"There are villages out there that fill entire ant-gloves with bullet ants, and one must put their hand inside for a few minutes, getting repeatedly stung as some kind of sick rite of passage"

This has actually been found to have massive immune boosting properties! Not that we had to quantify their sacred rites. But, none-the-less it has some practical purpose, outside of building ones endurance to pain! I feel many in the western would could greatly benefit from such an experience.