Tag Archives: Ritual

Tiger Balm

General information about item:

  • Tradition/superstition/ritual
  • Language: English
  • Country of origin: United States
  • Informant: WS
  • Date collected: 11/9/2021

Informant Data:

  • WS is a current sophomore at Dartmouth College in the graduating class of 2024. She is originally from Richmond, Virginia and currently resides in Hanover, New Hampshire. She is an Anthropology major. WS now runs mid-distance races for the track team, competing in the 600 and 800, but in high school she participated in both hurdle races. 

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: Some athletes use alternative medical techniques which can sometimes equate to superstitious activities, as they are often unfounded/not proven by science and serve the purpose of mental preparation.
  • Social Context: Athletes do whatever they can to prepare for races, and often this means partaking in activities that are simply for comfort’s sake or allow for peace of mind.

Item:

  • “I had to put tiger balm (like bio freeze) on my legs right before my race […] I would put tiger balm on my shins around 10 mins before my race just as a superstition to loosen up my muscles. And the smell calmed me down, it like put me in the right mind set to race.”

Associate file (a video, audio, or image file):

Transcript (description of image):

  • Image shows the tiger balm discussed by the informant.

Collector’s Comments:

  • This ritual was interesting to me as some may not see it as purely a superstition because of the believed medicinal benefits of tiger balm and similar bio freeze products. However, when my informant was describing her reasons for using the tiger balm, she mentioned how the smell calmed her down and put her in the right mental headspace to race. This displays the more spiritual/ritualistic nature of this superstition.

Collector’s Name: Anna Brause

Tags/Keywords:

  • Dartmouth
  • Track/XC
  • Tiger Balm
  • Superstition

No Talking to Competitors

General Information about Item:

  • Ritual/ Superstition 
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: USA
  • Informant: JD
  • Date Collected: 11/14/19

Informant Data:

  • JD is a ‘23 on the Dartmouth Track & Field team from Andover, MA. He has been on the team for three years and participates in the throwing events, specifically hammer and weight throw. He began competing in track and field in the eighth grade.  

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural context: Many athletes are very superstitious and have lots of pre-meet rituals that they participate in. These ritual superstitions can be anything from an clothing item, a song they listen to, or a ritual. JD stated that he participates in this ritual because it makes them feel calm and puts them in a competitive mindset. 
  • Social Context: Rituals like this are a large part of athletic participation because how you interact with your competitors plays a big role in your competition experience. Rituals like this help make one feel more comfortable in a situation that they have little control over and provides them with an individualized action even when surrounded by a lot of people. The rituals can be playful or serious depending on the athlete. 

Item:

  • JD says that before and during every meet he does not talk to the competition at all until he is finished competing. Sometimes he does this by listening to music to distract him from everything else, and other times he just goes off to the side and avoids talking to people.

Associated File: 

*Informant did not feel comfortable being recorded. 

Informant’s Comments:

  • JD has done this ritual every meet since they were in high school. He said it makes him feel focused on himself and not on his competition and it makes him feel like he will do better. 

Collector’s Comments:

  • As an athlete myself, I have heard and seen many of my past and current teammates and opponents who have a similar approach to preparing for competition. 
  • This would fall into the categories of customary folklore, as it represents a transition from everyday life to incorporation into the competition mindset. 
  • While this isn’t a Dartmouth team specific tradition/superstition, this is just one example of the many athletes on the team who have similar superstitions. 

Collector’s Name:

  • Madyson Buchalski

Pre-Meet Preparation Ritual

General Information about Item:

  • Ritual/ Superstition 
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: USA
  • Informant: JT
  • Date Collected: 11/14/19

Informant Data:

  • JT is a ‘23 on the Dartmouth Track & Field team from Houston, Texas. She has been on the team for three years and participates in the throwing events, specifically shot put and discus. She began competing in track and field in the fifth grade at her middle school.  

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural context: Many athletes are very superstitious and have lots of pre-meet rituals that they participate in,  believing they will help them perform well. These ritual superstitions can be anything from an clothing item, to a song they listen to, to an action they perform. JT stated that they participate in this ritual because it makes them feel calm and in control before a competition and it puts them in a mindset to compete well. 

Item:

  • JT says that before every meet she does her makeup a particular way, paints her nails, and wears a fun pair of socks. This began as a personal ritual that she picked up from teammates in high school, but has now spread to other members of the track team as well.

Associated File: 

*Informant did not feel comfortable being recorded. 

Informant’s Comments:

  • JT has continued to do this same ritual before every meet since they were in high school because it makes her feel confident and in control. She enjoys going into a competition feeling and looking her best because the positivity often translates into her throwing that day. 
  • She has never completed without doing this tradition before a meet since she’s been in college, and when asked if she ever would, JT was hesitant and said probably not, because she’s had such great results with it. 

Collector’s Comments:

  • As a varsity athlete myself, I definitely have heard of many of my past and current teammates who have a similar ritual/superstition for themselves. While I don’t currently have a ritual and steps I go through before a meet, I can see how doing the same thing before every meet could have a positive psychological effect on an athlete. 
  • This would fall into the categories of material and customary folklore, since it includes something physical the athlete wears on meet day, like the makeup and socks, but it also is a ritual because of its particular steps that represent a transition from everyday life to incorporation into the competition mindset . Additionally, it is a sign superstition in the form “If I do A, then B ” because JT believes that doing this ritual makes her perform better. 
  • While this isn’t a Dartmouth team specific tradition/superstition, this is just one example of the many athletes on the team who have similar superstitions. 

Collector’s Name:

  • Madyson Buchalski

A Knife Under Your Pillow

Title: A Knife Under Your Pillow

General Information about Item:

  • Ritual, Superstition
  • Language: Kazakh
  • Culture of Origin: Kazakh
  • Informant: JN
  • Date Collected: 11-05-2021

Informant Data:

JN was born and brought up in Kazakhstan. She is ethnically Kazakh and enjoys learning about different cultures and mastering various languages. She is a junior at Dartmouth College and studies biomedical engineering. She can speak 4 languages: English, Russian, Kazakh and German. In her free time, she enjoys singing and playing piano.

Contextual Data

Cultural Context: Kazakhs are historically nomadic people, so nomadic practices related to livestock have been central to their culture for a long time. Islam arrived in Kazakhstan during the 8th century, and Islamic religious beliefs combined with the animistic beliefs of the local nomadic cultures and shamanic traditions. Kazakhstan was also part of the Soviet Union before gaining independence in 1991, so its culture has been greatly influenced by its neighbor, Russia, as well. Nowadays, Kazakhstan’s modern culture is influenced by the West and all of the above mentioned cultures. The devil, demons and evil spirits are the most popular supernatural creatures that are believed to bring distress in Kazakh culture. 

Social Context: JN learned about this superstition from her parents, who are Muslim and believe in the existence of the devil, demons, evil spirits and other supernatural beings. JN believes that this ritual is pretty common among religious Kazakh people and sometimes does this herself. 

Item: 

In Kazakh culture, it is believed that nightmares are caused by the devil, demons or evil spirits. In order to protect yourself from them and avoid nightmares, you need to put a knife under your pillow or somewhere near your bed. This practice is believed to ward off evil supernatural creatures.

Collector’s name: Amina

Burning Wild Rue

Title: Burning Wild Rue

General Information about Item:

  • Ritual, Superstition
  • Language: Kazakh
  • Culture of Origin: Kazakh
  • Informant: JN
  • Date Collected: 11-05-2021

Informant Data:

JN was born and brought up in Kazakhstan. She is ethnically Kazakh and enjoys learning about different cultures and mastering various languages. She is a junior at Dartmouth College and studies biomedical engineering. She can speak 4 languages: English, Russian, Kazakh and German. In her free time, she enjoys singing and playing piano.

Contextual Data

Cultural Context: Kazakhs are historically nomadic people, so nomadic practices related to livestock have been central to their culture for a long time. Islam arrived in Kazakhstan during the 8th century, and Islamic religious beliefs combined with the animistic beliefs of the local nomadic cultures and shamanic traditions. Kazakhstan was also part of the Soviet Union before gaining independence in 1991, so its culture has been greatly influenced by its neighbor, Russia, as well. Nowadays, Kazakhstan’s modern culture is influenced by the West and all of the above mentioned cultures. The devil, demons and evil spirits are the most popular supernatural creatures that are believed to bring distress in Kazakh culture. 

Social Context: JN learned about this superstition from her parents, who are Muslim and believe in the existence of the devil, demons, evil spirits and other supernatural beings. JN thinks that this practice is pretty common among religious Kazakh people, and she believes in the efficacy of this ritual herself.

Item: 

In order to ward off the devil and other evil spirits, you need to burn a plant called Peganum Harmala, commonly called wild rue. While the plant is burning, you need to walk around a room you are trying to clean and let the smoke disperse.

Collector’s name: Amina O

An Owl Feather

Title: An Owl Feather

General Information about Item:

  • Ritual, Superstition
  • Language: Kazakh
  • Culture of Origin: Kazakh
  • Informant: JN
  • Date Collected: 11-05-2021

Informant Data:

JN was born and brought up in Kazakhstan. She is ethnically Kazakh and enjoys learning about different cultures and mastering various languages. She is a junior at Dartmouth College and studies biomedical engineering. She can speak 4 languages: English, Russian, Kazakh and German. In her free time, she enjoys singing and playing piano.

Contextual Data

Cultural Context: Kazakhs are historically nomadic people, so nomadic practices related to livestock have been central to their culture for a long time. Islam arrived in Kazakhstan during the 8th century, and Islamic religious beliefs combined with the animistic beliefs of the local nomadic cultures and shamanic traditions. Kazakhstan was also part of the Soviet Union before gaining independence in 1991, so its culture has been greatly influenced by its neighbor, Russia, as well. Nowadays, Kazakhstan’s modern culture is influenced by the West and all of the above mentioned cultures. The devil, demons and evil spirits are the most popular supernatural creatures that are believed to bring distress in Kazakh culture. 

Social Context: When she was a child, JN had headwear with an owl feather attached to it. Later, she found out the real purpose of this feather from her parents, who are Muslim and believe in the existence of the devil, demons, evil spirits and other supernatural beings. JN has a few Kazakh friends who have had a similar item.

Item: 

In order to protect children from the evil supernatural creatures and the evil eye, a feather or an entire wing of an owl is put near a child’s bed, cradle or is attached to headwear. This feather or wing is believed to ward off demons, evil spirits and keep them away from the child.

Collector’s name: Amina O.

Soot

Title: Soot

General Information about Item:

  • Ritual, Superstition
  • Language: Kazakh
  • Culture of Origin: Kazakh
  • Informant: AO
  • Date Collected: 11-07-2021

Informant Data:

AO was born in the 1990s and grew up in Kazakhstan. She is a violinist and has studied music in Europe for more than 4 years. AO is ethnically Kazakh and is fluent in 3 languages: English, Russian, and Kazakh. In her free time, she enjoys reading books and practicing yoga.

Contextual Data

Cultural Context: Kazakhs are historically nomadic people, so nomadic practices related to livestock have been central to their culture for a long time. Islam arrived in Kazakhstan during the 8th century, and Islamic religious beliefs combined with the animistic beliefs of the local nomadic cultures and shamanic traditions. Kazakhstan was also part of the Soviet Union before gaining independence in 1991, so its culture has been greatly influenced by its neighbor, Russia, as well. Nowadays, Kazakhstan’s modern culture is influenced by the West and all of the above mentioned cultures. The devil, demons and evil spirits are the most popular supernatural creatures that are believed to bring distress in Kazakh culture. 

Social Context: AO’s mom is a religious woman, who believes in various supernatural creatures and the evil eye. The evil eye is a superstitious belief in curse that is cast by a malevolent glare. Young children, especially toddlers are susceptible to the attack of evil creatures and the curse. In order to protect young AO from evil supernatural creatures and the evil eye, her mom used to perform this ritual.

Item: 

In order to protect children from evil supernatural creatures and the evil eye, a tiny amount of soot is applied to a child’s face (often forehead). This is supposed to ward off demons, evil spirits and draw attention away from the curse cast by a malevolent glare and keep the child safe from the evil. 

Collector’s name: Amina O.

Mamemaki (Quinn Calhoun)

Title: Mamemaki

General Information about Item:

  • Ritual, Holiday
  • Language: Japanese
  • Country of Origin: Japan
  • Informant: DP
  • Date Collected: 11-14-21

Informant Data:

  • DP was born in 1999, in Southern, VA, where he has lived all of his life. He is half-Japanese, his father having immigrated to the U.S. in the late 1990s from Japan. However, it was his paternal grandparents who primarily taught him about Japanese culture and rituals.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: In Japanese folklore, the Oni are evil demons, trolls, or ogres who are born when evil people die and are transformed into these evil creatures. Usually large and ugly, and both strong and capable of shape-shifting. While the Oni vary in size and color, they are all malignant, often seeking to murder people or wreak havoc such as war, disease, or famine.
  • Social Context: QC learned about the tradition when QC reached out to DP about his cultural traditions involving defenses against supernatural creatures. DP learned about the holiday through his grandfather, who, while he didn’t believe in the Oni, thought the tradition was an enjoyable one and important to the culture. 

Item:

  • Every year during the Setsubun holiday celebrating the end of winter, a family would roast soybeans and throw them at a person wearing a mask to represent the Oni while shouting “Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!” and chase them out of their home. This ritual would help cleanse the house of evil spirits for the upcoming year. 

Associated file (a video, audio, or image file):

Informant’s Comments:

  • Not something his family did often but still remembers it being fun.

Collector’s Comments:

  • I found this ritual to be a uniquely fun and simple way of driving out evil spirts: by simply throwing them at them until they leave.

Collector’s Name: Quinn Calhoun

Tags/Keywords:

  • Ritual
  • Holiday
  • Japan
  • Oni
  • Setsubun

Hockey Tournament

General Information About Item:

  • Material Lore, Hockey
  • Customary Lore, Family tradition
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: United States
  • Informant: A.M.
  • Date Collected: 11-10-2021

Informant Data:

  • A.M. is a senior at Middlebury College located in Middlebury, Vermont. He was one brother and a mom, and has a large extended family all of whom live in the area surrounding him. He was born in Sherborn Massachusetts, and has lived there his whole life. He grew up in a Catholic family and noted that Christmas is his favorite holiday of the year.

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: The cultural context of A.M’s family hockey tournament relates back to his family’s heritage in Canada. His grandparents Immigrated from Canada in the 1940s to start a family in the Boston area. Hockey is the national sport of Canada in the winter so it makes sense as to why the Marinello family honors this tradition every year.
  • Social Context: This tournament is a means for his family to gather as they don’t see each other nearly as much as they used to. Now that A.M. and his brother are in college, this tournament is one of the few times each year that they come together as an extended family.

Item:

  • Every year, A.M’s family gathers at a local pond to play Hockey. Initially it started as a family tradition where his brother and he would go practice for their upcoming tournaments, but ever since it has been a way for their extended family to come together and catch up. Hockey is something which has always been a common denominator between his family- all of his cousins grew up playing from a young age and get competitive about it.

Transcript:

  • “You know how much my family loves hockey. While we go to church the day of Christmas, the hockey tournament which my family hosts is the centerpiece to our Christmas spirit. To me, Christmas is about coming together with your loved ones and spending time with them. While there are many settings in which this can be accomplished, something which connects my family with our heritage is the game of hockey. It’s something which I look forward to every year and am devastated when we can’t play. When the weather is too warm for the ice to melt on the local pond, we try our best to recreate this environment but it truly doesn’t compare. Everyone wears some sort of Christmas attire- last year I dressed as Santa and Michael(his brother) dressed as an elf. I guess in this way we relate it back to the westernization of Christmas, but this tradition doesn’t revolve around the religious aspects of Christmas much.”

Informant’s Comments:

  • “As much as my family is Catholic- and we do practice our religion on a regular basis. I don’t think that people can come around to Catholicism during the holiday season and claim to be truly dedicated to Catholicism. So I’d say we don’t focus much more on our religion during the holiday season any more than we would in June. The hockey tournament is more about family than religion.

Collector’s Comments:

  • A.M. had interesting insight into the Christmas season. He explained that what makes the Christmas season special is not the gift giving or the hanging of the ornaments on the Christmas tree. It’s the traditions and folklore like his family hockey tournament which are specific to his family that make it special. It’s because they take ownership over the holiday that makes it truly special.

Collected By:

Daniel Hincks

Boston, MA

Hanover, NH

Dartmouth College

RUSS013

Fall 2021

Pa Then Fire Festival (Quinn Calhoun)

Title: Pa Than Fire Festival

General Information about Item:

  • Material Lore, food recipe
  • Language: Viet
  • Country of Origin: Vietnam
  • Informant: VN
  • Date Collected: 11-12-21

Informant Data:

  • VN was born in 2002, in Ho Chi Minh city, where she grew up in an ethnically Kinh household. Her mother has lived in the city for many generations, but her father grew up in the countryside before moving into the city, where more cultural traditions are observed. Her wider family lives throughout Vietnam, but her closest relatives all live in the city. VN learned about most of her cultural traditions from her grandparents. 

Contextual Data:

  • Cultural Context: VN credits some of the rituals with a wider Vietnamese cultural belief in a spirit world which either protects or harms them, particularly, as VN argues, in the aftermath for the generation who lived through the Vietnam war. Pa Then, a remarkably small minority group in Vietnam, believes that the Universe was created by a benevolent goddess Quo Vo and an evil goddess Me Quo O, who are both associated with many good and evil spirits. 
  • Social Context: QC first learned of the practice from VN when discussing cultural traditions we had learned at school and from our families. VN first learned about the practice in school, when she, as a member of the majority Kinh ethnic group, was taught about the cultural practices of minority traditions: in this case, Pa Then. VN later learned more about the practice when she was present at one such event in the center of Vietnam when she was visiting relatives in the region. The ritual is regular, performed by Pa Then, typically at the end of the harvest season to both enrich the practitioners and protect them from spirits.

Item:

  • Held every year at the end of harvest season on the Lunar Calendar (Oct. 16), first offerings are prepared for the heavens, which include a rooster, a bowl of rice, incense, a bottle of traditional wine, and ghost money (fake money to be burned). Then a shaman lights candles and incense and the women of the ethnic group play music, which is meant to call the spirits of the heavens down, who are thought to induce the dancers into a trance. The dancers then run through a large bonfire. This entire ritual pleases the heavenly spirits who follow the good goddess Quo Vo, who, in turn, protects the village and its residents from evil spirits who follow Me Quo O, the underworld goddess. 

Associated file (a video, audio, or image file):

Informant’s Comments:

  • Interest use of fire to entice good, rather than to directly fight away evil.

Collector’s Name: Quinn Calhoun

Tags/Keywords:

  • Ritual
  • Vietnam
  • Fire
  • Festival
  • Pa Then