“In Lodges, Chapters and Pronaoi around the world, the Rosicrucian New Year is celebrated by ritual symbolizing the special bonds the unite humans to Nature and to the Divine Plan. This is indeed an ideal occasion to meditate on our relationship with natural and divine laws.”
From our personal relationships to our career and hobbies, as human beings we are always looking to assign purpose to our actions. This constant search for meaning underscores who we are as individuals. Under this lens people, animals and even inanimate objects are connected together to form stories that are placed amongst the overall narrative of our lives. In other words, these simple physical structures become representations of far greater concepts. Through years of evolution we have developed complex languages around ascribing deeper meaning to sounds and written characters. Language allows us to share and accumulate knowledge and build upon our societies from generation to generation.
Religious rituals should be seen along the same lines. Although two individuals may share the same faith, they can only communicate this kinship through performance. Rituals give meaning to the abstract theories of religion; in doing so they can bring together disparate communities and ethnicities under one common banner. No matter how devout you are in your personal life, if you don’t follow the norms and rituals of your chosen belief system then your faith is always open to question. Now, imagine what happens when you take rituals that are associated with one religion, and co-opt them for use in your own faith. You retain all the power of that original practice and change the allegiance of the practitioner.
The Theosophists of the 19th century used this very trick to transform ancient mysticism of the East into new belief systems that were more palatable to Western audiences. Today, modern offshoots of those early esoteric movements continue to employ similar methods to manipulate their followers. Witness this following ritual described in this Rosicrucian monograph.
“To conduct this special ritual, you will need to obtain:
· Salted walnuts that are placed in a small dish or saucer – Salted peanuts, almonds, or hazelnuts may be substituted
· A small portion of bread made of wheat, corn, or some grain
· A glass of unfermented grape juice
· A napkin”
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