Kiss As Ritual
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Joan of Arc kissing the "Sword of Liberation;" painting by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, 1863
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Kiss on the crucifix in Christianity
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Denis Thatcher, husband of Margaret Thatcher, kissing the hand of Nancy Reagan wife of US President in 1988
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Kissing the Blarney Stone
Throughout history, a kiss has been a ritual, formal, symbolic or social gesture indicating devotion, respect or greeting. It appears as a ritual or symbol of religious devotion. For example, in the case of kissing a temple floor, or a religious book or icon. Besides devotion, a kiss has also indicated subordination or, nowadays, respect.
In modern times the practice continues, as in the case of a bride and groom kissing at the conclusion of a wedding ceremony or national leaders kissing each other in greeting, and in many other situations.
Read more about this topic: Kiss
Famous quotes containing the words kiss and/or ritual:
“Stephen’s kiss was lost in jest,
Robin’s lost in play,
But the kiss in Colin’s eyes
Haunts me night and day.”
—Sara Teasdale (1884–1933)
“Promiscuity in men may cheapen love but sharpen thought. Promiscuity in women is illness, a leakage of identity. The promiscuous woman is self-contaminated and incapable of clear ideas. She has ruptured the ritual integrity of her body.”
—Camille Paglia (b. 1947)