Building Religions 24: Orgy and Ecstasy

"There are vocal qualities peculiar to men, and vocal qualities peculiar to beasts; and it is terrible to hear the one when the source should yield the other. Animal fury and orgiastic license here whipped themselves to daemoniac heights by howls and squawking ecstacies that tore and reverberated through those nighted woods like pestilential tempests from the gulfs of hell."—H.P. Lovecraft, "The Call of Cthulhu"


The word "orgy" derives from the Greek orgia, which referred to religious rites in general and those of Dionysos in particular. It was later applied to the ceremonies of the various mystery cults of the Mediterranean, sometimes neutrally and sometimes negatively, but it took some time for it to acquire the connotations that the word has today. In early studies of religion, mention of orgiastic rites is surprisingly common, especially in descriptions of so-called primitive peoples; it's a staple of the pulp fantasy genre, too, which is one of the reasons I want to write about it in this series on religion and sexuality.

The characteristics of the orgy—abundance of food and drink, indiscriminate sex, and potentially violence—have a long history. They were first applied to the Dionysian rites by Greek critics of the cult, then to early Christians by Roman pagans, to Gnostic Christians by proto-orthodox Christians, to heretics by the mediaeval Church, to witches in the later Middle Ages, and so on. To describe a set of practices as orgiastic has always been a convenient way to denote them (and those who take part in them) as something beyond the bounds of the acceptable. To accuse a group of taking part in orgies is to mark it as other, whether because the people involved are too primitive to understand "proper" religiosity or because they are too decadent to be satisfied with anything else.

In most cases, there's little to suggest that these practices took place as their detractors imagined them: there may be instances of ritualized sex on an individual level, and there are certainly both religious and secular celebrations during which normal standards of behaviour are reduced, but to call them orgies is inaccurate. Still, if you want to set aside real-world history for your fiction, there's no lack of theories to explain the existence of these sorts of rituals.

On a mythic level, the orgy is a symbolic return to the primordial Chaos that existed before the creation of the world. As such, it's suitable for rituals of collective renewal, such as celebrations of the New Year. Few people would describe modern New Year's parties as orgiastic (if they do, they need to explain what happened to my invitation), but there's still a trace of the idea there: a night of indulgence and excess, with the knowledge that the following day will wipe the slate clean. During more traditional festivals of this kind, differences in social status are either nullified or reversed temporarily, and actions that are usually frowned upon are considered acceptable.

On a magical level, orgies can be a feature of large-scale rituals to ensure the fertility of the land through expressions of human sexuality. For that reason, they would be more likely to take place during the times of the year that are important to a society's agricultural calendar. Real-world versions of these festivals tend to sublimate the sexual components into games, contests, dances, or processions (although sometimes accompanied by more explicitly sexual images).

On a social level, Durkheim would argue that orgies are the result of "effervescence," the emotional effect that the gathering of a large group with a collective purpose has on the individual. Part of his theory rests on the assumption that ordinary life in early societies was so tedious and isolating most of the time that any large gathering drove people into a sort of frenzy of excitement. (For someone in a modern urban culture, the equivalent would probably be going to a very good party, a large sports event, or a concert: that feeling that you've become part of something beyond yourself.)

Georges Bataille, with his interest in how human beings deal with their own excess energy, might consider the orgy to be a release of that energy: an escape from life as production and into a realm of useless expenditure. That would explain the lavish feasts, the erotic qualities, and the occasionally destructive or violent features of such rituals.

Whatever the theory and whatever the cause, it's important to remember that these rituals would be carefully controlled. They are, above all else, sacred acts, with all the potential danger that goes along with moments where the sacred and profane encounter each other. They would take place at specific times of the year, not just whenever the community is in the mood. If they're not public rituals, they would only be open to initiates who would understand their underlying purpose.

This initiatory element leads to the individual, rather than social, form of the ideas that I've discussed: ecstatic practice. Religious ecstasy is, in many ways, the private equivalent of the orgy, with the goal being either a union with a god or goddess; or the dissolution of the Self in the realm of the sacred. It is primarily a feature of some forms of mysticism, but can also be a part of magical practice. The erotic element may be literally enacted or it may be purely imaginative or symbolic, but whichever it is, it's seen as a means to reach the mystic's goal rather than something to be pursued for its own sake.

It's worth mentioning, by the way, that in the case of ecstatic rites carried out physically and with a partner, the partner does not necessarily share the benefits. In fact, in the case of some Tantric and Daoist sexual rituals, the partner may be dehumanized completely and act only as a symbol. The line between religious practice and sexual abuse is, at this point, entirely blurred. Likewise, the easing of social rules in orgiastic rites can easily lead to violence of all kinds. Should you decide to incorporate any of the practices that I've described here into your fiction, you should consider the perceptions of everyone involved, not just those of the mystic, magician, or priest.

I will continue in my next post, which will focus on asceticism.