{"product_id":"9781788161039-ritual","title":"Ritual","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHow Seemingly Senseless Acts Make Life Worth Living\u003cbr\u003eA radical anthropologist takes readers on a journey through the shadow side of human civilisation\u003cbr\u003eA Radio 4 Book of the WeekWINNER OF THE CAROL R. EMBER BOOK PRIZE FOR SCIENTIFIC ANTHROPOLGYSHORTLISTED FOR THE 2023 BRITISH ACADEMY BOOK PRIZE From fire walking to funerals, the hidden science of the rituals that give life meaningRitual is perhaps the oldest, and certainly the most  enigmatic, thread in human culture. Apparently pointless ceremonies pervade every documented  society: from handshakes to hexes, hazings to parades. Before we learned to farm, we were gathering in giant stone temples. And yet,  though rituals exist in every culture and can persist  nearly unchanged for centuries, their logic  has remained a mystery until now. Today, a fearless new generation of anthropologists is venturing into this shadowy realm. Armed with  cutting-edge technology and drawing on discoveries from a huge range  of disciplines, they emerge with a powerful new perspective  on our place in the world. Join the pathfinding  scientist Dimitris Xygalatas on a tour of human culture at its strangest. In coronations, in silent prayer, in fire-walks and in all the bewildering variety of humanity's ritual life, Xygalatas reveals the deep and subtle  mechanisms that bind  us together.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41513788047457,"sku":"9781788161039","price":9.09,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/stand_36418108.jpg?v=1759495544","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781788161039-ritual","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}