This document discusses the relationship between myth and ritual through three case studies: 1) The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, a satirical religion that critiques traditional faiths. It has developed rituals like wearing colanders on heads and celebrating pirates. 2) The Om Banna shrine in India, where traditional Hindu rituals are performed to honor a motorcycle accident victim. 3) Zoroastrian death rituals, which involve leaving bodies for carrion birds to decompose rather than burying or cremating due to beliefs about purity. Scholars debate whether myth or ritual comes first in the development of religious traditions.

1. Myth and Its’ Connection to Ritual
Scholars who study the connection between myth and ritual are
called myth-ritualists
They debate, study, and try to determine which comes first:
myth or ritual
Some argue that myth comes first, and that we create ritual to
re-enact the myths
Others argue that we create ritual and then try to explain it by
connecting it to myth
Some people argue that they unfold simultaneously
Pictured top right: the Last Supper with Jesus; bottom right:
Holy Communion ritual—the myth of Jesus breaking bread and
the ritual reflecting that moment in the Roman Catholic
tradition
By Giacomo Raffaelli - scanned from: Leonardo da Vinci,
Artysta i dzieło, red.: D. Dzierżanowska, wyd. Arkady,
Warszawa 2005, ISBN 83-213-4419-4, Public Domain,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2372260
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Communion
Case Studies: Myths and their connection to Rituals
This slide show presents three case studies of how myths relate
to rituals (though we never can be certain which came first,
myth or ritual)
The first is a satirical example of the Church of the Flying
Spaghetti Monster. Though it is not taken seriously by most

2. people, the fact that it is growing in number speaks to how we
must treat it as a potentially valid religion
The second is the Om Banna (Bullet Banna) Shrine. It is a
contemporary shrine in India that appears to model very
traditional rituals
The third is Zoroastrian death rituals. I would categorize this as
an ancient example of both myth and ritual, as the religion and
its death rituals are thousands of years old.
Case Study 1: Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster
- founded in 2005 by Bobby Henderson in the United States
- orange on map shows where it is recognized as a religion
(though it is still contested in the U.S.); dark yellow indicates a
region with at least one church; light yellow indicates at least
one mission
By Conquistador, CC BY-SA 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37021381
The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is also referred to
as Pastafarianism
Bobby Henderson inadvertently created the tradition when he
entered into local debates about teaching intelligent design in

3. Kansas schools
He argued that a creation story involving a flying spaghetti
monster was just as legitimate as a creation story based on the
Christian god. He was in fact trying to prove that neither
should be included in school curriculum (he was an atheist)
Due to the Flying Spaghetti Monster’s (FSM) increasing
popularity, Henderson wrote a corresponding creation myth as
well as book of rules for people to live by
Ultimately, we do not know how many members exist due to the
church’s general lack of organization
By Omidmottaghi - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12776072
Please watch this video of the FSM creation myth:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZ7SBii4JKA
If it’s humorous does it cease to be a religion?
Having watched the FSM creation myth, there is no doubt that it
is satirical
The same goes for the book of rules, otherwise called, “I’d
Really Rather You Didn’ts”. To see the 8 rules, see this link:
https://flyingspaghettimonster.wikia.org/wiki/The_Eight_I%27d
_Really_Rather_You_Didn%27ts
Though humor is being used here, the critique of traditional
religions being offered really speaks to certain needs of
particular groups of people
This has led to the creation of rituals and serious adherence to
the principles of FSM, though in a light-hearted way

4. Ritual 1: Wearing a colander
The wearing of a colander or pasta strainer is symbolic of the
Flying Spaghetti Monster. In fact, there are many pasta puns
used within this group. Instead of saying, “amen,” for example,
they say “ramen.” But the wearing of the colander is also
rooted in the need and want of religious freedom. If one is truly
allowed to practice any religion they want (particularly in the
United States) then people should in theory be allowed to wear
a colander on their head for government documents (such as a
driver’s license). As a fight for religious freedom, wearing the
colander as a hat challenges Christian assumptions about what it
means to be religious, which is in keeping with the spirit of
Henderson’s initial creation of FSM.
Image: https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-
/b9d56fe8116b72765fd8126ad7d388a5efe840be/c=0-28-1121-
661/local/-
/media/2017/06/01/Phoenix/Phoenix/636319263441071205-
18870134-666496470209327-1386278307-
o.jpg?width=660&height=373&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=we
bp
Ritual 2: Celebration of Pirates
Pirates figure prominently in FSM gatherings (though
practitioners don’t gather often) as they are considered powerful
beings who can stop global warming
People also dress up as pirates to pay homage to these beings
from which humans are said to come from
Graph:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pirate_Global_Warmi
ng_Graph.gif#/media/File:Pirate_Global_Warming_Graph.gif ;

5. Ritual 3: Weddings
Please watch this video of a Pastafarian wedding. I find this
particularly interesting because followers of FSM seem to reject
most traditional religious norms, yet they retain the wedding
ritual (albeit with a twist).
Case Study 2: Om Banna (Bullet Banna) Shrine
This is a contemporary shrine (est. between the late 1980’s and
early 1990’s near Jodhpur, India) that retains traditional Hindu
rituals
The shrine marks the location of a young man killed in a
motorcycle accident
The myth: the motorcycle kept returning to the spot of the
accident after being impounded by police, drained of gas
This “magical” motorcycle indicated that the young man became
a sacred being, watching over the community and protecting
them
Notes on Ritual at the Om Banna Shrine related to the video on
the next slide:
Most home videos about the Om Banna shrine begin with a

6. motorcycle trek; it not only gives a sense of the dangers driving
in India, but it seems to function as a pilgrimage to the site
You will note that hundreds of visitors go there; it is not just
for tourists. Greater numbers of people come every year.
The rituals that people participate in are the same as what
Hindus do at home or in a temple: the motorbike and image of
the young man are adorned in marigolds; food offerings
(prasad) are made; a sacred fire burns constantly; the bell is
rung once the prayers have been made (we’ll discuss traditional
Hindu rituals more during our section dedicated to ritual)
Ritual at the Om Banna Shrine
Please watch this video taken at the shrine. It is not a
professional video and so can at times be difficult to view, but
it is well worth it. It gives a sense of how large this initially
small, roadside shrine has become.
When watching the video, watch for what people are doing, the
items they use, and the type of people that are present.
Questions to consider:
Is the myth of the motorcycle accident a way to adapt
contemporary concerns with traditional ritual?
Does the focus on the motorcycle mean that the rituals at the
shrine are new rather than old?
Why do you think this particular shrine has gained in
popularity? Motorcycle accidents occur all the time, yet there
aren’t shrines at the site of every accident.

7. Case Study 3: Zoroastrian Death Rituals
Zoroastrianism is between 3500-4000 years old, originating in
present-day Iran
Zoroastrians are currently located all over the world, with the
largest population found in India
Pictured top right: image of Ahura Mazda, god of all that is
good
Pictured bottom right: a dakhma (also called the Tower of
Silence) where the dead are left to decompose
This is a 9 min. video to familiarize yourself with
Zoroastrianism. Not all of the information here is relevant to
this presentation, but it’s a nice way to provide some context
about what Zoroastrian is and how they practice it today
Key ideas to note:
Ahura Mazda and asha = all that is benevolent and good
Asha includes plants, water, earth, fire, metal and animals.
These things must be protected from druj
Angra Mainyu and druj = all that is evil and bad
Druj includes death, decay, sickness, suffering, and sorry. The
existence of these things indicates that one is not protecting
asha to the fullest extent

8. Zoroastrian Death Rituals
Because death is druj, a body has the potential to contaminate
asha. This means that burial cannot happen as it pollutes the
earth and cremation cannot happen because it pollutes the fire
Instead, bodies are left in buildings called dakhmas (Towers of
Silence), typically cement structures with no ceilings
Carrion birds (which unlike other animals are considered druj
rather than asha) consume the bodies and help with the
decomposition process
By Unknown author - : Rajputana, Sikkím, the Punjab, and
Kashmir by Shoemaker, Michael Myers, 1853-1924, Public
Domain,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61474114
Zoroastrian Death Rituals
Special priests oversee the carrying of the bodies into the
dakhmas; apart from immediate family at the time of drop off,
no one else is allowed inside
These priests are viewed as being contaminated by druj, but
they do it to help the rest of society
Everyone wears white during the rituals and mourning period
By Bramstercate - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2556545
Dakhmas in Contemporary Times
The dakhma pictured here is located in Mumbai (Bombay),
India. It is still used by the shrinking Zoroastrian population

9. located there but has experienced difficulty in trying to properly
dispose their dead. This is because as the city expands around
them, the habitat of carrion birds has been destroyed. A lack of
carrion birds means that the bodies are not being picked clean
and thus cannot be properly disposed. In countries where the
use of dakhmas are not allowed (for example, the United States
or England), Zoroastrians instead opt for burial sites or crypts
encased in cement. The idea that cement creates a barrier
between death (druj) and the earth (asha) provides at least some
assurances to practitioners that they are doing their best to
protect asha.
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jan/26/death-city-
lack-vultures-threatens-mumbai-towers-of-silence
Myth and the Connection to Ritual: Final Words
Now that you have completed this PowerPoint presentation, go
to the discussion forum on D2L entitled, “Forum for the week of
Mar. 23-27: myth,” and create a thread or engage with others as
part of your course requirements (please see your revised
syllabus for details)
If you have any questions about this presentation or any other
content for this class, please email me at [email protected].
Myth and Its’ Connection to Ritual
Scholars who study the connection between myth and ritual are
called myth-ritualists
They debate, study, and try to determine which comes first:
myth or ritual
Some argue that myth comes first, and that we create ritual to

10. re-enact the myths
Others argue that we create ritual and then try to explain it by
connecting it to myth
Some people argue that they unfold simultaneously
Pictured top right: the Last Supper with Jesus; bottom right:
Holy Communion ritual—the myth of Jesus breaking bread and
the ritual reflecting that moment in the Roman Catholic
tradition
By Giacomo Raffaelli - scanned from: Leonardo da Vinci,
Artysta i dzieło, red.: D. Dzierżanowska, wyd. Arkady,
Warszawa 2005, ISBN 83-213-4419-4, Public Domain,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2372260
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Communion
Case Studies: Myths and their connection to Rituals
This slide show presents three case studies of how myths relate
to rituals (though we never can be certain which came first,
myth or ritual)
The first is a satirical example of the Church of the Flying
Spaghetti Monster. Though it is not taken seriously by most
people, the fact that it is growing in number speaks to how we
must treat it as a potentially valid religion
The second is the Om Banna (Bullet Banna) Shrine. It is a
contemporary shrine in India that appears to model very
traditional rituals
The third is Zoroastrian death rituals. I would categorize this as
an ancient example of both myth and ritual, as the religion and
its death rituals are thousands of years old.

11. Case Study 1: Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster
- founded in 2005 by Bobby Henderson in the United States
- orange on map shows where it is recognized as a religion
(though it is still contested in the U.S.); dark yellow indicates a
region with at least one church; light yellow indicates at least
one mission
By Conquistador, CC BY-SA 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37021381
The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is also referred to
as Pastafarianism
Bobby Henderson inadvertently created the tradition when he
entered into local debates about teaching intelligent design in
Kansas schools
He argued that a creation story involving a flying spaghetti
monster was just as legitimate as a creation story based on the
Christian god. He was in fact trying to prove that neither
should be included in school curriculum (he was an atheist)
Due to the Flying Spaghetti Monster’s (FSM) increasing
popularity, Henderson wrote a corresponding creation myth as
well as book of rules for people to live by
Ultimately, we do not know how many members exist due to the

12. church’s general lack of organization
By Omidmottaghi - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12776072
Please watch this video of the FSM creation myth:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZ7SBii4JKA
If it’s humorous does it cease to be a religion?
Having watched the FSM creation myth, there is no doubt that it
is satirical
The same goes for the book of rules, otherwise called, “I’d
Really Rather You Didn’ts”. To see the 8 rules, see this link:
https://flyingspaghettimonster.wikia.org/wiki/The_Eight_I%27d
_Really_Rather_You_Didn%27ts
Though humor is being used here, the critique of traditional
religions being offered really speaks to certain needs of
particular groups of people
This has led to the creation of rituals and serious adherence to
the principles of FSM, though in a light-hearted way
Ritual 1: Wearing a colander
The wearing of a colander or pasta strainer is symbolic of the
Flying Spaghetti Monster. In fact, there are many pasta puns
used within this group. Instead of saying, “amen,” for example,
they say “ramen.” But the wearing of the colander is also
rooted in the need and want of religious freedom. If one is truly
allowed to practice any religion they want (particularly in the
United States) then people should in theory be allowed to wear
a colander on their head for government documents (such as a

13. driver’s license). As a fight for religious freedom, wearing the
colander as a hat challenges Christian assumptions about what it
means to be religious, which is in keeping with the spirit of
Henderson’s initial creation of FSM.
Image: https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-
/b9d56fe8116b72765fd8126ad7d388a5efe840be/c=0-28-1121-
661/local/-
/media/2017/06/01/Phoenix/Phoenix/636319263441071205-
18870134-666496470209327-1386278307-
o.jpg?width=660&height=373&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=we
bp
Ritual 2: Celebration of Pirates
Pirates figure prominently in FSM gatherings (though
practitioners don’t gather often) as they are considered powerful
beings who can stop global warming
People also dress up as pirates to pay homage to these beings
from which humans are said to come from
Graph:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pirate_Global_Warmi
ng_Graph.gif#/media/File:Pirate_Global_Warming_Graph.gif ;
Ritual 3: Weddings
Please watch this video of a Pastafarian wedding. I find this
particularly interesting because followers of FSM seem to reject
most traditional religious norms, yet they retain the wedding

14. ritual (albeit with a twist).
Case Study 2: Om Banna (Bullet Banna) Shrine
This is a contemporary shrine (est. between the late 1980’s and
early 1990’s near Jodhpur, India) that retains traditional Hindu
rituals
The shrine marks the location of a young man killed in a
motorcycle accident
The myth: the motorcycle kept returning to the spot of the
accident after being impounded by police, drained of gas
This “magical” motorcycle indicated that the young man became
a sacred being, watching over the community and protecting
them
Notes on Ritual at the Om Banna Shrine related to the video on
the next slide:
Most home videos about the Om Banna shrine begin with a
motorcycle trek; it not only gives a sense of the dangers driving
in India, but it seems to function as a pilgrimage to the site
You will note that hundreds of visitors go there; it is not just
for tourists. Greater numbers of people come every year.
The rituals that people participate in are the same as what
Hindus do at home or in a temple: the motorbike and image of
the young man are adorned in marigolds; food offerings
(prasad) are made; a sacred fire burns constantly; the bell is
rung once the prayers have been made (we’ll discuss traditional

15. Hindu rituals more during our section dedicated to ritual)
Ritual at the Om Banna Shrine
Please watch this video taken at the shrine. It is not a
professional video and so can at times be difficult to view, but
it is well worth it. It gives a sense of how large this initially
small, roadside shrine has become.
When watching the video, watch for what people are doing, the
items they use, and the type of people that are present.
Questions to consider:
Is the myth of the motorcycle accident a way to adapt
contemporary concerns with traditional ritual?
Does the focus on the motorcycle mean that the rituals at the
shrine are new rather than old?
Why do you think this particular shrine has gained in
popularity? Motorcycle accidents occur all the time, yet there
aren’t shrines at the site of every accident.
Case Study 3: Zoroastrian Death Rituals
Zoroastrianism is between 3500-4000 years old, originating in
present-day Iran
Zoroastrians are currently located all over the world, with the
largest population found in India

16. Pictured top right: image of Ahura Mazda, god of all that is
good
Pictured bottom right: a dakhma (also called the Tower of
Silence) where the dead are left to decompose
This is a 9 min. video to familiarize yourself with
Zoroastrianism. Not all of the information here is relevant to
this presentation, but it’s a nice way to provide some context
about what Zoroastrian is and how they practice it today
Key ideas to note:
Ahura Mazda and asha = all that is benevolent and good
Asha includes plants, water, earth, fire, metal and animals.
These things must be protected from druj
Angra Mainyu and druj = all that is evil and bad
Druj includes death, decay, sickness, suffering, and sorry. The
existence of these things indicates that one is not protecting
asha to the fullest extent
Zoroastrian Death Rituals
Because death is druj, a body has the potential to contaminate
asha. This means that burial cannot happen as it pollutes the
earth and cremation cannot happen because it pollutes the fire
Instead, bodies are left in buildings called dakhmas (Towers of
Silence), typically cement structures with no ceilings

17. Carrion birds (which unlike other animals are considered druj
rather than asha) consume the bodies and help with the
decomposition process
By Unknown author - : Rajputana, Sikkím, the Punjab, and
Kashmir by Shoemaker, Michael Myers, 1853-1924, Public
Domain,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61474114
Zoroastrian Death Rituals
Special priests oversee the carrying of the bodies into the
dakhmas; apart from immediate family at the time of drop off,
no one else is allowed inside
These priests are viewed as being contaminated by druj, but
they do it to help the rest of society
Everyone wears white during the rituals and mourning period
By Bramstercate - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2556545
Dakhmas in Contemporary Times
The dakhma pictured here is located in Mumbai (Bombay),
India. It is still used by the shrinking Zoroastrian population
located there but has experienced difficulty in trying to properly
dispose their dead. This is because as the city expands around
them, the habitat of carrion birds has been destroyed. A lack of
carrion birds means that the bodies are not being picked clean
and thus cannot be properly disposed. In countries where the
use of dakhmas are not allowed (for example, the United States
or England), Zoroastrians instead opt for burial sites or crypts
encased in cement. The idea that cement creates a barrier
between death (druj) and the earth (asha) provides at least some

18. assurances to practitioners that they are doing their best to
protect asha.
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jan/26/death-city-
lack-vultures-threatens-mumbai-towers-of-silence
Myth and the Connection to Ritual: Final Words
Now that you have completed this PowerPoint presentation, go
to the discussion forum on D2L entitled, “Forum for the week of
Mar. 23-27: myth,” and create a thread or engage with others as
part of your course requirements (please see your revised
syllabus for details)
If you have any questions about this presentation or any other
content for this class, please email me at [email protected].