Journey of the soul: The cultural, spiritual, and personal significance of Hajj in Na'ima B. Robert's Going to Mecca

The rite of passage into adulthood is one of the most important rites of passage for the Mosuo people. The rite of passage into adulthood ceremony is held in the Spring Festival at the age of thirteen to declare that they have a complete life and have become adults with responsibilities from now on. Changing clothes is the core of the ceremony, in which the Daba and the Daba Scriptures play an important role in the ceremony. The rite of passage into adulthood has the unique functions of strengthening self-knowledge, family education, and transmission of Mosuo culture. The exploration of the origin, process, cultural significance and cultural connotation of rite of passage into adulthood can deeply reflect the value of Mosuo culture with harmony as the main connotation, which is of great significance to the inheritance and promotion of the excellent traditional culture of the Chinese nation.

This article address issues related to disability and spirituality,
\nconsider the impact of spirituality on children with
\ndisabilities, and suggest some practical strategies
\nteachers can use to help foster the spiritual
\ndevelopment of students with disabilities. I propose
\nthat spirituality has the power to foster the holistic
\ndevelopment of children with disabilities and to give
\nthem a sense of identify and purpose in life.

Objective: This study aims to explore the impact of familial expectations on career choices and identity formation among highly educated women in Tehran. Methods and Materials: The study employed a qualitative design, using semi-structured interviews with 24 highly educated women from Tehran. Participants were selected through purposive sampling to capture diverse perspectives. Data collection continued until theoretical saturation was achieved, ensuring comprehensive thematic coverage. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed using thematic analysis, facilitated by NVivo software. Four primary themes emerged: familial expectations, career choices, identity formation, and coping mechanisms. Findings: The results revealed that familial expectations significantly influenced participants’ career choices, often delaying entry into the workforce and leading to compromises in professional aspirations. Participants described internal conflicts between societal roles and personal ambitions, which shaped their identity formation. Coping mechanisms included emotional strategies, resistance to traditional norms, and pragmatic adaptations. These findings highlighted the pervasive influence of cultural norms on women’s autonomy and professional development. Conclusion: Familial expectations create significant barriers to career advancement and identity formation for highly educated women in Tehran. These dynamics underscore the need for supportive organizational policies, cultural shifts toward gender equality, and interventions that empower women to navigate these challenges effectively. The study contributes to the literature on gender roles, work-family conflict, and women’s professional empowerment, offering actionable insights for policymakers, educators, and organizations.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the psychological pressures faced by female athletes in managing the expectations of family and society, focusing on how they cope with these challenges. Methods and Materials: A qualitative research design was employed, using semi-structured interviews to collect data from 29 female athletes. Participants were selected from various sports disciplines in Iran, with ages ranging from 18 to 35 years. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis to identify key themes related to the athletes' experiences of psychological pressure, social support, and the intersection of personal aspirations with familial and societal expectations. The interviews were conducted until theoretical saturation was reached. Findings: The findings revealed three primary themes: (1) Social Support: Athletes with strong family and social networks reported better coping mechanisms, though conflicting family expectations sometimes led to increased stress; (2) Mental Toughness: Female athletes with higher mental toughness showed greater resilience to external pressures, which helped them balance athletic and personal responsibilities; (3) Tension Between Personal and Familial Expectations: Many athletes experienced a conflict between pursuing their athletic goals and fulfilling family roles, particularly in contexts where societal norms prioritized family over career ambitions. These pressures were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which added additional stress to already demanding circumstances. Conclusion: Female athletes face complex psychological pressures from both societal and familial expectations, which can impact their mental well-being and performance. The findings suggest the importance of social support and mental toughness in coping with these pressures. Further interventions and strategies should focus on strengthening social support networks, building mental resilience, and addressing societal norms that hinder female athletes' ability to balance their athletic careers and personal lives.

This research project, titled “Innovation Development from Hemp Based on the Cultural Capital of the Hmong Ethnic Group in Phop Phra District, Tak Province,” examines the potential of indigenous knowledge and cultural heritage as drivers for innovation and sustainable development. The study aimed to: (1) explore the cultural practices and traditional knowledge of the Hmong people in hemp cultivation, textile weaving, and product development; (2) co-develop hemp-based products utilizing all parts of the plant including roots, stems, and leaves through collaboration between educational institutions and local partners; and (3) enhance the capacity of entrepreneurs and cultural innovators in knowledge communication and product development. Using the Participatory Action Research (PAR) approach, the study involved local artisans, entrepreneurs, youth, returnees, and cultural innovators. It was guided by three principles: Engage (stakeholder participation), Enrich (cultural significance), and Enhance (capacity building). Findings revealed that hemp holds strong cultural and spiritual significance in the Hmong community. Considered a sacred plant, its cultivation and usage span the entire life cycle and are deeply embedded in Hmong traditions. Knowledge is passed down through elders and schools, and traditional fiber processing and weaving reflect distinctive cultural wisdom. The project led to the development of diverse hemp-based products that merged traditional craftsmanship with modern innovation. A dedicated website (www.hemp-tak.com) and the “Popkan” brand were launched, enhancing local business identity. A cultural mapping initiative and related publication documented Hmong hemp heritage, including routes, customs, cuisine, and rituals. A learning center, “Hemp and the Hmong Way,” was also established to support education, marketing, and community engagement. Lastly, a Social Return on Investment (SROI) analysis showed that every 1 baht invested yielded a social value of 3.22 baht, indicating strong social impact and long-term benefits

Abstract. Calvo-Díaz DY, Aguilar-Hernández L, Jiménez-Noriega MS, Torres-Montúfar A. 2023. Ritual use of rosa de borracho (Clinopodium macrostemum (Moc. & Sessé ex Benth.) Kuntze, Lamiaceae) in Oaxaca. Biodiversitas 24: 5105-5112. Plants play a vital role in the rich tapestry of Mexican culture, serving as medicine, food, clothing, rituals, and construction. Oaxaca is known for its abundance of bio- and cultural diversity, and as such, is home to numerous versatile and beneficial plant species alongside many traditional cultural festivals, including the famous Guelaguetza at the end of every July. Many plants have deep cultural and spiritual significance, and their traditional uses in ceremonies, rituals, and medicine have been passed down through generations. Here, we have studied the ceremonial use of rosa de borracho, or poleo (Clinopodium macrostemum (Moc. & Sessé ex Benth.) Kuntze), in two communities of Oaxaca: Ocotlán de Morelos and Villa Sola de Vega. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 40 community members to acquire valuable and relevant information about this plant and its importance in these communities. In Villa Sola de Vega, where residents are known as soltecos, the rosa de borracho is an essential element of Soltecan wedding ceremonies, which includes dancing Chilenas (traditional folk music) such as the Jarabe de la Rosa (a dance called syrup of the rose). In this particular dance, the Rosa de Borracho is the show's star, and important guests such as the godparents and cooks are gifted handwoven crowns to wear and bundles of the plant to carry. In Ocotlán, the rosa de borracho is used to adorn baskets and other artifacts for a ceremony called La Llevada del Guajolote, and is also gifted to everyone during the festivities. The same plant is also used on a procession before Christmas and New Year's Eve, wherein pilgrims known as roseros journey to the mountain searching for the plant for use in the day’s celebration. In this study, we have documented and described the ritual use of this plant and its cultural significance to these communities. In conclusion, rosa de borracho carries various symbolic meanings and is often included in sacred offerings to deities or spirits or in ceremonies to adorn altars, decorate ritual spaces, and create intricate floral arrangements, all of which lend it cultural significance in Oaxaca stemming from these ritual practices.

The Murik, living in mangrove lakes at the mouth of the Sepik River, have long been noted for producing twill-plaited bags and wood carvings of human figures that are traded throughout the region and in contemporary times sold in markets and to tourists. Museum collections invariably contain examples of these two types of objects, testifying to their ubiquity but often lacking information about their cultural significance within the culture, in the regional exchange network or in the cash economy. Locally these two kinds of object play an important role in expressing and mediating claims to identity, status and group membership, and are deployed to mediate contradiction or avert conflict. I examine their relationship to personhood and leadership status in two rites of passage – initiation into leadership authority and end of mourning – and in local, regional and market arenas of exchange.

This chapter offers a framework for understanding expressions of spiritual development in the behaviours and experiences of young adolescents (aged 10–15). Drawing loosely on the wisdom and models of rites of passage traditions, links are made between the deliberate communal coming of age ceremonial processes and the personal experiences of contemporary adolescents who are often left to accomplish the same developmental tasks in peer groups or in individual processes. Rites of passage included a deliberate acknowledgement of their spiritual significance and specific tasks, activities and means to insure appropriate spiritual education in a coming of age process. The communal absence of these rites now does not diminish adolescent attempts to come of age in spiritual terms.

ABSTRACTBackground: Low retention of humanitarian workers poses constraints on humanitarian organisations’ capacity to respond effectively to disasters. Research has focused on reasons for humanitarian workers leaving the sector, but little is known about the factors that can elucidate long-term commitment.Objective: To understand what motivates and supports experienced humanitarian health workers to remain in the sector.Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 experienced nurses who had been on at least three field missions with Médecins Sans Frontières Sweden. Interviews explored factors influencing the decision to go on missions, how nurses were supported and how they looked back on those experiences. Transcripts were analysed through content analysis informed by van Gennep’s concept of ‘Rite of Passage’, combined with elements of the self-determination theory.Results: The findings indicate that their motivations and how nurses thought of themselves, as individuals and professionals, changed over time. For initiation and continued engagement in humanitarian work, participants were motivated by several personal and professional ambitions, as well as altruistic principles of helping others. When starting their first humanitarian missions, nurses felt vulnerable and had low self-esteem. However, through experiencing feelings of autonomy, competence and relatedness during missions, they underwent a process of change and gradually adjusted to new roles as humanitarian health workers. Reintegration in their home community, while maintaining the new roles and skills from the missions, proved very challenging. They individually found their own ways of overcoming the lack of social support they experienced after missions in order to sustain their continuation in the sector.Conclusions: The findings highlight the importance of social environments that facilitate and support the adjustment of individuals during and after field missions. Learning from positive examples, such as nurses with several years of experience, can strengthen strategies of retention, which can ultimately improve the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

As a secularising nation in Northern Europe, Scotland has, over the last few decades, experienced a steep decline in religious belonging, church attendance, and beliefs. Ritual participation, which is arguably an understudied dimension of secularisation, follows a similar pattern of decline, with a significant majority of Scottish marriage rituals now being conducted in secular ceremonies. Using data from semi-structured in-depth interviews with 17 married couples, this study examines the decisions that secular Scots make when planning their wedding. Moreover, it places a particular focus on humanist marriage ceremonies, which have seen a noteworthy increase in popularity since they became legally recognised in Scotland in 2005. The secular participants emphasised the role of personal convictions and family expectations in choosing a particular type of marriage ceremony. The narratives also revealed how positive attitudes toward humanist ceremonies, in contrast with civil ceremonies, are centred around their ability to create personalised, nonreligious, celebrations that nevertheless give attention to culture and heritage. Ultimately, the findings suggest that repeating history through cultural traditions are an important aspect of both secular and religious rites of passage.

The birth of an academic discipline is a rare event. Even more extraordinary is academia's acknowledgment that spirituality has scholarly as well as personal dimensions. Inquiry and dialogue are the essence of this new discipline, as it paves the way toward a deeper understanding of what it means to be human within the Christian faith. The twenty-five essays in this volume, originally published in either the Christian Spirituality Bulletin or Spiritus: A Journal of Christian Spirituality, offer groundbreaking explorations of Christian spirituality. Arranged under five broad headings, these essays create an insightful dialogue on the questions, methods, and critical approaches implemented by the discipline's top scholars. Topics addressed include the particular intellectual and methodological challenges presented by spirituality as an academic discipline, the self-implicating nature of the study of spirituality, historical perspectives, theological implications, healing as a function of spirituality, and the relationship between aesthetics and spirituality-art and spirit. Scholars working on either broad or focused themes in spirituality will benefit from this clear and accessible presentation of the salient aspects of the discipline. In their insight and historical and methodological content, these essays provide valuable tools for students and teachers of spirituality and related fields, in their insight and historical and methodological content. This volume speaks to all who practice and study spirituality from any religious or secular perspective, encouraging reflective and open dialogue with one of humanity's major religious traditions. Contributors: J. Matthew Ashley, Thomas Berry, Mark S. Burrows, Douglas Burton-Christie, Lawrence S. Cunningham, Lisa E. Dahill, Elizabeth A. Dreyer, Mary Frohlich, Belden C. Lane, Elizabeth Liebert, E. Ann Matter, Bernard McGinn, Meredith B. McGuire, Mark McIntosh, Barbara Newman, Walter H. Principe, Don E. Saliers, Sandra M. Schneiders, Philip F. Sheldrake, Jon Sobrino, Wendy M. Wright

The atrocities of Nazi Germany included the radical transformation of natural landscapes. At Ravensbrück (Brandenburg), a lakeside setting became the site of the largest women's concentration camp in Germany, processing approximately 159,000 inmates until 1945. Similarly, at Flossenbürg (Bavaria), a picturesque valley in the Oberpfälzer Wald housed a large concentration camp with approximately 100,000 inmates over seven years and a granite quarry to support Hitler's extensive construction programme. After the war, part of Ravensbrück became a Soviet Army base, while large sections of Flossenbürg were removed to make way for a new housing and industrial development. Along with other former camps (particularly Auschwitz-Birkenau), parts of these landscapes were developed into memorial sites that aim to provide a liminal experience for visitors – a 'rite of passage'. In attempting to regain a sense of place that evokes the trauma of the past, the landscapes of the memorial sites of Ravensbrück and Flossenbürg were recently altered to resemble their appearance in 1945. For visitors, however, the aesthetic experience of these landscapes lies in stark contrast to the narrative they encounter at both sites; they are surprised to see signs of life, objecting to modernisation at Ravensbrück or the existence of a supermarket next to the memorial site in Flossenbürg. This paper examines the transformative processes of these landscapes and explores how their liminality is constructed, experienced and challenged. Through empirical visitor research conducted at both sites, it provides a critical evaluation of the narrative given to visitors and suggests how these important sites can offer a more engaging 'rite of passage'.

The atrocities of Nazi Germany included the radical transformation of natural landscapes. At Ravensbrück (Brandenburg), a lakeside setting became the site of the largest women’s concentration camp in Germany, processing approximately 159,000 inmates until 1945. Similarly, at Flossenbürg (Bavaria), a picturesque valley in the Oberpfälzer Wald housed a large concentration camp with approximately 100,000 inmates over seven years and a granite quarry to support Hitler’s extensive construction programme. After the war, part of Ravensbrück became a Soviet Army base, while large sections of Flossenbürg were removed to make way for a new housing and industrial development. Along with other former camps (particularly Auschwitz-Birkenau), parts of these landscapes were developed into memorial sites that aim to provide a liminal experience for visitors – a ‘rite of passage’. In attempting to regain a sense of place that evokes the trauma of the past, the landscapes of the memorial sites of Ravensbrück and Flossenbürg were recently altered to resemble their appearance in 1945. For visitors, however, the aesthetic experience of these landscapes lies in stark contrast to the narrative they encounter at both sites; they are surprised to see signs of life, objecting to modernisation at Ravensbrück or the existence of a supermarket next to the memorial site in Flossenbürg. This paper examines the transformative processes of these landscapes and explores how their liminality is constructed, experienced and challenged. Through empirical visitor research conducted at both sites, it provides a critical evaluation of the narrative given to visitors and suggests how these important sites can offer a more engaging ‘rite of passage’.

This study examines Taylor Swift’s song Midnight Rain to explore its depiction of gender roles, societal pressures, and personal ambition through stylistic and figurative language. Using a qualitative approach, the research analyzes Swift’s use of metaphor, personification, and irony to construct a narrative contrasting traditional gender expectations with individual independence. The findings highlight Swift’s critique of societal norms surrounding family, conformity, and relational expectations. Her lyrics challenge conventional female roles by emphasizing autonomy and self-fulfillment over domestic aspirations. Through symbolic language, Midnight Rain conveys themes of regret and the emotional complexity of defying societal pressures in pursuit of personal goals. Swift employs figurative elements, such as light and darkness metaphors, to symbolize the conflicting desires between ambition and stability. For instance, “sunshine” represents warmth and consistency, while “midnight rain” reflects emotional depth and transformation. Irony further underscores societal paradoxes, where women’s ambition is often criticized, while conformity is idealized. The song critiques restrictive social environments through metaphors like “cages” and “fences,” symbolizing small-town confinement. It also deconstructs the pressure to maintain “picture-perfect” family ideals, highlighting the hidden sacrifices and tensions behind such facades. This research contributes to understanding popular music as a medium for engaging with societal issues. Swift’s lyrics offer a commentary on the tensions between personal ambition and societal norms, inviting listeners to reflect on their own experiences of balancing identity and expectations. By analyzing Midnight Rain, this study underscores the role of contemporary music in addressing themes of gender, identity, and societal pressures, revealing how artists like Swift articulate these challenges through layered figurative language and personal narrative.

This article describes a new theoretical, psychological model characterizing the concept, structure and functioning of spirituality in relation to the phenomenon of religiousness. The structural and processual approaches are indispensable when examining the spiritual sphere. The theory suggests that the psychological nature of spirituality can be considered from a threefold perspective: (1) as a cognitive scheme (the most constricted understanding), (2) as a dimension of personality (the broader understanding), (3) as an attitude towards life (the most extensive perspective). The Threefold Nature of Spirituality (TNS) model binds these perspectives together and describes the phenomena and processes inherent in spiritual functioning: looking for the sacred or a-sacred, for the meaning of life, and for personal fulfilment. Theoretical and empirical examples are presented here in support of the TNS, although further exploration is necessary.