Liminal to Liminoid, in Play, Flow, and Ritual: An Essay in Comparative Symbology

Abstract

Starting from the discussion of comparative symbology, which should not be confused with symbolic anthropology, the objective is to take the symbol as an event, not as a thing, for it has more to do with a semantic dimension, which refers to meaning in language and context. From this point of view, the ritual symbol becomes a factor of social action, with an innovative and creative potential of human action. Actions of expressive culture have character of dynamic semantic systems, gaining and losing meaning, since they "travel through" a rite or artwork. Among liminal and liminoid phenomena, rites and games, the subsystems of expressive culture are considered to reflect on the experiences of communitas and flow, when we observe the total involvement of the person in what he/she does.