Ritual Psychedelics

Pronouns: He/Him

Age: 40

Nationality: Mexican/American

Primary Language(s): Spanish, English

Text

“Before doing some amount of psychedelics, I would do a ritual around setting intention and connecting with whomever I’m with. It happened before we would ingest whatever the substance was – ideally a calming presence because taking drugs can cause anticipation. I think the intention depended on what was going on in a person’s life. It could be shared or kept personal. Connecting could be physical like holding hands or just presence. I think I tried to mention something about how difficult things could come up and how to sit with them. I think each time was unique because there are so many variables, so who you were with definitely changed things.”

Context

This informant is interested in meditation and other mindfulness practices.

Analysis

This ritual is practiced in the presence of change. Specifically, this ritual aims to lessen the negative effects of the mind/body alterations associated with psychedelics and simultaneously connect with those around the informant. Additionally, this ritual could be considered a ‘transition rite’ (as defined by Arnold van Gennep) because it ritually marks the transition from one mental/physical state to another.

Tea Ceremony

Pronouns: He/Him

Age: 40

Nationality: Mexican/American

Primary Language(s): Spanish, English

Text

“When I make matcha I roughly make it an homage to the Japanese tea ceremony I saw in Japan. Basically I try to treat it like something more special than just making a drink. I’m more intentional about it – I rinse the match bowl with hot water, I sift the matcha slowly, I froth it up real good. It’s a meditation, and it’s so effective that I lose myself. That part is maybe hard to explain more clearly. I went to Japan in 2019 for fun. It was at a tea house where they specifically perform the ceremony. It wasn’t the most organic thing but still beautiful. Everyone got to drink some and it was splendid.”

Context

This informant travels frequently and has visited countries across the world. Japan is one of his favorite places to revisit.

Analysis

This ritual is practiced in homage to another ritual. By performing the ritual the way it was intended to be practiced, the informant is showing respect and admiration. His intention to reach authenticity demonstrates a respect for an admiration of the original cultural practice. Additionally, there is a spiritual component to the practice. By making the drink slowly and intentionally – the same way the tea house made the drink – the process of making the drink becomes a spiritual, meditative practice distinctive from any other method of beverage-making.

Funeral Parties

Pronouns: She/Her

Age: 21

Nationality: American

Primary Language(s): English

Text

“So for ‘funerals’ we do celebrations of life where we get drunk and party to our loved ones’ lives. We normally don’t have a funeral service. Instead, we make powerpoints, speak on our favorite memories, and take shots in their honor. That’s the funeral.”

Context

This informant is one of my close friends. She is fairly close with her family and visits her parents often.

Analysis

This ritual is practiced in the presence of death with the purpose of celebrating the deceased family member’s life. It is a ‘separation rite’ (as defined by Arnold van Gennep) because it ritually marks the separation of a loved one from his or her family, friends, and life. By choosing to celebrate the family member’s life rather than mourn the family member’s death (in other words, seeing death as an opportunity for positivity and connection), the informant’s family is more easily able to cope with the passing of their loved ones. In other words, partying in the face of death is another form of mourning/coping.

Spirit Money

Pronouns: He/Him

Age: 21

Nationality: Malaysian

Primary Language(s): Malay, English

Text

“On the ninth day of the Chinese New Year, Hokkien people – a subgroup of Chinese people – stay up til midnight to pray to the Jade Emperor, the ‘Chinese god big boss’. My mom happens to be Hokkien which is why we do it every year. Before the ritual, we would fold thousands of joss papers into specific shapes to burn during the ritual. The joss papers symbolize ‘spirit money’ and the act of burning them symbolizes giving money to the Jade Emperor. On the night of the ninth day of Chinese New Year, we would set up a table in front of our house filled with food offerings. Common food choices include a bunch of vegetarian stuff and a big roasted pork. We would also place two large sugar canes and three large dragon joss sticks in front of the table. By 11pm, we start by praying to the Jade Emperor with incense while making a wish. Then we burn all the joss papers that we prepared before, and by the time the dragon joss sticks are burned to around their midpoints, we stop burning the joss papers and start eating the food offerings.”

Context

This informant is one of my close friends and classmates. He celebrates the Chinese New Year every year, although he has been apart from his family in Malaysia for the last couple years while studying at university.

Analysis

This ritual is practiced in the presence of change with the purpose of eliciting a positive outcome for the family’s future in the Chinese New Year. It is a ‘transition rite’ (as defined by Arnold van Gennep) because it ritually marks the transition from one year to the next. This ritual also follows James George Frazer’s homeopathic Principle of Sympathetic Magic – the informant’s family folds joss papers into specific shapes (symbolizing ‘spirit money’) which are burned to represent the offering of ‘spirit money’ to the Jade Emperor.

The Ghosts of July

Nationality: American
Primary Language: English
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: 03/31/2024

Text:

“During the month of July, the gates between the afterlife and this world open, and ghosts come to the roam in our world at night. You have to close your windows and blinds, or they’ll come into your room.”

Context:

The informant heard this story from her roommate, who grew up in China. The informant was told this story one night when they were trading various cultural stories and legends, and recalls that this was a legend believes deeply in. She also recalls that her roommate felt a ghost in her room when she was a kid and didn’t close her window. The informant doesn’t necessarily believe in the story, but thinks that all ghost stories could be possible.

Analysis:

The context of this legend being from China adds a level of cultural significance as it is tied to the lunar calendar. This means that the story has been canonized in cultural lore, but continues to shift. For example, the informant was told a “quick” version of the lore, that holds deeper cultural significance, demonstrating the popularity and easy ability to spread ghost stories. This story spreads easily both as it as a ghost stories, but because families are likely to tell their kids this story in the culture out of caution and true belief in the story. I think that ghost stories are most certainly plausible, but the notion of a singular month of “ghosts” holds less plausibility for me.