We build off the shoulders of our ancestors. As the shadow of our pastdances against the wall of time, every nuanced movement, every refraction, every proportion contains the cornerstones upon which today’s sophisticated society is built. We are but a static, infinitesimal frame, a brink, a fringe in the expansive, infinite, amorphous narrative of the evolution of our species. Aeons ago, the first of our cousins to stand upright danced ecstatically to thumping drums made from the skins of prey, illuminated by the twilight of the full moon; an invocation of the metaphysical, a rite ushering them into acquaintance with soul, spirit and nature. These effervescent gatherings were where the very essence of culture first emerged: ritual.

Neuroscientists argue that we’re hardwired for ritualistic behaviour; it come from the reptile brain, the small form just above the medulla oblongata that houses our most primal of instincts, desires and behaviours. Leaders of thought in spirituality ascribe meditative properties to such behaviours and rebellious youths lament their apathy for it. Whether one embraces ritual or despises it, one cannot escape its grasp, as those in neuroscience argue it is a human construct to which we are all enslaved. We are all predisposed to create our own little rituals and rites for the execution of the most mundane activities. A question emerges: to what degree is ritual a positive phenomenon? Is it the key to self-actualization, or an obsessive pathology?

In the past, meaning was derived from rituals, a sacred practice, a prayer, an intention carefully weaved into the fabric of collective consciousness, watered and nurtured by the belief, manifested by will. It was the invisible force that kept us from regressing into animals and united us with the common momentous goal of transcending the shackles of our empirical experiences; of dissolving the boundaries separating our five senses and deriving a sense of purpose, power and vision from the realization of our amplified potential as a collective.

Progressing to the modern age, evolution transmuted into entropy. Rituals impregnated with significance, purpose and wonder have been diluted, politicized and lost all meaning. Our rich collective heritage had been tarnished, our values desecrated; as the postmodern world began to re construct our core value system from sharing and coexistence, to ownership and dominance. While the rituals of the ancients were designed to bring out the best of human nature, as time went on, organized religion twisted and perverted these practices to bring out the worst of our nature. Freedom, wonder, wisdom and love were replaced with oppression, censorship, though policing and dominance.

So, where do we go from here? Do we reject rituals and tradition, do we start from scratch? The disillusionment with the current status quo resounds with a deafening pulse. People are unifying with unprecedented numbers and spirit. The youth identify more with the truth, beauty, justice and freedom than wealth, control and power. We are organically surfing time backwards to realign with the natural state of our species. Whether we adopt the same tribal practices or create our own is irrelevant. It has nothing to do with the ritual practiced, it has everything to do with the meaning attached to the ritual.