Ceremonies:
> > But... hang on, I was beginning to think I
> understood
> > this, and I obviously don't. If it uses the Other
> > Side, surely it's some sort of HQ?
>
> In its broadest sense, it is a HQ.
(whimper) I thought we were trying to distinguish ceremonies from heroquests? If one is a subset of the other, then... then my head hurts.
> > Or are you using "ceremony" to mean something
> > different from the norm?
>
> No, I'm using it in the normal magical sense as it
> has been understood as such for centuries.
Well, which? "Normal", or "magical"?
> > To me a ceremony is something
> > like, say, when I had my graduation ceremony
>
> No wonder you are confused. This is your reknown
> materialistic perspective once again.
Oh for goodness sake... not, it is NOT *MY* "materialistic perspective" at all. It's the perspective of the society we live in, that defines the language we're supposedly using to communicate.
And in case you hadn't noticed, on the planet the rest of us are living on, ceremonies generally have no magical component at all, they exist for reasons for tradition and legal requirement. Not magic. "Ceremony" and "ritual" both have normal meanings (the same one, more or less), just like "all" does. In English, those meanings do not include magic, and "all" means 100%, not 85%. If you're using some other language that looks a lot like English but isn't (anything that thinks "normal" and "magical" go together comes under this heading) then you need to say so, every time you use the phrase. Or we'll asssume you're talking English.
> I'd thought everyone understood that the
> magical ceremonies used in
> Glorantha are just that--magical.
You'd been distinguishing them from HeroQuests. HQs are magical, ceremonies are refered to as "mere". I'd assumed Gloranthan ceremonies were more likely than Real World ones to have some magical component, up to the point where we started saying things weren't HQs, just mere ceremonies. And you notice that above, you specifically refer to "magical ceremonies", correctly distinguishing them from normal ones. A magical ceremony is magical, yes, an adjective-free ceremony is not necessarily so.
> Think of a Mass, or a
> healing ceremony or a Sun Dance,
> or a May Day, or a baptism.
Mass - no magical effect I know of, nor any described by the bods around here who do such things (I asked once, they were quite offended by the idea). Baptism - chance to show off new baby and posh frocks, while gathering all relatives together and expecting arguments. Never heard of any effect beyond that expected by any participant, especially the parents. May Day - dance round maypole by little girls in pretty frocks, charge a few quid entry to make money for the village hall. May possibly have meant something once, no-one participating is too sure what.
This is the real world. Ceremonies may possibly take place in what were once holy spots, but more likely not. You want a wedding ceremony, you hire a hotel, not a church. It's cheaper. And this is the world where the language we are using is defined, remember?
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