Rituals and Rites: Shaping the Psyche - Essay Example

Rituals and Rites: Shaping the Psyche Indian, American , Korean Human development through ages has significantly given great emphasis to psyche, which is the collective impressions of the mind both conscious and unconscious determining the mental and the emotional aspects of human life. The collective impressions are shaped by memories, experiences, rituals and rites observed over a period of time. The social impression shapes the unconscious aspect. We will study the role which ritual and rites play in the shaping of the psyche in relation to Indian culture, American culture and Korean culture. How the rites and rituals related to birth, death and the rite of passage collectively create the inherent traits of the personality. How is a western mind different from the eastern mind, in the way it responds to external stimuli Can this psyche be restructured or recreated with new exposure and new experience. Is it possible to open the doors of mind and its impressions which settle in the consciousness Introduction: The psyche is the essence of the person in totality, the physical, social, mental and emotional factors shaping and reshaping the personality with experiences and impressions. The Ritual and rites, of a particular culture has considerable role in shaping of the personality. They vary greatly on the surface across the globe. They play a very subtle and significant role in determining the natural reflexes and responses of the human being. The exposure and the experiences of the early formative years shape the characteristic of the personality, which determines the psyche, relations and the environment.. The focus of my comparative study is Indian culture, and how it shapes the psyche determines the personality development, relational pattern and behaviors. Every culture has a series of ritual and rites, which are performed at birth, death and the rite of passage for adolescence. They cover the whole span of human life from birth until death, passing through the adolescence. These rituals are the chords of connection to the roots of tradition which shapes the mind and controls the subtle aspects of the personality. One of the Indian psychoanalysts, Sudhir Kakar, while dealing with personality development in India remarks that "psychological themes and personal identity in India should consider the interplay between universal process of human development and the Indian cultural milieu. The influences of the cultural milieu include not only the socio-political and relational realms but also religious convictions, faith traditions, and rituals and practices". (George, 2005) Section I Indian Culture: Indian culture is marked by its spiritual strength derived mainly from its long history and traditional practice of rituals as part of religious practice, faith in mythology, elaborate rituals and well defined rites. The influences which these exposure and experiences have are very subtle and strong. These have deep impact in the complex shaping of the personality, its traits for fulfillment and contentment. They provide the basis of connection between the real world and the relational symbolic world. Indian culture is marked by its secular characteristic, where there is existence of different religions practicing different rituals and rites, shaping the characteristics of a particular group of the people in that segment. The religion plays a very definite role in defining the set of practices which are followed in harmony with nature and stages of life. The variety of exposure to differing rituals adds complexity and range of unpredictable regional traits. In India there is existence of Hindu rituals, Muslim rituals, Christian rituals, Jain rituals, Sikh rituals and Zoroastrian rituals. All these ritual and rite are the key practices of these religions shaping the belief and the faith of the individual person. The Indian life is merged with the religious life, influencing the complex formation of individual's personality. (RITUALS) Indian culture is one of the oldest cultures with wide variety of races who have descended over time. The oldest inhabitants are the Negroid aboriginals called Adivasis or the First Settlers. There are Dravidians in South, The Aryans in North, and The Mongols in North East. There are also The Semites and the inter mixture of one another. Inspite of wide range of racial diversity and religious differences, India is a tolerant country with open minded approach towards co-existence of cultural practices shaping the spirituality of and individual. The country has been able to emerge with common culture despite differences in regional and religious practices, that unity in spirit is what bunds the Indians together with tolerance and harmony. (RITUALS) The religion which majority people in India follow is Hinduism. The holy books of Vedas and Upanishads are the guidelines for ritualistic practices. They also explain the sacrificial and purification rituals. The rituals at birth, rites of passage and the death rites are some of the rites observed by every Hindu regardless of the region. The rituals have significance at different stage of the life. (RITUALS) Birth: The rituals of birth begin in the seventh month of pregnancy. It is called Valaikappu, where prayer is invoked, mostly women a re invited, priests perform the ceremony, and the expectant mother is made to wear green and red bangles with belief that the sound of the bangles will reach the womb and connects with the child. Arti is performed and the mother to be receives gifts from her relatives. The ceremony is followed by a big feast. (RITUALS) Young Years: There are three other rituals which are observed in the very young age Mottai Addithal (Tonsure) which is head shaving ceremony performed in the first or third year of the child. The hair is shaved and offered to the family deities amidst chanting of Mantras. Child receives gifts from parents and relatives, followed by the feast for the family. Kaadukutthal (Ear-piercing) It is a very important ritual performed to both the sexes, when a child is seated on the lap of maternal uncle, and goldsmith is invited to do this and he is given clothes and money. Annaprasam is another very auspicious ceremony usually takes place on the first birthday of the child. The baby is offered his/her first solid food in the form of rice, sugar and milk. The ritual is followed by great feast. (RITUALS) Adolecence: Upnayanam is one of the most important ritual performed in Hindu male's life. The ritual is conducted when child is mentally and emotionally old enough to understand and reason. It involves three threads entwined together, which are symbolic of three parts of Gayatri Mantra and also signifies three commitments in life, towards him, towards family and towards society. The ritual is a whole day ceremony followed by Havana(fire offering) and feasting. (RITUALS) Marriage: Marriage is a series of rituals performed starting from few days before marriage and culminating on the day of marriage. It begins with exchange of Thambulam which is banana, coconut and betel leaves in a plate to accept the agreement and commitment. The boy and girl do not meet until then. On the day of marriage the boy come to the brides house and meets her in the Mandapam, and the marriage ceremony takes place in the presence of parents, relatives and close friends at an auspicious Muhuratham(sacred time calculated for the wedding), when the father of the bride gives her hand to the groom(Kanyadaan). Then the couple circles the sacred fire seven times, where the groom is supposed to make seven promises to the bride. The next day is Bidai(parting from the paternal home), ceremony in which the bride leaves for the grooms house where she is welcomed with Aarti and engage in petty games to make her ate ease in the new environment teasing and participating in interaction with each other. The ceremony concludes with dinner hosted by the groom, with music concert and feasting. (RITUALS) Death: When a person dies a lighted lamp is placed near the dead body. The body is placed north-south, with the head facing north. The eyes are closed, Gangajal (Ganges water) is put in the mouth with Tulsi (Sacred Basil leaves). The body is covered with white cloth. The eldest son is supposed to do the last rites. The body is given a bath and new clothes are put on. Then members of the family apply oil on the forehead and offer their homage. Flowers are adorned on the dead body. Then the body of the dead person is taken by the male family members to the cremation ground. The son applies ghee (purified butter)at seven important places in the body, grains of rice and til (sesame seeds) are put in the mouth of the body. The body is placed on a wooden pyre, more wooden logs are placed on the body and ghee is sprinkled all over the pyre. The son goes round the body seven times with a pot containing water, which is broken near the feet of the dead. The priest chants mantras for peace and in the midst of chanting, the son lights the pyre. On the 3rd or 5th day relatives visit the cremation ground to pour milk, so as to pacify the soul. On the twelfth and the thirteenth day a ceremony takes place which lasts for the whole day, every member of the family comes forward to say farewell, which is followed by simple meal which relative and friends have together. (RITUALS) Section 2 Psychological Interpretation: The journey of a human being from birth until death is shaped by the experiences which he has in his formative years as the result of his exposure to various ritual and rites, performed as the part of cultural experience. These experiences shape his internal responses, likes, dislikes, attachments and aversions. Valerie DeMarinis, a feminine pastoral psychotherapist and a professor of religion and ritual studies at the Uppasala University, rightly states, "there are only two basic instincts, viz., the relational instinct and the religious instinct". (George, 2005). She strongly believes that the religious instinct helps seek connection between the internal and symbolic world and the relational instinct facilitates the expression of these connections. She greatly emphasizes the importance of the real world and the symbolic world. The Indian culture is closely tied with the religion and the diverse rituals followed by the people in her secular state. From time immemorial great religions and cultures have integrated to give birth to the great civilization at the banks of river Indus, as the oldest civilization of the world. In India great religions- Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Islam, Christianity and Sikhism-have found a natural home. Indian culture is an intricate mixture of diverse religion and culture, forming a great cultural heritage in the form of song, dance, fairs and festivals. Indian mind is a creative mind, which finds security in the presence of its traditions, rituals and celebrations. There are strong family ties and stronger religious faith which engages a person all through life with conviction and direction. The traditions are deeply imbedded in the psyche, and an Indian though open and accepting is greatly influenced by his/her own cultural values. They are secure as long as the environment does not interfere with their identity. Sometimes they need something more spiritual and universal to break free from the everyday traditional bindings so that they can experience their individual identity without social conditioning. Section 3 Comparison with Other Cultures: It is a universally known fact that Human Being is shaped by the experiences, which play a very important role in the development of his personality. This is the reason we find, just like India diversity in Universe. There are as many cultures as there are different geographical regions. We will take into our comparative evaluation American and Korean culture, and how their traditions and rituals shape the psyche of their inhabitants. American Culture: American Culture is young; it is an amalgamation of very many migrant inhabitants co-existing in this vast new land of opportunities. They all aim to retain their cultural identity while inhabiting in this new land of growth and opportunities. Major segment of the population follow the Christian rituals as prescribed by the Church. They also observe the same rituals as Indian marking the important phase of life like birth, passage of rites, marriage, and death. Native Americans have more ritualistic practices than common Americans. The Sundance ritual of offering the one's own flesh and blood to the Creator was considered as thanksgiving ritual which was banned for a long time with the concern that it projected self mortification. The rituals and rites affect everyday aspect of life influencing the decisions, conscious and unconscious responses to stimuli. What may appear normal as result of early exposure may appear strange and extreme for another. It is a matter of exposure and experience with a set of practices which conditions the mind. ( Thompson, 2002) Korean Culture: Korean culture is a beautiful blend of religious practices both Christianity and Buddhism; and is the same in north as well as south, with little divergence depending on the region. The role of music, food and folk game are significant in shaping the character of an individual. Almost every Korean child learns music and plays folk games. The traditional music in Korea is based on the voice. It is thought that the voice is a distinctively Korean voice, reflecting the temperament and history of Korean people. There are two kinds of traditional music: Jeongak and Minsogak. (2007) Dancing is also a very important aspect of Korean culture. Koreans have traditional dresses, which are used for special occasions and have elaborate process of wrapping, tucking and pinning. Marriage always takes place in a special dress. Most significant of all Korean rituals is the Korean Traditional mourning rituals, which are performed as the death rites, to accept the transitory nature of human life. The dead is treated with deep respect. Ritual aims to bridge the gap between the living world and the world unseen. It is very somber and serious ritual. Though at present times these rituals are changing, still it is deeply imbedded in the inner mind of a Korean. Conclusion: The comparative analysis of the different cultures clearly emphasizes the important role which rituals and rites as related to the religious and the cultural practices play in controlling and directing the personal responses of an individual. It is this aspect of psychology which governs the archetype or the matter within the consciousness which is connected to the soul or the self. This connection with the soul or the self is linked with the images related to culture and imagination. The main concern of archetypal psychology according to James Hillman is that it "restores to images their primordial place as that which gives psychic value to the world." "Every psychic process is an image and an 'imagining', otherwise no consciousness could exist" could exist" (Isar, 2005) Religious experience which is the source of all rituals and rites is a source of power and reality for the person who believes in it. According to Anna Maria Rizzuto, "religious beliefs and practices are syntheses of creative imagination and reality that contributes to healthy psychological functioning" (George, 2005) These experiences form the basis of the formation and the proper functioning of the personality. It provides a ground from which a person can soar to great heights in search of his dreams. The psyche is the ground from which different experiences can be evaluated, analyzed and fulfilled. Religious beliefs which determine the ritual and rites, within a particular culture is basis of personality development, hence an integral part of study and analysis. Works Cited George, Joseph (November 18,2005). Pastoral Report:The 8th Asia Pacific Congress on Pastoral Care and Counseling: "Religious and Spiritual Impact in Psychic Process: Implications for Pastoral Psychotherapy" . Retrieved March 29, 2007, from CPSP College of Pastoral Supervision and Psychotherapy Web site: www.pastoralreport.com/the_archives/2005/11/_dr_joseph_geor.html (George, 2005) RITUALS. Retrieved March 29, 2007, from Indian Mirror Web site: www.indianmirror.com/culture/cul2.html#hind (RITUALS) Thompson, Ginger M. (2000). Sun Dance: an Example of Personal Sacrifice for the Spirit. Retrieved March 29, 2007, Web site: www.wiu.edu/users/mugmt2/SUNDANCE.htm ( Thompson, 2002) (2000-2007). Culture of Korea. Retrieved March 29, 2007, from TeachersParadise.com, Inc. Web site: /www.teachersparadise.com/ency/en/wikipedia/c/cu/culture_of_korea.html (2007) Isar, Nicholetta (August 11.2005). UNDOING FORGETFULNESS: Chiasmus of Poetical Mind - a Cultural Paradigm of Archetypal Imagination. Retrieved March 29, 2007, from ESOP Europe's Journal Of Psychology Web site: www.ejop.org/archives/2005/08/undoing_forgetf_1.html (Isar, 2005) Read More