Initiation: Encyclopedia - Initiation

Initiation

Coming from the Latin, initiation implies a beginning. The related verb, initiate, means to begin or start a particular action, event, circumstance, or happening.

An initiation is also a ceremony by which a person is introduced into a society, or other organized body, especially the rite of admission into a secret society or order.

Normally an initiation rite would imply a shepherding process where those who are at a higher level guide the initiate through a process of greater exposure of knowledge. This may include the revelation of secrets, usually reserved for those at the higher level of understanding.

In the context of ritual magic and esotericism, an initiation is considered to cause a fundamental process of change to begin within the person being initiated. The person conducting the initiation (the initiator), being in posession of a certain power or state of being, transfers this power or state to the person being initiated. Thus the concept of initiation is similar to that of apostolic succession. The initiation process is often likened to a simultaneous death and rebirth, because as well as being a beginning it also implies an ending as existence on one level drops away in an ascension to the next.

Initiation is a key component of Sant Mat, Surat Shabd Yoga and similar religious gnosis traditions. It denotes acceptance by the Guru and also implies that the Chela (student or disciple) agrees to the requirements (such as living an ethical lifestyle, meditating, etc.)

See also

• Rite of passage
• Hazing
• Baptism

Categories: Cultural anthropology | Ceremonies | Shabd paths

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Initiation", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki