Nisan comments on Designing Ritual - Less Wrong

25 Post author: Raemon 11 January 2012 01:52AM

You are viewing a comment permalink. View the original post to see all comments and the full post content.

Article Navigation

Comments (75)
Tags: ritual

Comments (75)

You are viewing a single comment's thread.

Comment author: Nisan 12 January 2012 09:20:55PM 2 points [-]

I read the hymnal in an hour and a half. I was crying the whole time.

Comment author: Raemon 13 January 2012 01:17:41AM 0 points [-]

Not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing (depending on the specific motivations, if you were still crying by the end I may not have done my job right)

Comment author: Nisan 13 January 2012 01:43:30AM 0 points [-]

I don't know. My emotional reaction might be different if I were singing it in a group.

Comment author: Raemon 13 January 2012 01:59:32AM 0 points [-]

I guess my main question is: are you okay? (Related question - overall would you have preferred to have read it/not read it?)

I expected it to have less of an impact when read on your own (although slightly more if read aloud). I'd like to know about what range of specific emotions it elicits (and which parts elicited them), if people can describe it.

Comment author: Nisan 13 January 2012 06:23:07AM 1 point [-]

Oh! I am okay. I enjoyed crying. It felt good. It's how I experience hope.

I first teared up at this point:

We can look at the darkness of the world and wallow in despair. We can make up reasons why the darkness isn't so bad. Or we can look at the light, the things that, by our standards, are beautiful and good.

This vision of a precious, fragile humanity crawling towards the light is what I'm calling "hope". It combines the recognition of pain, the recognition of danger, and the recognition of hope. It was especially strong when I sang or read these in my head:

  • God Wrote the World
  • Beyond the Reach of God
  • No One Is Alone
  • The Gift We Give Tomorrow

The darkest moment, when the last candle is extinguished, is especially poignant in my imagination.

At no point did I feel fearful or depressed. I fully enjoyed the lighthearted bits.

Powered by Reddit Powered by Reddit