Ritual of the Eyes

The first ritual of the eyes is their opening. This simple gesture — the moment when the eyelids reveal the gaze — has symbolic and even divine meaning in many cultures. Opening the eyes marks the appearance of awareness, a transition from not-seeing to participation in the world.

In the Theravada Buddhist tradition of Sri Lanka a ritual called Netra Pinkama is performed, in which the eyes of a Buddha statue are ceremonially painted. Only after this act is the figure considered to be “brought to life.” Similar consecration ceremonies are practiced in Thailand and Cambodia, where the final stage of the ritual involves the symbolic piercing of the pupils with a needle (Netra Moksa).

In our culture the opening of the eyes also carries a strong metaphorical meaning. When we say that our “eyes have been opened,” we usually refer to a moment of realization — a sudden awareness of something that had previously remained hidden.

Paradoxically, for a significant part of our lives our eyes remain closed: during sleep, while blinking, or when we deliberately turn our gaze away. The movement of the eyelids therefore establishes the rhythm of seeing and not-seeing.

The opening and closing of the eyes — both physically and metaphorically — becomes a threshold gesture. As Emmanuel Levinas wrote, it is “the beginning and the end of all meaning.”