Plot Synopsis

Explorer Mark Anstice and language and religion expert Ben Protheroe travel to Benin, West Africa to immerse themselves in the culture of local tribes. In each episode, they experience a different tradition. INITIATION (Taneka tribe): Upon arriving, Mark is touched by the spirit of an angry god, and he must be cleansed by a Voodoo priestess. Later, they attend an initiation ceremony, only to realize that the 100 men who congregated are there to be circumcised -- without anaesthetic. SCARRED (Somba tribe): When 20 men invade the camp while wearing death masks and carrying burning torches, Ben panics, is dragged away, and rescued. Days later, Mark and Ben finally witness a bloody ritual in which a baby's face is marked with 300 scars. TAKEN (Somba tribe): At the 'coming of age' ceremony, young women dance to find a mate now that they are finally available to marry. A man must then buy his bride-to-be from her father, and if he can't afford her, he may just have to steal her instead and risk death if he's caught. SACRIFICE (Peul tribe): In a different kind of wedding tradition, a man must prove his love for a woman by whipping himself until he's pouring blood. Just to attend the wedding ceremony, Mark must steer 400 cattle through deadly brush, fight off warring rival tribes, and join a fierce stick fighting competition.