Gils Uagi Coming of age ceremony

When a boy or girl reaches their tenth birthday they are given the best presents. On that day their father or mother (depending on their gender) takes him aside and tells him "secrets" about becoming a man or woman, including about sex and general advice for growing up in this next stage of life. The child then takes part of a big ceremony. This ceremony is important because it symbolizes the trials of a boy becoming a man, or girl to a woman. Beforehand, the child is painted over their bodies in paint of different shapes and bright colors (representing earth). These shapes include lines running up the legs from the inside of the foot to the hips or inner thigh A line from the palm to the arm pit, a star of Santh on the forehead (though this may be left off of those few who do not follow the religion of Santh) and a hand print on the chest.

When the ceremony begins, they sit. The birthday child's father generally is the one to perform the ceremony, though it is not too uncommon for the mother to preform the ceremony for their daughter. The parent preforming the ceremony touches the child on the forehead with a scroll, calling on blessings of Kai. then they fan them with a fan, for Lykei, they drink water, for Gikar and pass their hand over a flame (not too close to actually burn them) calling on Rela.

Then the child is given a scarification tattoo on their right arm, in the pattern that they chose.

The child is now considered "Uagi" or "between greatness", and is given a special new loin cloth to wear. The Uagi will no longer be permitted to be unclothed in public as before. The child choose a new name, that may be a second name in addition to their birth name, or used as the name they choose to be called. Then they have a feast and celebrate!

It is at this age the child joins a "society" a group of other children who do mock ambushes and fights (with padded weapons) against "enemy" societies, and begin apprenticing in a trade (usually that of their parents)