This must be what they mean by a leap of faith.

A man in a bright yellow outfit takes a running jump over a group of oblivious babies clustered together on a mattress, landing safely on the other side, before moving on to the next bed.

The strange ritual is carried out as part of a religious ceremony in northern Spain, designed to save their souls.

The devil leaps over the newborn babies during the festival of El Colacho yesterday

Tot, skip and jump: The 'devil' leaps over the newborn babies during the festival of El Colacho in the northern Spanish village of Castrillo de Murcia

The children seem oblivious to what's going on around them

The children seem oblivious to what's going on around them

Called El Salto del Colacho - or the Devil's Jump - the custom dates back to medieval times. The yellow suited man represents the devil himself.

The display is featured in a pageant in the village of Castrillo de Murcia marking the Catholic feast of Corpus Christi.

The tradition involves men dressed as a 'Colacho' leaping over infants born in the village during the previous year to cleanse them of original sin.

The exact origins of the ritual are unclear, but Spanish Catholics celebrate the festival throughout the country with colourful processions of dancers dressed as demons and angels.

A man representing the devil leaps over babies during the festival of El Colacho
A man dressed up as the devil jumps over babies lying on a mattress in the street during 'El Colacho'

Leap of faith: The ritual is meant to cleanse the babies of their original sin

The devil they know: Crowds gather to watch the men perform the 'cleansing' ritual

The devil they know: Crowds gather to watch the men perform the 'cleansing' ritual

The 'devil' also chases children through the streets during the festival of El Colacho

The 'devil' also chases children through the streets during the festival of El Colacho

After the devil has performed his jump, young girls throw rose petals on the babies

After the devil has performed his jump, young girls throw rose petals on the babies