Classification of Rituals: The Feminist Cat Lovers

Classification of Rituals

The institution of government has a Battle Ritual which can be seen as a therapy ritual. This is when they pray to the Moon Goddess before the young Lobas go into battle for the title of Izel. The process of praying and giving thanks to the Moon Goddess is therapeutic for the Loba community because it helps the society come to peace with the battle that is about to happen. If any of the young Lobas get hurt in the battle for leadership then her family will make a soup with healing ingredients to deal with the injuries and hope for her recovery.

The institution of  family has the Extrar Sangre Ritual which can be seen as a technological ritual. The reason for this is because the Lobas use a clovis point with significant meaning to the community in order to cut the Loba child’s palm. The clovis point has been passed down from each Loba generation and contains powers from the very first Loba Tribe. This is how the human-born child of a Loba is able to turn into a Loba herself. The blood that leaves the palm of the young Loba becomes sacred and is tossed into a fire. The way the fire is constructed has to follow set rules so the ritual can be completed.

The institution of community has the Ritual of Complete Transformation which has rites that can be seen as protective rituals. The Lobas pray to the Moon Goddess once again but this time it is for the protection of the Lobas that will make their way into the city to hunt their prey. The hunt for a male heart becomes very competitive between the Lobas. Even though they are a community, once they turn into animals they fight for food like animals. The prayers for protection are for a safe journey but also to protect them from each other and the world of the humans.

The institution of religion has the Ritual of Seclusion and Isolation and this contains the ideological ritual. When the eighteen year old Loba girls seclude themselves in the countryside, it is because it is showing all the morals of the Loba community. These morals include not being able to fall in love, not befriending anyone outside the Loba Tribe, and ideas of independence and loyalty. The rites of intensification include the continuity of this ritual done by every Loba generation. This ritual also enhances social unity because all Lobas must go through the ritual in order to be a part of the community; therefore, it brings the Loba Tribe closer together. Lastly, the Ritual of Seclusion and Isolation renews sentiments on cohesion because after these Loba girls come out of this stage of liminality and rejoin the community there is a sense of being a part of something greater than the self.

Fieldwork

We are a culture of female cryptids known as the Lobas-- beautiful, alluring women by day and sinister, demon wolves by moonlight. We emigrated from Latin American countries all over the world during the 1920s and disguised ourselves as human immigrants. Most all Lobas have the same features; long, mars black hair, full and soft lips, skin as golden as the sun.

We live among, yet isolated from, humans in a world of our own. As industrialization grew and cities became bigger, we had to move our families from the dark forests we once called home into large, metropolitan areas across the globe. In cities such as New York, we reside in underground caves below the subways, dance clubs, or skyscrapers. One system that keeps cohesion amongst the Loba tribe is our leader, Izel, and is symbolized as a big square above smaller black squares. Izel dictates all the rules we must follow and in turn she offers us wisdom and protection. If one does not abide these orders, Izel will have them killed in a mass public execution. The reason for this is because family means everything to the Loba tibe. Family is our most important institution and cannot be compromised for anyone or anything. This is represented in the symbol of a fetus amongst the stars. Our offspring are always born as human children and later become Lobas. Some other Lobas are part of a council whom advise Izel in her decision-making.

Although we do live in the city, our own environment is of a different nature. We sleep most of the day in our caves. It is cold, musky, and can become damp because of the urban sewer systems. We have lived in these caves for so long that stalagmites and stalactites have started to form. The rocks shine with our savage fires. We are a pack of Lobas but we are isolated from the rest of the world in which we live in, humans cannot know about our existence and we must not fall in love. This system is represented by the white lines against a dark background and symbolizes loneliness and depression. Sometimes we do go out during the day but only to entice a human male in order for our race to survive. We have the power to steal any man away from their mates. This is how an all-female tribe procreates. Once the stars come up we lure the pathetic chosen male into bed then kill him by ripping his flesh apart and eat his heart. After the heart has been consumed we turn into our true Loba beings and run a rampage throughout the city in dark corners and alleyways. This is how we gain strength and food for survival. We go from sexy seductress to bloodthirsty beast each day and this transformation is an institution that is represented by a two-toned orb that glows with energy. The yellow represents our lives during the day, which is similar to a human’s life. The red represents the blood that is shed at night. The orange is a reminder to us that we are both these things, beautiful and beastly.

Symbol of our Alpha-Female, Izel

Loba Pack Family Symbol

Isolation and Loneliness Symbol that represents our Lifestyle

Symbol of the Dichotomy of The Lobas 

Symbol Theory

This symbol of authoritarian dictatorship ran by Izel is an example of condensation in Turner’s 3 properties of dominant symbols. To the Loba tribe, this symbol represents many things. It means protection from the outside word and wisdom to live our life of secrecy. This is the basis of our social status and cohesion. Izel is the adopted name of the Loba matriarch and means “leader of the Lobas” in the ancient Loba language. Children who are born on a solar eclipse on the hundredth year are born with the possibility of becoming the new Loba leader. Once they reach the age of 16, these children go into a fight-to-the-death battle to become leader. The last one standing will become Izel. Izel is treated like a princess once she gains her rein but she is also a warrior and will go into battle if there is a threat to the Loba society. Lobas never die of natural causes, it is always another Loba that will kill her. Most Lobas do not want to risk trying to overthrow Izel but sometimes it does happen. If Izel is killed, the new Loba leader will be crowned. This is why Izel resembles strength and wisdom. She had to train herself to become leader and she also needs to fight other Lobas who are trying to rule the tribe.

Unification of disparate significata is demonstrated in the symbol for family. The fetus in space symbolizes the virtue of family and closeness within the Loba community. It also symbolizes the fact that each Loba is born a human at first. The children become Lobas after a ritual called Extraer Sangre, which means to “draw blood” in Spanish. The Lobas cut the children with a special clovis point then pour the extracted blood into a fire. If the children can have a serious and somber demeanor then they become Lobas. This symbol for family also brings to mind the idea of childbirth. Childbirth is a very celebrated occasion in Loba tradition because it makes our Loba pack stronger by adding a new edition to our family. A Loba pack is just another word for family but it also refers to when we hunt for men. The meaning of the moon in our world is also thought up when we see the family symbol. Since we get our food at night when the moon is out we think about how it helps our family survive. 

The third and final property of Turner’s 3 properties of a dominant symbol is Polarization of Meaning and is seen in our symbol for the complexity and dichotomy of our lifestyle. The first element to this property is the sensory pole and this could be demonstrated in the actual physical transformation Lobas undergo. From seductress to Loba, the physical transformation brings feelings of strength and power. It also brings emotions of closeness to our community and ancestors. The physical transformation awakens physiological feelings. The other part to this property is the ideological pole which can be seen in the moral standing of not falling in love with a human male. If this occurs the whole social order with be compromised. Our lifestyle symbol reminds us that we have to be silent about our life and we cannot interact with outsiders. Another ideological standpoint shown in this symbol is that the Loba community needs to follow our leader, Izel. She exemplifies our lifestyle symbol the most because she authorizes the ideals of our community. 

Ritual Process

Government

In the Loba society we have the Battle Ritual which is closely associated with our institution of government. In this ritual we have several rites; one of which starts at the beginning of a child’s life. When a baby turns one year old, the elders go to each mother to see if her baby was born on a solar eclipse on a hundredth year. If the baby is one of the few born with these circumstances the elder assigns a mentor to the child. The mentor will then train the child until the age of sixteen. This is the age at which the battle for leader occurs. Before these young children go into battle, they individually pray to the Moon Goddess for strength and also give thanks for passing in front of the Sun God at the time of their birth. Whomever wins this battle receives the title of Izel, leader of all Lobas and continues the tradition of an authoritarian government. We do this Battle Ritual to make sure our next leader is strong and young in order to rule for a longer period of time. What this ritual ensures is that if we go into battle with humans or anything else, we are ready and win because our leader is the best warrior princess possible.

Family

A ritual closely related to the institution of family is the Extrar Sangre ritual; this means to “draw blood” in Spanish. Since all the Lobas’ children are born as human children, this is the ritual where they become Lobas. One rite that this ritual entails is when the children turn thirteen years old they go through a ceremony that marks their transition from human to Loba. This ceremony is done within individual family dwellings. During the transition ceremony the children’s palm gets cut by the mother with a sacred clovis point. The blood of the child then gets sprinkled into a fire and a spell is recited by the rest of the child’s family. This spell is what actually turns the child into a Loba but the most important aspect to this ritual is that the child remains calm, serious, and does not show any pain. The reason why the Lobas do this is to mark not only the transformation from human to Loba but also to mark the young girls movement into womanhood. All the children of Lobas are born as girls and they must be raised into powerful women. What this ritual accomplishes is that it brings the family unit closer and it makes the Loba community stronger.

Community

The biggest ritual associated with the Loba Tribe is part of the institution of community. It is the Ritual of Complete Transformation. This is the most crucial ritual of our existence; it includes how we get our food and how we procreate. The Ritual of Complete Transformation is the title for when we turn into Lobas after consuming the human male heart. The heart feeds us and we procreate through this ritual. The Loba women who have yet to give birth get the first chance to hunt in the city. However, before this occurs all the Loba women who are going to feed that night must gather out of their caves underneath the stars in the city. They pray to the Moon Goddess for a safe journey and protection from the outside world. After this, the childless women scavenge for their victim. The rest of the Lobas follow after the transformation happens to get a meal for themselves. The reason this ritual is performed is because it is needed for the survival of our Loba Tribe and it helps us reflect on ourselves and the constant struggle between worlds. What this ritual accomplishes is that it reminds us that community is one of the most important structures for us. Not only does it involve family but our complete survival and existence depend on this ritual as well.

Religion

The institution of religion is closely related to the ritual of Seclusion and Isolation. Once the Loba girls turn eighteen years old they undergo a grueling ritual which consists of isolating themselves from everyone, including their families. The rites include making a pilgrimage to a secret spot out in a countryside and staying in a wooden shack for seven days alone. Each eighteen year old girl goes alone, not as a group; therefore, they are truly by themselves. What happens during this ritual is that the girl stays in this lone room without food but she is allowed to roam at night. She has the opportunity to hunt and get her own food if she is wise enough. The young Loba cannot hunt human men before this ritual, she must only hunt animals. Since the countryside has a very little amount of humans residing there, the Loba community worries about becoming known to humans that is why the young Lobas must hunt only animals. If they do not follow this rule they will be exiled to an alternative coutryside to continue their ritual for an extended amount of time. The reason we do this ritual is because the young Lobas need to learn that as much as we are a community, we are still isolated from the world (of the humans) we live with. This makes Lobas realize how they must be independent. Independent from humans and independent in case they should ever be left without a family which does happen on occasion during times of battle.

Rite of Passage

One rite of passage that is predominant within the Loba Tribe is the movement between common Loba to elder Loba. After the previously mentioned rituals occur there is one more ritual that is held only for those who believe they can help lead the tribe. Elder Lobas are very wise and can mentor young Lobas, especially those looking to one day become Izel, the Loba leader. The very first step of this rite of passage is separation and is marked by an oral test. Elders cannot fight any longer but they can contribute their wisdom to the Loba society. The test does not have mathematical or scientific questions but those who wish to become an Elder Loba must answer questions about life and growing up; questions that will truly help younger Lobas. These participants answer questions that Izel asks and she looks over them for several days. These days are considered the liminal part of this rite of passage. These participants gather and have great meals together while they wait until the day Izel announces the new Elders. They are sworn to secrecy not to discuss their answers or the questions they were asked by Izel but they have friendly dinners and conversations about their families. The end of the liminal phase is marked by an enormous dinner celebration. The hearts of several pure men are brought to the dinner and are considered gifts from Izel. When the feast starts coming to an end, Izel announces her new council of Elders and are reincorporated into the Loba society as the wisest of our community.