Rituals Day one

I was amazingly busy yesterday, and lazy today. These are the rituals we presented in class Thursday:
1) Eric: the Karamundi rain making ceremony from Australia. A man cuts a vein, and catches his blood in a hollowed out piece of bark. Then he adds gipsum (I think is how you spell it), and mix until it creates a paste. This paste is sandwiched with another piece of bark. Then it is placed in a river or lagoon, and rain will come after the paste has dissolved. During the time that the paste is dissolving the men must stay away from the women.

2) Stephanie: Egyptian cat mourning. A pharoh stated that cats were demigods because they hunted rodents, and their bodies were treated similarly to humans. They were mummified like humans, and the family would mourn their loss, typically by shaving their eyebrows. This was included in the Egyptian Book of the Dead.

3) Courtney: The human mummifcation process of Egypt. They would remove all of the organs, except the heart so that the person could enter into the afterlife with a heart. The brains were removed through the nose. These were placed in special jars. the body was placed in a sarcophagus for forty days, packed in salt. Then the body was removed and wrapped before being returned. She mentioned the exact amount of cloth used for the wrappings, but I didn't catch all of it in time to write it down.

4) Christine: Aztec new fire. At the beginning of their whole year (every 52 years) all the fires in a town would be put out. The priests would go to the top of a mountain and at midnight make a human sacrifice, using that sacrifice to light a fire, and then all the fires of that village.

5) Lucy: Native American, smudging ceremony. One lights a bundle of herbs (different herbs for different occasions) is this was done with a person, the smoke was to be centered over the heart. If this was done with a place, one was to move clockwise around it.

6) Jerrod: Papua New Guinea blood initiation. This is a manhood ceremony. Young men stand in a  mountain stream, and the elders demonstrate the three things they must do. First being that they must take canes, and shove these canes in their throats. Then they remove the cane and vomit into the river, this is to remove the taste of woman's food from them. Next they took sharpened reeds to their noses and bleed from their noses into the river. This was to remove the sent of women from them. Finally they took small bows and arrows which they shot into their tongues. I don't remember exactly why that one was done.

7) Sherwood: Also did the Karamundi rainmaking ceremony. He also added that hair from the man's beard is added to the blood and gipsum mixture.

8) Zach: Brazilian manhood ritual. The young men go out, and gather what are known as bullet ants. The shaman drugs the ants, and weaves them into gloves. The young men then must dance for about half and hours with these gloves on their hands. The ants are so named because apparently the sting of this ant is like being shot.

9) Matthew: American political ritual. Canidates are selected, then tour the country, then the people write something mysterious on a piece of paper in a box located at a public area on a certain day, and a new president is elected.

10) Jason: Taurbolium. A priest is placed in a hole in the ground with a wooden cover on it. This cover has several small holes poked into it. A bull is lead to stand on this wooden cover, and is killed. The blood pours down in a shower that the priest cleanses himself in. Then he drinks some of it as well.

11) Bailey: Mayan human sacrifice. They would stand at the top of a pyramid, and rip out the sacrifices heart. Then the body was decapitated, and pushed down the pyramid. People at the bottom of the pyramid would bury the body. This was done to keep up communications with the gods.

12) Darryl: Spartan marriage. The bridesmaid would dress the bride in men's clothing, and leave her on one bed. The groom would show up, and take her to another bed. They do what people do together in bed when not sleeping. And the groom would then have to run back to his barrracks before dawn. Sounds like a one night stand to me.

13) Jessica: Seppuku. Warrior enters a public/common place, writes and performs his death poem. Then he takes his sword and stabs it into his abdomen, makes one cut from right to left, and then two upward cuts. At this point the warrior bends forward over his sword, and a trusted friend decapitates him.

14)Jenny: The Mary Month of May. This was a personal story that she wrote down and read to us. It involved the Catholic school she went to. The sixth graders had a tradtion of selecting one girl to place a crown of lillies on the statue of the Virgin Mary. Her sister got the honor because the nun who was teaching them pulled strings. Normally it would have been one of the rich, popular girls.

15). Rosemary: Mexican Day of the Dead. This is a mixed form from the traditions of the native peoples (who did this for the whole month of August), and the Spanish (who moved it to the end of October, and shortened it to three days). People wear masks with the names of the people in their families who had died, and then they go light candles in the graveyards and cemetaries.

16) Vittoria: Frozen Dead Guy Days. Some Norwegian guy believed in cryogenics enough that he went and got himself frozen in liquid nitrogen. His daughter had to pour more on him every month. She eventually had rent problems, and the media got involved, and now it's a major celebration in Colorado. It includes several races, and Grandpa's Blue Ball.

17) Jill: Eastern Star Ritual. These are the female Masons. The initate goes to the Eastern Star location in a white dress and meets with five women. One stands at each point on a star. I believe that the people represent obedience, devotion, love, charity, and faith. I'm sure of a few of those, but not which woman they correspond with. This is the Eastern Star initiation ritual.

18) Madison: also did the Karamundi rain making. The elders say that as long as the ritual is respected it'll work everytime.

19) Parker: Bridger whale. There is a wooden whale that can be seen on the side of the road on the way from Bozeman to Bridger. You are not supposed to look at it on the way up, or risk a bad day. On the way back you are supposed to salute the whale in order to keep good luck.

20) Sam: Beowulf death ritual. People make a funeral pyre, and heap it with the deceased's possessions. Then they sing songs, and say euligies. Twelve people circle the grave after the ashes were buried.
21) Me: I did the bear ritual of the Anuri (Eliade, I may not have that name completely right), really I did the version used in the novel The Clan of the Cave Bear. The host clan would capture a bear cub and raise it as Clan. It'd be moved to a wooden cage outside the cave when it got too big. People would feed it and play with it. Then every seven years, and the Clan Gathering, the bear would be killed. Two young men would be selected to bring the bear before the people who would torture it, and then kill it. The head would be removed with the rest of the skin attached. Then the meat was prepared. A cup of the bear's blood, and some of it's prepared meat would be presented to the head of the bear. The person who captured the bear would then speak to it saying how it was a good bear and should tell it's parents that so the cycle could be repeated.

22) Andrew: Irish marriage tradtions. This takes place from Halloween to Lent. There are several different ways for people to determine who they should be with. There was one about initialed nuts in a frying pan and if they stay together or not.

23) Kevin: Thai vegetarian ritual. The people would go completely vegan, celebit, and without alcohol. Celebit meaning without sex. This is done for a certain time, based on the story that this was done for some Chinese people who got malaria. They stick sharp objects in their bodies to be closer to the gods at this time.

24) Wena: Chinese New Year. 15 days. 10 days before the house must be completely cleaned to ward off evil spirits. Kids get money on the first day of Chinese New Year, and you shouldn't wash your hair. The 15th day is the Lantern Festival.

25) Ashley: Chrismas Eve. Her grandfather would read Twas the Night Before Christmas. Then the doorbell would ring and something would be at the door.