Baptism is the most important moment in a child's life. It is the point where his spiritual life begins.
It is the moment when he meets the divinity. Baptism officially marks the beginning of membership in the religious and cultural community of an area, region, country, being celebrated differently in each religion, although there are also similar elements between religions and cultures.
The main similarity is the fact that it is committed by a priest or that servant of the respective cult and always in a place of worship.
An interesting difference is the fact that although among Catholics and Orthodox, godparents are a priority, in other religions they are not so important.
In this article you will get to know strange traditions around the world at the time of the child's baptism. So stay with us and enjoy information that will make you exclaim Wow!
Accompany us around the world and find out the strangest baptism traditions in the world
In the following series, we travel through different regions of our planet and find out some of the strangest traditions of baptism.
We reach the land of the famous Taj Mahal, we go to the "roof of the world", we also travel through Tokyo or close by, we return to the Holy Land a short distance away and we return from where we left, our wonderful people.
Prayer in the left ear and in the right ear for Muslims
For Muslims, the ritual is different in that after 40 days from the birth, the servant (called an imam) is called home, during which he lifts the child in his arms, throws him to the sky and reads a prayer, first in the right ear, and then on the right. Another interesting custom is that the parents cut the child's hair, weigh its hair and distribute the equivalent of the weight to the poor.
Brit Milah and Brit Bat to Jews
Among the Jews, a child has 3 parents: mother, father and God. It somehow reminds us of what we know in the Orthodox religion, namely the fact that a child is given to parents by God. Jews perform a ritual called Brit Milah (circumcision) in the case of a boy and Brit Bat (moment when his name is read in the synagogue) when a girl is born.
"Brothers of the Cross" in Orthodoxy
In Orthodoxy, the child is immersed in holy water three times, after which it is anointed with myrrh. It used to be said that a child's strong cry is an indicator of its iron health and is meant to ward off evil spirits. Another custom still existing in some regions of Romania is that babies baptized in the same water are "baptism brothers" or "cross brothers". More than that.
They are not allowed to marry, but what happens if they know each other at some point in their lives and get married without knowing that they are baptismal brothers?
The sign of the Holy Cross
If the Orthodox priest immerses the child in water, the Catholic priest sprinkles it three times on the crest and on the chest in the shape of a cross.
Throwing the baby from 15 meters, ancient Indian custom
If there are gentle rituals in popular religions, let's call them normal, don't think that they are the same in other nations. For example, Indians throw children from a tower in the hope that they attract luck in life. Yes, you read that right. It is a common practice even nowadays for over 500 years of an Indian tribe in which the baby is thrown from 15 meters, and below it is awaited by a special litter held by several men. 15 meters. Think that it is half the height of a 10-story block without a ground floor, that is, 11 floors.
Another strange custom of the Indians is the following. I pass over plantain leaves on which scraps of food have been thrown. Why do I do this? For the same reason. I think they attract luck and remove troubles and illnesses.
We should study a statistic of the number of Indians suffering from some disease, the number of those who have divorced, etc. So maybe we would realize that they have a reason why this ritual has been practiced for hundreds of years.
Baptism in Buddhist culture
In the Buddhist tradition, the child is brought to the temple one month after birth, where it is blessed and placed in front of the Buddha statue. Everything is covered with flowers, candles and incense. It is the moment when a monk blesses the child and pronounces his name singing specific chants.
Japan, from a short name to a longer one
Another strange custom we find in Japanese culture. We find out that the Japanese give the child a name as short as possible at birth, and then, upon reaching adulthood, a ceremony takes place in which the name is changed to a longer one.
Jumping over babies, custom found in some areas of Spain
In some parts of Spain, there is a tradition called "jumping over the babies", in which the men of the community jump over a row of babies sitting on the blanket, under the supervision of a priest. It is believed that this ritual brings luck and protection to children
Baptism traditions from all over the world are proof of cultural diversity and human wealth. Regardless of the strangeness of some customs still practiced, the goal remains the same: to celebrate in a festive and meaningful way the birth of a new member of the community. To welcome him with open arms and give him the best start in life.
It is the same with us. It is true, our practices are closer to normality, but the intentions are the same. We welcome the baby with joy and pray that his life will be sprinkled with good moments. As many.
We cannot protect him from difficulties, but we can introduce him to the Christian world. In this way, he will have God by his side, at any moment. Isn't that what we all want?
