Informant: “This is a ritual we do, that’s usually performed between a brother and sister, but it could also be a cousin or something. I get a bracelet from my brother that has a cultural symbol, and in return, he gets me a gift. It’s from back in the day, as if I’m sending him off to fight in some war. The bracelet is supposed to offer him protection and good health on that journey. We do it every year on a specific day, but I can’t remember the day. Oh, and we also have to feed each other something sweet.”

Me: “So what is this festival about for you?”

Informant: “It’s about the bond I have with my brother. Also, since my brother is older, it’s like I’m thankful for everything he does for me, even if I don’t see it. You know, I’m sure there’s a lot he does that I don’t really have to think about because I’m just the younger sister. We’re never really serious with each other, so I really appreciate it as a day for us to be serious about our family and siblinghood.”

Context: The informant has been performing this ritual with her brother, once a year, every year, for as long as she can remember. They were taught it by her parents, and although the informant is shaky on what she thinks the ritual should mean, she finds her own meaning in the bond she has created with her brother and the opportunity to show that love despite the fact that they are rarely serious with each other. The cultural symbol in question is called “Rakhi” and is meant to symbolize protection, as the informant stated.

Analysis: My interpretation of this ritual, as it is performed by my informant, is that it is an old ritual which has been gradually adapted to make more sense in our modern context. According to my research, the ritual originally existed in villages where married women would leave their roots to go live with their new husband in another village. This ritual would then serve as one of the only times they returned home to their parents’ house each year, with the purpose of the ritual being to symbolize the brother as a protector in his sister’s relationship. As such, the way my informant celebrates the ritual serves more as a symbolic appreciation of brotherhood and sisterhood than a very real and potentially necessary promise of protection.