Taboo

Different cultures' initiation rituals. Included: a Brazilian tribe's bullet-ant glove; an urban Australian subculture's practice of suspension from fishhooks.

Spotlighting the Latmul tribe of Papua New Guinea and a coming-of-age ritual that requires teenage boys to have their skin repeatedly cut so that it resembles crocodile skin. Also: Maori tattoos.

Profiling people who push gender boundaries. Included: transsexuals in San Francisco; Thai katoey or “ladyboys”; Samoan fa'afafine.

Profiling young women of Ethiopia's Hamar tribe who voluntarily submit to brutal beatings to show loyalty to male relatives as they participate in a coming-of-age ceremony. Also: the Japanese horimono; branding.

How do men prove their manhood? Often, by enduring pain. In an American Fight Club, successful, educated males engage in physical combat to test their manhood. Hundreds of men taking part in a time-honored event known as the Pasola charge toward each other on horseback, hurling spears. Young men of the Fulani tribe must whip an opponent twice during a large public demonstration, then be whipped.

Why would people choose to radically reshape their bodies? Some women wear heavy brass rings that push down on their collarbones, giving the appearance of elongated necks, a sign of beauty. Elsewhere, an estimated one in four girls undergo a practice known as breast ironing. See how some men—for vanity’s sake—are augmenting their bodies through plastic surgery.

For some, shedding clothes is an act of expression, of liberation, even a means of worship. Wiccan witches perform rituals in the nude, or “skyclad,” to express their truest form and bring themselves closer to the natural world. Some devout Christians worship together naked in the name of the Lord. In a unique festival, one man is chosen to be the spirit man and must run naked to the shrine.

Exploring how far some people will go to test their faith. Included: Christians who subject themselves to suffering similar to that of Jesus Christ in the Philippines; Thai believers who impale their flesh with various objects to get closer to Chinese gods that watch over their land; a group of U.S. Christians that put their lives at risk to affirm their faith.

Examining when extreme pet devotion crosses the line into an obsessive fixation.

A look at food customs that are practiced in some cultures but rejected in others. Included: the lethal fugu in Japan; a six-course insect meal in rural Vietnam; tarantulas and bear claws at a dining club in Manhattan; deadly serpents in Hanoi.

Profiling performers who engage in extreme entertainment. Included: bullfighters in Mexico; members of a North American sideshow; a transsexual beauty pageant in Thailand.

Spotlighting less-than-desirable professions. Included: a man cleans up violent death scenes; a forensic anthropologist works with rotting corpses; an Indonesian miner extracts sulfur from an active volcano.

A look at ancient and modern rituals humans use to demonstrate love and devotion.

An exploration of ritualistic body markings, such as branding and scarification, and the sociological effects of these practices.

An examination by experts on human ritual practices of extreme initiation rituals, including handling snakes and voodoo ceremonies.