The Power of Ritual

[richard ford]

Every culture that survives (only durable cultures are really cultures at all) is based upon ritual. Ritual gives meaning to the meaningless drudgery that makes up much of life. Every revolution in history has been accompanied by a revolution in ritual and ceremony. Think of may day parades, think of Nuremberg rallies - these images persist even once the regimes themselves have fallen.

Each revolution has created its own art and sought to reengineer culture in its own image. Only by changing humanities view of itself is it possible to transform humanity itself. Our revolution is a democratic and humane revolution - it cannot adapt the art and culture of previous revolutions which were centralised and authoritarian in nature. The architecture and parades of the dictatorships were designed to inspire but also to make the individual feel small. Even the music of these societies was big, big choirs, big orchestras playing in big halls. There was no place for the individual there.

What then is the culture of the feminist revolution? It is the culture of self indulgence, of the big 'me'. It is also the culture of death. This seems entirely appropriate from a doctrine that says that we must all die (stop reproducing) rather than allow a child to be more important than ourselves.

Self pity has become the chief emotion expressed in our culture. This is a cheap, superficial and shameful thing for a great civilisation to obsess upon and it has led to an obsession with death. If you do not believe me visit any modern art gallery. You will find ugliness and death celebrated there.

What will our culture and ritual celebrate. I suggest it should celebrate life and duty. Duty need not be drudgery if it is truly embraced. It can liberate an individual from all the petty depressions and resentments that are so celebrated by our enemies.

What might this mean in reality? This is much harder to say. I am filling my home with houseplants. Caring for them reminds me that I am on the side of life. The more closely I interconnect with other people and living things the less I am aware of my own problems. Feminism is ultimately about selfishness and loneliness. The feminist feels that she is due all sorts of things and becomes resentful when her demands are not met. She becomes lonely as she is unable to give anything to anyone else without receiving first. Ultimately depression and anger set in but she imagines these things are caused by other people. One good way to be happy is to find the most unhappy and fucked up people you can (feminists) and resolve to be as unlike them as you can!

[no2fembots]

And the Richard Ford spoke: "Duty need not be drudgery if it is truly embraced."

Does the Ford believe that duty does not equate to slavery?  Of course he does!  

n2fembots understands that feedom can come from service, liberation from duty, joy from ritual.  

Marching shoulder to shoulder gives an optic of the robotic, yet the observer does not see in each "robot" the joy of movement with fellows in common purpose,  common vision and pride in accomplishment of task. Especially if purpose, vision, work is life affirming in nature.

Very true, Richard, that, "Feminism is ultimately about selfishness and loneliness... " and destruction of what is noble and good in the human spirit.

Regards,