The word "ceremony" can be heard quite often: when talking about divine services, and when speaking about official solemn events, and when talking about cultural phenomena - for example, when discussing the tea tradition of Japan and China.
Dictionary definition
When understanding what a particular phenomenon is, you should first of all turn to the dictionary. According to him, the word "ceremony" is a borrowing from Latin, which has so strongly influenced all modern European languages. So, dictionaries give two basic meanings:
- A ceremony is a socially or culturally determined sequence of actions that have a symbolic meaning; a combination of several rituals.
- Some actions that a person perceives as a convention and performs under the influence of circumstances, because he cannot make a bad impression on others.
The most famous ceremonies
Among the most famous ceremonies are the following:
The tea ceremony is a unique cultural tradition of the countries of the East: China and Japan. The Chinese tea tradition is more like what we are used to.tea drinking, while Japanese is a complex ritual. There is an expression that describes this ratio: "The Chinese tea ceremony is a lot of tea and few rituals, the Japanese one is a little tea and a lot of rituals."
- The opening ceremony of any monument, building or institution is also a classic example, and cutting the red ribbon has become a kind of symbol of new beginnings.
- The opening ceremony of the Olympic Games is one of the most magnificent and vibrant events in the cultural and sports life of the world. Each such event is a unique performance in which thousands of people are involved, for which weeks and months of rehearsals are spent, during which the action of each person is almost verified by seconds.
The ceremonial part of the culture is a rich reservoir, full of details and features that can be explored indefinitely.
