SEtalk: Why Humans Still Need Rituals

Picture a small village in the mountains of Spain.

想像一下西班牙山區裡的一個小村莊。

It's midnight in midsummer,

正值盛夏的午夜，

and three thousand people are crammed into a tiny arena.

3000人擠在一個小小的場地裡。

In the centre lies a carpet of glowing coals.

場地中央鋪著一層燒得通紅的炭火。

One by one, villagers walk across it — barefoot!

村民們一個接一個從上面走過——打赤腳！

This is the fire-walking ritual of San Pedro Manrique.

這就是San Pedro Manrique的走火儀式。

Some years ago, a team of scientists went along to watch.

幾年前，一個科學家團隊特地前往觀察。

They fitted heart-rate monitors to the walkers and the spectators.

他們讓走火的人和觀眾都戴上了心率監測器。

What they found was genuinely remarkable.

他們的發現真的非常驚人。

As each walker crossed the coals,

每當有人走過炭火時，

their family's hearts began to beat in step with theirs!

他們家人的心跳竟然開始跟他們同步！

Strangers watching from the same stands showed no such pattern.

而坐在同一個看台上的陌生人，卻沒有出現這種現象。

The ritual was, quite literally, binding people together.

這個儀式，毫不誇張地說，真的把人們連在了一起。

I'll confess that for most of my career,

我得承認，在我職業生涯的大部分時間裡，

I dismissed rituals as quaint superstition.

我都把儀式當成老派的迷信，不屑一顧。

Relics of a world before science.

是科學出現之前那個世界的遺物。

Something we sensible moderns had rather outgrown.

是我們這些理性的現代人早就擺脫得差不多的東西。

I couldn't have been more wrong.

我真是大錯特錯。

Rituals haven't disappeared. They've simply changed costume.

儀式並沒有消失，只是換了一身行頭。

Think of fans singing the same song before every match.

想想那些每場比賽前都唱同一首歌的球迷。

Graduation gowns, wedding toasts, birthday candles.

畢業袍、婚禮敬酒、生日蠟燭。

None of them is strictly necessary, and that's precisely the point.

這些都不是非有不可的，而這恰恰就是重點。

Their very pointlessness is what makes them meaningful.

正是因為沒什麼實際用處，它們才有了意義。

Rituals slow time down, and they say, "This moment matters."

儀式讓時間慢下來，彷彿在說：「這一刻很重要。」

They also help us carry anxiety and grief.

它們還能幫我們承受焦慮和悲傷。

Studies even suggest that small personal rituals

研究甚至指出，一些個人的小儀式

can steady our nerves before a stressful performance.

能在緊張的表演前穩住我們的情緒。

Which may explain why I tapped this stage three times before walking on.

這也許能解釋，我為什麼上台前要在這個舞台上敲3下。

So I'd like to leave you with a modest proposal.

所以最後，我想給大家一個小小的建議。

Don't abandon the rituals you've inherited.

不要丟掉你們傳承下來的儀式。

And where they've faded, feel free to invent new ones!

如果它們已經淡去，那就大膽創造新的儀式吧！

A Sunday dinner. A walk every New Year's morning.

一頓星期天晚餐。每年元旦早上的一次散步。

Because a ritual is simply a promise to keep showing up for each other.

因為儀式說到底，就是一個承諾：我們會一直陪在彼此身邊。

Thank you.

謝謝大家。