ABSTRACT
Ritual is not only cultivated by practice but also negotiated by action. The world is not just a field in need of tilling but a political arena ringing with conflict. Without contemplative practice ritual easily becomes the pawn of cultural fads. But the meditative root of ritual practice is not identical with its ethical fruit. To attend only to the source of ritual without noticing its consequences would be irresponsible. Practice must be both contemplative and political, and the political is not limited to parties and governments but has to do with distributions of power and uses of authority.
