Rites of Passage

Van Gennep suggests that one's life is a series of stages with similar ends and beginnings. These include birth, social puberty, marriage, fatherhood, advancement to a higher class, occupational specialization, and death (Van Gennep 1960, 3). Each of these stages is marked by a ceremony. The funeral ceremony is a is a rite of transition and of incorporation. There is transition from one stage (life) to the next stage (death). The deceased is then incorporated into the world of the dead.

For survivors, the rites are of separation. These rites include a transitional period during which mourning happens. They are then reintegrated into the larger society as the mourning is lifted. During this transitional period most social life is suspended. The length of mourning time relates to one's closeness to the deceased. This can mean an entire society if the deceased person was of high social standing such as a chief or president. In these rites there are physical procedures of separation. The dead is placed in a coffin then in a grave then into a cemetery. This effectively places them into a separate world from the living.

There are also rites of incorporation for sacred societies. The deceased move on to another state of being or another world such as heaven for Christians or Hades for Egyptians. Funeral rites vary depending on this world. The deceased take a voyage into this other world and many funeral rites are meant to equip them with the necessary material objects to assure them a safe journey and favorable reception. This is important as the dead must become incorporated into the society established in this other world.