On Ritual
04.03.2025
A brief survey on the form of rituals ancient and modern
Track — Ritual in the Modern Age
Goals of this Track:
- Imagine new rituals for sensemaking in an uncertain, chaotic world
- Invest time in processes (e.g. as behavior or heuristic) that are anti-rational
Summary
This brief survey examines ritual as a way to guide my future experiments. While human rituals of past and present may seem diverse and complex, they are fundamentally simple. Most differences lie in form rather than function, with rituals generally fitting into five or six core modes. Of course, rituals may combine two, three, or even four modes, resulting in roughly 50 possible hybrid forms.
Take for example a coming of age ritual. All rites of passage have a similar structure:
- The leaving of society, of home, etc. (separation)
- A trial, typically painful or challenging in some way (liminal)
- The return as transfigured. (re-incorporation)
Some of the more extreme coming of age rituals may serve as cultural memory, as a social regulatory mechanism, as reflective space and as community bonding mechanism.
There's not a ton of new information here, but I have done some real digging to uncover rituals across the world and I hope you enjoy what I've found. Humans are truly beautiful and fascinating beings!
Notes
Rituals are defined as: a "prescribed sequence of activities (gestures, words, objects) set apart from everyday life."
“a stereotyped sequence of activities involving gestures, words, and objects, performed in a sequestered place, and designed to influence preternatural entities or forces on behalf of the actors’ goals and interests.”
Ritual as —
- memory
- bonding
- regulatory mechanism
- over society
- over emotions
- reflective, liminal space
- performance
Roy A. Rappaport — Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity
The Functionalists
Émile Durkheim study of ritual — The Elementary Forms of Religious Life (ritual creates a "collective consciousness").
“We can say that nearly all the great institutions were born in religion. For the principal features of collective life to have begun as none other than various features of religious life, it is evident that religious life must necessarily have been an eminent form and, as it were, the epitome of collective life. If religion gave birth to all that is necessary in society, that is so because the idea of society is the soul of religion.”
From Bronisław Malinowski observations
However, when men went out to fish in the ocean, beyond the barrier reef, there was no certainty of getting a catch, this depended on the luck of a shoal of fish being present, and there was also the danger of death usually associated with going out to sea. During these times the Trobriand Islanders engaged in religious rituals to try to ensure a favourable outcome.
Ask yourself, how do rituals integrate into the social order? Example: funeral rites transform personal grief into collective solidarity.
Summary
Powerful lens for exploring the effect and persistence of rituals in society, but the cause cannot be always be the effect in ritual.
The Shape of Ritual
Arnold Van Gennep identified three-stage pattern: separation from the old, liminal and re-incorporation.
Victor Turner in The Ritual Process (1969) explains the liminal phase as fostering communitas — a sense of egalitarian community spirit that transcends status differences. It is an "anti-structure" which prevents society from fragmenting: renewing social unity by reminding members of a shared higher identity.
According to Clifford Geertz a ritual is a "model of" reality (reflecting a society's worldview) and "models for" reality (shaping how people behave).
Anthropologist Catherine Bell (1992) moved toward a practice-oriented theory of ritual, coining “ritualization” as a strategic way of acting that differentiates sacred vs. profane and often serves to naturalize power hierarchies. Bell noted that “ritual is a means by which individual perception and behavior are socially appropriated and conditioned In sociology, the study of ritual extended to everyday interactions. Erving Goffman (1967) described routine social behaviors (like exchanging greetings or apologizing) as “interaction rituals” that maintain face and social order on the micro-level. More recently, sociologist Randall Collins (2004) developed interaction ritual theory, arguing that repeated rituals (from family dinners to team chants) generate emotional energy and group solidarity in small groups... Such research suggests rituals evolved as a mechanism for cooperation in human groups, giving communities a competitive edge by fostering trust and coordinated action
Inventing Ritual
Historian Eric Hobsbawm introduced the concept of “invented traditions,” showing how many seemingly ancient rituals (from royal ceremonies to national holidays) were consciously designed in modern times to create social cohesion or legitimize authority. (e.g. British coronation)
Evolution of Ritual
Rapid social change (industrialization, globalization) can disrupt traditional rites – for example, migration and urbanization in the 19th–20th centuries weakened village-based festivals and rites of passage. In response, new rituals often emerge to fill the void. Hobsbawm observed that the 1800s and 1900s, eras of fast transformation, saw a proliferation of invented traditions because older customs no longer fit new social realities . For instance, as old communal bonds waned, nation-states created new holidays, flags, anthems, and ceremonies to foster social cohesion at the national level. Even at smaller scales, communities continuously adapt rituals: a rural harvest rite might be refashioned as an urban food festival; initiation rites might shift from tribal ceremonies to modern schooling graduations.
...
By demanding costly signals of commitment (time, effort, sometimes pain), rituals can bind groups more tightly and enable cooperation beyond kin lines . As human societies expanded, rituals may have had to change (“evolve”) to maintain cohesion among larger populations: high-intensity initiation rites work well for bonding a small tribe, but large states rely more on frequent, low-intensity ceremonies (like weekly worship or daily pledges) that scale up inclusively . In this sense, ritual evolution accompanies social evolution.
Ritual References
UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists
Rituals Archive
Naadam literally meaning "games", of Mongolia
Nguon, rituals of governance and associated expressions in the Bamoun community — Public Trial of the King 600 year ritual.
Bumba Meu Boi, 2 : Lower-class Brazilians mock and criticize those of higher social status through a comedic folklore story told in song and dance.
Bullet ant glove ritual of Sateré-Mawé in Brazil believed to provide immunity, strength and usher in manhood.
Totems of Haida clan were encoded to be interpretable only to members of the clan.
"Blackening" of Bride or Groom
Bertsolaritza oral tradition of improvised poetry or verse dueling. 2
Ngaben Balinese funeral rites are performed by the whole funeral and require a large savings. This can take time, so the dead can be buried for years before cremation. The rite is highly structured, sometimes even using drones to check for correctness.
Thaipusam Tamil Hindu festival including physical burdens as spiritual debt involving mortification of the flesh. The pain of the burden eventually creating a trance state.
El Yaokwa ritual of the Enawene Nawe people to maintain the social and cosmic order.
Haywarikuy offers prayers to Pachamama (Mother Earth) by offering items that hold special meaning, of Chile.
Binche Carnival like rooted in pre-Christian spring rites.
Kola Nut Ceremony in Igbo culture is part of ceremonies and gatherings, mediating relationships.
Abgusii ritual to demand for a body
Krobos Dipo "Rite of Passage" Performed in Togo
Silent worship of the Quaker's in England and North America
Every village, large and small, had nonprofessional performances of its own
operas. The farmers called this “family opera” ( jia xi). Virtually every village
had this. Before liberation, a single county (xian) could have had over 200 non-
professional opera troupes. . . . I remember that in my home town, Yishi, and
its suburbs, there were over eighteen stages, and it was only an ordinary small
town. Larger villages usually had five or more stages, and the smallest ones had
at least two
This kind of village opera—which should not be confused
with the well-known “local” or “regional” opera genres (difang xi)—
was truly of the people: the jealously guarded scripts were regarded as
part of a village’s patrimony and were often performed by the villagers
themselves.
Egypt's ancient zar ritual the Mazaher ensemble performs a lighter version of "zar", an music and dance ritual with centuries-old roots, that aims to ward off or exorcise jinn, or evil spirits.
Wanderjahre Journeyman's "Walz" — coming of age ritual for German craftsmen.
Ifoga Samoan ritual for forgiveness of grave offenses.
Navajo Peacemaking Circles a form of justice which focuses on healing rather than punishment or guilt.
Famadihana "turning of the bones" a funerary ritual where the dead is exhumed, wrapped in fresh silk with the name written, and loved ones dance with the bodies and celebrate. 2
Sposalizio del Mare "Marriage to the Sea" the reigning Doge of Venice marries the city to the sea.
Charles III's coronation at Westminster Abbey
Maslenitsa "Butter Week" Eastern Slavic folk holiday welcoming spring, adopted by Orthodox church as preparation for lent.
Lawmakers use haka to protest in New Zealand's parliament
Futures
Horrifying Things Encountered Using Randonautica
Zoom Vigil for Fr.Gerard Glyyn CP
Lubricate Coil Engine, Tabita Rezaire
Sigil Séance Against Space Billionaires
Digital graves allow deceased to live forever on the web
Replika chatbot based on deceased friend of inventor
Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst: The Call | Serpentine
Questions
What new rituals can we enact to provide emotional and psychological relief? What new rituals can we enact to increase social cohesion? What new rituals can we enact to mark significant moments in time? How do contemporary rituals legitimate authority?
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