Tag Archives: Rituals

Rancho Bernardo 4th of July Celebration

Main Piece

“Every fourth of July, my hometown puts on a parade that goes through the same few streets, where people dress up and decorate their cars with red, white and blue – some local businesses, organizations and sponsors are always part of the parade, along with the mayor, local beauty pageant winners, people like that who someone decides are important to the city for one reason or another. I got to be in it with a few other girls once, before my junior year of high school, because I’d won a local singing contest a month before. People stand along the streets to watch, which I’m sure I did a few times with my family growing up as well.
There are some other events associated with the parade, but the one I remember going to with my family is the fireworks show at night, which has always been held on the field of our local high school for as long as I can remember.”

Interpretation

Informant Interpretation: Informant notes she only feels connected to this tradition because it’s something that occurs in her hometown, and not because of the 4th of July. It’s shared by a small suburb, and thus more identity-defining and important to her.

Personal Interpretation: I found it interesting that many of these traditions seem to be a form of showcasing American “exceptionalism” or something “worth being proud of”–cars (wealth), beauty, those with political power. That feels very in line with the individualist framework America tries to set up for itself, as well as celebrating things that society deems of greater importance. Within this context, it is of course contained to a much smaller suburb, but I still felt those themes coming through in the particular description of events and holiday context.

Background

Informant is a 21 year old college student who was raised in Rancho Bernardo, CA. She is female-presenting, white, and of European descent.

Evil Eye Jewelry

Main Piece

Informant told a story about the Evil Eye within Arabic communities, involving a ritualistic wearing of an object (and phrase, within some communities).

“So the concept of the Evil Eye is that you have to wear it somewhere on your body, otherwise when people think bad thoughts about you it’ll come true, and then, like, the Evil Eye absorbs them all. And then, once it’s absorbed too much, it breaks…this is only in some Arabic cultures, but when someone goes ‘Oh my god, I really love your purse,’ they have to go ‘مَا شَاءَ ٱللَّٰهُ’ (informant then translated phrase as “praise be to God”) after it, otherwise you have to give it to them – like, cause then the Evil Eye will get you. It’s kinda like a “oh my God, I love your earrings!” and now they’re jealous, so if you don’t give them the earrings or they say ‘مَا شَاءَ ٱللَّٰهُ,’ their jealously will start ruining your life – like seep into you.”

Interpretation

Informant Interpretation: Informant heard about it from his Mom, who told him to wear it all the time for protection. “It wasn’t something I learned, it was just something I knew.” He still frequently wears Evil Eye jewelry as a method of protection for himself, and knows many others who do. He sees it as something more inherent to his family and society, and directly associated with paying attentions to others’ emotional states.

Personal Interpretation: This is an example of a folk belief or superstition involving a ritualistic object and many ritualistic tendencies, primarily practiced as a method of protection for oneself. I personally found its interaction with ‘magic’ to be the most interesting–the idea that someone else’s negative thought of you could seep into you feels like contagious magic to me, which wearing the folk object (Evil Eye) or repeating a ritualistic phrase can protect you from.

Background

Informant is a 20 year old college student primarily raised in Birmingham, UK. He is male-presenting, Black, and of Sudanese descent, and speaks English and Arabic fluently.

Ritual Before Opening Night

Nationality: American
Primary Language: English
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: 04/26/2024

Text:

“In high school, whenever it was opening night of a play or musical, all the cast and crew would go into the hallway like 15 minutes before we started and do a little dance. You first like take your right hand and put it by you right ear, and shake it 8 times while counting like ‘one-two-three-four-five-six-seven-eight.’ You put it at your side, and do the same thing with your left hand (by your left ear), your right foot (raised a little bit), and finally your left foot (raised a bit). You then start over with your right hand again, but only counting till four this time. You do the full cycle, then do it twice, and then once.”

Context:

The informant was a participant in theater for about eight years of her life through an external theater group. She remembers an older performer teaching it to her and her friends the night before their first show when she was eleven. It has since served as a ritual before every single opening night she has ever been a part of. She said it wasn’t really for luck or anything, but rather as a dance to commemorate the start of a new show, and to shake the nerves out. While she has performed with a variety of different people, she said that normally a vast majority (and nearly all by her senior year) knew the dance, and teaching those that didn’t was a heartwarming and fond moment every time it happened.

Analysis:

Dances are a common form of ritual as the ordered steps can easily be taught and instructed. I think that this form of ritual is quite common, as it serves as a bonding mechanism, while also being a form of tradition that can be passed down through generations and cycles of performers. I think the personal value of this is relatively clear, as it is a way to invoke the energy and memories of past performances, while marking the start of a new one. Furthermore, it is a way to “shake out the nerves,” and expel jitters, serving as soothing ritual prior to a relatively stressful experience. This ritual has definitely been featured in TV shows before, and most has probably spread in part because of that, and because it is a way for performers to contribute something to a new cast and new performance.

Snow Day Ritual

Nationality: American
Primary Language: English
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: 04/26/2024

Text:

“If it was snowing outside when to bed as a kid, no matter how much, I would sleep with a spoon under my pillow, put a pair of underwear in the freezer, and sleep with my pajamas inside out. This would increase the chances of a snow day.”

Context:

The informant grew up in the midwest, in a state that got snow in the winters. She said that her third grade teacher taught them the ritual after her class came to school while it was snowing. All of her classmates had been hoping for a snow day, and were all complaining that they didn’t get one. Even as an adult, she continues to do it out of the nostalgia, although hasn’t done it this year as she has been in California.

Analysis:

This ritual, which is very common and wide spread, follows three very specific acts in a very specific circumstance (snow). This is a ritual that I heard as a kid in the fourth grade. I know plenty of people who have mentioned this ritual at some point or another. I find this ritual really interesting because it has no logical basis in actually increasing the chance of a snow day. However, it relies on the hope and optimism of young kids, and is easily spread as kids tell their friends with hopes it will increase the chances of a snow day. I find this specific ritual interesting, though, because the informant knows that it will not do anything. Rather, she does it as a way to do something that she did as a kid. I think that this shows the personal nostalgic value the ritual holds, in bringing comfort and memories on snowy nights.

Pre-Test Ritual

Nationality: Nigerian
Primary Language: English
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: 04/26/2024

Text:

“Any day I have a test or exam, I will wake up thirty minutes early and take a walk outside playing a specific playlist I have had since I was fourteen, that my older brother made me. I don’t do it for luck or anything, but just because it puts me in the right mindset.”

Context:

The informant, a college student, created this ritual herself. It came as a blend of two separate things: her brother’s playlist, and her mom, who always told her to take a walk before an exam. She has not skipped the ritual ever, with one exception her senior year when it was raining heavily and her umbrella was at risk of blowing away. Rather than being a superstition or something for luck, this ritual is a specific event in a specific context to soothe and calm the informant. This is something she does alone, and thus has not consciously attempted to spread it to other people.

Analysis:

Taking a walk before a stressful event is a relatively common act, however in this case, it is meticulously done, with a specific playlist, consistently before exams. The particularity by which this is done is a reflection of the comfort repletion and order can bring to someone. I think the informant has not attempted to spread the ritual because it is person, and holds personal value. It is not that it is a secret, but rather that it is just something that brings comfort to her. Individual acts of comfort and ritual are often intimate and pseudo-secrets because they hold context specific to ones life, that is not necessarily translatable to others. Furthermore, while not for luck, the ritual serves as an associative mechanism to get the informant in the mindset of an exam, which can be helpful in placing someone in the right mindset for an event.