Final answer:
The barriers that stood between Maasai and "salvation" are historical and literary obstacles including slavery, racial injustice, and colonial oppression, which impeded their quest for freedom, justice, and autonomy.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question "What stood between Maasai and "salvation"?" refers to various historical and literary examples in which groups or individuals faced significant obstacles on their path to finding salvation, freedom, or justice. Across these examples, the Maasai, symbolic of these groups, encounters barriers such as slavery, racial injustice, colonial oppression, and brutal conquests. These barriers prevent them from accessing the freedom or redemption they seek.
For instance, in the context of African American history and slavery, the text references a stern reality of slavery that was a major obstacle to African Americans' freedom and their pursuit of salvation from the bonds of intense oppression and cruelty. This horrifying reality included imminent death, starvation, and violence during the perilous escapes from slavery.
Furthermore, the Mau Mau uprising against British colonial rule in Kenya faced colonial oppression with natives being forced into concentration camps, facing dire mistreatment. This resistance was an effort to overcome the injustice that stood in the way of their salvation - their freedom and right to self-governance.
In all these narratives, the consistent theme is the struggle against overpowering forces and the quest for a better existence, often perceived as salvation. This struggle is riddled with challenges that act as barriers to achieving the perceived salvation, whether it be physical freedom, social acceptance, or autonomy.