# 30. Ritualism ## 30.1. Definition Ritualism can be best described as a solemn or formal activity or procedure which refers to or reaffirms an important premise, like the existence of God or the power of the sovereign. All ritualism is manipulative. It has no intrinsic reasons for being, except to alter the perceptions of its victims in a way which benefits a manipulator. Ritualism is used to confer an importance on an individual, a group or an event. It is used in religion and politics, in group and social contexts and in interpersonal manipulation. ## 30.2. Persistence Short to Long, depending on whether its associated premise remains believable. ## 30.3. Accessibility Low - This form of manipulation is really only available to institutions like governments, monarchies, religions etc. ## 30.4. Conditions/Opportunity/Effectiveness At first sight, it wouldn't appear that ritualism is very relevant in a discussion of manipulation in a modern context. Most of us consider ritualism in terms of some kind of religious activity of our distant past, with little place in the life of modern industrial man. This is not the case, though. Ritualism is alive and well in modern society. ### 30.4.1. Ritualism is not just part of a religion A narrow religious view of ritualism gives only part of the picture. Ritualism extends far beyond religion. When we understand ritualism in the broader sense of attempting the affirmation or reaffirmation of a premise, concept or philosophy, then the manipulative uses of ritualism suddenly become much more extensive. In the case of, say, "Holy Communion", the church is reaffirming certain theological assumptions. In the case of the ubiquitous monthly stock take, a management may be saying to its workers: "We're in control and we're watching you in case you steal from us". We tend to believe that political rituals are irrational and irrelevant, but they are also demonstrations of power by powerful institutions. If nothing else, they lend an impression of continuity and respectability to the proceedings of which they are a part. Governments and managements still prefer the use of all kinds of taboos and rituals to that of force, when they are trying to establish a code of behaviour, or gain a victim's respect for and fear of their institutions. There are several pre-conditions required for ritualism to work as a manipulative method: - Everyone must share in it. - Everyone must be convinced by it. - The perceptions created by the ritual must not appear to stem from or be promoted by any manipulative elite group or individual. - A ritual must incorporate potent and unverifiable premises, such as - in the case of a religious ritual - the existence of a deity. ## 30.5. Methodology/Refinements/Sub-species *See Child Pages:* - [[Magico-Religious Rituals]] - [[Status Ritualism]] - [[Schematising Rituals]] - [[Representational Rituals]] ## 30.6. Avoidance and Counteraction The most obvious hazard in using ritualistic manipulation of any kind from a manipulator's point of view, is the possibility of it's no longer being adhered to or taken seriously by a potential victim. Once the ethos surrounding a ritual has been discredited, its existence becomes irrelevant. To protect against this eventuality, a manipulator designing a ritual must incorporate unverifiable "facts" in the ritual. In addition to this, the elites which participate in rituals (either knowingly or otherwise) must be effectively motivated to perpetuate the practice of the ritual by a wide range of tangible rewards, favours and personal gratification. To avoid the power of ritualism, a victim must never accept any premises which cannot be rationally proven, demonstrable and repeatable. A victim must insist on a proper explanation of all potentially manipulative rituals, their contents and their reasons. Generally, the basis of ritualistic acts becomes rather absurd when questioned. This "test everything" strategy can very quickly result in a manipulator running short of rational explanations or justifications for their rituals. After all, it's hard to sell the idea of rolling up one's trouser leg as a necessary and rational action to any sane human being, or the concept that we are all reincarnations of creatures from other planets as a likely explanation for the origin of our species. As some point the validity of the manipulator's premises start wearing very thin.