Rites, spells and ceremonies
Things done in a set way: cleansings, offerings, blessings, binding and unbinding, initiations.
A rite is something done in a set way: a cleansing, an offering, a blessing, an initiation, a binding. What marks it out is form, with fixed words, gestures, timing and often a specialist to lead it. Rites exist in every culture, from the Catholic exorcism and the Vedic fire offering to the Yoruba sacrifice and the Aboriginal ceremony. This page describes them as customs, in outline. Here they are described as customs and in outline only.
Parts of a rite
Most rites share a few parts: a prepared space, a purifying act, speech or song, a gesture, an offering, and a closing that returns everyone to ordinary life. Scholars such as Arnold van Gennep called rites of passage a sequence of separation, threshold and return. Many rites also mark a time: the new moon, the solstice, a death, a birth, a wedding. Some are done once in a lifetime and some every day, and the same gesture can be a rite in one house and a habit in the next.
Who may perform
Some rites belong to anyone in the household, such as sweeping the house at new year or tying a thread on a child's wrist. Others need an officiant: a priest, a medium, a shaman or an initiated elder. Women often hold domestic rites and are shut out of public priesthood, though in places such as Korea, the Philippines and parts of Africa women lead spirit rites. A rite is also tied to a community: it is done with others present, who witness it and agree that it counts.
Rites that hurt
Not every rite is gentle. Some involve animal sacrifice, which is a normal part of a number of living religions and is performed under rules of its own. Exorcism rites have caused real harm when applied to people with mental illness or to children accused of witchcraft, with deaths reported from beatings, fasting and restraint. Illness needs real medical care. Others are simple and joyful, such as a blessing over bread or a thread on a wrist, and carry no danger at all, which is why most rites are never remarked upon.
Change and commerce
Rites move with people. Diaspora communities adapt them to apartments, city streets and other languages. Some are now sold as retreats or workshops, which can strip them from their community and context. Tourism has also turned ceremonies into shows, and communities increasingly set rules about who may watch, photograph or join. Government rules shape rites too: some countries license ritual slaughter, others require permits for processions, and a few have banned particular ceremonies outright, so a rite can become a legal question as well as a religious one.
Rite on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreKalachakraདུས་ཀྱི་འཁོར་ལོ།
A Tibetan Buddhist tantric deity and system of yogic time cyclesTradition · Change and initiation · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇬🇷 GreeceEleusinian MysteriesἘλευσίνια Μυστήρια
Ancient Greek secret initiation rites honouring Demeter and Persephone at EleusisTradition · Change and initiation · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇨🇳 China and 4 moreSky burialབྱ་གཏོར་
A Tibetan funerary rite where human remains are offered to scavenging birdsRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇳🇿 New Zealand and 5 moreFace tattoo
Marks inked on the face for spiritual protection, identity, rank, and rite of passageTradition · Protection · Power and authority Living
🇪🇬 EgyptAncient Egyptian afterlife beliefs
A system of rituals and texts guiding the soul through the underworld to eternal rebirthTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇿🇦 South AfricaUkuthwasa
A spiritual calling and initiation process for traditional healers in Southern Africa.Rite · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇺🇸 United StatesGhost DanceNanissaanah
A circular movement seeking spiritual renewal and reunion with ancestorsRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇯🇵 JapanChinkon kishin鎮魂帰神
A Japanese spiritual practice combining soul calming with spirit possessionRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Living
🇮🇪 IrelandFellowship of Isis𓊨𓏏𓁐𓌞𓋴𓅱𓂻𓏥
An international spiritual fellowship honouring the Divine Feminine and the goddess IsisTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇲🇽 MexicoVelada
A Mazatec healing ceremony using sacred plants to commune with the divineRite · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Kalachakra: Nabin K. Sapkota, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chinkon kishin: Tomokiyo Yoshisane (友清歓真), also known as Tomokiyo Kyūgo (友清九吾), Public domain, source
- Ancient Egyptian afterlife beliefs: Hunefer, Public domain, source
- Ukuthwasa: Mycelium101, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ghost Dance: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Eleusinian Mysteries: No machine-readable author provided. Marsyas assumed (based on copyrig, Public domain, source
- Sky burial: FishOil at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Face tattoo: Gottfried Lindauer, Public domain, source