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ORIGINAL: Inhibitor

It's been truncated because a moderator was alerted to the post. Whether it would have been, naturally, is speculative, but regardless. The reasoning that a rule (or the promulgation of one) is acceptable on the sole merit that it is enforced is frightening.

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ORIGINAL: ModeratorEleven

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ORIGINAL: Inhibitor

It's been truncated because a moderator was alerted to the post. Whether it would have been, naturally, is speculative, but regardless. The reasoning that a rule (or the promulgation of one) is acceptable on the sole merit that it is enforced is frightening.

No one alerted us to the presense of the post.  We actually read the posts people make here.   It doesn't matter that the copyright information was included or if the poster didn't try to pass the work off as her own, it violated both our rules and the standards of fair use.

If it frightens you that such rules are actually enforced, perhaps you would be better suited spending your time elsewhere.

XI

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ORIGINAL: Archer

Now to try to steer the post back on track.
Ritual has a definate indellible imprint when done well.
Ritual was the first form of multi media directed teaching/ learning.
Song, pagentry, food, incense, pain (hear, see, taste, smell and touch) incorporating all the senses increases the chances that the lessons, value will be remembered.

The trick has always been to make sure the values you are learning/ teaching/ internalizing are values you understand and seek on the surface/ mental level before you ritualize and make drive them deeper into the mind.

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ORIGINAL: Archer

No implied message other than those you put into it yourself.
A statement that X does Y does not preclude ABCDEF or G from doing it as well.

The fact is ritual has a centuries old proven effect of doing exactly as I stated leaving an indellible imprint.
It has been used for good or for ill by almost every religion and culture in recorded history and before, assuming that modern study of "pre history"  type cultures (ie culture without a written language)  correctly model those same type cutures that are long gone.

Does ritual change the result. Most anthropologists say it does in fact change the result. Does going to the funeral change the perception of death? I would contend that it usually does, the ritual provides closure (for most people, otherwise I would contend that the cultures of the world would not have them).
Do comming of age rituals imprint the values and responsibilities of a (insert cultural role here)  Again the presence of them around the world would indicate that they do, and the absence of meaningfull ones in much of western culture provides additional evidence that they do have a marked effect.

Certainly if I gave the impresion that every ritual incorporated all 5 sences that was an error in my communications, but typicaly large rituals do.

I would contend that the difference would lie in the amount of focus on and use of ritual. Does the presence or absence of ritual mean that the  values are or are not communicated? certainly not.
The presence of ritual means only that the people involved have chosen to use ritual as a means to that desired end. (one means amoung many, but one proven over centuries of human culture).