25 Dangerous Traditions People Still Practice Around the World

Around the world, some traditions have survived for generations even though they come with real danger. Many are tied to history, religion, identity, bravery, or community pride, which helps explain why people continue to practice them despite the risks. To outsiders, these customs can seem extreme, painful, or even frightening. For the people who take part, they often represent something much deeper: a connection to ancestors, culture, and belonging.

Some of these traditions involve physical endurance, public spectacle, intense rituals, or the possibility of serious injury. Others are part of festivals, rites of passage, or ceremonies that have been passed down for centuries. They may look shocking from the outside, but they also show how powerful tradition can be when it becomes part of a community’s identity.

This slideshow looks at 25 dangerous traditions that still exist around the world. From risky festivals to physically demanding rituals, these customs reveal how far people will go to preserve history, honor belief, and keep cultural practices alive.

Since the 17th century, the Spanish village of Castrillo de Murcia has been doing something rather dangerous. As a ritual, street actors dressed as devils jump over babies lying on mattresses on the ground. While the act hasn't (allegedly) injured any babies as of yet, it's still very dangerous for all involved.

Taking place on the second Sunday of every December, Hiwatari Shinji is a Japanese Shinto Buddhist event. This firewalking celebration is said to provide a spiritual cleanse though it's not uncommon to see burns on feet.

Every year the town of Gloucestershire, England does something very strange. The goal is to roll an 8-pound wheel of Double Gloucester cheese while runners chase the cheese and try to catch it. Unfortunately, the hill is rather steep which inevitably leads to falls and injuries, with some being more serious than others.

Oranges might seem harmless, but not in the Italian town of Ivrea. Every year in February the town stages a battle royale with oranges as a weapon as residents throw fruit at a horse-drawn cart carrying more oranges. The horse riders and horses have to wear hockey gear to avoid serious injury.

Every year on Easter two rival churches in the Greek village of Vrontados, Agios Markos and Panagia Erithiana, meet in a sort of mock combat. Firing as many as 60,000 small rockets, this creates quite the light show. Of course, many rockets have veered off course over the years resulting in injuries and death.

One of the most iconic dangerous traditions, the Pampolona, Spain event happens every year in July. Around 2,000 people take part across a half-mile course where six bulls charge down the human participants. Unsurprisingly, all kinds of injuries, including death, are possible during this event.

Instead of decking the halls, this Christmas festival in Takanakuy, Peru looks to deck each other. On December 25th every year, disputes are settled with fists. Referees do carry whips to keep things orderly but, unsurprisingly, injuries do happen.

Unfortunately, the Phuket Vegetarian Festival is not at all about food or vegetables. Instead, it's about abstaining from meat for 9 days. As a result, participants in this festival stick sharp objects in their mouths and cheeks to honor the animals.

Taking place every 6 years in Nagano, Japan, the Onbashira festival is a giant log ride. Carefully chosen fir trees are cut down and moved down a hill. Men who hope to prove they are brave attempt to ride the log while it's going downhill. Unsurprisingly, horrible injuries and deaths take place every year.

Occurring during Taiwan's famous Lantern Festival, the Beehive Rocket Festival is a dangerous event. Over the last 130 years, firecrackers have been launched into the public in one of Taiwan's most important religious events. As such, injuries and burns are commonplace.

The National Pyrotechnic Festival or Feria de la Pirotecnia takes place every year in March in Tultepec, Mexico. Honoring San Juan de Dios, locals and tourists alike look to take place in the "Burning of the Bulls" where fireworks are lit and the parade taking place beneath the towers are showered with burning sparks.

A ten-day celebration of heritage and culture in Calgary, Canada, the Calgary Stampede is more dangerous than it looks. As the world's largest rodeo, over one million people attend every year. While human injuries are uncommon, over 100 horses have died since 1986.

This firewalking festival is a Hindu ceremony that takes place in October of every year. Celebrated in Southern India's Tamil Nadu area, both male and female participants run through a 9-foot fire pit. The goal is to be blessed by the Hindu goddess Draupadi.

A two-day Hindu thanksgiving festival, Thaipusam is celebrated by Tamil communities in Asia on a full moon every February. Physically demanding, men and women sacrifice their bodies through piercings. As one might suspect, injuries are not uncommon.

Active military members from the U.S., Thailand, Singapore, and other countries are invited to participate in "Cobra Gold." Among other activities, soldiers are taught to hunt Cobra snakes and bite off the heads of chickens.

One might not think the world's largest tomato fight could be dangerous, but it very much is. Starting in 1945, this Spanish festival has been held on the last Wednesday of every August. Participants and bystanders are regularly injured as a result.

Taking place every winter in Annapolis, Maryland is the Annual Maryland State Police polar bear plunge. With more than 10,000 participating in jumping into freezing cold water, there are regular cases of hypothermia and injury.

Every year in the Indian town of Solapur, Muslim residents participate in a baby drop from a local religious site into adults stretching out blankets. Taking place for over half a millennium, the ritual is said to make the children grow strong and healthy. Claims of babies never being injured have never been truly verified.

Celebrating the arrival of summer, the San Juan bonfire festival in Northern Spain is never without injury. Among other activities, one ritual requires participants to step barefoot onto hot coals carrying someone on their back.

As a celebration of the New Year in Russia, thousands of divers jump into Lake Baikal in Siberia. One specially chosen diver carries a New Year's tree that is sent to the bottom of the lake. With temperatures reaching -25 degrees Celsius, injuries are common.

For reasons that escape many, blowfish is still widely consumed in Japan regardless of its dangers. If cooked incorrectly, it can kill or severely injure those who eat it. This dish is so dangerous that only a licensed chef can properly prepare it before serving.

In preparation for manhood, the Brazilian Satere-Mawe tribe uses bullet ants as a right of passage. For 10 minutes, the boys must wear a glove with ants placed on it. This can leave many boys temporarily paralyzed from ant venom, causing uncontrollable shaking for days.

While elephant riding might seem like a great tourist idea, people should not make these gentle giants carry them around all day. This dangerous practice requires brutal training for the elephants. While inhumane, elephants tossing off riders has also led to thousands of injuries.

This might seem out of place among international traditions, but college hazing remains dangerous. These practices commonly result in death and lawsuits. Hazing incidents in college are estimated to cause at least 1,000 injuries every year.

As part of their heritage, the Indonesian Tidong community has one unique but dangerous tradition. A bathroom is not permitted to be used by the newlyweds for 72 hours before their wedding. Along with a restricted diet, it is believed this will result in a strong marriage and bring good luck.