Many

cultures Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

practice or have practiced initiation rites, including the

ancient Greeks Ancient Greece () was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity (), that comprised a loose collection of culturally and linguistically re ...

, the Hebraic/

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

, the

Babylonia Babylonia (; , ) was an Ancient history, ancient Akkadian language, Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in the city of Babylon in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq and parts of Kuwait, Syria and Iran). It emerged as a ...

n, the Mayan, and the Norse cultures. The modern Japanese practice of Miyamairi is such a ceremony. In some, such evidence may be

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

and descriptive in nature, rather than a modern practice.

Brahma Kumarism

Brahma Kumaris The Brahma Kumaris ( ("Daughters of Brahma")) is a spiritual movement that originated in Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan during the 1930s.

Buddhism

Christianity

Gnostic Catholicism and Thelema

The

Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica (E.G.C.), or the Gnostic Catholic Church, is a Gnostic church organization. It is the ecclesiastical arm of Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.), an international fraternal initiatory organization devoted to promulgating the ...

, or Gnostic Catholic Church (the ecclesiastical arm of

Ordo Templi Orientis Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.; ) is an occult secret society and hermetic magical organization founded at the beginning of the 20th century. The origins of O.T.O. can be traced back to the German-speaking occultists Carl Kellner, Theodor Reuss, ...

), offers its Rite of Baptism to any person at least 11 years old. The ceremony is performed before a Gnostic Mass and represents a symbolic birth into the Thelemic community.

Hinduism

Akshara abyasam is a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

education initiation ceremony commonly held for children in

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

and

Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...

. While the ritual has a religious significance, it does not involve initiation into the faith, but rather the start of schooling.

Islam

Belief in the monotheism of God in Islam is sufficient for entering into the fold of faith and does not require a ritual form of baptism. This can be seen in the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

in the verse: " nd say, “Ours isthe religion of Allah; And who is better than Allah in rdainingreligion? And we are worshipers of Him.”

Judaism

Conversion to Judaism requires full immersion in a

Mikveh A mikveh or mikvah (, ''mikva'ot'', ''mikvot'', or (Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazic) ''mikves'', lit., "a collection") is a bath used for ritual washing in Judaism#Full-body immersion, ritual immersion in Judaism to achieve Tumah and taharah, ...

, a ritual purification bath connected to a natural spring, well of naturally occurring water or a cistern filled by the rain. According to

Orthodox Judaism Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Torah, Written and Oral Torah, Oral, as literally revelation, revealed by God in Ju ...

, immersion of a convert requires three religiously observant male witnesses, preferably

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

s. Potential converts must accept the laws and beliefs in Judaism in front of three witnesses; males must undergo

circumcision Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. T ...

before the ritual immersion.

Mandaeism

Mandaeism Mandaeism (Mandaic language, Classical Mandaic: ),https://qadaha.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/nhura-dictionary-mandaic-english-mandaic.pdf sometimes also known as Nasoraeanism or Sabianism, is a Gnosticism, Gnostic, Monotheism, ...

, priest initiation rites are complex and lengthy. For example, initiating a ''

tarmida A tarmida (singular form in , plural form in ; ; ) is a junior Mandaean priest, priest in Mandaeism. Ganzibras, or head priests, rank above tarmidas.Drower, E. S. 1960. ''The Secret Adam: A Study of Nasoraean Gnosis''. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ...

'' (junior priest) takes 68 days.

Mystery religions

In the

Greco-Roman world The Greco-Roman world , also Greco-Roman civilization, Greco-Roman culture or Greco-Latin culture (spelled Græco-Roman or Graeco-Roman in British English), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and co ...

, the

mystery religion Mystery religions, mystery cults, sacred mysteries or simply mysteries (), were religious schools of the Greco-Roman world for which participation was reserved to initiates ''(mystai)''. The main characteristic of these religious schools was th ...

s were those that required initiation, as distinguished from public rites that were open to all; the Greek word for "mystery", ''mysterion'', comes from ''mystēs'', "initiate." (The contemporary English meaning of "something unknown or hard to know" developed from the secrecy surrounding the arcane knowledge promised by these religions.) The most famous of the ancient mysteries, and the most important in

Classical Greece Classical Greece was a period of around 200 years (the 5th and 4th centuries BC) in ancient Greece,The "Classical Age" is "the modern designation of the period from about 500 B.C. to the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C." ( Thomas R. Mar ...

, were the

Eleusinian Mysteries The Eleusinian Mysteries () were initiations held every year for the Cult (religious practice), cult of Demeter and Persephone based at the Panhellenic Sanctuary of Eleusis in ancient Greece. They are considered the "most famous of the secret rel ...

. The mysteries known as

Orphic Orphism is the name given to a set of religious beliefs and practices originating in the ancient Greek and Hellenistic world, associated with literature ascribed to the mythical poet Orpheus, who descended into the Greek underworld and returned ...

, Dionysian or Bacchic pertained to the god

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; ) is the god of wine-making, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, festivity, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, and theatre. He was also known as Bacchus ( or ; ...

and his "prophet"

Orpheus In Greek mythology, Orpheus (; , classical pronunciation: ) was a Thracians, Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet. He was also a renowned Ancient Greek poetry, poet and, according to legend, travelled with Jason and the Argonauts in se ...

. In the

Hellenistic period In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

under Roman rule, the

mysteries of Isis The mysteries of Isis were religious initiation rites performed in the cult of the Egyptian goddess Isis in the Greco-Roman world. They were modeled on other mystery rites, particularly the Eleusinian mysteries in honor of the Greek goddesses D ...

Mithras Mithraism, also known as the Mithraic mysteries or the Cult of Mithras, was a Roman Empire, Roman mystery religion focused on the god Mithras. Although inspired by Iranian peoples, Iranian worship of the Zoroastrian divinity (''yazata'') Mit ...

, and

Cybele Cybele ( ; Phrygian: ''Matar Kubileya, Kubeleya'' "Kubeleya Mother", perhaps "Mountain Mother"; Lydian: ''Kuvava''; ''Kybélē'', ''Kybēbē'', ''Kybelis'') is an Anatolian mother goddess; she may have a possible forerunner in the earliest ...

were disseminated around the Mediterranean and as far north as

Roman Britain Roman Britain was the territory that became the Roman province of ''Britannia'' after the Roman conquest of Britain, consisting of a large part of the island of Great Britain. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. Julius Caes ...

Apuleius Apuleius ( ), also called Lucius Apuleius Madaurensis (c. 124 – after 170), was a Numidians, Numidian Latin-language prose writer, Platonist philosopher and rhetorician. He was born in the Roman Empire, Roman Numidia (Roman province), province ...

, a 2nd-century

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

writer, described an initiation into the mysteries of

Isis Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...

. The initiation was preceded by a normal bathing in the public baths and a ceremonial sprinkling by the priest, after which the candidate was given secret instructions in the temple of Isis. The candidate then fasted for ten days from meat and wine, after which he was dressed in linen and led at night into the innermost part of the sanctuary, where the actual initiation, the details of which were secret, took place. On the next two days, dressed in the robes of his consecration, he participated in feasting. Apuleius describes also an initiation into the cult of

Osiris Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wikt:wsjr, wsjr'') was the ancient Egyptian deities, god of fertility, agriculture, the Ancient Egyptian religion#Afterlife, afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He was ...

and yet a third initiation, all of the same pattern. The water-less initiations of Lucius, the character in Apuleius's story who had been turned into an ass and changed back by Isis into human form, into the successive degrees of the rites of the goddess was accomplished only after a significant period of study to demonstrate his loyalty and trustworthiness, akin to

catechumen Catechesis (; from Greek: , "instruction by word of mouth", generally "instruction") is basic Christian religious education of children and adults, often from a catechism book. It started as education of converts to Christianity, but as the ...

al practices preceding baptism in Christianity. In the modern version of the

Roman religion Religion in ancient Rome consisted of varying imperial and provincial religious practices, which were followed both by the people of Rome as well as those who were brought under its rule. The Romans thought of themselves as highly religious, ...

, some of the communities use a form of the rite of Aries described in the book ''Introduction to Magic'', by

Julius Evola Giulio Cesare Andrea "Julius" Evola (; 19 May 1898 – 11 June 1974) was an Italian far-right philosopher and writer. Evola regarded his values as Traditionalist conservatism, traditionalist, Aristocracy, aristocratic, War, martial and Empire, im ...

. This rite is also used by the Brotherhood of Myriam albeit with some minor differences. The rite symbolises the rebirth of the soul in spring in accordance with the cosmic and natural rhythms and corresponds to the Christian easter, which is claimed to be a derivate of the rite of Aries. In the book ''Pietas: An Introduction to Roman Traditionalism'' The author makes the claim that the Rite of Aries, corresponds to the ancient ''Minvervalia'' where the young Romans would go through their initiation and be introduced to the public cult.

Sikhism

The

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

initiation ceremony dates from 1699 when the religion's tenth leader (

Guru Gobind Singh Guru Gobind Singh (; born Gobind Das; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708) was the tenth and last human Sikh gurus, Sikh Guru. He was a warrior, poet, and philosopher. In 1675, at the age of nine he was formally installed as the leader of the ...

) initiated five followers and then was himself initiated by his followers. The Sikh baptism ceremony is called ''

Amrit Sanchar Amrit Sanskar (, pronunciation: , lit. "nectar ceremony") is one of the four Sikh Sanskaars. The Amrit Sanskar is the initiation rite introduced by Guru Gobind Singh when he founded the Khalsa in 1699. A Sikh who has been initiated into the ...

'' or ''

Khande di Pahul Amrit Sanskar (, pronunciation: , lit. "nectar ceremony") is one of the four Sikh Sanskaars. The Amrit Sanskar is the initiation rite introduced by Guru Gobind Singh when he founded the Khalsa in 1699. A Sikh who has been initiated into the ...

''. The initiated Sikh is also called an '' Amritdhari'', literally meaning "Amrit Taker" or one who has "Taken on Amrit". ''Khande Di Pahul'' was initiated in the times of Guru Gobind Singh when

Khalsa The term ''Khalsa'' refers to both a community that follows Sikhism as its religion,Khalsa: Sikhism< ...

was inaugurated at Sri

Anandpur Sahib Anandpur Sahib, also referred simply as Anandpur (), is a city in Rupnagar district (Ropar), on the edge of Shivalik Hills, in the Indian state of Punjab. Located near the Sutlej River, the city is one of the most sacred religious places in Si ...

on the day of Baisakhi in 1699. Guru Gobind Singh asked a gathering of Sikhs who was prepared to die for God. At first, the people hesitated, and then one man stepped forward, and he was taken to a tent. After some time, Guru Gobind Singh came out of the tent, with blood dripping from his sword. He asked the same question again. After the next four volunteers were in the tent, he reappeared with the four, who were now all dressed like him. These five men came to be known as ''

Panj Pyare Panj Pyare (, ', the five beloved ones) refers to a gathered ad hoc quintet of five baptised (''Amritdhari'') Khalsa Sikhs who act as institutionalized leaders for the wider Sikh community. Function The Panj Pyare are convened for pressing ma ...

s'' or the "Beloved Five". These five were initiated into the

Khalsa The term ''Khalsa'' refers to both a community that follows Sikhism as its religion,Khalsa: Sikhism< ...

by receiving Amrit. These five were

Bhai Daya Singh Daya Singh ( ; born Daya Ram; 1661–1708) was one of the Panj Pyare, the first five Sikhs to be initiated into the Khalsa order in 17th-century India. Among the inaugural panj piare quintet, he is traditionally the highest-regarded as he was th ...

Bhai Mukham Singh Mohkam Singh ( ; 6 June 1663 – 7 December 1704 or 1705), born Mohkam Chand (his given name is also transliterated as Muhkam or Mohkhum), was one of the inaugural group of Panj Pyare, or the first ''Five Beloved'' of honoured memory in the Sik ...

Bhai Sahib Singh Sahib Singh ( ; 17 June 1663 – 7 December 1704 or 1705) was one of the Panj Pyare (or the Five beloved ones). He was formerly known as Sahib Chand and was born into the Nai (caste), Nai caste (also transliterated as Naee) before being baptize ...

, Bhai Dharam Singh and Bhai Himmat Singh. Sikh men were then given the name "''

Singh Singh ( IPA: ) is a title, middle name, or surname that means "lion" in various South Asian and Southeast Asian communities. Traditionally used by the Hindu Kshatriya community, it was later mandated in the late 17th century by Guru Gobind Si ...

''", meaning "

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

", and the women received the last name "''

Kaur Kaur ( urmukhi/ hahmukhi ), sometimes spelled as Kour, is a surname or a part of a personal name primarily used by the Sikhism, Sikh and some Hindu women of the Punjab region. It is also sometimes translated as 'lioness', not because ...

''", meaning "princess". Filling an iron bowl with clean water, he kept stirring it with a two-edged sword (called a

Khanda Khanda may refer to: Places * Khanda, Sonipat, a large historical village in Sonipat district of Haryana, India * Khanda, Jind, a village in Jind district of Haryana, India * Khanda Kheri, a village in Hansi Tehsil of Hisar district of Haryana, ...

) while reciting over it five of the sacred texts or banis— Japji,

Jaap Sahib Jaap Sahib (or Japu Sahib; , pronunciation: ) is the morning prayer of the Sikhs. The beaded prayers were composed by the Tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh and is found at the start of the Sikh scripture Dasam Granth. This Bani is an impor ...

, Savaiyye, Chaupai and

Anand Sahib Anand Sahib (Gurmukhi: ਅਨੰਦ ਸਾਹਿਬ ''anada sāhiba'') is a collection of hymns in Sikhism, written in the Ramkali Raag by Guru Amar Das, the third Guru of the Sikhs. It appears on pages 917 to 922 in Guru Granth Sahib Ji. The w ...

. The Guru’s wife, Mata Jito (also known as Mata Sahib Kaur), poured sugar crystals into the vessel, mingling sweetness with the alchemy of iron. The five Sikhs sat on the ground around the bowl reverently as the holy water was being churned to the recitation of the sacred verses. With the recitation of the five banis completed, ''khande di pahul'' or ''amrit'', the Nectar of Immortality, was ready for administration.

gave the five Sikhs five palmsful each to drink.

Wicca

Wicca Wicca (), also known as "The Craft", is a Modern paganism, modern pagan, syncretic, Earth religion, Earth-centred religion. Considered a new religious movement by Religious studies, scholars of religion, the path evolved from Western esote ...

, an infant is held up to the God and Goddess by the mother and then sprinkled with water or passed over a small fire. This is called Wiccaning.

References

{{Reflist, 30em Rites of passage Religious practices Initiation