Ritual - hows and whys

[Mick Hart]

Why do we insist on doing rituals, even as skeptics?

Dear Lily.

The strongest urge within all living creatures is to survive, but nature only allows survival of the fittest. Different creatures make use of different qualities in order to be fit enough; some are strong, some are swift, some are stealthy. Human beings have survived by being sagacious and gregarious. Through sagacity, we have created techniques and technology from which we can borrow the essential qualities we were not born with and shape our environment to provide the nourishment we need. Through gregariousness, we have learned that we are fittest when we work together. In order to work together we have created stability through social structures that are sustained by social order. The social order is maintained through acts that serve to strenghten our cohesion by giving us a sense of focus, connectedness and belonging. When these acts fail they are silly. When they succeed they are powerful.

We call these acts rituals.

Some people demote rituals to be merely a component of religion, but I think it's the other way around. Rituals are the foundation of human culture. They are the core of every tradition and all kinds of sport. They are the style of every symbol, flag and uniform. They are the cheer of every clapping crowd.

Why do we insist on doing rituals? Because they are crucial to our survival.

Thank you.

[DJ Droood]

Some people demote rituals to be merely a component of religion, but I think it's the other way around. Rituals are the foundation of human culture. They are the core of every tradition and all kinds of sport. They are the style of every symbol, flag and uniform. They are the cheer of every clapping crowd.

That is a really interesting point, Mick Hart, and I think you are probably right.

[Karl]

If we didn't do ritual we wouldn't be Doing, it's all very well 'knowing' but rather useless if we don't apply it. Maybe someone could do the same ritual for years and achieve none of what was intended, but then if they hadn't done the ritual they wouldn't have achieved it either.

If there is no reason to look at the time, what is the point in the clock?

Sometimes things should be done for the sake of them being done and no other reason.

I don't think what I've written has made much sense now I read it back, but is a sceptic allowed to use the phrase 'It just feels right' ?

[Merlyn]

In essence, for me it is the mind-body relationship.
We could imagine everything, right down to the ritual acts. Rather I find the body needs a rhythm, it needs the interaction. Yoga might be a good example of this.
Also the affects that song has, and all things have in ritual, on the body as positive.

the mind-body relationship is a companionship, and it then extends as mentioned here, to family, community and country. More often it should extend to all of humanity.
I find that if I lose rhythm, I lose health as much as peace of mind. Ritual is way to bring mind-body to "self" and the confidence needed in life.

Merlyn /|\

[treegod]

I must belong to the only OBOD Grove that doesn't do ritual on a group level. But then when you live in a forested mountain valley and you live the changing seasons every day, making a ritual of it seems a bit obsolete

And we live by a philosophy of Processing, grappling with our ideas and issues; communicating with energy you might call it. Which just isn't suited to scripted symbollic action. Doesn't mean we don't make symbolic, creative and artistic gestures. They just don't follow a script or routine.

[Argenta]

I loved Ms. Restall-Orr's simile to ritual as a place in our life to stop and check the compass. She compares ritual to a time in one's journey when we see how far we've gone, where we are, and where we want to go from here. According to her, unlike Wiccan rituals where the focus is on bringing a desired change, for a druid it is also a time to offer gratitude and seek inspiration so that we may cope with change in the best possible way.

I liked her explanations a lot, and these are basically what ritual is for me, only she could put it into words.

(Everyday rituals might have a different meaning, though, the one Mike Hart has described better.)

[treegod]

When one has become the compass there is no need to "stop and check it", you just walk and know in which direction you're heading.

[Karl]

Ah, does that lead on to becoming the ritual, and that everything you do could be considered part of the ritual of your life?

[treegod]

Bullseye.

But then, wouldn't that make what people call "ritual" a bit superfluous to requirement??? Just breathing is enough

[treegod]

I suppose that makes me more of a Low Church Druid than a High Church Druid.

[Karl]

Ah, but it only works if you're doing it conciously; merely living isn't good enough. You'd have to mindfully extend your ritual outwards, starting from doing 'a ritual' to living in the ritual. Otherwise you'd still be outside it. I think.

[treegod]

Absolutely; ritual is about mindfulness, consciousness, attention to life and how it is lived.

For me, the mindfulness and feelings of rituals haven't just been isolated within the ritual, like a "Sunday Christian" but something which I would carry back into my life, or something that would let me recognise what was already in my life. And when that mindfulness or energy has been integrated and finds an expression in life then the purpose of a ritual as "orientator" doesn't seem so necessary. There are even moments in life which, strictly speaking, aren't ritual, and yet they carry more symbolic weight than many rituals.

When I do ritual it is a creative moment, an artistic action that expresses more about who and what I am than reminding me who and what I am. It is also something I find more meaningful with people than on my own.

I was inspired by this thread to write this blog: Low Church Druidry

[DaRC]

Talking of Low Church Druidry it reminds me that Methodism was particularly strong in Wales and Cornwall.
Maybe there is a common theme here...

[Karl]

I work with Methodists, and the importance of being kind to the earth and their continuous debate and inquiry into interpreting their teachings strikes a chord with me. Leave nothing as 'untouchable' to questioning is very important, it helps prevent stagnation and also corruption I think.

[Argenta]

When one has become the compass there is no need to "stop and check it", you just walk and know in which direction you're heading.

I'm not sure I follow you here... it's not that the ritual is likened to a compass. The compass is ourselves, or that part of ourselves which we consult when deciding where we want to go in our life.
Ritual in this sense ERO describes is there to take a quiet time, and check with ourselves (and/or with a community) where we stand.
Most people are not compass-focused all the time: we have "things to do, places to go, people to see", and the value of ritual in such circumstances is making us present in the moment.
Good for you if you can live fully conscious from day to day, or from minute to minute. The rest of us who are not so lucky need a breather from time to time

PS: Not sure if the post sounds a bit preposterous -- didn't mean it that way... just trying to explain my pov.

[treegod]

The compass is ourselves

Most people are not compass-focused all the time

So when you have "things to do, places to go, people to see" you're not you?

The rest of us who are not so lucky

"Luck" is unconscious, no conscious effort required, so anyone that does live "fully conscious from day to day, or from minute to minute" can't be lucky. So what can it be if it isn't luck?

For me the challenge of ritual (and I still need quiet "orientation moments" at times) is that when I do have "things to do, places to go, people to see" that I take my orientation with me into that and not lose my personal sense of "up" or "down", so to speak. And don't think I do maintain that all the time, no can be that perfect lol.

Not sure if the post sounds a bit preposterous

No, it's an interesting discussion.

[DaRC]

When one has become the compass there is no need to "stop and check it", you just walk and know in which direction you're heading.

But even a compass needs stability for the needle to settle in the correct direction, just look at the sophistication of a mariner's compass. So if you are trying to navigate stormy internal waters perhaps ritual provides the gimbal mounting so that you can read the compass

[Karl]

If we start telling people you have to become one with your inner gimbal we're gonna get some funny looks... :S

[DJ Droood]

If we start telling people you have to become one with your inner gimbal we're gonna get some funny looks... :S

It's too late for funny looks, I'm afraid.

[treegod]

When one has become the compass there is no need to "stop and check it", you just walk and know in which direction you're heading.

But even a compass needs stability for the needle to settle in the correct direction, just look at the sophistication of a mariner's compass. So if you are trying to navigate stormy internal waters perhaps ritual provides the gimbal mounting so that you can read the compass

But that's it! You can be orientated even in stormy weather. The "stop and check" would be like the mariner having to stop their vessel and then ask the storm to calm down a bit so he can get his bearing, lol. The "inner gimbel" allows one to know your direction without having to "stop and check".

It's like doing ritual "on the hoof".