One insane way to prove your manhood

Most rites of passage for young men—Communions, Bar Mitzvahs, and the rest—are fun and joyous occasions. In Vanuatu however, becoming a man involves a pretty insane ritual to prove all-around toughness. When I was a student at Stellenbosch University on occasion when we had too much to drink we used to engage in what we called "bush diving" which involved running and diving (and invariably leveling) some small harmless bush. In Vanuatu however young men engage in what they call "land diving". Boys prove their manhood (and ensure a good yam harvest) through a practice that’s similar in concept to bungee jumping, but much more deadly. Instead of elastic chords, very breakable vines are tied around the feet of boys as young as seven before they jump from a 70-90 foot tower. How insane is that?

The diver’s goal is to come as close to the ground as possible without dying. While most boys do emerge unscathed, concussions, broken necks and broken hips are common injuries.

I checked this out on Wikipedia and apparently the origin of land diving is described in a legend of a woman called Tamalie who was dissatisfied with her husband. Apparently she was upset that her husband was too vigorous regarding his sexual wants, so she ran away into the forest. Her husband followed her, so she climbed a banyan tree. The husband climbed after her, and so she tied lianas to her ankles and jumped and survived. Her husband jumped after her, but did not tie lianas to himself, which caused him to plummet and die. The men now continue to perform the land diving so that they will not be tricked again. I suspect that there is an element of truth to this legend simply because only a woman would be nuts enough to come up with an idea like this.

I managed to track down this video which has to be seen. I don't think even Chuck Norris would have the balls to try this!