Handout 2: The Birth of Ritual
Sarah Gibb Millspaugh
In the beginning, there were cycles and seasons. There were birth and childhood and adulthood and old age and death. There were times of abundance and times of famine, times of immeasurable joy and times of bottomless grief.Humans wandered the earth and wondered, “How can we bear this pain?” “How can we share our hopes and our fears?“ “How can we keep ourselves safe from harm?” “How can we express our gratitude when things go well?” And ritual was born.
They made music and burned fires. They danced and poured libations. They wore masks and costumes. They fasted, they feasted, and they told stories about goddesses and gods.
They marked the cycles and the seasons. They marked birth, adulthood, old age, and death. They unleashed their creativity, devotion, and care for one another. And the ritual brought them strength. The ritual tied them together as communities. The ritual helped them understand their place on this vast, dark, cold planet. The ritual helped them know what it is to be human, and alive.
Last updated on Friday, April 18, 2008.
