Archaeologists have recently discovered that Early Russian tribes required their young men to kill their own dogs.
By doing so, these young boys became real men—worthy to become members of their tribe’s roving warriors.
Further investigation showed that the dogs that were sacrificed were between the ages of 7 and 12. This finding simply means that t
he canines were not chosen randomly. Instead, they were the pets of the young boys!
At the age of eight, the boys were sent to ritualists, who bathed them, shaved their heads, and gave them animal skins to wear. Eight years later, the initiates underwent a midwinter ceremony in which they ritually died and journeyed to the underworld.
After this, the boys left their homes and families, painted their bodies black, donned a dog-skin cloak, and joined a band of warriors.
Recent research conducted by military psychologists, moreover, suggests that the transition from civilian to soldier can be very difficult. In other words, “you have to train people to kill,” says Brown.
For the Bronze Age boys at Krasnosamarskoe, this training may have included killing one of their childhood companions—their faithful dog.
So what’s the logic behind this brutal ritual? In order for the young boys to be transformed into brave ruthless warriors, they need to be stripped of their innocence first, and the best way to do that was by murdering someone they loved.
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