Tag Archives: ritual

Golden Cicadas and Good Luck

“So basically, there were cicadas, especially, like, golden cicadas.

In Chinese culture they are, like, a symbol of good luck, because cicadas, I think are silent for, like, 100 years, or something crazy.

Like, they’re silent for their entire life basically, but then during one, one specific year, they’ll chirp, but it’ll be really loud.

So it’s kind of, like, you’re biding your time, but then, when it’s your time, you can, flourish. That is the kind of vibe.

And so, I’m not sure if this is just something that, like, my parents do, but they always, like, have these little cicada statues, and they are golden.

And I have everything at college, and basically, anytime I have, like, a big test or, like, big, important, decisions or, like, things that I’m, like, waiting for, I’ll just, like, rub the top of its head for good luck.

So I remember when it was college decision time. During that time, we would, me and my sister both, like, sit with it in our lap, basically. But, yeah, we basically just rubbed its head for good luck, and, like, before I take a test, I always do that as well.

I just think that the cicadas represent good luck and, like, prosperity. I think rubbing the statue is just something that’s kind of like a physical thing that you can do to make yourself feel better.

Um, so, yeah. I don’t know if that’s like a real thing, though. She’s something that, like, we’ve always done.”

Context: The informant is a Chinese-Vietnamese-American female USC student whose mother is Buddhist. Although she grew up in the U.S., her family maintains cultural traditions, including keeping small golden cicada statues that symbolize luck and prosperity. Now she has brought a golden cicada to college to continue the tradition.

Analysis: This is an example of folk belief combined with a personal ritual and material culture. The cicada statue itself is a physical object that carries symbolic meaning, representing patience and eventual success in Chinese tradition. The act of rubbing the statue becomes a small, repeated behavior for good luck. Even though she’s unsure if it’s a formal tradition, it still holds meaning for her, showing how folklore can be adapted and maintained across generations.

Mexican Egg Ritual

Age: 19
Hometown: Rifle, Colorado
Location: Mexico

Context:
My friend told me about this ritual while we were talking about nightmares and bad luck. He is originally from Colorado and moved to Los Angeles for college. His family is originally from Mexico, and thus he got this ritual from them as it was passed down through generations of his family.

Content:
Interviewer: “Can you tell me a little bit more about the egg ritual that you mentioned?”

Interviewee: “So basically in Mexican tradition whenever little kids are having nightmares or anything, like they went through a traumatic event which casues you to have like really bad consecutive nightmares you would go get a limpiar de huevo.

Which is essentially translated to an egg cleaning and like a healer will basically get an egg and she’ll go around your body, like basically glide the egg over your entire body (a whole egg, not cracked).

And then she’ll go off to the side after rubbing the egg down your entire body and crack it into water.

Interviewer: “Are you supposed to see anything in the egg? Like tea leaves?”

Interviewee: “The egg is basically supposed to absorb all the bad energy and then you can see how bad the energy is by how the egg like disperses in the water.”

Analysis:
This ritual is a form of healing folklore, where illness and distress are a result of negative energy rather than physical issues. The egg acts as a symbolic object that can absorb this energy from the person who holds it and turns the invisible problem into something visible and thus interpretable. The act of rubbing or gliding the egg over the patient’s body followed by cracking the egg into water creates a process that gives the healer and the patient a sense of control and a way of diagnosis. It also seems to reflect a cultural belief surrounding the connection between emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being and health. Overall, the ritual reinforces trust in traditional and cultural healing practices and shows how folklore can provide meaning and comfort in response to fear or anxiety around health concerns.

Kaal Pudpe Sign of Respect

Age: 20

Text:

Informant: “This is included in what me and my brother do in my culture. It’s something that is a sign of respect, it’s called “kaal pudpe” and it means “touching the feet.” So you touch the feet of your elders. If you were my elder, when I would first see you, I would say “How are you?” and I would go like this” (gestures touching feet). “It’s respecting the wisdom that they have and it’s always a married elder.”

Interviewer: “So if they’re not married, you wouldn’t do that to them?”

Informant: “No, you don’t have to. There’s a lot of people around my age but then the minute they got married, you’re supposed to, technically. It’s a lot of things as well as a greeting when you enter someone’s house, as a sign of respect.”

Context:

The informant is from Karnataka, a state in India. In their culture, they view elders as wise and are highly respected. Married couples are also seen viewed highly. As young people, to show respect for them, they’ll touch their feet as a form of greeting.

Analysis:

In many cultures, aging isn’t seen as a negative, but rather, a positive. The elderly are seen as wise and more knowledgeable. Young ones are encouraged to respect elders because they lack life experience and can learn from them. Countries like Karnataka create these traditional ways of young ones showing respect by touching their elders’ feet. This ritual is repeated through generations and acts a way of socializing across the culture and holding people in high regard. In Chapter 5 of ‘Living Folklore’ by Sims and Stephens, they expand on this thought and share how “traditions associated with objects, customs, or rituals…may sometimes emerge into narratives and form an important part of a group’s identity.” This functionalist ritual validates the culture and sets a certain expectation that everyone must follow.

Karnataka Rice Throwing

Age: 20

“Poojes…well wishes and blessings.”

Text:

Informant: “In my culture, they’re used at different times but there’s a combination of these things that I was thinking about. Whenever me and my brother leave somewhere to go back to college without our family, we’re supposed to do, we do “poojes” for a lot of things. Just religious reasons as Hindus. When one of us is leaving or getting on a flight, I don’t know what it’s for but I think it’s for well wishes and blessings. My parents bring out rice and throw rice at the person.

Context:

In Karnatakan culture, it’s common to throw rice at people. It signifies well wishes and good luck as they are about to embark on a new endeavor.

Analysis:

In many cultures, there’s a tradition where wedding attendants toss grains of rice at a couple during the wedding. It symbolizes the person wishing that the couple have a prosperous marriage. In Karnataka, people will throw rice at anyone they want to have good luck. This tradition has a functionalist approach because it satisfies the need for the culture to bring their blessing on family and friends. The ritual is customary, as it’s a gesture or movement. It’s meant to be repeated at important events. It also validates the culture because it’s performed by members who identify as part of the group and is done onto other group members.

Marine Corps Blood Stripe Ritual


Background on Informant:
My informant is a Marine Corps veteran who lives in the Inland Empire and now owns an HVAC business. I spoke with him over the phone about Marine Corps traditions and rituals. He explained that when Marines are promoted, especially within infantry units, they sometimes take part in what is known as the “blood stripe” ritual. He described it as a tradition where Marines line up and the Marine being promoted walks through a gauntlet while others use their knees to strike his thighs, symbolically earning the blood stripe worn on the dress uniform. He experienced and witnessed this during his time in the Marine Corps.

Text:
Interviewer: Can you tell me about the blood stripe ritual?

Informant: Yeah, so when you get promoted, all the Marines line up to form a gauntlet, marines are on either side of you. As you pass each one, they knee you in the thigh. Like a serious Charlie horse these guys aren’t letting up their goal is to make it so you cant walk properly for a few days to a week.

Interviewer: Why do they do that?

Informant: The Marine Corps is a special collection of men, ALL believing in the traditions of survival of the fittest and steel sharpening steel. In this way as you are promoted you must be made worthy physically and mentally, But it also symbolizes the blood from the men who fought in Montezuma.

Interviewer: What is that like, does anyone refuse?

Informant: Hell, it’s like walking through Hell, each step you get closer but each step the pain increases. In my unit and during my time in. It was pretty common, at least in infantry units. I never saw anyone refuse; however, I did see certain units not implement it, some command called it damage of Government property.

Analysis:
This is a clear example of occupational folklore and a rite of passage. This ritual functions to mark a Marine’s transition from junior enlisted to NCO (non commissioned officer), which reflects what we learned in class about rites of passage. During the ritual, the Marine is in a liminal state, no longer holding their previous rank but not yet fully recognized in the new one. The act of being struck by fellow Marines creates a shared experience of pain, which builds communitas, or a strong sense of group unity. Overall, the blood stripe ritual reinforces key values of Marine Corps culture, such as toughness, endurance, and belonging.