, which is the official status of the married Hamer men.

Other Stories

stay in touch
Join our mailing list and we'll keep you up to date with all the latest stories, opportunities, calls and more.
We use Sendinblue as our marketing platform. By Clicking below to submit this form, you acknowledge that the information you provided will be transferred to Sendinblue for processing in accordance with their terms of use
We’d love to
Thank you for subscribing!
Submission
Dodho Magazine accepts submissions from emerging and professional photographers from around the world.
Their projects can be published among the best photographers and be viewed by the best professionals in the industry and thousands of photography enthusiasts. Dodho magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any submitted project. Due to the large number of presentations received daily and the need to treat them with the greatest respect and the time necessary for a correct interpretation our average response time is around 5/10 business days in the case of being accepted.
- Between 10/30 images of your best images, in case your project contains a greater number of images which are part of the same indivisible body of work will also be accepted. You must send the images in jpg format to 1200px and 72dpi and quality 9. (No borders or watermarks)
- A short biography along with your photograph. (It must be written in the third person)
- Title and full text of the project with a minimum length of 300 words. (Texts with lesser number of words will not be accepted)
This is the information you need to start preparing your project for its presentation
To send it, you must compress the folder in .ZIP format and use our Wetransfer channel specially dedicated to the reception of works. Links or projects in PDF format will not be accepted. All presentations are carefully reviewed based on their content and final quality of the project or portfolio. If your work is selected for publication in the online version, it will be communicated to you via email and subsequently it will be published.
Contact
How can we help? Got an idea or something you'd like share? Please use the adjacent form, or contact contact@dodho.com
Thank You. We will contact you as soon as possible.
Submission
Dodho Magazine accepts submissions from emerging and professional photographers from around the world.
Their projects can be published among the best photographers and be viewed by the best professionals in the industry and thousands of photography enthusiasts. Dodho magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any submitted project. Due to the large number of presentations received daily and the need to treat them with the greatest respect and the time necessary for a correct interpretation our average response time is around 5/10 business days in the case of being accepted. This is the information you need to start preparing your project for its presentation.
To send it, you must compress the folder in .ZIP format and use our Wetransfer channel specially dedicated to the reception of works. Links or projects in PDF format will not be accepted. All presentations are carefully reviewed based on their content and final quality of the project or portfolio. If your work is selected for publication in the online version, it will be communicated to you via email and subsequently it will be published.
Get in Touch
How can we help? Do you have an idea or something you'd like to share? Please use the form provided, or contact us at contact@dodho.com
Thank You. We will contact you as soon as possible.