Ancient Ritual Research Articles

Репрезентация ритуалов, связанных с водой, в современной испанской прозе

The article analyzes examples of the inclusion of descrip-tions of ancient beliefs and rituals related to water in the modern Spanish prose. These traditions are particularly noticeable in the Northern regions of Spain, especially in Galicia, the Basque Country and Cantabria. It is believed that it is in this part of Spain that the ideas of the ancient inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula are layered with Celtic and Gothic beliefs, as well as Christian traditions. The element of water relates, first of all, to the idea of purification from negative influence and transformation. Rituals associ-ated with water can change a person's life, fill it, help cope with many prob-lems, but can awaken secret feelings and emotions. Water magic turns out to be associated with cruelty and murder, a violent transition to the other world. The secrecy and ritual attract authors of detective novels and magi-cal genres. On the other hand, the inclusion of such elements in a literary work helps to show the identity and originality of the region, promote local names, not only place names, but also dialect names of objects, all this at-tracts the reader with its uniqueness, and, more broadly, provides attention to the history and culture of not only Spain as a whole, but also its indi-vidual regions.

Mythologizing the Narrative: An Analytical Study of Turnage/Berkoff’s <i>Greek</i> (1989) and the Nature of Operatic Narrative

This paper focuses on literary adaptation of the genre of music theatre, i.e. opera and its strong association with mythic narrative. It will begin with a brief discussion on the hybrid nature of music theatre and its inner struggle between the Apollonian/verbal and the Dionysian/musical principles. In order to fully apprehend operatic narrative, it is necessary to explore the connection between opera and its predecessor, the ancient Greek theatre and the genre’s association with myth and ritual. The paper will analyse a twentieth century English operatic adaptation and its social and cultural implications by using <i>Greek</i> (1989) as an example. In crafting a modern version of an ancient myth, some plausible equivalence of the original narrative motivation must be incorporated if the functional and explanatory elements are not to be lost. Opera can be considered to be the direct descendent of its ancient Greek predecessor. Furthermore, from a social and cultural prospective, opera has transformed the ancient rite of religious sacrifice into a secular social and communal offering. The nature of operatic libretto also reflects the essential characteristics of a double sacrifice in the genre of music theatre. Singers offer their talents in representing the scapegoat in a pseudo religious ritual in the modern society; librettists offer words for the ultimate amalgamation with music in the genre of music theatre. The paper concludes with the idea that the genre of music theatre is designed to epitomise a condensation of human emotions and as an offering which corresponding to the modern society’s need for ritualistic sacrifice and spiritual purification.

ФОРМЫ ВЗАИМОДЕЙСТВИЯ «СВЕТСКОГО» И «ПРИРОДНОГО» В ХУДОЖЕСТВЕННОМ ТВОРЧЕСТВЕ ОСКАРА УАЙЛЬДА: ВЫГОДНЫЙ ОБМЕН И ЖЕРТВОПРИНОШЕНИЕ

Most of Oscar Wilde’s works focus on the high society (including the royalty), which is portrayed as artificial, imitative, and ludic. These characteristics are epitomized in the process of collecting (artificial) rarities (The Picture of Dorian Gray, Salome, The Young King), or in the passion for performance and mystification (The Birthday of the Infanta, The Sphinx Without a Secret, The Importance of Being Ernest). As opposed to the “high society”, Wilde shows the natural (or ancient) milieu, which is firmer and healthier, but devoid of aesthetic perfection. Paradoxically, the high society represents external, corporeal, aesthetic form of life, while the natural milieu means the spiritual and ethic one. Wilde shows the aesthetic or ethic perfection as a fatal and dangerous phenomenon, since fully expressing themself in one, the person has to abandon the other. As a result, a good-looking person becomes a paragon of immorality, while a morally upstanding one looks too much ugly). Wilde is interested in the technique of the interaction between the opposites, rather than in the depiction of the absolute corporeal or moral perfection. The article aims at showing the two forms of interaction between “the civilization” and “the nature”. The positive model shows a profitable exchange: one side gives exactly as much as the other side receives (i.e. the rescued Hare for the rescued Star-Child; the peace of the Canterville Ghost for Virginia’s fortunate marriage). This is the case when the characters, who have some problems with their bodies (the transparent Ghost or the serpent-like Star-Child) gain the distinct shape, as if passing from the ancient to the modern state. In the cause of mutually beneficial exchange, the happy end (in Wilde’s terms) is possible. In the negative model, we can clearly see the imbalance between the two sides: one side gives more, but receives less, while the other becomes the figure of worship. Gradually, the influence of one of the sides grows: the “predator”, like the vampire, consumes and exhausts their “victim”. Instead of the modern exchange, the relationships between “the civilization” and “the nature” transform into the ancient ritual of the sacrifice, or idol worship (Basil, Nightingale, Jokanaan), with the members of this process returning to the ancient - formless - state.

МИФОЛОГИЯ РУССКОГО ПРАВОСЛАВИЯ И АРХИТЕКТУРА ДЕРЕВЯННОГО ХРАМА

This research topic is the initial stage of new work. The influence of the mythopoetic worldview of Russians and Orthodoxy on the architectural structure and symbolism in the concept of wooden temple building in the northern and arctic territories is considered an integrative scientific field in the article. This is founding a confirmation in the organization of the cultural and sacred landscape, in historical traditions and legends about the choosing of a place for the building of a temple (chapel). As well as the special status of «sacred» and «roadside» groves of trees, the selection of these trees for construction in a sacred meaning and using of individual parts of these temples as a community center and place for ancient rituals. The lexis, connected with the folk architecture, indicates the anthropomorphic nature of the architectural space of the temple. The construction, as it were, is assembled from «large», qualitatively significant components of the human body: head, neck, face, eyes, kokoshnik, forehead, rib, human bust, etc. This tradition is preserved and strengthened by the circumstance that since ancient times, the proportions of the human body acted as a tectonic (building) model of the entire architectural structure. The research substantiates an algorithm for the interactionof the mythopoetic worldview and the Orthodoxy on the architectural structure, and the significance of church architecture. The temple occupied a central place in the sacred space of the northern peasant world. The conducted research made it possible to convincingly prove that wooden churches are a symbolic heritage of the Russian North and the Arctic. The pinnacle of the development of wooden architecture, embodied in the northern temple architecture, was a natural result of ancient Russian architectural – constructional traditions and a reflection of the talent of the Russian people, which allows us to translate the concept of «Russian carpenter» into the category of «Russian architect».

СЕЛИЩЕ БАРСОВА ГОРА II/42 (КОМПЛЕКСЫ НЕОЛИТА, ЭНЕОЛИТА И БРОНЗОВОГО ВЕКА)

The settlement Barsova Gora II/42 is located in Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug-Yugra, 15 km west of Surgut, on the high bank of the Ob' River. The settlement is being actively destroyed due to the activities of oil companies. More than 20 objects and structures were investigated in 2011 during rescue excavations, some of them are pits of ancient dwellings (sites 1, 2, 6, 15, 19), some are household outbuildings and pits (sites 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 20), two objects have a cult purpose (sites 5, 12). An important feature of the monument is that archaeological structures of different epochs and cultures overlap each other, allowing us to trace the sequence of settlement of this part of the Ob River bank. During the Neolithic Age the constructions of Bystrinsky and Barsovogorsky cultural types were located here, the cultural layers containing ceramics of Vakhovsky type belong to the Eneolithic Age, and the constructions and household pits of Kulugansky type belong to the Bronze Age. An ochre storage pit and a ring ochre structure represent a unique object, which is probably related to ancient rituals. The revealed objects (Nos. 15, 19, 18, 2, 1, 5, 17, 13) are partially investigated and require further excavations.

Опыт идентификации саамских сакральных объектов Русской Лапландии: «Братья» полуострова Средний Мурманского побережья Баренцева моря.

The article is devoted by field investigations of stone natural object “Bratya”located in the Srednii Peninsula of the Murmansk coast of the Barents Sea which were in 2011. At the first the special study of objects-“sieidas”of theRussian Lapland was carried out in the Murmansk region. The geochemical investigations supported the speculation about some ancient rituals like sacrifices that has been performed around rock pillars. Apparently it was perceived as expressive natural object possessing sacred properties what named in historiography of the Sami ethnography as “sieid”.

A costume in the funeral rituals of the Mari people

Introduction. Burial rites, which are a traditional object of research in archeology and ethnography, are one of most stable elements of ethnic culture. The costume and its individual elements took an important place in the funeral and memorial rites. The study of these rituals can reveal new aspects of the spiritual culture of the Mari people. Materials and Methods. The work is based on the comparison of archaeological and ethnographic materials, culturogical approach, methods of semantic, cultural and anthropological research. Results and Discussion. The reference of funeral and memorial rites to the passage rites determined the use of the elements of a wedding dress, including fur clothes and jewelry. The belt that served as a storage was an important part of the burial costume, as well as the sacrificial and ritual complexes of the ancient Mari tribes. Conclusion. Application of a culturological approach to the research of the funeral rituals of the Mari people allowed to conclude that the costume substituted the deceased, served as the embodiment of a generic body that went back to the totem. The funeral costume, like the wedding one, assumed the use of ancient symbolic codes. The belt that completed the symbolic human body was an important burial costume. The belt served as a defense in the ancient Mari sacrificial ritual complexes, enhancing their association with the world tree.

Religious Chants – The Diversity of Church Hymns Types

"In the Romanian musical space, in the Orthodox Church hymns’ repertoire, there is a great variety of non-liturgical chants intended to be sung in different moments of the liturgy. The moments these chants can be introduced are during the kinonikón, the believers’ communion and the end of the liturgy. Either they are called kinonikón, hymns, Calophonic Hirmos, spiritual or liturgical chants; the religious chants became a part of the Orthodox rite, training the Christians ‘community in the church chant. Having appeared in diverse historical contexts and being written by Byzantine music composers, by priests, by church singers and local liturgical communities, these religious chants have deeply been rooted both in the ancient liturgy ritual, and in the different moments of religious activities, pilgrimages, conferences, spiritual gatherings. Having an extremely accessible melodic line and being constructed on doxological, doctrinarian and moralizing character texts, the religious chants are an efficient means of making the Christian communities more dynamic. Keywords: kinonikón, hymn, religious chants "

Rite and history in the Paraguayan Chaco Guaraní. Notes about arete guasu

The arete guasu is an indigenous ritual celebrated annually during the carnival season by the Guaraníes and Chanés from Western Chaco region. This text describes the recent history of Paraguay's western Guaraní people, who were displaced from southern Bolivia after Chaco War (Bolivia-Paraguay, 1932-1935). In every community founded by the Guaraníes in Paraguay, they kept on celebrating their ancient ritual, despite the restrictions imposed in the Catholic missions and in the Mennonite colonies where the Guaraníes lived. Based on this observation, I examine the importance of the rite in their social life. It is argued that the rite has a key role in the definition of a time and a place for the northern Paraguayan Chaco Guaraní in the complex interethnic situation that they faced after the Chaco War.

About the “Common” Horse in Serbian Folktales

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;O pospolitym koniu w serbskich podaniach ludowych&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Artykuł koncentruje się na analizie charakteru pospolitego (niemagicznego) konia w serbskich podaniach ludowych z trzech perspektyw: 1) nazwy i atrybuty, 2) funkcje, 3) właściciele konia, 4) cechy w historiach i baśniach zwierzęcych. Pierwszy aspekt dotyczy częstotliwości nazw i użycia atrybutów związanych z końmi. Drugi definiuje funkcje pospolitego konia: jako pojazdu i pomocy w codziennym życiu, funkcje magiczne, starożytne rytuały i religijne przedstawienie konia, koń, jako część kary śmierci, itp. Trzeci aspekt rozróżnia właścicieli konia ze względu na pochodzenie społeczne (klasa wyższa / niższa). Niemniej jednak typ Cygana nie podlega temu rozróżnieniu. Czwarty aspekt odnosi się do cech w historiach zwierzęcych i baśniach. Wyniki badania pokazują, że każda z tych perspektyw jest ściśle powiązana z rzeczywistością oraz, że niektóre elementy podań ludowych mają ogromne znaczenie z uwagi na ich rolę w zachowaniu starożytnych pojęć religijnych zapomnianych we współczesnym życiu.&lt;/p&gt;

Ritual Clothing of the Sakha People: tangalai son (Historical Memory and Semantics)

The ancient ritual clothing of the Sakha tangalai son people in a broad historical retrospective through the prism of “remembering culture” (according to Ya. Assman), based on a wide range of folklore, linguistic and ethnographic materials, is examined in the article. For the first time, a detailed historiographic review of works devoted to the ritual clothing of the tangalai son was made. The main goal of this study was the reconstruction of archaic elements associated with the historical memory of the ritual. The interpretation of the semantics of the word is proposed. The analysis of the semiotic code of this garment is carried out. It has been established that in this ritual clothing, through a symbolic code, totemistic views associated with the archaic worldview of the people are clearly expressed. Semantic analysis of the name tangalai son showed that the Turkic-Mongol peoples had similar ideas associated with the bird cult and originating in ancient totemistic and shamanistic ideas. The image of a white bird / totem was revealed, which found expression in the symbolic design of the tangalai son , and the “fur code” was analyzed as an element of the ritual of the symbolic rebirth of the bride.

Дал шинжилгээний уламжлал бэлгэдэл (Шинжааны Баянголын монголчуудын жишээгээр) (= Традиция гадания на бараньей лопатке и его символика (на примере баянгольcких монголов Синьцзяна))

Introduction. In the cultural tradition of Mongolic peoples, there is a rite of sacralizing certain parts of animal bones, and related ritual actions and prohibitions. In this regard, a special place is held by the ancient rite of telling tales and divination on sheep scapula. Goals. The paper seeks to examine the mentioned practice among Bayangol Mongols (Oirats) of the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (PRC). Results. The shoulder bone as an important and sacred part of the body is mentioned in many oral and written narratives, including such ancient written monuments as The Secret History of the Mongols and the Epic of Jangar. In the food culture of the Oirats, there is a special tradition of offering a shoulder bone to certain members of the family and clan, by age and social status. In the verse of benevolence to be recited after eating the spatula meat and an obligatory break of the scapula, as well as in the text of the narrative and divination on sheep scapula, there are certain general clichéd formulas that have a deep symbolic meaning. The article examines the rites that exist in the tradition of the Oirats of Bayangol related to storytelling and divination on sheep scapula, as well as the symbolic meaning of the texts.

Waiting and Watching in the Wanderings of Life

Vigil keeping, although an ancient ritual, has been practiced for centuries and continues to be a part of present-day life. A vigil can be experienced in a variety of ways with the common theme of waiting and watching. This article presents a brief look at the history of vigil, ways it continues in actual practice today, as well as examples of how an attitude of waiting and watching is valued in many spiritual traditions. Most significantly, this article explores the importance of holding a vigilant attitude in the work of depth psychology. Whether you are an analyst, therapist, client, one searching for meaning and/or struggling with the depths, being patient in the waiting (and vigilant in the watching) opens the door to the soul.

The Wilderness Solo Experience: A Unique Practice of Silence and Solitude for Personal Growth

Silence is now acknowledged by science as a significant construct of healthy human development and well-being, linked to humans’ neurobiology, psychology, physiology, and spirituality. This paper focuses on a particular form of silence experienced through the solo experience in the wilderness. The solo experience, involving varying periods of time spent in solitude and silence in the wilderness is a common method of intervention implemented among therapeutic and educational nature-based approaches. Numerous studies and personal accounts in the field underscore the solo experience as one of the most significant nature based interventions linked to various beneficial outcomes. These studies emphasize the significance of the wilderness, far from daily demands, and devoid of technological stimuli allowing the silence, time and space for self-reflection and contemplation on the sacredness and meaning of life. Although new to modern culture, solitude in nature is an ancient form of initiation used ceremonially by indigenous cultures worldwide. These practices challenge the individual who alone in the wilderness battles fear and loneliness only to discover inner strengths and true identity. The solo experience, viewed as enacting these ancient rituals in modern form may serve as an antidote to the loneliness, stress, and depression on the rise in the current era, which have been linked to our overly stimulated urban environments and lifestyles. This paper sheds light on how the wilderness solo is experienced and understood, specifically as contributing to therapeutic outcome and personal growth. The empirical and theoretical literature is reviewed pointing to the significance of solitude and silence as basic components of the wilderness solo. These are linked to profound personal outcomes including the discovery of new and expansive ways of knowing the self and the world, specifically as interconnected in the larger web of life, enhancing a sense of personal belonging and purpose.

SYMBOLIC USE OF DOMESTIC SPACE IN THE UPPER SVANETIAN (GEORGIA) VERNACULAR HOUSE

Abstract. Upper Svaneti (Georgia) is a territory in almost permanent isolation amid the Caucasus mountain range. This strategic position, along with the military nature of its settlements made its defence so effective that Svaneti served as Georgia`s safehouse, protecting its chief historical and religious relics in times of crisis. This isolation also ensured the preservation of archaic cultural traditions and ancient rituals, such as animal sacrifices, ritual shaving and blood feuds, establishing what is known as popular religion. Some of these rituals, mainly those performed by women, take place in the domestic space. This paper, developed under the scope of the 3DPast project, aims to interpret the symbolic use of space in vernacular houses of Upper Svaneti. The methodological strategy combines architectonic survey with documental analysis and brings forward an interpretation of this vernacular house from a space anthropology perspective. The traditional svanetian house (machubi), is composed of a single volume, of rough quadrangular plan. The ground floor (machub) houses, during winter, the family and the cattle, while the upper floor (darbazi) was mostly used as the family residence during warmer periods. This analysis will focus specifically on the machub, where there are traces of the symbolic use of domestic space. The machub is composed of a single space with a central fireplace. This element is the axis of segmentation of female and male spaces inside the house. The present paper will address this gender-differentiated symbolic use of the domestic space through the scope of anthropology and of the Svanetian history.

Jesus as Scapegoat in Matthew’s Roman-Abuse Scene (Matt 27:27–31)

Abstract Behind the cruel mockery of Pilate’s auxiliary troops (Matt 27:27–31), Matthew portrays the royal inauguration of the true cosmic lord. But what has often been missed is that this inauguration also entails Jesus’s cultic elimination as the victim in a performance reminiscent of ancient curse-transmission rituals. Matthew transforms and assimilates the scene to the most famous elimination rite in his Jewish context, the Yom Kippur scapegoat ritual. Jesus becomes a king who himself bears and carries away the moral impurities of the denizens of his own kingdom as the typological fulfillment of the scapegoat of Leviticus 16.

Lactile libations: Mongolian milk offerings

Milk and milk tea occupy a special place in Mongolian hearts. Historical writings of Roman Catholic missionaries confirm the sacredness of milk and its abundant use for Mongolians. Milk offerings, sprinkled into the air, are offered to Tenger (Sky/ Sky God), Buddha, ancestors or nature spirits, and are an everyday part of traditional Mongolian worship, nearly always in the morning. This ceremony traditionally is performed alone by women, mothers praying in a supplication of blessing and protection for their families. Yet in recent times a few men have been doing this ancient ritual. Are possible Mongolian Christian responses to reject this traditional custom as being syncretistic, or to see it as being a potential form of Christian expression of devotion to God? May there be analogies from milk offerings to better engage in discipleship or worship? If this ancient practice is not addressed, there is the risk, especially for women, of this ritual being driven underground, of split-level living among Christians.

The Past Embedded in Everyday Life

AbstractThe Andean experience of the everyday is affected markedly by respect and reverence for tradition, for teachings of the past, and for myths that explain and simplify reality. This article reflects on the uses of ancient rituals in Bolivia today, in the context that Xavier Albó named “the return of the Indian.”

James Light: “The Parade of Masks” (c. 1928)

James Light: “The Parade of Masks” (<i>c</i>. 1928)

Religio-cultural heritage of libation, memory and Obang cultural history, Northwest Cameroon

This article argues that libation, often associated with the ancestors, artefacts, images and pre-Christian religious devotions, constitutes sources for articulating authentic African cultural history of Obang community in the Northwest Region of Cameroon. It highlights that among traditional memory carriers, the ritual of libation remains trust worthy and pervasive, even among communities challenged by globalisation and colonising effects of Christianity. The article demonstrates the immense potentials of libation as an epitome and stabiliser of cultural memory, and a maxim in cultural resilience in contemporary Africa. Thus, the article calls for revisiting this ancient ritual to expose its potentials as a veritable memory repertoire in cultural–historical studies, especially at a time when social change and modernism continue to challenge the memories of traditional societies.