Abstract
In this article, I focus on a particular ritual that is constitutive for a wide range of social practices. I examine it with the intention to develop a conception of ritual that goes beyond traditional patterns and disciplinary boundaries. The proposed conception of ritual is meant to reveal interdependence between the realm of human existence and actions, on the one hand, and the realm of the world that is autonomous with regard to humans, on the other. The conception of ritual as advanced here is neither subsumed to the dominant categories of Western culture, nor derived from sophisticated theoretical discussions. For the purpose at hand, I will refer to this conception as “folk”. However, because the proposed approach has the ambition of universal validity, I examine selected categories and concepts of philosophy and anthropology to substantiate my case: (i) the etymological meanings in Sanskrit, (ii) the Hebrew origins, (iii) the ethnographic facts (on the basis of Alfred Gell’s research on Muria’s “God playing” and some selected theses of cultural and anthropological theory), (iv) Jerzy Grotowski’s idea of techniques of the performer’s breath and (v) some points from Karol Wojtyła’s philosophical integrative view of the human person and agency.
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Notes
- 1.
The term “acting” is used here in analogy with its meaning in K. Wojtyła’s title phrase “the acting person”.
- 2.
I apply this term also to the ethnic groups that share the territory under the influence of the Western world. I particularly refer to the selected pueblos in New Mexico, US.
- 3.
“AṦA, “truth” in Avestan, from Indo-Iranian *ṛtá-, a neuter noun having the same meaning. The word is attested in Old Persian as ạrta and in Old Indian as ṛtá-”. See ([24], pp. 168–182): (1) *ṛtám man- “to think (of) truth” (Y. 31.19 and Rigveda); (2) *ṛtám vaźh- “to drive the truth” (Y. 46.4 and Rigveda): “The religious poet drives the true words of his hymn as the charioteer the horses”. For more information see http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/asa-means-truth-in-avestan. (Last accessed 17 November 2017).
- 4.
Ibidem.
- 5.
https://rabbitroom.com/2011/08/is-the-name-of-god-the-sound-of-our-breathing/. (Last accessed 10 April 2017).
- 6.
Ibidem.
- 7.
See [23]. “Being” is existence itself. “Doing” is the activity of all that exists, from quarks to sentient beings to supergalactic strings. “Showing doing” is performing: pointing to, underlining, and displaying doing. Explaining ‘showing doing’“ is performance studies” (p. 28).
- 8.
- 9.
Turner’s idea is further elaborated in [5]. Interestingly, the paper has the same title as Turner’s but does not list it among the references.
- 10.
Turner follows here [10].
- 11.
- 12.
Gell underlined this “equilibrium sense” as consisting of the gravity- and movement-sensing organs in the inner ear (semicircular canals in the vestibule), which are connected to a number of sites in the central nervous system, which together constitute the vestibular system. The vestibular system monitors equilibrium and controls the muscles of the head, neck and upper body as well as the posture.
- 13.
On the Hindu and other influences on Grotowski, see esp. [19].
- 14.
Since 1978, he has been known as the Pope John Paul II. Wojtyła’s main philosophical work is The Acting Person [31].
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The author gratefully acknowledges support from the grant NCN 2013/11/B/HS1/03961, awarded by the National Science Centre in Poland.
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Kawalec, A. (2020). Agency of Breath—Beyond Disciplinary Views on Ritual. In: Giovagnoli, R., Lowe, R. (eds) The Logic of Social Practices. Studies in Applied Philosophy, Epistemology and Rational Ethics, vol 52. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37305-4_11
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