Rite of passage

A rite of passage is an event or ritual that marks a transition in a person's life from one stage or status to another. Rites of passage most often are performed at or soon after birth, during adolescence, and during adulthood.

Overview

Virtually all societies celebrate important life transitions with rites of passage. These ceremonies mark the changes that come at particular stages in life, but more importantly, they impart meaning to powerful experiences and support a society's values. Rites of passage may be religious or secular. While most groups have rituals to accompany birth, adolescence, marriage, and death, some include unique celebrations that reflect events that are important to a particular culture.

Each of the major rites of passage includes three steps: separation, transition, and incorporation. During the separation stage, individuals leave the comfort of their place—sometimes very suddenly. In the second stage, transition, people lose their identities, only to have them replaced with new ones that will emerge after the ritual. Incorporation, the third stage, reunites participants with their community and establishes their new identities. An example of these steps can be seen in the rite of marriage. During this ritual, two people become engaged and prepare to leave their respective parents' homes; they participate in the formalities of a wedding ceremony; and they emerge in the community with the new identity of a couple.

By performing a public ceremony at times of major life changes, both the individual and society recognize the significance of the transition. In certain cases, such as some coming-of-age rituals, graduations, and religious confirmations, the individual is required to attain a degree of knowledge before qualifying for the new status. The public nature of most rites of passage points to the importance of establishing a new status or identity for those who complete the ritual. Rites of passage are often celebrated with new clothing, dancing, gift-giving, a meal, or a party.

Rites of passage, particularly those marking adulthood, often contain elements of separation, change, or learning. Rites of passage can include lengthy separations and journeys (real or symbolic), such as those practiced by Indigenous peoples. The rituals of passing down the knowledge of the elders, such as mothers to daughters and fathers to sons, culminate in affirmation of the new adult identity of the adolescent.

In societies in which individuality, secularism, and rational thought are emphasized, rites of passage are less public and unlikely to be compulsory. For example, formal rituals in America are generally associated with voluntary membership in a religion or club, or those that have become nearly universal, such as marriage and funeral ceremonies. In contrast, societies that depend on social solidarity and traditional wisdom tend to engage in transforming experiences that firmly connect an individual to the community or society.

Birth Rites

Whether they engage in formal rites, most cultures have distinct customs for welcoming a baby. Religious rites for newborns include baptism (a ceremony using water) in Christian religions; bris, or ritual circumcision (the cutting of the foreskin of the male genitalia) in Judaism; and naming ceremonies in many African cultures. Each ceremony joins the new arrival to the family, the religious community, and society as a whole.

Rites for Adolescents

Coming-of-age rites are among the most commonly found initiations in cultures worldwide. They are meant to separate children from their parents and mark the arrival of sexual maturity or adult status. The transition often involves temporary removal from the community. For boys, this sometimes includes ritual pain from circumcision, scarring, or tattooing, which instills the importance of their entry into adulthood. For girls, the first menses, or period, is usually the mark of womanhood, although several cultures practice genital mutilation, the cutting of the female genitalia.

In religious communities, Catholic adolescents may be confirmed into the church, while Baptists may choose to be baptized when they are ready to affirm their faith. Girls of the Jewish faith achieve bat mitzvah at age twelve, and boys achieve bar mitzvah at age thirteen. These rituals initiate them as full members of the Jewish faith and confer adult responsibilities. Islamic boys fully enter the faith through circumcision, while girls become adults through marriage.

The secular Western culture recognizes qualifying for a driver's license, high school graduation, or reaching the age of twenty-one as milestones in the transition to adulthood. However, no single, specific rite of separation, instruction, or initiation exists to prepare adolescents for their role as adults.

Marriage

Marriage rites may be formal or informal, but they are nearly universal in all cultures. Marriage is generally a religious or secular celebration or a social/financial contract between families. Some involve religious ceremonies and could include elaborate rites and expensive feasts. In some cultures, the bride is essentially sold to the groom's family, while in others, the bride's family must pay a dowry to the groom. In any case, the purpose of marriage is to perpetuate a culture by creating and providing for new generations of children.

Death

Like other life events requiring special rites, death involves separation, transition, and ultimately incorporation of a new status. Some funeral rites prepare the dead for burial and possibly an afterlife. For example, in Tibetan Buddhism and Hindu culture, prayers and fire—cremation—are used to purify the soul of the deceased and prepare it for a new life. Funeral rites also help transition survivors to a new status, such as widow or head of the family. During this ritual, families usually come together to find comfort, share common grief, and recount stories of loved ones.

Bibliography

Burrow, Heather Marie. "Ritualized into Adulthood: The Scarcity of Youth-Focused Rites of Passage in America." Discover Global Society, vol. 1, no. 22, 21 Dec. 2023, doi:10.1007/s44282-023-00027-3. Accessed 26 Oct. 2024.

"Rites of Passage." International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. 2nd ed. Vol. 7. Ed. William A. Darity Jr. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2008. 256–259. Print.

Rites of Passage. University of Idaho, 12 Feb. 2019, www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~rfrey/PDF/Shared/Rites%20of%20Passage.pdf. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024.

Span, Paula. "Older Generations Are Reclaiming Rites of Passage." The New York Times, 2 Aug. 2022, www.nytimes.com/2022/08/01/health/ritual-age-rite-passage.html. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024.