July 13, 2013: Wikipedia has defined a Ritual as a stereotyped sequence of activities involving gestures, words, and objects, performed in a sequestered place, and designed to influence preternatural entities or forces on behalf of the actors' goals and interests. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. And Rituals are spread all over the world in all known human societies, past or present. They include not only the various worship rites and sacraments of organized religions and cults, but also the rites of passage, atonement and purification rites, oaths of allegiance, dedication ceremonies, coronations and presidential inaugurations, marriages and funerals, school "rush" traditions and graduations, club meetings, sports events, Halloween parties, veterans parades, and such other activities performed ostensibly for certain purposes, such as jury trials, execution of criminals, and scientific symposia or even hand-shaking with saying "Hello". ..In fine, if we look at all such activities one may find they are purely symbolic actions prescribed by regulations or tradition, and thus partly ritualistic in nature without any real meaning or feelings at all.

Can anybody assure that all hand-shaking with saying "Hello" is always done with all good hearts?Does everbody from the witness box, taking oath with his hand on Gita or Bible,always tell the truth?Can anybody well explain why a Muslim wears some scaff or cloth on his head and a christan removes his hat fro his head and a Hindu removes all his hairs from his head during and after the funneral of the dead ?? Thousands of the people are doing all such activities mechanically without seeing their meanings and without having any Faith too..

And that is why it have tweeted in past "Respect without Glory and an Action without the art are always mere Rituals without Faith and Feelings". 

In India, some of the prevelant Hindu Sacraments are great illustrations of Rituals that can also fall in the aforesaid categories, which are not only meaningless but also mechanically performed without heads and hearts in our country... For Example....

• To give a name to the new born, we use to call upon its "Father's Sister : Foi" to name the child, as a matter of her right or ritual, rather than considering the feeings of its parents..!
• Similarly, during the sacrament of Mundan, only male child's hairs are removed in Hindu, and not of the female child during first, third or fifth year of its age..Why is  here such the discrimination? and What is the meaning of this ritual ? why it is so in Hindu only when no other child of any other religion has to remove his hair in the name of Mundan ?
• During the sacrament of Yagnopavit Dharanam "Janoi Sanskar" a child of six year age uses to wear "Janoi" and runs with a stick in his hand, chanting Gayatri Mantra, when he himself neither understands the meaning of this Sacred Mantra nor the value of "Janoi " at all. It is also said without "Janoi " no person is qualified to have vedic Brahm Gyan and any spiritual education as per our ritual belief... but as a matter of fact, Vishvamitra Rushi himself had broken this meaningless ritual, getting entitled all others who were not said to be so qualified ritually. !!!
• Similarly, we use to look at "Muhoort" before beginning our all new ventures or journey or important tasks for fatching some desired good outcome and blessings... But  our Hindu Vedanta says contrary to this ritual traditions in a well known slok श्लोक "सर्वदा सर्व कार्येषु नास्ति तेषां अमङ्गलम येषां र्हुदयस्थि भगवन् मङ्गलाय तनोहरि " It means that nothing wrong can happen to that fellow when there is the God in his heart at any moment" So the question again arises what is then meaning of "Muhoort" to be watched before any new venture ??
• Generally the people use to perform worships after taking bath with their rituals, rites and religious traditions... some people use to rush down to the doors of their temple with bear foots and and struggle in heavy rush to bow down and count all steps and pillars of the temple to find the God. Ritual Performances of their worships in such the temples are different with religion to religion.. But on the other hand, our Great Ancient Rushi Munies and Avdhoots like Jad Bharat, Narad Muni etc. contradict all such present ritual traditional modes of worship but gives account of an Unique mode of worship in any form at any place at any time in any manner... Do you not now have question whether theprevelant rituals of worship in our temple are absolutely meaningless in comparison to those of our ancient saints ??? 
• During Vivah or Marriage, we use to insist to match horoscope and perform ritual traditions rather than matching the hearts of the bride and bridegrrom and their family members ? In fact in accordance with our Hindu Culture, the Gandharva Vivah has been considered the best marriage where the hearts of the spouses are matched and joined with love and result in marriage even without any ritual ceremonies at all.
• During Shraddh श्राध Karma the near and dear of the dead use to remove their hairs and call upon the sitting of "गरुड पुराण" or "Gita Path" ritually without understanding what is said therein
• During all big festivals we use to take ritual dip even in dirty waters in the name of getting us clean and fighting for food and prasad in the name of blessings !!
• One of the most heinous and debatable ritual and tradition, highly criticised in past even by the court was the awful offering one's wife to the Guru on his first "Honeymoon Night" in Vaishnav Sampraday.

So lots of such other rituals in the name of traditions and rites are performed in our society in the name of religion, culture, and tradition and even profession. But all such Activities of Worships are without any Faith, Expression of Respect without any Glory and Actions without any heart ... therefore they are always Meanlingless Rituals without Faith and Feelings...

Source: Speaking Tree, DT. July 13, 2013.