Tabula rasa, Christmas and New Year: the ritual of purification as a cultural mechanism Introduction: The festival as a metaphor for a clean slate The concept of tabula rasa ("clean slate"), coming from ancient philosophy and developed by John Locke, metaphorically describes the state of consciousness free from previous experience. Christmas and New Year, especially in their secular, modern interpretation, represent a complex cultural ritual aimed at symbolically creating a state of tabula rasa for the individual and society. This is not an impromptu tradition, but a highly organized mechanism of psychological and social "reset," allowing for the experience of renewal within strictly designated calendar periods. 1. Historical Roots: From Winter Solstice to Calendar Boundary The connection of the festival with the idea of purification and the beginning of a new cycle dates back to pre-Christian traditions. Winter solstice festivals (Saturnalia in Rome, Yule among the Germans) were a time of symbolic chaos and subsequent renewal of the world. The world "died" at the darkest point of the year to be reborn. Rituals included: Purification by fire (burning a log, bonfires). Exorcism of evil spirits (noise, masked figures). Abolition of social norms (masters and slaves switched roles), allowing "zeroing out" of accumulated social tensions. Christianity, by placing Christmas in this same period, sublimated these archaic practices into spiritual purification through repentance (Advent). Secular New Year, finally separated from religious context, inherited and exaggerated this function of "zeroing out" — purely calendar-based, accessible to all regardless of faith, tabula rasa. 2. Rituals of Purification: Creating a "Clean Slate" The sum of pre-Christmas and New Year's actions represents a sequential program for erasing the old and preparing for the new. A. Pre-festival phase (December): "Erasing" the old. General cleaning. This is not a domestic action, but a material ritual ... Read more