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The article is devoted to the study of modern effects of the information field in the sphere of ritual Islamic practices in the context of the social crisis associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. It focuses on issues related to the performance of ritual practices in Islam. New regulations of state medical institutions introduced in connection with the 2020 pandemic have influenced the violation of centuries-old traditional norms and practices in the funeral culture of the Tatars. The emerging contradictions and inconsistencies stimulated the actualisation of expert knowledge on the part of Muslim spiritual leaders. In the article, the author analyses the interaction between Muslim Tatars and religious authorities on the issues of solving everyday life and religious problems that believers encountered due to extraordinary circumstances (COVID-19). The source of the study was the Tatar-language media and Internet resources. The obtained results indicate the flexibility and adaptability of the information environment – traditional print media and digital technologies to rapidly developing social turbulence. At the same time, the influence of non-standard social factors (the pandemic) in a rather conservative and strictly regulated sphere of Muslim funeral and ritual culture is shown. The second aspect of the study is related to the gradual transformation of the ideas of Muslim Tatars about the culture of grave decoration. Epigraphic expeditions conducted by the author indicate that the deepening and dissemination of religious norms among them leads to gradual rejection of the practice of using photographs of deceased relatives on monuments that developed in the Soviet times. The totality of the collected materials allows us to trace how changes in family structure and relationships affect religious practices and the perception of Islam. The processes recorded by the author reflect the dynamics of the formation of theological Islam among Muslim Tatars in modern Tatarstan.

The text analyzes magical and alchemical rituals of different origins, which became conceptual cores in two of Bojan Danovski's dramatic visions: "Heart of the Jester" (the creation of the artificial human Humunculus) and "Heart of Scarlet Porcelain" (the revival of the toys -- The porcelain doll and sculpture of Pierrot). Both visions appeared in the magazine "Hyperion" in the second half of the 20s of the last century. They are part of a larger corpus of eight visions the author sent from Italy to the magazine in 1922 -- 1928. He published six of them in a separate book in 1929. Danovski's dramatic visions are a specific phenomenon in Bulgarian drama. They represent an expression of artistic synthesis in avant-garde art and offer interesting construction and ideas characteristic of the European avant-garde. The aim here is to show, through an analysis of the two visions mentioned: how B. Danovski creates his theater of marionettes and how he works with the rich cultural intertext embedded in the plays. The dramatic vision in three pictures and one pantomime The Heart of the Jester (1926) examines the transformation of medieval mysticism with its spiritualistic séances and dark magic. A desacralization of the magical through the techniques of avantgarde art stands out. The dramatic vision in three paintings Heart of Scarlet Porcelain (1923) traces the transformation in Maeterlinck's symbolist theater with the appearance of the porcelain toy dolls and symbolic marionette figures of the square commedia dell'arte. Magical processes and rituals bind the two visions, in which the heart is a unifying image and a meaningful object. It emerges from the high poetic symbolism of Romanticism and Symbolism to become a literal thing -- a magical/bloody ingredient for the action of the alchemical retort in The Jester's Heart and a fine porcelain object in the text Heart of Scarlet Porcelain. The process of reification, literalization of symbols signals their vituperation and becomes part of the desacralization of occult rituals. The disenchantment of fairytale magic is a specific feature of Danovsky's poetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A tanulmány a szarmata árokkereteknek a temetkezési rítusokban betöltött szerepének újfajta megközelítését célozza meg, amely elsősorban a bennük elhelyezett különböző típusú deponálások strukturális mintázatait figyelembe vevő térhasználati modellen alapszik. Az árokkeretekben viszonylagos gyakorisággal kerülnek elő különböző típusú áldozati jellegű edény- és állategyüttesek. A korábbi kutatások ezeket a leleteket csak másodlagosan említették a különböző interpretációkban és azokat az őskultusszal vagy a halotti lakomával hozták összefüggésbe. Pedig az árokkeretekben elhelyezett deponálások egy olyan kötött, szelektivitáson alapuló, ismétlődő viselkedési mintázatot mutatnak, ami az árokkeretek strukturális különbségeinek ellenére is egységesnek tekinthető. Emiatt az árokkeretek temetkezési rítusokban betöltött szerepét célszerűbb a bennük elhelyezett deponálások, illetve azok ismétlődő, standardizáló térhasználati mintázatai révén értelmezni. Az elemzés eredményeként az árokkereteknek a temetkezési rítusokban betöltött szerepében egy olyan egységes társadalmi logika mutatható ki, ami hozzájárulhat a szarmaták társadalmi szerveződésének felvázolásához és megértéséhez. The aim of this study is to work out a new approach to the study of the role of encircling ditches in Sarmatian burial rites, which is based primarily on a space-use model that takes into account the structural patterns of the various types of depositions placed in them. Various types of sacrificial assemblages – vessels and animals – are found fairly frequently in the encircling ditches. Previous research mentioned these findings only secondarily, embedded in various interpretations, and linked them to ancestral cults or funerary feasts. However, the depositions placed in the encircling ditches show a fixed, selective, repetitive pattern of behaviour that can be considered uniform despite the structural differences of the encircling ditches. For this reason, it is more appropriate to interpret the role of these ditches in burial rites through the deposits placed in them and their repetitive, standardizing patterns of space use. As a result of the analysis, a unified social logic can be demonstrated in the role of encircling ditches in burial rites, which can contribute to our understanding of Sarmatian social organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Abstract The analysis of dugong bone mounds in the Torres Strait Islands has traditionally focused on ritualized deposition and treatment of remains, the distinction between formalized ritual and midden refuse, and their socio-political and spiritual role within Torres Strait Islander seascapes. Research has consistently targeted the abundance of specific skeletal elements in a mound, with interpretations frequently based on the calculation of common quantitative units (i.e., NISP and MNI) or relative weight to assess proportional representation. Far less research has focused on the taphonomic history and processes embodied by these mounds. This paper presents a novel zooarchaeological and taphonomic analysis of dugong bone mounds where qualitative and quantitative data are combined. Through the analysis of two assemblages from Woeydhul Island (Western Torres Strait, Australia), this paper provides inferences regarding deposition time span and formalized depositional behaviors. Our research examines the age distribution of represented animals and differential butchery practices associated with anatomical provenance, while also suggesting new methods for identification of sex ratios in these assemblages. Our results provide new approaches to investigate dugong hunting by past Torres Strait communities, proposing the combination of sex, butchery patterns, and meat utility indices to interpret the meaning of dugong bone mounds in the Western Torres Strait. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most fertile areas of modern cultural research is the study of Rituals performed by indigenous communities. Rituals maintain and preserve the cultural identity of a society, especially, in preliterate oral tribal societies of the world. In such communities, Agriculture and Religion are intrinsically linked to the socio-religious sphere of their life. Their survival is solely based on human-nature dynamics. Such communities practice nature-worshipping and believe in the interconnectivity of the physical and supernatural worlds. Hence, they perform many rituals to appease the malevolent and to express gratitude to benevolent supernatural beings, deities, and spirits. Tangams are one such animist community that is the least populated and lesser-known ethnolinguistic group of Arunachal Pradesh. Their everyday life is based on the performance of several rites and rituals. These ritual performances are part of their cultural heritage. However, such practices are slowly in decline due to various internal and external factors. Therefore, this paper is a descriptive attempt to document, elucidate, preserve, and disseminate the dying Maye ritual practice and its associated belief systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Thiasos is the property of Edizioni Quasar di Severino Tognon s.r.l. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Two pits with artificially deformed and burnt parts of weapons, equipment, belts, metal vessels and other objects were found illegally on the Rudná hill near Streženice in north-western Slovakia. Additional research confirmed the finding situation, and a third grouping of objects was found. According to the analysis, the find belongs to the interface of the older and younger Roman period and represents the remains of ritual practices related to local warfare. The article mentions other similar deposits from the same period, found in the area of the Puchov culture (Blatnica) as well as in the Central Danube region, Moravia and Bohemia. These also include solitary finds of horse harnesses deposited in special places in the landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The faunal material that is the subject of this archaeozoological project comes from archaeological research on a Neo-Eneolithic settlement located on the border of Parţa village (Timiş County). The settlement represents one of the most important Neolithic settlements in northern Banat, and is believed to have been one of the region’s major settlements in the late Neolithic period. The numerous archaeological research campaigns have determined numerous data related to the spiritual life of the prehistoric communities in Parța, highlighted by the research of the two sanctuaries and the observations about ritual practices outside the shrines (house altars, ritual deposits, etc.). In most cases, these communities expressed in various ritual forms their veneration and gratitude to the gods, using animals or parts of them to perform these rituals. In this paper we want to address those issues related to the usage of animals (or animal parts) in ritual practices, insisting on the identified taxa and the distribution of animal remains in ritual complexes, continuing with the interpretation of the data obtained. Finally, we want to discuss possible hypotheses related to ritual practices, argued by paleofaunal data.

When establishing its rule over other nationalities, the Russian Empire relied on local elites, including their aristocracy, tribal chiefs, and sometimes the clergy. In addition to retaining some of their traditional privileges, they were also granted new benefits. The same paradigm applied to the ethnic policy of both the Muscovite state and the Russian Empire: a combination of nation-wide standards of citizenship and management with local traditional principles of organizing society. The cultural codes of Russian officials and settlers on the one hand and the expanding states non-Slavic population on its the eastern and southern frontiers overlapped and influenced each other. To lessen the opposition of its minorities, the empires administration often adapted new regulations to their cultural norms. For pragmatic reasons, officials acknowledged the importance of at least showing some respect to subjects who spoke different languages and professed different beliefs. As a result of this interaction, the cultures of the rulers and the non-Russian nationalities they ruled influenced each other.

During the Middle (1000-400 bc) and Late (400 bc-aD 200) Preclassic periods, Yaxnohcah was an extensive settlement containing more than 15 civic-ceremonial complexes spread over 40 km2. Our research focuses on one of the principal peri-urban nodes known as the Grazia Complex, which consists of a monumental platform featuring a triadic group, a ballcourt, and other minor structures. Excavations revealed several construction phases, as well as the remains of repetitive ritual activities. A hearth associated with an altar and a cache deposit with a triadic layout was uncovered on the platform in front of the triadic group. This deposit and its location represent one of the earliest and clearest examples of the conceptual equivalence of household hearths and three stone places in the Maya lowlands. It provides explicit evidence for the replication of household ritual associated with cooking hearths to the public ritual analog, feeding the gods, a religious ideology intimately related to the emergence of kings. Below the Late Preclassic triadic hearth, we identified an earlier altar, and below that, a much earlier Middle Preclassic hearth that probably preceded construction of the triadic group. These ritual contexts evidence the antiquity of community ritual practices at Grazia that involve repetitive ritual burning associated with placemaking activities. Here, we focus on ritual practices as vehicles to construct social relations within the local community, and their implications for the urban landscape at Yaxnohcah. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Regular everyday practices, as opposed to ritual / ceremonial ones regarding food in traditional Romanian society reveal symbolic meanings of a socio-cultural code. Our paper highlights certain aspects of the quite varied gastronomic register, of the practices and beliefs circumscribed to it, from the first volume of the work Datinele şi credinţele poporului român (The customs and beliefs of the Romanian people), authored by Elena Niculiţă-Voronca at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Our research focuses on the symbolic and ritual values of food, on the existing nuances in the human-food-cultural system relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Complutum is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Based on literary and iconographic sources, this paper proposes to evaluate the role of Eros within the ornamental sphere in ancient Greece, more specifically in the classical period, starting from the polysemy of the word κόσμος and following three main perspectives: a) the correspondence between the god, the adornment and the power sphere b) the presentation of the god as both authority figure and adorned agent and c) the actions of the god on the adornments. Starting from the image of Eros as adornment (in Plato) and Eros as an adorned god (in Plutarch), the article analyses the modes of action of the god on several kinds of ornaments, especially the bridal ones. In this regard, at the intersection of the ritual experience and the tragic experience, it aims equally to explore how Eros, through the kosmêsis, acts on the bride beauty and allows the consecration of hymens during the nuptial procession.

The article examines symbolic and ritual practices in five cities of southern and eastern Ukraine – Dnipro, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, and Kharkiv – during the 1990s to 2010s. The author considers the ways in which urban symbolic and ritual practices (primarily expressed in such symbolic forms as municipal ceremonies and festivals) are connected with the cultural and symbolic space of cities. First and foremost, these practices represent a kind of “symbolic mediators” of urban cultural memory and participate in the preservation, broadcasting, and actualization of the cultural semantics of the city. During the 1990s to 2010s, urban symbolic and ritual practices in Ukraine were characterized by efforts to leave behind the most objectionable manifestations of the Soviet culture of festivity and create a fundamentally new festive canon. To an extent, these developments were part of the so-called “decolonization of historical memory,” initiated by the central government and urban communities. Undoubtedly, they were facilitated by the ongoing socio-political transformations, particularly those connected with the Orange Revolution (2004) and Euromaidan Revolution (2013–2014), the Russian aggression against Ukraine, etc. At the same time, the transformation of the Soviet complex of symbolic and ritual practices progressed only slowly; the change of political regime did not lead to a large-scale “ceremonial revolution.” Modern Ukrainian festive culture involves a combination, often quite eclectic, of at least several elements: a “new” style of festivity, generally based on borrowed “Western” cultural patterns; “traditional” forms, stressing national aspects and attempting to revive pre-Soviet cultural models; and “Soviet” forms, which preserve the Soviet festive canon, often adapted and rethought within the framework of the new urban tradition. Overall, the process of constructing a new model of urban festivity in Ukraine is far from complete; this emerging cultural complex remains fluid and capable of “turning” towards the festive traditions of different historical periods.

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Bloodletting was one of the most commonly shared ritual practices among ancient Mesoamerican societies. However, ethnohistoric accounts, epigraphic records, and the archaeological record demonstrate that (1) bloodletters were crafted out of different materials; (2) bloodletting was conducted using different techniques; (3) bloodletting was performed in different spaces; and (4) bloodletting could create various outcomes based on local ontologies. Consideration of these variables is crucial for the detection and interpretation of artifacts that may be linked to bloodletting rituals. Lithic analysts can detect obsidian artifacts that were likely used in bloodletting rituals through a suite of use-wear characteristics in addition to considerations of technological characteristics and archaeological contexts. Including high-magnification use-wear analysis is particularly valuable because it enables archaeologists to identify ritual activities associated with household spaces that may or may not exhibit specific features or contexts (e.g., burials and caches) that often overtly indicate ritual activities. Within the field, an increasing focus on archaeological methods, which is demonstrated here for obsidian artifacts, ultimately improves our abilities to form archaeological theories and evaluate changes to local ontologies over time. For example, comparing cases of ritual bloodletting from the village of Tetel (750–500 B.C.), small town of La Laguna (ca. 100 B.C.–A.D. 150), and the Tlajinga District of the large city of Teotihuacan (ca. A.D. 250–550) with chronologically contemporary and succeeding examples indicates that bloodletters and bloodletting ritual programs noticeably changed after the collapse of the Teotihuacan state and rise of temple institutions with ritual specialists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Keywords: Funeral rites; Jessica Mitford; ritual practices; enculturation; online worship; Lord's Supper; communion; eucharist; worship theology EN Funeral rites Jessica Mitford ritual practices enculturation online worship Lord's Supper communion eucharist worship theology 3 5 3 04/29/22 20220101 NES 220101 I learned early in my education how cultural practices convey the truths or values of the culture in which those practices take place. Funeral rites, enculturation, communion, eucharist, Jessica Mitford, ritual practices, online worship, Lord's Supper, worship theology The long-term effects of these choices on the future worship of these communities, as well as the worship practices of community members, remain to be seen. [Extracted from the article]

Copyright of Estudios Atacameños is the property of Estudios Atacamenos and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article deals with the rite of circumcision among the Muslims in the Western Balkans, one of the most widespread ritual practices, held with some variations mostly at the age of 3 to 7. The tradition that never gets explicitly brought up in the sacred text of the Quran has become practically mandatory. Among the rites of passage, circumcision is considered by Muslims a significant act, as it symbolizes the transition from the status of a child to the status of an adult who has all the rights of a "full-fledged" man. In the Balkan Muslim community, an uncircumcised man is regarded as an exception to the rule. In the second half of the twentieth century, the technical side of the rite was radically changed, but it has not affected its sacred and traditional elements. Nowadays, in its origins, its religious roots, its folk depictions and its place in the relations between "us" and "them", the circumcision ceremony is a rite of initiation and is one of the most remarkable ritual practices that demonstrates committal to Islam. The article is mainly based on the actual field data gathered by the author in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and other countries of the region during the last three decades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence and evolution of the symbolic space of Kharkiv, one of the largest university centres in Ukraine, represent changes in the urban cultural landscape and the urban narrative of memory. Here, the transformations of signspace (ritual practices and symbolism) in Kharkiv's institutions of higher education are traced from the first half of the nineteenth century to the present time. The genesis of sign-space in the city's institutes of higher education is an example of the transfer of western European university ideas to eastern European terrain, and their further adaptation there. The functioning of sign-space is studied in the fifteen largest institutions of higher learning in Kharkiv today. University symbols and rituals define a system of views of the modern university, its functions, and its ideals. Building a university sign-space is also interpreted as a competition for the symbolic environment of the city in which it exists. In this way, institutions of higher education seek not only to be represented in the urban milieu, but also to promote the consolidation of a certain part of the surrounding urban community. Kharkiv's symbolic space as a university city is tightly knit but heterogeneous, representing a complex system and comprising a wide variety of visual and verbal elements. The current forms of visual (self)representation of Kharkiv's universities are a synthesis of local and borrowed academic traditions. The "commercialization" and "service function" of the modern university clash with the "old" ideals of Enlightenment, a conflict reflected in the symbolic and ritual forms perceived by the university community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Cuadernos de Prehistoria y Arqueologia is the property of Cuadernos de Prehistoria y Arqueologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The subject of interest of the present article is time in the traditional Balkan cultures, with special emphasis on Macedonian female folk healers i.e. the time when they perform their ritual practices. The ritual practices of treatment, whether it is about collective curing practices, when the entire rural community is threatened, mostly due to an epidemic, or it is an individual in question, usually is performed at night, or in the so-called "deaf time", or "no time”, “dead hours" - that is, the time around midnight or the twilight after the setting of the sun; at moonlight (under the influence of the lunar phases); before sunrise, etc., which can be related to the liminal periods during this period of a day and night. On the basis of symbolic and semantic analysis, the present article tries to make a link between the symbolic representations of the time with the day and the night, further to those of the Sun and the Moon, which are connected with the interpretation of the this-worldly and the otherworldly.

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This article introduces the idea of religious renewal as it was manifested in the ritual practices of the Sabbatian Maʾaminim of Salonica – followers of Shabbtai Tzvi who converted from Judaism to Islam during the 1680s, in the footsteps of their Messiah. The religious renewal of the Maʾaminim is demonstrated by the appropriation of the Sufi-Muslim practice, known as zikr , as part of their ritual singing. The appropriation of zikr practices by the Maʾaminim is understood in the context of the rise of this practice throughout all of Ottoman Muslim society, specifically as part of ilahi singing, demonstrating religious innovation in Ottoman culture at the beginning of the modern era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses selected ritual practices in Klagenfurt (Sln. Celovec), the capital of the southernmost Austrian state of Carinthia (Germ. Kärnten). The first ritual is connected with October 10, when the 1920 plebiscite is commemorated on the streets of Klagenfurt. In this plebiscite, the majority of people voted for remaining a part of Austria, the successor state to Austria-Hungary. The second ritual is a more recent one, known as the Memorial Walk (Germ. Gedenkgehen, Sln. Spominska hoja). Various cultural practices are analysed, as well as the use of symbols and space, media, state, and national discourses.

The present study is dedicated to the analysis of religious peculiarities of a geographical area of the Anatolian interior, more specifically Phrygia, situated far away from the major Greek settlements in the Western Coast of Anatolia. The numerous epigraphs found in this area not only provide information about religious practices but also shed a light on the socio-political evolution of this territory, rarely documented in other regions. Despite progressive Hellenization, particular religious ways, of long tradition and antiquity, were continued by its inhabitants. These practices, which transcended their religious meaning, were of great importance to maintain social order and guarantee the peaceful coexistence of different communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Thiasos Monografie is the property of Edizioni Quasar di Severino Tognon s.r.l. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article focuses on the “translation” of the language of clothing, which is characteristic of Bulgarians in modern language. The accumulated knowledge allows us to try to read the “language of clothing” as “our” ancestors “speak” and “write”. In order to read it, I draw both data about the style of Bulgarian folk clothing and examples of folk tales, ritual practices in a family environment. The aim is to reveal this “translated text” as a typical method of affirming the national identity on a local and national scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ritual practices from Christian and older animist belief systems persist across Timor-Leste (T-L). Significant events such as deaths and marriages include elements from both beliefs, and resources to conduct the associated ceremonies can affect agricultural production. In addition, ceremonies based on family lineage groups - lisan - are conducted for numerous purposes, with many related to food production and consumption. To investigate such rituals from a food security perspective, interviews on ritual practices were conducted in a longitudinal study among 18 households in four municipalities in 2006-2007 and among 56 respondents in three municipalities in 2015. Time and resources dedicated to ritual practices varied significantly across respondents, localities and crops. Despite extensive rural poverty, almost all communities dedicated significant resources and time to conduct ceremonies, particularly for maize and rice. Importantly, innovation in cropping was not stifled by rituals. Rituals reinforce social networks that have already been found to be important to food security, so in a broad sense rituals may even contribute to crop production. There was wide overlap between the composition of lineage lisan and mutual labour groups, which can be critical in T-L where, with limited availability of farm mechanization, the household unit of labour is insufficient for some agricultural tasks. A reallocation of resources from rituals to other objectives such as education and home maintenance is now gradually occurring. Looking ahead, respondents indicated that, while rituals could become less elaborate, continuance of the traditions was essential. Agricultural rituals contribute to the social capital needed for crop production and food security in T-L. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]