Spirit possession and spirit mediumship from the perspective of Tulu oral traditions.
Culture, medicine and psychiatry March 1, 1979 DOI: 10.1007/bf00114691 via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractSpirit possession in a region of southern India is best understood within its broad cultural context rather than as solely a psychological or sociological event. The author critically reviews previous explanations and draws on local spirit possession and mediumship cults, oral traditions, and social ideology to provide an ethnographically relevant interpretation. The argument emphasizes that possession practices are embedded in regional beliefs and social structures, offering a more holistic understanding than earlier reductionist approaches.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Ethnography Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Citations | 45 |
| Key finding | Spirit possession in southern India is culturally embedded and cannot be adequately explained by psychological or sociological frameworks alone. |
Abstract
The phenomenon of spirit possession is looked at in relationship to the broad cultural context in which it is found to exist in a region of southern India. The author critically reviews various attempts to explain spirit possession as solely a psychological or sociological event. Instead, he turns to the region's spirit possession and mediumship cults, oral traditions and social ideology for an ethnographically relevant interpretation of spirit possession.