robes with meaning

[beccaelizabeth]

I've just spent a couple of hours wandering around the net looking at vestments and ceremonial robes. It is amazing how much meaning gets packed in to little strips of cloth.

For instance the stole, the long strip of fabric that hangs around a catholic priest's neck, symbolises immortality, at least according to this site. It is interesting how many interpretations there are on various sites. The Catholic Encyclopaedia says that the clothes happened and then acquired layers of meaning. Your basic making it up as they go along type of thing. Also the origins are kind of fuzzy - one site will say the stole is a remnant of the robes of roman judges, another reckons it started out as a purely practical polishing cloth. Interesting stuff.

My thought was that Christians reckon immortality is a straight line - you get born, you live, your body dies but you keep going forever. I guess a straight bit of cloth is the closest thing to representing that, even if the 'forever' part is a tad impractical.

But me, I reckon we come back around. Born, live, die, wait, born again. So the right symbol for that would be a circle. I'm thinking something like those big collars egyptian pictures wear, huge great circle around shoulders, with plenty of room for embroidery.

I found some really pretty embroidery. Celtic style with swords and flames. On the right there is a 'defender of the faith' one, with a sword and book bound together with celtic knotwork. Very pretty, and appropriate symbolism for pagans I think. Of course personally I would ask the site if they mind making stuff for pagans before ordering. In case they're doing religious work for their faith on purpose. Wouldn't want to mess that up.

Huh. Now I remember why I spent time trying to make a pretty circular celtic knot design.

Actually my beliefs on reincarnation are a bit more complicated than one person coming round again. To me it is more like 'drop becomes an ocean, ocean becomes a drop', like the water cycle, only with souls. So logically the design would be more like that shen symbol, circle on a line, where the individual cycle connects to a much broader source.

Of course I also think there is a lot of truth in the Minbari perception, where the individual soul is like a light on a wall- the light is not truly in the wall, but you perceive it there. The Source is the shiny where all the spirit stuff lives, the physical world is where it reflects in pieces we can see.
Which is somewhat difficult to reflect in clothing...

I've also looked for pagan robes. So far I haven't found sites about their rich symbolism, and I've mostly found the standard neo-medaeval designs in plain fabrics. One place had interesting celtic knot design on a cloak.
A lot of the robes greatly resemble costume shop stuff, only more expensive.
It feels like a waste of a great opportunity. So much meaning can be read from clothing. Is fun deciding what to write there.

Also also, Jedi robes. Sadly the symbolism seems absent, on account of it being optional, and also regular street clothes for many people. There is probably something about staying humble. And practicality. But not layers of meaning, per se.

On the other hand, I do like the shapes. And any pagan robes need somewhere to put the sword, athame, wand, and general utility belt type miscelania. So the big belt is handy.

Symbolic hats should be fun. Crowns and circlets. Representing stuff that should be on your mind. Or maybe a third eye. Or flames of enlightenment. Apparently that is what Christian bishop hats are about. Sounds fun. Or you could have petals of enlightenment. That would be... frilly. But highly symbolic.

And the dangly pendants for what should be kept closest to your heart.
Trouble with that is to get any pendant on me heart adjacent I have to tuck it in between stuff, which tends to cover it up. Which is handy when I'm carrying money there, but not so much symbolic.

And you could have a choker to keep stuff near your voice. And other chakra stuff. What would you need to keep near your belly button? Clerical piercings, heh...

okay, now I'm just being silly...

Comments

[pinkdormouse.livejournal.com]

Re pendants: one of the things that I agree with Himself on is that the most important thing is you knowing it's there. So my gold pentagram never comes off, but is gnenerally under my T-shirt.

On the other hand I do play around with fun symbolism and story telling using my earrings.

Gina