Ritual Process

Our society takes pride in their many rituals that symbolize our connectivity and acceptance. Here I will tell you of four of our most important rituals that relate to our own institutions that our society is based upon.

Our ritual related to education is coincided with moon phases. This ritual, noitacude, is performed when a new initiate has seen their first full moon after being accepted into our society. On this night, the new initiates are brought to open meadows surrounding our society and undressed. They are cleansed with water harvested from nearby rivers and streams that have been purified by the moonlight. Afterwards we dress the initiate in white clothing to coincide with the full moon. This ritual symbolizes the stages the moon goes through, the initiate at first being a new moon (naked) and transitioned to a full moon (dressed in white).  The initiates are washed of their old world ways and are taught about the importance of acceptance in our community. We do this ritual to teach initiates that even when the moon is not seen we still can look to her for guidance, just at they were not seen (being naked) yet were still an important part of our society.

Our ritual for our institution of religion is based upon tolerance and connection. At every lunar eclipse, which is not a definitive time but usually occurs twice a year, our society gathers together for a night of joy. This ritual, noigiler, includes giving offerings to the moon (whichever crop is most abundant during the eclipse season). We gather in clans or kinships and perform the song and dance known as ecnarelot that gives praise to the moon and her being. This dance is similar to those in the Zulu tribes of Africa; everyone participates in ecnarelot though. This ritual reminds us of how the earth, moon, and sun must come together to create this beautiful eclipse. It relates to our idea of the mind, body and spirit coming together to create a beautiful existence. The earth is our body, as we physically live on earth; the moon is our mind, how we think; the sun is our spirit, for the sun gives light to the moon and our spirit gives insight to the mind. Ecnarelot shows how differences can become one; planet, star, and moon create an eclipse and all of our religions come together to create a community.

Our ritual for the family is centered on birth. We understand that many societies do not focus on the actual birth of a child and we believe children to be a great gift. As soon as the baby is born, the mother will nurture it for a week. After this week is up, the infant is brought to the society for celebration. Everyone is dressed in minimal cloths to mimic the infant’s stage of life. While the society chants different mantras the baby is passed from person to person and is given personal blessings of any faith or belief. In this sense, the baby is taught, unconsciously, that religion is open. Also, the passing of the baby shows that no matter who the parents are, the baby will always be taken care of by everyone in the society. As the ceremony goes on, wine is passed around and consumed to symbolize the importance of the blood the baby received from the mother while in her womb. We believe the wine drinking will show the importance of survival upon others in the community as the baby survived through the mother. This ritual, ailimaf, elevates the importance of codependency on others.

Our ritual for government occurs when a new leader has been chosen for each community. This ritual, noomredael, is performed every winter solstice. This may be the shortest day of the year, but is also the longest night of the year when our mother can come out. We throw a huge banquet to honor the new leader and each family brings food from their most recent harvest. After the banquet, the new leader is cleansed in the river nearby (just as initiates are cleansed) and is given a new name; this name is usually a celestial or lunar name to symbolize the importance of our guide, the moon. The food resembles the wish for our leader to be fruitful in his decisions and actions. They are cleansed so that any biases he/she may have obtained or kept from previous times will be washed away so that they may lead our society in the best way possible. Noomredael helps to establish a certain order in our society and allow for its potential to keep growing and obtaining new members.

Rite of Passage

One of the most important rites of passage for women includes marriage. When women are ready for relationships they start the rite of passage; the age is not important, but they usually fall between sixteen and twenty-five. At first there is separation from the society in a sense that the woman is no longer available for dating as she has chosen a mate. This state can last for however long they choose, depending on when they start the rite. After this stage, women pass into a liminal state of being when they become engaged. They do not fit in the structure as they are fighting between their maiden name and their fiancée’s last name. In this stage, the women are taken out of the society for a month where they spend time away from their mate. In this time, the elder married women teach these women how to cope with a new identity, which will be attributed to them soon. Also, they are taught how to become bearers of children, as they will carry on our society. The women are shown the importance of their role in the society and how vital it is to pass down our traditions. After this stage is completed and they are married, they are reincorporated back into society with their new last name. They have gained a new identity and will soon be able to start a family if they so choose to do.