Emptying People Out

Groups as diverse as catholic nuns, marching bands, sports clubs, and secret societies, and the mafia have initiation rituals that are meant to mark the beginning of a "new life" for the adherents, and the death of their former self. In many cases, the end of the old life is symbolized by a dramatized death, where the initiate gets into a coffin, then emerges to the embrace of their cult brethren. Another common tactic is to humiliate and abuse the initiates. Hazing in frats, which sometimes turns fatal, is one example, but it's pretty common across every type of club.

The purpose of all that nonsense is to forcibly impose a shift in consciousness on the initiate. It causes the person to dissociate to some degree. It effectively empties them out--it pushes the mind out of the body. It's sort of similar to the exercise I described in an earlier post--of balancing on a log. The language part of the brain shuts down.

The second part of those rituals is to refill the initiate. After the humiliation, there's an embrace and camraderie.

Corruption works almost the same way, though the order is reversed. The initiate accepts a gift or bribe, but then owes a favor or faces severe punishment or humiliation. They can stay in the good graces of the group by abandoning their own will and sense of right and wrong, and get even more rewards.

This works on a mass scale through mass media too. It's possible to expose people to humiliation and rewards, and to stress and terror via TV or movies. The effect is probably less dramatic on individuals but the net outcome is more substantial because it impacts so many millions.