Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft, The, 3E Rebecca Stein Philip L Stein Solution Manua

Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft, The, 3E By Rebecca Stein Philip L Stein

Email: Richard@qwconsultancy.com

Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

Chapter One

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL STUDY OF RELIGION CHAPTER OUTLINE THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE The Holistic Approach The Study of Human Societies The Fore of New Guinea: An Ethnographic Example Two Ways of Viewing Culture Cultural Relativism Postmodernism Universal Human Rights The Concept of Culture Viewing the World THE STUDY OF RELIGION Attempts at Defining Religion The Domain of Religion Theoretical Approaches to the Study of Religion The Evolutionary Approach The Marxist Approach The Functional Approach The Interpretive Approach The Psychosocial Approach The Biological Basis of Religious Behavior Belief in Spirit Beings The Evolution of Religion CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 1.1 KAREN MCCARTHY BROWN AND VODOU BOX 1.2 MALINOWSKI AND THE TROBRIAND ISLANDS BOX 1.3 EVANS-PRITCHARD AND THE AZANDE

CHAPTER SUMMARY Anthropology is the study of humanity. Anthropologists study human societies as integrated wholes, an approach that is termed holism. This approach is seen in the broad scope of anthro1

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

pology, which is often divided into the fields of physical anthropology, archaeology, linguistic anthropology, and cultural anthropology. This approach requires that societies be studied over long periods of time, during which the investigator lives within the community and participates in the lives of the people under study, a technique known as participant observation. The final product is an ethnography, a descriptive study of a human society.

An outside observer of a community usually imposes his or her system of analysis on the group under study (etic perspective). It is natural to use one’s our own society as the basis for interpreting and judging other societies, a tendency called ethnocentrism. Many anthropologists attempt to see the world through the eyes of the people being studied (emic perspective) and describe and understand people’s customs and ideas but do not judge them, an approach called cultural relativism. The goal is to study what people believe, not whether or not what they believe is true.

A central concept in anthropology is culture. Culture includes all aspects of the human experience that are passed down from generation to generation. Culture gives meaning to reality; we live in a real, physical world, but our minds interpret this world through a cultural lens.

Religion is a difficult concept to define cross-culturally. We can list some approaches to a definition. An analytic definition focuses on the way in which religion manifests itself or is expressed in a culture. A functional definition is concerned with the role that religion plays in a society. An essentialist definition looks at what the essential nature of religion is and emphasizes the fact that religion is the domain of the extraordinary, a system of beliefs and behaviors that deals with the relationship between humans and the sacred supernatural.

In this book we will define religion as a set of cultural beliefs and practices that usually include some or all of a basic set of characteristics: a belief in anthropomorphic supernatural beings; a focus on the sacred supernatural; the presence of supernatural power that is found in supernatural beings as well as physical beings and objects; the performance of ritual activities that involve the manipulation of sacred objects to communicate with supernatural beings and/or to influence or control events; and an articulation of a worldview and moral code. Religion also provides for the creation and maintenance of social bonds and mechanisms of social control within a community and provides explanations for the unknown and a sense of control for the individual.

There have been many theoretical approaches to the study of religion. The evolutionary approach, developed in the late 1800s, focused on the questions of when and how religions began and how they evolved from the simple to the complex. This evolution was seen as a natural consequence of human nature, and the religions of “primitive” peoples were remnants of an earlier, simpler evolutionary stage. Early religions included animism, the belief in spirits and ghosts, and animatism, the belief in a generalized supernatural force.

The Marist approach is based upon the writings of Karl Marx who saw religion as being a construction of those in power, designed to divert people’s attention from the miseries of their lives. This misery was seen as being the result of exploitation of the masses by those in power under the capitalist system. He saw religion both as a means of compensation and as a way of getting people to go along with a capitalist culture that is not in their best interests.

The functional approach asks the question: What does religion do? For example, Malinowski concluded that magic functions to provide control and certainty in an otherwise uncertain sit2

Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

uation. The interpretive approach is associated with Clifford Geertz who believed that the task of anthropologists was to make sense of cultural systems by studying meaning. He described religion as a cluster of symbols that provides a charter for a culture’s ideas, values, and way of life.

The psychosocial approach is concerned with the relationship between culture and personality and the connection between the society and the individual.

What we perceive and think of as our reality is actually a creation of our brain. Information entering the brain through the sense organs are organized and interpreted by the brain into a “reality.” The brain is also capable of creating realities that are indistinguishable from the reality that lies outside of the body. Various religious experiences may be “realities” that are created by the brain.

All religious systems appear to contain concepts of supernatural anthropomorphic causal agents. One explanation for this is the concept of theory of mind, the idea that people know, or think they know, what is going on in other people’s minds. The human brain extends this into the minds of other living and nonliving entities.

Many ideas have been proposed to explain the evolution of religion. Some have suggested that religion arose to fulfill social needs, imposing order and stability on society. Some have focused on the human awareness of death. Others see religious as a by-product of how the human brain works. Thus we feel that we occupy our bodies (not that we are our bodies), and that we infer purpose, goals, intention, and design where there is none, attributing human characteristics to a range of inanimate objects.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 1 the student should be able to: • Explain the meaning of holism and the importance of the holistic approach.

• Describe the approach and methodology of the field of anthropology.

• Explain what a culture area is and explain why this and method of food getting are used as a basic way of describing a culture.

• Explain the causes of kuru among the Fore, as an example of holism.

• Explain the difference between and emic and an etic analysis.

• Describe cultural relativism and its importance for anthropological studies.

• Explain the concept of culture.

• Identify the basic approaches to defining religion, including the associated definitions.

• List the characteristics generally associated with religion.

• Identify and explain the basic approaches to the study of religion.

• Describe how the design and functioning of the human brain gives rise to religious beliefs.

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

GLOSSARY Agnosticism: The idea that the nature of the supernatural is unknowable, that it is as impossible to prove the nonexistence of the supernatural as it is to prove its existence. (p. 25) Analytic definition: A definition that focuses on the way religion manifests itself or is expressed in a culture. (p. 14) Animatism: The belief in an impersonal supernatural power. (p. 17) Animism: A belief in spirit beings. (p. 15) Anthropology: The study of humanity. (p. 1) Anthropomorphic: Nonhuman entities that have human characteristics. (p. 22) Archaeology: The study of prehistoric people from the analysis of their physical and cultural remains. (p. 2) Cognition: The processes of the human brain, including perception, attention, learning, memory, concept formation, and problem solving. (p. 24) Collective conscious: A set of beliefs shared by members of a social group that function to limit the natural selfishness of individuals and promote social cooperation. (p. 18) Cultural anthropology: The study of contemporary human societies and their cultures. (p. 2) Cultural relativism: Attempting to analyze and understanding cultures other than one’s own without judging them in terms of one’s own culture. (p. 10) Culture: Human beliefs and behaviors of a society that are learned, transmitted from one generation to the next, and shared by a group of people. (p. 13) Culture area: A geographical area in which societies share many cultural traits. (p. 3) Divination: Supernatural techniques for obtaining information about things unknown, including events that will occur in the future. (p. 8) Emic perspective: The study of a society through the eyes of the people being studied. (p. 10) Essentialist definition: A definition that looks at the essential nature of religion. (p. 15) Ethnocentrism: Using one’s own culture as the basis for interpreting and judging other cultures. (p. 10) Ethnographers: A person who produces an ethnography. (p. 3) Ethnographic present: Speaking or writing about cultures in the present tense although what is described might no longer exist. (p. 3) Ethnography: The descriptive study of human societies. (p. 3) Etic perspective: The study of a society using concepts that were developed outside of the culture. (p. 9) Evolutionary approach: An approach that focuses on the questions of when and how religion began and how it developed through time. (p. 17) Foraging bands: Small communities that subsist by hunting, fishing, and gathering wild plant foods. (p. 2) Functional approach: An approach that is based on the function or role that religion plays in a society. (p. 18) Functional definition: A definition that is based on the role that religion plays in a society. (p.

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Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

Holism: The study of human societies as systematic sums of their parts, as integrated wholes. (p.

1) Horticulture: The use of cultivated domesticated plants without the use of fertilizers, plows, irrigation, and other agricultural technologies. (p. 2) Human universal: Characteristics that are found in all human societies. (p. 3) Interpretive approach: Idea that cultural systems are understood by studying meaning; religious is a cluster of symbols that provides a charter for a culture’s ideas, values, and way of life. (p. 20) Linguistic anthropology: The study of language. (p. 2) Marxist approach: Idea that religion is a construction of those in power, designed to divert people’s attention from the miseries of their lives; a way of getting people to go along with capitalist culture. (p. 18) Modernity: A philosophical movement based on ideas of rationality, objectivity, reason, and science as the means of gaining knowledge, truth, and progress. (p. 11) Operant definition: A definition in which we define our terms so that they are observable and measurable, and therefore can be studied. (p. 14) Participant observation: A research method whereby the anthropologist lives in a community and participates in the lives of the people under study while at the same time making objective observations. (p. 2) Pastoral nomads: Societies that subsist primarily by herding domesticated animals. (p. 2) Physical anthropology: The study of human biology and evolution. (p. 2) Postmodernism: An emphasis on subjectivity over objectivity and a tendency towards reflexivity, or self-consciousness; all knowledge is seen as being a human construction that scholars must seek to deconstruct. (p. 11) Psychosocial approach: An approach to the study of religion that is concerned with the relationship between culture and personality and between society and individual. (p. 21) Religion: The realm of culture that concerns the sacred supernatural. (p. 16) Sacred: An attitude wherein the subject or object is set apart from the normal, everyday world and is entitled to reverence and respect. (p. 15) Small-scale: Describes relatively small communities that practice foraging, herding, or technologically simple horticulture (p. 3) Supernatural: Entities and actions that transcend the natural world of cause and effect. (p. 15) Symbol: A shared understanding about the meaning of certain words, attributes, or objects; something that stands for something else. (p. 14) Theory of mind: The idea that people know, or think they know, what is going on in other people’s minds. (p. 22)

DISCUSSION TOPICS •

How does anthropology compare with other social sciences that you may be familiar with?

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

• • • • • •

Cultural relativism is one of the core concepts of anthropology. Are there any limits to this concept? If so, what are they? Is there a place in anthropology for the idea of universal human rights?

Is it possible to fully understand a religion if you do not believe in its basic tenets?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of an emic analysis? What are the advantages and disadvantages of an etic analysis?

How would you personally define the term religion?

The concept of holism suggests that religion affects and is affected by other domains of culture. In our own culture, how does religion interact with other realms of culture?

Why do you think religion is universal?

STUDENT PROJECTS • •

• • •

In order to illustrate the concept of holism, select a general topic of interest. It can be music, a hobby, sports, etc. Discuss how that topic can be studied as an anthropological study. Search the Internet to find anthropological discussions that touch on that topic.

While it is not possible to travel to different parts of the world during the semester, it is possible to visit some venue associated with another culture in one’s own community. It can be an ethnic restaurant, museum of ethnic art, a community center run by a particular ethnic group, or a church or temple. Visit the location and make observations. Write a brief ethnography.

Interview a student who is from another country attending your school. Find out what aspects of your culture the international student finds strange, amusing, or difficult to understand and why.

Design a survey about the definition of religion. Ask a number of students how they would define religion and whether they would include certain phenomena (e.g., alien abduction, magic) or not and why.

Many countries have entered into treaties guaranteeing certain universal human rights and many organizations exist fighting for universal human rights. What are some of the rights are though to be universal? Do you agree with these? What rights would you include, if any?

VIDEOS Anthropologists at Work: Careers Making a Difference. Insight Media. 1993, 36 min.

Shows anthropologists working in applied settings.

Civil Religion. Insight Media. 1999, 60 min.

Looks at the myths, symbols, and holidays of civil religion in America.

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Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

Culture. Insight Media. 1991, 30 min.

Defines and explores the main dimensions of culture.

How Beliefs and Values Define a Culture. Insight Media. 1997, 24 min.

Looks at how art, music, history and religion shape cultural beliefs and values.

What is Religion? Insight Media. 1992, 60 min.

Looks at the cultural and social functions of religion and considers religious pluralism in the United States.

WEB SITES www.aaanet.org/ Website of the American Anthropological Association www.aaanet.org/sar The Society for the Anthropology of Religion of the American Anthropological Association http://fora.tv/2006/02/13/J__Stephen_Lansing_A_Thousand_Years_in_Bali A Lecture on the Water Temples on Bali http://julianwalkeryoga.gaia.com/blog/2009/1/v_s_ramachandran_temporal_lobe_epilepsy_and_ religious_experience Videos with V. S. Ramachandran, UC San Diego, on Temporal Lobe Epilepsy http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/begin/dna/prions The Mystery of Kuru, Genetic Science Learning Center, The University of Utah www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/kuru/kuru.html National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Kuru Information Page http://www.pbs.org/wnet/humanspark/episodes/program-three-brain-matters/video-fullepisode/418/ “Brain Matters,” from the PBS Series The Human Spark with Alan Alda. www.religioustolerance.org Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance www.wamware.com/world-religions World Religions Project

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Pascal Boyer. Religion Explained: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought. New York: Basic Books, 2001.

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Andrew Newberg, Eugene D’Aquili, and Vince Rause. Why God Won’t Go Away. A study of brain function and how the brain creates stories, beliefs, and rituals.

William Paden. Interpreting the Sacred: Ways of Viewing Religion. Boston: Beacon Press, 1992.

An overview of theoretical approaches to religion.

Carl Sagan. The Demon Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. New York: Ballantine Books, 1996). A skeptical look at supernatural beliefs and phenomena.

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

Which of the following would not be an appropriate task for an anthropologist? a. translating a religious text in the Navaho language b. excavating the ruins of a Mayan temple c. filming an American religious ceremony d. studying the chimpanzees of the Gombe National Park e. all of the above would be appropriate tasks Answer: e page 2

2.

A study of a people's religious beliefs and rituals would be a part of the study of: a. cultural anthropology b. linguistics c. archaeology d. physical anthropology Answer: a

3.

Anthropologists study societies as systematic sums of their parts, a concept known as: a. relativism b. ethnology c. holism d. postmodernism Answer: c

4.

pages 1-2

A method of studying communities that is unique to anthropology is: a. questionnaires b. participant observation c. psychological tests d. recording of oral literature and songs Answer: b

5.

page 2

page 2

An ethnography is a: a. comparative study of the social systems of many societies b. study of the physical characteristics of a human population c. analysis of a nonhuman primate species d. descriptive study of a society or culture Answer: d

page 3 8

Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

6.

An example of an ethnography is: a. Goodall's study of chimpanzee behavior b. Herskovits's study of economic anthropology c. Johanson's study of the fossil hominids from Hadar d. Malinowski's study of the Trobriand Islanders Answer: d

7.

An anthropologist travels to the Fore of New Guinea and produces an ethnography. This ethnography is a(n): a. comparison of Fore society with other New Guinea societies b. a description of Fore society and culture c. analysis of the Fore language d. analysis of the biological and genetic characteristics of the Fore people Answer: b

8.

page 3

Which of the following might also be referred to as an ethnographer? a. a physical anthropologist b. an archaeologist c. a cultural anthropologist d. a linguistic anthropologist Answer: c

9.

page 3

page 3

Geographical areas wherein are found societies that share a great many characteristics are known as: a. culture areas b. ethnographic zones c. ecological regions d. societal areas Answer: a

page 4

10. Two main ways that anthropologists organize societies are by: a. culture area and food getting strategies b. level of religious complexity and gender stratification c. gender ratio and child rearing strategies d. kinship system and language spoken Answer: a

page 6

11. Societies characterized by low population density, no full-time specialists or social stratification, whose food is obtained primarily from gathering, hunting, and fishing are: a. foragers b. pastoralists c. horticulturalists d. intensive agriculturalists Answer: a

page 7

12. Kuru, a disease found among the Fore, is caused by: a. microscopic particles transmitted through cannibalism b. a parasite transmitted through poorly-cooked pork c. a hereditary factor passed on through the mother to her children 9

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

d.

toxins introduced by Indonesian mining operations

Answer: a

page 8

13. The Fore believe that kuru is caused by the: a. breaking of a taboo b. displeasure of an ancestral spirit c. transmission of a microorganism d. activities of a sorcerer doing evil magic Answer: d

page 8

14. From the etic perspective, Western medicine sees kuru as an infectious disease. From the emic perspective, the Fore believe that kuru is caused by the: a. breaking of a tabu b. displeasure of an ancestral spirit c. transmission of a microorganism d. activities of a sorcerer doing evil magic Answer: d

page 8

15. Anthropologists attempt to see the world through the eyes of the people in the community they are studying. This is: a. emic analysis b. functional analysis c. etic analysis d. psychosocial analysis Answer: a

page 9-10

16. After cremating their dead, the Yanomamö grind the ashes and later add the ashes to a banana stew to be consumed. Most Americans might feel that drinking the ashes of the dead to be disgusting. On the other hand, anthropology tells us that we should not judge the customs of others by our own standards. This latter attitude towards other cultures is called: a. holism b. ethnocentrism c. cultural relativism d. participant observation Answer: c

page 10

17. The Wogeo of New Guinea believe that Wogeo traditions are the only valid traditions in the world and that Wogeo speech is uniquely pure. They refuse to speak the languages of the communities with which they trade because their neighbors make the sounds of dogs. This attitude is an example of: a. cultural relativism b. ethnocentrism c. morality d. righteousness Answer: b

page 10

18. The point of view that all knowledge is a human “construction,” that there are multiple viewpoints and truths, and that we must be aware of our own viewpoints and biases, is referred to as: a. modernity b. essentialism c. postmodernism d. Marxism 10

Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

Answer: c

page 11

19. Culture consists of: a. innate behavioral patterns that humans share with the apes b. an appreciation of the fine arts and literature c. nutrients upon which bacteria can grow d. learned and traditional patterns of behavior Answer: d

page 13

20. The first use of the term culture in anthropology appeared in 1871 in a book written by: a. James Frazer b. Robert Edgerton c. Edward Tylor d. Melford Spiro Answer: c

page 13

21. Defining terms so they are observable and measurable is called a(n): a. analytic definition b. functional definition c. anthropological definition d. operant definition Answer: d

page 14

22. In an analytic definition of religion, the study of the organization and leadership of a religious system represents the: a. social dimension b. ritual dimension c. institutional dimension d. narrative dimension Answer: c

page 15

23. A definition of religion that is concerned with the role that religion plays in a society is a(n): a. analytic definition b. functional definition c. essentialist definition d. psychosocial definition Answer: b

page 15

24. A belief in spirit beings is termed: a. animatism c. agnosticism Answer: b

b. d.

animism anthropocentrism

page 15

25. The term supernatural refers to: a. an attitude of reverence and respect b. a belief in spirit beings such as spirits and gods c. belief in a general supernatural force d. things that are above the natural and not subject to the laws of nature Answer: d

page 15

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

26. The operant definition of religion proposed in this textbook includes the following characteristics: a. a belief in anthropomorphic supernatural beings b. a focus on the sacred supernatural c. an articulation of a worldview and moral code through narratives d. all of the above Answer: d

page 16

27. The concept of animatism refers to a belief: a. in spirit beings b. that it is impossible to prove the existence of a supernatural power c. that humans are set off from the animal world d. in an impersonal supernatural power Answer: d

page 17

28. Late nineteenth century anthropologists who saw “primitive” societies as presenting an early stage in the development of religion were using the: a. functional approach b. essentialist approach c. evolutionary approach d. psychoanalytic approach Answer: c

page 17

29. Who wrote, “Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature”? a. Edward Tylor b. Bronislaw Malinowski c. Karl Marx d. Sigmund Freud Answer: c

page 18

30. There are many approaches to the study of religion in anthropology. One approach is to ask the question: What does religion do? What roles does religion play in human societies? This approach is referred to as the: a. functional approach b. psychosocial approach c. evolutionary approach d. cognitive approach Answer: a

pages 18-20

31. Which of the following anthropologists is most closely associated with the functionalist approach? a. Melford Spiro b. Edward Tyler c. Alfred Radcliff-Brown d. Bronislaw Malinowski Answer: d

page 19-20

32. Ethnographic fieldwork among the Trobriand Islanders was carried out by: a. E. E. Evans-Pritchard b. Bronislaw Malinowski c. Karen McCarthy Brown d. Alfred R. Radcliffe-Brown Answer: b

page 19 12

Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

33. The interpretative approach, in which religion is described as a cluster of symbols that together make up a whole, was developed by: a. Sigmund Freud b. Melford Spiro c. Clifford Geertz d. James Frazer Answer: b

page 20

34. The approach to the study of religion that is concerned with the relationship between culture and personality and the connection between society and the individual is the: a. psychosocial approach b. the functional approach c. the analytic approach d. the Marxist approach Answer: a

page 21

35. Some neuroscientists conclude that the brain is capable of creating religious experiences.

Which of the following is evidence for this conclusion? a. People suffering from temporal lobe epilepsy often report intense religious experiences as part of their attacks. b. People who report having intense religious experiences often report having had brain trauma or brain injury in childhood. c. Brain scans of people in deep meditation show a decreased activity in the parietal lobe of the brain, in an area responsible for giving us a sense of our orientation in space and time. d. All of the above.

Answer: d

page 22

36. Theory of mind refers to the idea that: a. children are born with “blank slates” and slowly develop a mind through observation and trial and error b. people are not capable of seeing events as the result of randomness or coincidence c. people know, or think they know, what is going on in another people’s minds d. the evolution of a large brain was largely responsible for the development of the human mind Answer: c

pages 22-23

37. The term cognition refers to: a. unconsciousness b. the totality of all perceptions c. conscious intellectual activities including perception, reasoning, and feeling d. a form of psychotherapy Answer: c

page 24

38. An agnostic: a. has not made up his mind about the existence of the supernatural b. believes that there is no supernatural 13

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

c. d.

says that it is impossible to prove or disprove the existence of the supernatural none of the above

Answer: c

page 25

True/False Questions 39. The study of religious art excavated from now extinct cultures is a part of the field of archaeology.

Answer: T

page 2

40. An important method of field study in anthropology is participant observation.

Answer: T

page 2

41. Anthropologists frequently apply the term primitive to small-scale societies.

Answer: F

pages 2-3

42. Karen McCarthy Brown’s study of vodou in New York City is an example of an ethnography.

Answer: T

pages 3, 11

43. Northwest Coast, East African Cattle, and Melanesia are names of culture areas.

Answer: T

pages 4-6

44. Foragers practice simple farming with hand tools, are seminomadic, and lack full-time specialists.

Answer: F

page 7

45. The Fore of New Guinea practice mortuary cannibalism, that is, they eat the body of their deceased relatives.

Answer: T

page 8

46. The Fore of New Guinea believe that the disease kuru is caused by evil forest spirits.

Answer: F

page 8

47. An outsider who applies his or her own cultural orientation to the analysis of another culture is performing an emic analysis.

Answer: F

pages 9-10

48. A person who judges another society in terms of his or her own culture is said to be ethnocentric.

Answer: T

page 10

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Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

49. Human universals refer to biological characteristics of human beings that reflect a common biology.

Answer: F

page 12

50. Postmodernism highlights the scientific method and rationality in the discovery of knowledge.

Answer: F

page 11

51. Robert Edgerton believes that all cultural practices are valid and must be accepted in the context of the society’s culture.

Answer: F

page 12

52. Culture is based upon the use of symbols or shared understanding about the meaning of things.

Answer: T

page 13

53. An analytic definition focuses on the way that religion manifests itself or is expressed in a culture.

Answer: T

page 14

54. The essentialist definition of religion emphasizes that region is the domain of the extraordinary.

Answer: T

page 15

55. All societies have clearly understood terms to label the domain of culture we call religion.

Answer: F

pages 16-17

56. Animatism refers to the idea of an impersonal supernatural force.

Answer: T

page 17

57. Émile Durkheim and Alfred Radcliff-Brown are associated with the evolutionary approach to the study of religion.

Answer: F

pages 18-19

58. Sigmund Freud applied some of his concepts to the analysis of religious phenomena.

Answer: T

page 21

59. Gods and ghosts are examples of anthropomorphic supernatural beings.

Answer: T

page 22

60. The idea that visions and other religious experiences are the product of brain function is what is meant by theory of mind.

Answer: F

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Essay Questions 61. How does the study of anthropology differ from sociology and psychology? (page 2) 62. Define the four fields of anthropology. How does each relate to the study of religion? (page 2) 63. What is the nature of ethnographic research? How does it differ from research in other disciplines? (pages 2-3) 64. What is meant by the term “culture area”? What do societies in the same culture area tend to have in common? Why? (page 4-6) 65. What are some of the important differences in social structure among peoples practicing different food-getting strategies? (page 7) 66. How does the study of kuru among the Fore of New Guinea illustrate the concept of holism? (pages 6-8) 67. Think of a political and economic issue that you have read about that has occurred in another part of the world. How would you describe and analyze this event from an ethnocentric viewpoint and from a cultural relativistic viewpoint? (page 10) 68. We can approach the study and understanding of other peoples through both etic and emic analysis. What is the essential difference between these two views? How does each contribute to our understanding of human societies? (page 11) 69. What are the differences between modernity and postmodernism? (page 11) 70. Is the concept of universal human rights consistent with the concept of cultural relativism?

Why or why not? (page 12) 71. What criteria would you use in deciding whether or not a particular cultural practice should be eliminated in apparent contradiction of cultural relativism? (page 12) 72. When reading an ethnography about the Fore what is the difference between Fore society and Fore culture? (page 13) 73. “Culture gives meaning to reality.” What does this mean? Give some examples. (pages 14) 74. Within the analytic definition of religion, what is contained within the narrative, ritual, and ethnical dimensions? (page 15) 16

Chapter 1: The Anthropological Study of Religion

75. An essentialist definition of religions sees religions as dealing with the realm of the sacred supernatural. What is mean by the terms sacred and supernatural? (page 15) 76. Which of the definitions of religion discussed in the book do you like the best? Why? How would you personally define the term religion? (pages 14-16) 77. Two early approaches to the study of religion were the evolutionary approach of Tyler and Frazer and the psychosocial approach of Sigmund Freud. What are the essential features of these two approaches? (pages 17-18, 21) 78. Compare and contrast the essential concept of the evolutionary, Marxist, functional, interpretative, and psychosocial approaches to the study of religion. Which scholars are associated with each of these approaches? (pages 17-21) 79. Give some examples of how brain function can produce what are prescribed as religious experiences. (page 22) 80. How does the theory of mind relate to the phenomenon of animism? (pages 22-24)

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Chapter Two

MYTHOLOGY CHAPTER OUTLINE THE NATURE OF MYTHS Worldview Stories of the Supernatural Myths The Nature of Oral Texts Genesis UNDERSTANDING MYTHS Approaches to Analysis of Myths Searching for Myth Origins in the Nineteenth Century Fieldwork and Functional Analysis Structural Analysis Psychoanalytic Symbols in Myth Common Themes in Myths Origin Myths Apocalyptic Myths Trickster Myths Hero Myths CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 2.1 GENESIS BOX 2.2 THE GENDER-NEUTRAL CHRISTIAN BIBLE BOX 2.3 THE GURURUMBA CREATION STORY BOX 2.4 THE NAVAHO CREATION STORY: DINÉ BAHANÈ BOX 2.5 THE RAVEN STEALS THE LIGHT BOX 2.6 JOSEPH CAMPBELL

CHAPTER SUMMARY The ways a society perceives and interprets its reality is known as its worldview. The worldview provides an understanding of how the world works; it forms the template for thought and behavior; and it provides a basic understanding of the origin and nature of humankind and its relationship to the world. People express their worldview in stories.

Myths are sacred stories that tell of the origin of the world and humankind, the existence and activities of gods and spirits, the origin of human traditions, and the nature of illness and death.

They tell how to behave and how to distinguish good from evil. Myths are thought to recount 18

Chapter 2: Mythology

real, historical events that took place in the remote past. They provide the basis for religious beliefs and practices.

Myths can be both written and oral. Written forms tend to be very stable through time, and changes that do occur are usually deliberate changes that are the consequences of translation or scholarly discourse about the meaning of particular words and passages. Oral texts are recited, and this recitation often has the characteristics of performance. One of the consequences of the oral transmission of stories is that they are frequently unconsciously altered with each generation, which explains the existence of different versions of the same myth within a society.

There are many ways of interpreting myths. Functional analysis sees myths as forces that help to maintain the society. Structural analysis focuses on the underlying structure of myths.

The psychoanalytic approach sees myths as symbolically expressing unconscious wishes.

Certain basic themes are common through the world. Origin myths provide answers to the questions: Who are we? Why are we here? What is our relationship to the world? These stories play an important role in laying out the culture’s worldview. One common element is the birth metaphor, in which the world is born from a god or goddess or by creation out of chaos, darkness, or the void.

Tricksters are part human, part animal. They are adventurers, seekers of sexual pleasures, lazy, dishonest, and impulsive. Yet tricksters are responsible for creating or bringing into the world many elements, often as a by-product of some other activity. Hero myths are stories about culture heroes who, through knowledge and mastery of certain skills, are able to bring about marvelous results.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 2 the student should be able to: • Explain the concept of worldview and illustrate the idea by contrasting the worldviews of the Navaho and Euro-Americans.

• Explain what makes a story a myth.

• Describe the nature of oral myths and how such myths change over time.

• Explain how the Navaho origin story reflects the Navaho worldview.

• Identify and describe the different approaches to the study of myth.

• Outline the common themes that are found in myths cross-culturally.

GLOSSARY Apocalypse: Ultimate devastation or the end of the world. (p. 46) Archetype: A main character of the collective unconscious. (p. 42) Collective unconscious: Inborn elements of the unconscious that are manifested in dreams and myths. (p. 42) Folktale: A traditional story that is a part of the tradition of a society; not considered to be true. (p. 31) 19

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Legend: A traditional story about past events that is considered to be true; usually contains an element of reality—a known character, event, or place. (p. 31) Monomyth: A theme common to many myths that tells of the adventures of a culture hero. (p.

51) Myth: A sacred story that provides the basis for religious beliefs and practices. (p. 31) Social charter: A story that establishes the proper organization and rules of behavior of a society. (p. 36) Trickster god: A god who gave humans important things or skills, often by accident or through trickery. (p. 48) Trickster story: A story involving a trickster deity. (p. 48) Urban legend: Contemporary story about people and events that never occurred, but are presented as real. (p. 31) Worldview: The way in which a society perceives and interprets its reality. (p. 29)

DISCUSSION TOPICS •

• • • • • • •

How would you describe the worldview of your own culture? Although the United States is made up of a diverse population, can we say that there is a shared American worldview? If so, what characterizes this worldview? How is this worldview reflected in American culture?

How do American media (including television and films) reflect the American worldview?

In what ways are important American civil documents, such as the Declaration of Independence, like myths? In what ways are they different?

Stories about supernatural topics (e.g., ghosts, angels, prophesies) can be found in informal venues such as the tabloids. Would you consider these to be religious stories or myths? Why or why not?

Humans have been called “storytelling animals”. What is the importance of storytelling both for individuals and societies?

Why do you think common themes are found in myths in different cultures?

How does human psychology affect the nature of myths and the way we tell and perceive them?

What recent movies have you seen that are based on the hero’s journey? Can you identify the stages?

STUDENT PROJECTS •

While in many societies stories are told through story tellers, stories in American society are frequently told through movies and television. Pick a movie or television and show and explain how the show reflects the American worldview.

20

Chapter 2: Mythology

• • •

Select a foreign film. What cultural differences can be seen between your own culture and the culture portrayed in the film?

Pick a movie that tells the story of the monomyth. Describe how it fits the monomyth structure.

Locate myths from two or more different cultures. Analyze each myth and show how they are similar to or differ from one another.

VIDEOS The Bible Under Fire. Filmakers Library. 43 min.

Tells the story of the introduction of the Revised Standard Version of the Christian Bible in 1952, and the controversies that followed.

A Biography of Lilith. Women Make Movies. 1997, 35 min.

Updates the Judeo-Christian origin story by telling the story of Lilith. Uses a mix of narrative, collage and memoir.

Dance in America: Holo Mai Pele. PBS Great Performances. 1995, 60 min.

The Hawaiian myth of the conflict between the goddess Pele and her sister Hi’iaka, as told through Hula dance and music.

The Five Suns: A Sacred History of Mexico. University of California Extension. 1996, 59 min.

Creation myths of the Aztecs and other Nahuatl-speaking people are told through animation that uses authentic pre-Columbian Aztec iconography.

The Koran: The Holy Book of Islam. Insight Media. 1995, 16 min.

Explores the significance of Koran to the life of Muslims.

Popol Vuh: The Creation Myth of the Maya. University of California Extension. 1989, 60 min.

The Mayan creation story told through animation that uses imagery from ancient Mayan ceramics.

Voices of the Orishas. University of California Extension. 1994, 37 min.

Filmed in Havana, the film shows a Santeria ritual in which the deities, or Orishas, are invoked.

The ceremony recreates an important Yoruba myth.

WEB SITES pantheon.org/mythica.html Encyclopedia Mythica is an encyclopedia of mythology, folklore, and legend.

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

www.moongadget.com/origins/myth.html Internet site devoted to the story of the hero’s journey as seen in movies. www.sacred-texts.com An Internet text archive. www.snopes.com A collection and analysis of urban legends. www.trinity.edu/org/tricksters/trixway Trickster’s Way, an online journal dedicated to trickster research.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES J. F. Bierlein. Parallel Myths. New York: Random House, 1994. A large collection of myths organized by theme.

Joseph Campbell. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. New York: Pantheon Books, 1949. A description of the hero myth in societies around the world.

Alan Dundes. Holy Writ as Oral Lit: The Bible as Folklore. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 1999. An analysis of the Bible that illustrates its origins in oral folklore.

Alan Dundes, ed. Little Red Riding Hood: A Casebook. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1989. A series of articles explaining the story of “Little Red Riding Hood” from many theoretical points of view.

Ian Hogbin. The Island of Menstruating Men: Religion in Wogeo, New Guinea. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press, 1970. The study of the Wogeo, including myths and religious practices.

Mathias Guenther. Tricksters & Tracers: Bushman Religion and Society. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1999. A study of San religion including cosmology, the trickster, myth, initiation rites, and the trance curing dance.

Scott Leonard and Michael McClure. Myth & Knowing: An Introduction to World Mythology.

New York: McGraw-Hill, 2002.

C. Scott Littleton, ed. Mythology: The Illustrated Anthology of World Myth and Storytelling.

London: Duncan Baird, 2002. An extensive anthology of myths from ancient and tribal societies.

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Chapter 2: Mythology

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

In every society there are particular ways in which people perceive and interpret their reality. This is what is meant by the concept of: a. supernatural b. worldview c. culture d. sacred Answer: b

2.

The Navaho phrase to “walk in beauty” and the Euro-American phrase “Thou makest him to have dominion of the works of thy hands” point out major differences in: a. the supernatural b. subsistence activities c. worldview d. the sacred Answer: c

3.

page 30-31

The Snow White story is an example of a: a. myth b. c. legend d.

Answer: b

7.

page 30

All of the following statements about the story of Snow White are correct except: a. many of the places and objects of the story are sacred b. the story conveys a moral lesson about the evils of envy and jealousy c. there are many supernatural elements in the story d. the story contains an example of ritual cannibalism Answer: a

6.

page 30-31

In the story of Snow White, the queen's looking glass is an example of: a. magic b. divination c. witchcraft d. a worldview Answer: b

5.

page 31

An example of a supernatural element in the narrative of Snow White is: a. the queen's looking glass b. Snow White returning to life after death c. the queen eating the heart of Snow White to obtain her qualities of beauty d. all of the above Answer: d

4.

pages 29-30

folktale urban legend

page 31

An example of a legend would be: a. the voyage of the Pilgrims on the Mayflower b. the story of Little Red Riding Hood c. the story of Noah and the ark 23

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

d.

all of the above

Answer: a

8.

The story of crocodiles living in the sewers of New York City is an example of a: a. historical fact b. urban legend c. myth d. folktale Answer: b

9.

page 31

page 31

Ritual texts: a. are social charters that sets forth the organization of human relationships b. explain the origins of humans and the world c. often contain multiple versions of the same story d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 31, 37

10. Myths: a. are regarded as fact by those who accept this on faith b. include a great many sacred, supernatural elements c. take place in the past d. all of the above Answer: d

page 31

11. Myths differ from folktales in that: a. myths are recounted in ritual and folktales are not b. myths reflect the worldview and folktales do not c. myths with the supernatural and folktales do not d. all of the above Answer: a

pages 31-32

12. Which of the following is correct about oral texts? a. The recitation of oral texts is often a performance. b. The story may change with each telling. c. Different versions of the same story may exist in different places. d. all of the above Answer: d

page 32-33

13. Which of the following is true about the myth of Genesis? a. there are two separate versions of creation told b. the stories reflect a patriarchal worldview c. the text acts as a social charter d. all of the above Answer: d

page 36

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Chapter 2: Mythology

14. The evolutionary school in the nineteenth century associated myths with: a. the “primitive period” b. the transition to modern times c. full modernity d. the future Answer: a

page 39

15. Franz Boas and Bronislaw Malinowski are representative of proponents of the: a. structural analysis of myth b. psychological analysis of myth c. functional analysis of myth d. evolutionary analysis of myth Answer: c

pages 40

16. The analysis of myth in terms of binary opposites is an example of: a. functional analysis b. structural analysis c. psychoanalytic analysis d. evolutionary analysis Answer: b

pages 40-41

17. Freud described myths as: a. neuroses c. psychoanalysis Answer: b

b. d.

shared dreams psychological conflict

page 41

18. A proposed relationship between early childhood experiences and adult projection systems like myths is characteristic of which analytic approach? a. functional analysis b. structural analysis c. psychoanalytic analysis d. evolutionary analysis Answer: c

page 42

19. Jung believed that humans share inborn elements of the unconscious that are manifested in myths. He called this the: a. collective unconscious b. innate symbolism c. unconscious unified d. symbolic ancestry Answer: a

page 42

20. Archetypes are: a. myths about the end of the world b. myths about a journey to the underworld c. a main character of the collective unconscious d. a main character in a hero story Answer: c

page 42

21. The Navaho story Diné Bahanè is an example of a(n): a. origin story b. apocalyptic story c. trickster myth d. hero myth Answer: a

page 44

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

22. The Navaho Creation Story takes place: a. in a special garden similar to the Judeo-Christian Garden of Eden b. in the realm of the gods in the sky c. in a series of layers that exist underneath the present world d. in another reality Answer: c

pages 45-46

23. In the Navaho Creation Story, the Holy People appeared and explained that they wanted to create people: a. with the power of insects b. with supernatural powers c. who were giants d. with hands and feet like the Holy People Answer: d

pages 45-46

24. In the Navaho Creation Story, First Man and First Woman were created from: a. dust b. ears of corn c. insects d. nothingness Answer: b

pages 45-46

25. In the Navaho Creation Story, First Man and First Woman were created by the: a. Holy People b. Air-Spirit People c. People Who Live in Upright Houses d. sacred twins Answer: a

pages 45-46

26. In the Navaho Creation Story, life was given to the first humans by the: a. Wind b. Sun c. Mountains d. Animal People Answer: a

pages 45-46

27. An apocalypse is: a. the catastrophic destruction of the world b. the origin of the world through birth c. a god who gave is known for trickery and deceit d. a type of hero myth Answer: a

page 46

28. The Book of Revelations in the New Testament is an example of a(n): a. trickster story b. hero myth c. apocalyptic myth d. origin story Answer: c

page 47

26

Chapter 2: Mythology

29. A god who gave humans important things by accident or through deception is known as a(n): a. trickster b. hero c. deceit god d. creator god Answer: a

page 48

30. The story “Raven Steals the Light” is an example of a: a. flood story b. hero story c. trickster story d. war story Answer: c

pages 49-51

31. The story “Raven Steals the Light” tells us about the origin of the: a. earth b. sun and moon c. people d. salmon Answer: b

pages 49-51

32. The monomyth is a narrative involving: a. the creation b. an explanation of illness and death c. a culture hero d. none of the above Answer: c

page 51

33. The stories of Star Wars and Harry Potter most closely resemble: a. monomyths b. creation stories c. trickster stories d. apocalyptic stories Answer: a

pages 52-53

True/False Questions 34. The Navaho worldview suggests an exploitation of natural resources by human society.

Answer: F

page 29-30

35. The Navaho phrase “to walk in beauty” refers to the accumulation of material goods.

Answer: F

page 30

36. The story of Snow White is not a religious story because it does not involve the sacred supernatural and is not the basis of ritual.

Answer: T

pages 30-31

37. The story of crocodiles living in the sewers of New York is an example of a myth.

Answer: F

page 31

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

38. To say that something is a myth means that it is not true.

Answer: F

page 31

39. Religious texts often change through time because they are often transmitted orally or subject to new translations.

Answer: T

page 32-33

40. In Islam, God spoke to Mohammad in Arabic, and Arabic is used in ritual today.

Answer: T

page 33

41. There are two creation stories in Genesis. In one man and woman are created together; in the other man was created first and woman was created later out of man’s rib.

Answer: T

pages 34-36

42. The Golden Bough is an example of an origin story.

Answer: F

page 39

43. Claude Levi-Strauss analyzed the structure of myths and pointed out tat humans tend to categorize the world in terms of binary opposites.

Answer: T

page 40

44. Émile Durkheim used a psychoanalytic approach to the analysis of myth and focused on the impact of myth on social structure.

Answer: F

pages 41-42

45. Proponents of the psychoanalytic approach to the analysis of myth see such stories as the Oedipus story as manifestations of the collective unconscious.

Answer: T

pages 42-43

46. An example of an archetype is the hero.

Answer: T

pages 42-43

47. In the Bunhongo Creation Story, Bumba vomits up the world. This is an example of the emergence myth.

Answer: F

page 43

49. In the Navaho Creation Story, the first humans were created by the two Holy People.

Answer: F

pages 44-47

48. The Christian New Testament contains an apocalyptic myth.

Answer: T

page 47

50. In the Haida story “The Raven Steals the Light,” the Raven is an example of a trickster.

Answer: T

pages 48-51

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Chapter 2: Mythology

Essay Questions 51. What are the implications of the Navaho and the Euro-American worldviews with response to conservation? (pages 29-30) 52. Although the story of Snow White contains many supernatural elements and contains a moral lesson, it is not considered to be a religious story. Why? (pages 30-31) 53. What are the essential differences between Genesis and the Navaho Creation Story? (pages 33-36, 44-46) 54. What are some of the consequences of the oral transmission of myth compared with the written transmission of myth? (pages 32-33) 55. Discuss the Gururumba Creation Story from a structuralist point of view. (pages 40-42) 56. What was Sigmund Freud’s approach to the study of myth? (pages 41-42) 57. In what ways are trickster deities also creator deities? (page 47) 58. Give several examples of the monomyth seen in contemporary motion pictures. (pages 4748)

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Chapter Three

RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS CHAPTER OUTLINE WHAT IS A SYMBOL? Religious Symbols The Swastika The Pentagram Christian Symbols SACRED ART The Sarcophagus of Lord Pakal The Meaning of Color Yoruba Color Terminology SACRED SPACE AND SACRED TIME The Meaning of Time The Mayan View of Time Rituals and Calendars in Modern World Religions Sacred Time and Space in Australia Totemism and the Dream Time in Australia Murngin Totemism THE SYMBOLISM OF MUSIC AND DANCE The Symbolism of Music Music in Ritual The Symbolism of Dance CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 3.1 RELIGIOUS TOYS AND GAMES BOX 3.2 THE END OF TIME

CHAPTER SUMMARY A symbol is something that stands for something else. Symbols enable us to talk about things that are not immediately in front of us and to create our own realities. Three important features of all symbols are arbitrariness, openness, and displacement. Symbols are important elements in religious practice, and religious rituals center on the manipulation of symbols.

Symbols can appear in many forms. Language is symbolic in nature, because various speech sounds are used to create combinations that have meaning. Yet there is nothing of the referent that is inherent in the sound combination—its meaning is part of a cultural tradition. Recitation of religious narratives is an important feature of religious practices. Religious ideas also can be 30

Chapter 3: Religious Symbols

expressed in art that may contain many symbolic elements. Much artistic representation is arbitrary in that the nature of the symbol does not always communicate its meaning. Simple examples are the swastika, the pentagram, and the cross. Although an outsider might have difficulty understanding a piece of religious art, such as the complex symbolic content of the carving on the sarcophagus cover in Palenque, Mexico, a member of that culture would have no such difficulty. Color is an important aspect of artistic representation. The number of basic color terms varies from one language to another, with 11 in English and only 3 in Yoruba.

Symbolic representations extend to time and space. Time is categorized into cultural significant units that are organized into a calendrical system. One function of calendars is to schedule periodic rituals. Space is also culturally organized, and units of space are set aside as sacred space. This is illustrated by the concepts of totemism and the Dream Time in Australian Aborigine societies.

Music and dance are also symbolic and are important elements in religious ritual. Musical elements suggest emotions and have symbolic meanings. What is considered to be religious music in one community might not be in another. Dance, composed of music, movement, costume and masks, props and sets, is often used of tell religious stories in societies where such stories are not written down. All of these elements—language, art, music, and dance—interact to provide rich religious experiences.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 3 the student should be able to: • Explain what a symbol is.

• Explain the role played by religious symbols in religious practice.

• Identify and explain the meaning of the swastika, pentagram, and cross.

• Identify and explain the importance of the symbolism contained in the sarcophagus of Lord Pakal.

• Describe the symbolic meaning of color, using the Yoruba as an example.

• Describe the symbolic nature of time, including examples.

• Describe the system of totemism and its association with sacred time and space in Australia.

• Explain how dance and music are used in religious rituals, including examples.

• Explain the connection between symbol, myth, and worldview.

GLOSSARY Acrostic: A word that is derived from the first letter of a series of words. (p. 61) Aerophone: A musical instrument in which air is blown across or into some type of passageway, such as a pipe; includes whistles and flutes. (p. 72) Arbitrary: A feature of symbols. The relationship between a symbol and the thing it symbolizes is not related to the thing it symbolizes. (p. 57) 31

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Cordophone: A musical instrument with taut strings that can be plucked or strummed, hit, or sawed such as a harp and violin. (p. 72) Cross: An upright pole with a transverse piece in the middle or near the top. Used for executions by the Romans; now a symbol for the Christian religion. (p. 60) Displacement: The ability to use symbols to refer to things and activities that are remote from the user. (p. 57) Idiophone: A musical instrument that is struck, shaken, or rubbed such as a rattle and bell. (p.

72) Kiva: A ceremonial chamber, often built underground, that is common found among Native American societies in the American Southwest. (p. 73) Membranophone: A musical instrument that incorporates a taut membrane or skin such as a drum. (p. 72) Openness: A feature of symbols; the ability to create new symbols. (p. 57) Pentacle: A five-pointed star. (p. 59) Pentagram: A five-sided figure. (p. 59) Periodic ritual: A ritual that is performed on a regular basis as part of a religious calendar. (p.

66) Psychoduct: A pipe or tube that connects a tomb to a temple through which the spirit of the deceased may travel into the temple. (p. 64) Swastika: A symbol formed by two lines crossing at right angles with their ends bent at right angles in a clockwise or counterclockwise position. (p. 58) Symbol: A shared understanding about the meaning of certain words, attributes, or objects; something that stands for something else. (pp. 56-57) Syncretism: A fusing of traits from two cultures to form something new and yet permitting the retention of the old by subsuming the old into a new form. (p. 71) Totem: A symbol or emblem that stands for a social unit. (p. 68) Totemism: A religious system that assigns different plant and animal species to specific social groups and postulates a relationship between the group and the species formed during the period of creation. (p. 68)

DISCUSSION TOPICS •

• •

Problems may arise when different groups have different associated meanings with the same symbol. For example, Wiccan high school students are often prohibited from wearing the swastika symbol to school. What do you think should be done in these situations?

Should an individual be allowed to wear a symbol that might offend others who mistake its meaning?

What are the purposes of religious toys and games? Can they be analyzed in the same way as more traditional religious objects? Why or why not?

What are the symbolic uses of time and space on your campus?

32

Chapter 3: Religious Symbols

• •

Most colleges and universities and professional athletic teams are represented by mascots. Is there a relationship between the characteristics of the mascot and the particular institution? What roles do mascots play in American culture?

What role does music play in American culture? In what settings and for what purposes is music used?

STUDENT PROJECTS • • • • • •

Collect several logos and trademarks. Explain how they express a particular idea, emotion, or worldview.

Collect several bumper stickers that express religious ideas. Explain how they are used.

Visit a toy store and find examples of religious toys and games. Analyze one of these toys or games.

Play a religious board game such as Missionary Conquest. What do you learn about the worldview of the associated religion through playing the game?

Pick a religious symbol and explain its meanings, any myth it is associated with, and worldview it expresses.

Interview someone who is an active participant in a religion about his or her activities on a particular day that is set aside as special in his or her religion. For example, discuss the activities and rules of the Sabbath with an Orthodox Jew.

VIDEOS Australia: Dreamtime. Insight Media. 1997, 25 min.

Examines the Anangu and Tiwi aboriginal tribes in Australia and their view of the landscape as an embodiment of their creation myths.

Civil Religion. Insight Media. 1999, 60 min.

Looks at the myths, symbols, and holidays of civil religion in America.

A Dance the Gods Yearn to Witness. Filmakers Library. 27 min.

Introduces a classical Hindu dance form, Bharata Natyam. The origin of the dance in ancient Sanskrit texts is discussed.

Female Circumcision: Human Rites. Films for the Humanities. 40 min.

Explores issue of female circumcision; includes graphic scenes of an actual circumcision.

Kalachakra: The Wheel of Time. Mystic Fire Video. 1993, 30 min.

The construction of a Tibetan sand mandala at a museum in Ireland.

Return of the Tribal. Films for the Humanities. 50 min.

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Looks at body modification in places such as Sri Lanka, Ethiopia and the United States.

Sacred Spaces. Insight Media. 2003, 25 min.

Looks at the religious influence on the space and architecture of a city.

The Spirit of the Mask. University of California Extension. 1992, 50 min.

Explores the role of masks in Native American and other cultures.

Tatau: What One Must Do. University of California Extension. 1997, 27 min.

A look at the ancient art of Samoan tattooing, including its traditional use in Samoan culture and its current renaissance.

WEB SITES http://symbols.net A comprehensive listing of web sites that deal with symbols in various contexts including religion. www.pauahtun.org/Calendar An introduction to the Mayan calendar. www.asmat.org The American Museum of Asmat Art. www.lib.washington.edu/music/world.html#native A list of web sites on ethnomusicology, folk music and world music from the University of Washington. http://home.att.net/~wegast/symbols/symbols.htm Symbols in Christian Art and Architecture. www.folkways.si.edu Smithsonian Folkways, a catalog of ethnic music.

MUSIC SOURCES This chapter includes a section on the symbolism of music. The best source of recordings to use in class is Smithsonian Folkways at www.folkways.si.edu.

YouTube contains a number of videos that show performances of ethnic music. Here is a small selection available at time this manual was written.

San music Tuva throat singing Drum ensemble (Benin) The kobyz Haitian vodou music

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0a6gShIToSQ&feature=related www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTCJ5hedcVA www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCv03EolhMQ www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJY7T87p3tU&feature=related www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVeTtoqmGNU 34

Chapter 3: Religious Symbols

Other useful sites are: Didgeridoos: Sounds of the Aborigine www.yirrkala.com/yidaki/dhawu/ The Tahitian Choir www.onpointradio.org/2004/04/the-tahitian-choir-rapa-iti

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Norine Dresser. Multicultural Celebrations. New York: Three Rivers Press, 1999. This is a practical book on the appropriate etiquette for celebrations in various ethnic traditions in the United States, useful in our multicultural society.

Carl G. Liungman. Dictionary of Symbols. New York: Norton, 1991. This is one of several compilations of symbols that are useful reference tools.

Gananath Obeyesekere. Medusa’s Hair: An Essay of Personal Symbols and Religious Experience. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1981. A psychological anthropologist examines the use of symbols by Sri Lankan ascetics.

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

Objects and actions whose meanings are arbitrary and conventional are known as: a. values b. symbols c. constraints d. worldviews Answer: b

2.

An example of a symbol is: a. black as the color of mourning b. the swastika woven into Navaho rugs c. the American flag d. all of the above Answer: d

3.

page 57

pages 57-58

Displacement is a characteristic of symbols. This term refers to the fact that a symbol: a. can be used to discuss things remote from the speaker in space and time b. does not have any direct relationship to the thing it symbolizes c. can be created at will d. none of the above Answer: a

page 57

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

4.

The ability to create new symbols is termed: a. arbitrariness b. openness c. displacement d. none of the above Answer: b

page 57

5.

An isolated, remote village in the highlands of New Guinea sees an airplane for the first time and creates a word to refer to it. This illustrates the fact that symbols, in this case the new word of an airplane, are: a. arbitrary b. open c. subjective d. creative Answer: b page 57

6.

The appearance of the swastika in a Navaho weaving tells us that: a. the swastika is a universal symbol found in all human societies b. early Germanic and Norse peoples settled the American Southwest in prehistoric times c. the swastika is a symbol that is found in many cultures and has many meanings d. the Navaho were engaged in trade with Germany prior to World War II Answer: c

7.

The swastika represents: a. Nazi Germany c. the feet of Buddha Answer: d

8.

b. d.

the Navaho whirling log all of the above

pages 58-59

The pentagram has been used to symbolize: a. the Church of Satan b. Wicca c. the witch’s foot d. all of the above Answer: d

9.

pages 58-59

page 59

A five-pointed star is a symbol that is called a: a. pentacle b. pentaquile c. sauvastika d. acrostic Answer: a

page 60

10. An early Christian symbol that predates the cross is the: a. swastika b. pentagram c. fish d. triangle within a circle Answer: c

pages 60-61

11. Lord Pakal ruled what is now called the site of Palenque. Palenque was built by the ancient: a. Egyptians b. Incas c. Mayas d. Aztecs Answer: c

page 62

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Chapter 3: Religious Symbols

12. Lord Pakal, a Mayan ruler of Palenque, ruled in the: a. fifth century b. seventh century c. thirteenth century d. eighteenth century Answer: b

page 62

13. On the sarcophagus cover in which Lord Pakal was entombed we see the image of Lord Pakal: a. riding into battle on an elephant b. at the moment of death falling into the jaws of the Otherworld c. sitting upon his throne d. killing an enemy king in battle Answer: b

pages 62-64

14. The background of the sarcophagus cover at Palenque depicts the: a. trials of the Otherworld b. Cosmic Tree c. founding of Palenque d. life of the king Answer: b

pages 62-64

15. Which of the following statements is true? a. The symbolic nature of color is universal; white is worn by brides in all societies. b. All societies recognize the same basic color categories. c. Different colors are associated with different emotional states. d. All of the above statements are true.

Answer: d

page 64

16. While English users distinguish 11 primary colors, the number of color terms found in the Yoruba language is: a. 3 b. 7 c. 10 d. 14 Answer: a

page 65

17. Differences in numbers of primary color terms in English and in Yoruba suggest that: a. color terminology is determined by culture b. the Yoruba language is more primitive than English c. the Yoruba have a high frequency of color blindness d. people in tropical areas see fewer colors Answer: a

page 65

18. Among the Yoruba, the orisha are distinguished by several symbols including color. The orisha are: a. a series of shrines b. military regiments representing certain villages c. spiritual beings d. the many Yoruba chiefs Answer: c

page 65

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

19. Units of time that are not based upon astronomical movements include the: a. week b. day c. year d. month Answer: a

page 65

20. The Mayan calendar, which consists of a solar year of 365 days operating concurrently with a year of 260 days. When both calendars run, they return to the same combinations every ____ years, an important event in the Mayan calendar. a. 12 b. 26 c. 52 d. 72 Answer: c

page 66

21. Rituals that are performed according to a set temporal cycle are called: a. periodic rituals b. calendrical rituals c. time sensitive rituals d. annual rituals Answer: a

page 66

22. Christian groups descended from the Millerism movement of the early Nineteenth Century believed that: a. life on earth was created by extraterrestrial aliens b. people die and are reborn in other people or animals c. after death people travel to a special place and become gods d. the world as we know it will come to an end at some date in the future Answer: d

page 67

23. The Islamic calendar is: a. lunar c. seasonal Answer: a

b. d.

solar a 260 day cycle

page 67

24. The calendar that is used for secular purposes in the industrial world today is the: a. Julian calendar b. Gregorian calendar c. Hebrew calendar d. Islamic calendar Answer: b page 68 25. Aspects of Australian totemic beliefs include: a. a prohibition against eating one's totem b. a time called “The Dream Time” during which totemic creatures roamed the earth c. a kinship between people and their totem d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 68-70

26. Totemic narratives among the Australian aborigines describe journeys taken by totemic creatures in the past. On these journeys the creatures: 38

Chapter 3: Religious Symbols

a. b. c. d.

created by naming the plants and animals produced geological features including water holes through their behavior established customs that characterize contemporary Australian culture all of the above

Answer: d

pages 68-70

27. According to the Murngin of Australian, after death a person’s spirit will: a. travel to the land of the dead across the sea b. return to the ancestral clan water hole c. remain for a time in the land of the living as a ghost d. disappear forever Answer: b

page 70

28. Music in religious ritual functions to: a. set a religious mood for the ritual b. symbolically represent knowledge from the religious texts c. facilitate the memorization and recitation of religious texts d. all of the above Answer: d

page 71

29. A shell trumpet and a flute are examples of a(n): a. cordophone b. aerophone c. idiophone d. membranophone Answer: b

page 72

30. An example of a membranophone is a: a. flute b. c. drum d.

Answer: c

page 72

31. Symbolic elements of dance include: a. movement c. paraphernalia Answer: d

rattle violin

b. d.

costume all of the above

pages 72-73

True/False Questions 32. A symbol can be a physical thing, a sound, or a dance step.

Answer: T

page 57

33. The assignment of meaning to a symbol is always based upon what the symbol looks like or sounds like.

39

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Answer: F

page 57

34. Symbols are arbitrary, that is, new symbols can be created when necessary.

Answer: F

page 57

35. In a Buddhist temple the swastika stands for evil.

Answer: F

pages 58-59

36. A symbol associated with the Church of Satan and Wicca is the pentagram.

Answer: T

page 59

37. The cross was an early symbol of Christianity and appears in First Century Christian art.

Answer: F

page 60

38. Lord Pakal died and was entombed in the Temple of the Inscriptions in Palenque on August 31, 1123 B.C. Answer: F

page 62

39. The image of Lord Pakel on the carving in Temple of the Inscriptions is evidence of contact by astronauts from other worlds.

Answer: F

pages 62-64

40. The psychoduct found in Lord Pakal’s tomb connected the tomb to the temple on top of the pyramid.

Answer: T

page 64

41. All languages have a similar set of basic color terms in terms of number and meaning.

Answer: F

page 64

42. Different Yoruba deities, or orisha, can be identified, in part, by the colors used in their representations.

Answer: T

page 65

43. The unit of time we call a week is an arbitrary unit. The number of days that make up a week varies among the world’s societies.

Answer: T

pages 65-66

44. The ancient Maya used several calendar cycles simultaneously. There were two main cycles, one of 365 days and one of 185 days.

Answer: F

page 66

45. Calendars are important in many religious for the scheduling of periodic rituals.

Answer: T

page 66

40

Chapter 3: Religious Symbols

46. The Islamic calendar is a solar calendar.

Answer: F

page 67

47. A totem is symbol that is associated with a particular social group.

Answer: T

pages 68-69

48. Among the Australian Aborigines, increase rituals are rituals designed to increase one’s personal wealth.

Answer: F

pages 69-70

49. Among the Murngin of Australia, the ancestors and totemic spirits lived in a sacred water hole.

Answer: T

page 70

50. Types of music, such as religious music, evoke the same emotions in all societies.

Answer: F

page 71

Essay Questions 51. Symbols play extremely important roles in marketing and advertising. Describe what a symbol is using commercial symbols as examples. (pages 56-57) 52. How do religious toys and games express the worldview of that religion? (page 61) 53. What is an acrostic? Give an example. (page 61) 54. As seen in the carving on Lord Pakal’s sarcophagus, what is the Mayan universe like? (pages 62-64) 55. The number of basic color terms found in various languages ranges from 2 to 11. Is any particular number more logical or accurate than another? Why? Why not? (pages 64-65) 56. Use the structuring of time to illustrate the concept that culture creates realities. (pages 6566) 57. What are the Murngin totemic beliefs about birth and death? (page 70) 58. How is music used in religious rituals? Compare this with the use of music in movies. (pages 71-72) 59. What is the connection between worldview, myth and symbol? Discuss using a specific cultural example. (page 73-74) 41

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Chapter Four

RITUAL CHAPTER OUTLINE THE BASICS OF RITUAL PERFORMANCE Prescriptive and Situational Rituals Periodic and Occasional Rituals A Classification of Rituals A SURVEY OF RITUALS Technological Rituals Hunting and Gathering Rites of Intensification Protective Rituals Social Rites of Intensification Offerings and Sacrifices Human Sacrifice Therapy Rituals and Healing The Navaho Anti-Therapy Rituals Salvation Rituals Revitalization Rituals Rites of Passage The Structure of a Rite of Passage Coming-of-Age Rituals Transition and Liminality Apache Rite of Passage U.S. Secular Rites of Passage Alterations of the Human Body Tattooing and Other Permanent Alterations Genital Cutting Pilgrimages The Huichol Pilgrimage RELIGIOUS OBLIGATIONS Tabu Mana and Tabu in Polynesia Jewish Food Laws CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 4.1 THE HAJJ BOX 4.2 MENSTRUAL TABUS 42

Chapter 4: Ritual

CHAPTER SUMMARY A religious ritual is a standardized, repetitive sequence of activities that involves the manipulation of religious symbols such as prayers, offerings, and readings of sacred literature. Rituals are often based on and are sanctioned in myths that articulate the underlying worldview of a culture, and these tenets are embedded in the rituals that are performed by a society. Prescriptive rituals are ones that are required to be performed by some religious authority; situational rituals are performed because of a particular need of an individual or a community. Periodic rituals are performed as part of a religious calendar; occasional rituals are performed when a particular need arises.

There are many types of rituals. Technological rituals attempt to influence or control nature.

They include hunting and gathering rites of intensification that influence nature in the quest for food, protective rituals that serve to protect individuals in some dangerous or unpredictable activity, and divination rituals. Social rites of intensification serve to maintain the normal functioning of a community by reinforcing the worldview and moral rules of the society. These rituals frequency include offerings and sacrifices.

Therapy rituals are healing rituals; anti-therapy rituals are performed to bring about illness and death. Therapy rituals are quite varied because of the various causes of illness. They may include removal of objects from the body, exorcism, soul retrieval, and so forth.

Rites of passage mark an individual’s movement from one status to another. They include birth, coming-of-age, marriage, and death rituals as well as many secular rituals such as graduations and inaugurations. Three phases can usually be identified within a rite of passage: separation, transition, and incorporation. Rites of passage are frequently associated with alterations of the body, including genital cutting.

A journey to a sacred place for the purpose of performing rituals, or a journey on which a series of sacred places are visited and rituals performed, are examples of pilgrimages. In addition there are many small rituals and obligations that are demanded of adherents of particular religions. This includes the concept of tabu. Things that are tabu are separated from the society and are often considered to be sacred.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 4 the student should be able to: • Contrast prescriptive and situational rituals, and periodic and occasional rituals.

• Identify the different types of rituals in Wallace’s classification.

• Describe at least one ritual that exemplifies each type of ritual.

• Describe the structure of a rite of passage.

• Explain the concept of liminality.

• Explain why body modification is a common element of a rite of passage.

• Explain the concept of religious obligations, illustrating the idea with the examples from Polynesia (tabu) and Jewish food laws.

43

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

•

Explain the importance of rituals in the domain of religion, including how they relate to the previously discussed concepts of worldview, myth and symbol.

GLOSSARY Age grade: A series of consecutive statuses defined by age. (p. 90) Age set: A social group that contains members of one sex within a specific age span. (pp. 89-90) Anti-therapy ritual: A ritual that is performed to bring about illness, accident, or death. (pp. 8586) Calendrical ritual: A ritual that is performed on a regular basis as part of a religious calendar. (p. 78) Cicatrization: Scar formation at the site of a cut or wound. (p. 92) Circumcision: A surgical procedure during which the foreskin is removed from the penis. (p.

87) Clitoridectomy: A surgical procedure characterized by removal of the clitoris as well as parts or all of the labia minora. (p. 93) Communitas: A state characterized by a sense of equality, community and camaraderie. (p. 89) Crisis ritual: A ritual that arises spontaneously, frequently in times of crisis. (p. 78) Cursing ritual: An anti-therapy ritual that involves reciting a curse to bring about illness and death. (p. 86) Divination ritual: A ritual that is used for the purpose of divination. (p. 82) Ethnobotany: The anthropological study of the use of plant material, especially in healing. (p.

84) Hunting and gathering rites of intensification: A ritual whose purpose is to influence nature in the quest for food. (p. 80) Ideological ritual: A ritual that delineates codes of proper behavior, promotes community solidarity, articulates the community’s worldview, and assists the community in managing crises. (p. 82) Incorporation: The final stage of a rite of passage in which the individual is reintroduced to the community in his or her new status. (p. 88) Infibulation: Form of female genital cutting including excision of the clitoris, labia minora, and mot of the labia majora. (p. 93) Liminality: The state of ambiguous marginality that characterizes the transition phase of a rite of passage. (p. 89) Mana: An impersonal supernatural force. (p. 98) Menarche: A young woman’s first menstruation. (p. 88) Occasional ritual: A ritual that is performed when a particular need arises. (p. 78) Offering: An economic exchange designed to influence the supernatural. (p. 83) Periodic ritual: A ritual that is performed on a regular basis as part of a religious calendar. (p.

78)

44

Chapter 4: Ritual

Pharaonic infibulation: A surgical procedure performed on women that involves the complete removal of the clitoris and the labia minora and majora, the two sides of the wound then being stitched together, leaving a small opening. (p. 93) Pilgrimage: A journey to a sacred place or a sequence of sacred spaces at which rituals are performed. (p. 94) Prescriptive ritual: A ritual that a deity or religious authority requires to be performed. (p. 78) Protective ritual: A ritual that is performed at the start of or during a dangerous activity to protect the participants or to protect the community against disaster. (pp. 81-82) Rank: The relative placement of a status in the society. (p. 87) Religious ritual: A ritual that involves the manipulation of religious symbols. (p. 77) Revitalization ritual: A ritual that is associated with a revitalization movement. (pp. 86-87) Rite of passage: A ritual that occurs when an individual changes status, serving to legitimize the new status and to imprint it on the community’s collective memory. (p. 87) Ritual: A patterned, reoccurring sequence of behaviors. (p. 77) Sacrifice: A gift designed to influence the supernatural in which an animal is killed. (p. 83) Salvation ritual: Ritual in which an individual is changed in some way, temporarily or permanently. (pp. 86-87) Separation: The first phase of a rite of passage in which an individual is removed from his or her former status. (p. 88) Situational ritual: A ritual that arises spontaneously, frequently in times of crisis. (p. 78) Social rite of intensification: A type of ideological ritual that functions to reinforce the belief system and the values of the society, performed as a periodic ritual or an occasional ritual in times of stress. (p. 82) Status: A social position that is defined in terms of appropriate behavior, rights and obligations, and its relationship to other statuses. (p. 87) Subincision: Form of genital cutting where the underside of the penis is cut and the urethra slit open. (p. 93) Tabu: Objects and persons that are off limits and are thereby segregated. May also refer to certain behaviors that would bring about negative consequences through supernatural means. (p. 97) Technological ritual: A ritual that attempts to influence or control nature, especially in those situations that affect human activities and well being. (p. 80) Therapy ritual: A ritual whose function is to cure. (p. 84) Transition: The second phase of a rite of passage during which a person is in a liminal state and is moved from one status to another. (p. 88)

DISCUSSION TOPICS • • •

What is a ritual? Why are rituals such an important component of religion?

What rituals are performed at your school? How would you classify these rituals?

What ritual activities followed the September 11, 2001 tragedy? How would we classify these rituals? What purpose did they serve?

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

• •

• • • •

Why are therapy and anti-therapy rituals so effective?

At what point is a person considered an adult in U.S. culture? How do you know when you are an adult? What does it mean to be an adult? Are there clearly defined roles for adult men and women in our culture? Are there any difficulties associated with the lack of formal rites of passage?

In addition to rituals, in what other ways does religion direct or constrain our behavior?

In what ways do these influence our ability to interact with members of a different religious group?

What is the significance of a pilgrimage? Is there any where in the U.S. that you are familiar with that is a site for pilgrimages? Can you think of any non-religious sites to which people make pilgrimages?

Have you ever personally gone on a journey that you would identify as a pilgrimage?

What significance did it have for you?

Are there tabus in American society? If so, what are they? Do we have menstrual tabus?

STUDENT PROJECT •

See ritual observation assignment in Appendix One.

VIDEOS Altar of Fire. University of California Extension. 1976, 45 min.

Documentary showing the Agnicayana, a Vedic sacrifice to Agni, god of fire, that took place in a village in southwestern India.

Becoming a Woman in Okrika. Filmakers Library. 27 min.

A rite of passage for young women in a rural village on the Niger Delta. Looks at the conflicts the women face between traditions and the values of the modern world.

Between Two Worlds: A Japanese Pilgrimage. University of California Extension. 1994, 30 min.

Documentary about the “Pilgrimage to the 88 Sacred Places of Shikoku”, a journey which is believed to have first been done by the founder of Buddhism’s Shingon sect in the ninth century.

The Catholic Mass. Insight Media. 1993, 26 min.

Discusses the ritual of the Catholic mass, including the symbolism and role of the priest.

Darkness into Light: Semana Santa, San Miguel. University of California Extension. 1997, 56 min. Explores the ritual events involved in Easter week in San Miguel de Allende, a colonial town in central Mexico.

46

Chapter 4: Ritual

Days of Awe. Filmakers Library. 43 min.

A look at the Jewish High Holidays as observed by Orthodox Jews in New York.

The Eleven Powers (Bali). Filmakers Library. 48 min.

Records the Eka Dasa Rudra, or Festival of 11 Powers, held in Bali by order of the high priests in order to restore the balance between good and evil in the universe.

Guardians of the Flutes: The Secrets of Male Initiation. Filmakers Library. 55 min.

Male rites of passage among the Sambia of New Guinea.

Huichol Sacred Pilgrimage to Wirikuta. University of California Extension. 1991, 29 min.

Follows the annual peyote pilgrimage of the Huichol of western Mexico.

Kinaalda: Navajo Rite of Passage. Women Make Movies. 2000, 56 min.

The Kinaalda is a four-day rite of passage for young girls.

L.A. Mohel. Filmakers Library. 30 min.

Looks at three mohels (Jewish ritual circumcisers) in Los Angeles.

Monday’s Girls. Women Make Movies. 1993, 50 min.

Focuses on two young Nigerian women going through a traditional rite of passage.

Ndebele Women: The Rituals of Rebellion. Filmakers Library. 52 min.

Shows the rituals and art of the Ndebele.

Processione: A Sicilian Easter. University of California Extension. 1989, 28 min.

A ritual procession in Sicily representing the stations of the cross. Focuses on the psychology of ritual.

Purity. Women Make Movies, 2002, 63 min.

Examines the laws and rituals that shape women’s life and sexuality within Jewish Orthodoxy.

Seven Days and Seven Nights. Filmakers Library. 58 min.

A healing ritual among the Lebou of Senegal for a woman suffering from postpartum depression.

Voices of the Orishas. University of California Extension. 1994, 37 min.

Filmed in Havana, the film shows a Santeria ritual in which the deities, or Orishas, are invoked.

The ceremony re-creates an important Yoruba myth.

WEB SITES tahtonka.com/religion.html Indian Nations arts, humanities and culture.

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

www.ummah.net/hajj/rituals How to perform the rituals of Hajj and Umrah. www.oukosher,org/ Kosher laws. www.pbs.org/muhammad/virtualhajj.shtml A virtual Hajj. http://www.anthro4n6.net/navajosandpainting/index.html Navaho healing rituals and sand painting. www.youtube.com/watch?v=5B3Abpv0ysM Video clip on Apache initiation ritual.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Alan Dundes. The Shabbat Elevator and Other Sabbath Subtrefuges: An Unorthodox Essay on Circumventing Custom and Jewish Character. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2002. A delightful little book that describes how a people deal with religious obligations.

Mark J. Plotkin, Tales of a Shaman’s Apprentice. New York: Viking, 1993. The story of an ethnobotanist’s search for new medicines in the Amazon.

Tepilit Ole Saitoti, The Worlds of a Maasai Warrior. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1986. An autobiography of a Maasai from Tanzania.

Marjorie Shostak, Nisa: The Life and Words of a !Kung Woman. New York: Random House, 1981. The story of the life of a !Kung woman from the Kalahari Desert of southern Africa told both in her own words and the words of the author.

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

A patterned act that involves the manipulation of religious objects is termed a: a. spell b. ritual c. sacrifice d. prayer Answer: b

2.

page 77

A prescriptive ritual that one that is: a. performed because of the will or desire of a deity b. associated with critical events in the life of an individual c. involved with an altered state of consciousness d. celebrated on a ritual calendar Answer: a

page 78

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Chapter 4: Ritual

3.

The Soyal Ceremony of the Hopi of Arizona begins on the winter solstice and marks the beginning of the Hopi ceremonial cycle. This ceremony is: a. prescriptive and periodic b. situational and occasional c. prescriptive and occasional d. occasional and periodic Answer: a

4.

Examples of prescribed, periodic rituals include all of the following except: a. Diwali b. Quinceañeras c. Passover d. Ramadan Answer: b

5.

page 81

Protective rituals are often found in situations: a. involving soul loss b. that involve the quest for food c. that are dangerous and unpredictable d. that involve a person’s change in status Answer: c

9.

page 80

When an Inuit hunter kills a seal, fresh water is placed in the mouth of the seal. This is an example of a: a. hunting & gathering rite of intensification b. rite of passage c. therapeutic ritual d. revitalization ritual Answer: a

8.

pages 78-79

A technological ritual is one that is involved with: a. controlling an aspect of nature such as bringing rain b. moving people into new social categories or statuses c. curing illness and death d. causing the death of an individual Answer: a

7.

pages 78-79

A periodic ritual is one that is: a. performed because of the will or desire of a deity b. associated with critical events in the life of an individual c. celebrated on a ritual calendar d. involved with an altered state of consciousness Answer: c

6.

page 78

pages 81-82

Yoruba taxi cab drivers will sacrifice an animal to the god Ogun. This is an example of a: a. hunting & gathering rite of intensification b. protective ritual c. therapeutic ritual 49

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

d.

rite of passage

Answer: b

page 82

10. Ideological rituals include: a. hunting & gathering rites of intensification b. therapy rituals c. social rites of intensification d. salvation rituals Answer: c

page 82

11. Rituals that reinforce community standards of behavior and community cohesiveness are: a. rites of passage b. social rites of intensification c. revitalization rituals d. salvation rituals Answer: b

pages 82-83

12. A regular Sunday morning Christian service would be classified primarily as a: a. rites of passage b. social rites of intensification c. revitalization rituals d. salvation rituals Answer: b

pages 82-83

13. An offering is: a. an economic exchange designed to influence the supernatural b. the destruction of something of value c. the killing of an animal d. all of the above Answer: a

page 83

14. The purpose of Aztec human sacrifice was based on the worldview that: a. only human flesh could adequately feed the royal family b. to avoid the end of the life of the Sun, it had to fed blood c. sacrificed humans buried in the fields would ensure a good harvest d. all of the above Answer: b page 83-84 15. Religiously based causes of illness include: a. soul loss b. witchcraft c. spirit intrusion d. all of the above Answer: d

page 84

16. The anthropological study of medicinal plants is part of: a. ethnobotany b. ethnomusicology c. anthrobotany d. arboretumology Answer: a

page 84

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Chapter 4: Ritual

17. The Navaho “Blessing Way” is performed, in part, to reestablish harmony with the universe so that an ill person might be cured of the illness. This is an example of a(n): a. technological ritual b. ideological ritual c. therapy ritual d. revitalization ritual Answer: c

page 85

18. Navaho healing rituals commonly include: a. creating a sand painting b. taking hallucinogenic drugs c. spirit possession d. sacrificing sheep Answer: a

page 85

19. A ritual brings about illness, accident or death is called a(n): a. therapy ritual b. anti-therapy ritual c. antisocial ritual d. devitalization ritual Answer: b

page 85

20. A ritual that focuses on the religious experience of the individual, such as possession, is called a(n): a. salvation ritual b. ideological ritual c. therapy ritual d. revitalization ritual Answer: a

page 86

21. Rituals that mark an individual's changing statuses as he or she moves through life's various stages are called: a. rites of passage b. puberty rituals c. stage ceremonies d. change of life ceremonies Answer: a

page 87

22. Among the !Kung San of southern Africa the marriage ceremony involves the mock forcible carrying off of the bride from her parent’s hut to a specially built marriage hut and the anointing of the bride with special oils and aromatic powders. This ritual can be classified as a: a. therapeutic ritual b. rite of intensification c. rite of passage d. technological ritual Answer: c

page 87

23. Examples of rites of passage in American society would not include a: a. wedding ceremony b. funeral c. high school graduation d. Easter sunrise service Answer: d

page 87

24. All of the following are phases of a rite of passage except: a. transition b. separation c. peripheralization d. incorporation 51

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Answer: c

page 88

25. A wedding is an example of a rite of passage. The celebration or party following the religious or secular wedding ceremony is an example of that phase of a rite of passage known as: a. transition b. separation c. peripheralization d. incorporation Answer: d

pages 88-89

26. When a Yanomamö girl begins to menstruate for the first time, she is isolated in a small room built alone one side of the house. During the time of isolation, she must speak in whispers, not scratch herself, and is taught who to behave as a mature woman. The phase of a rite of passage is known as: a. transition b. separation c. peripheralization d. incorporation Answer: a

pages 88-89

27. Liminality refers to a set of features that characterize a person in which phase of a rite of passage: a. transition b. separation c. peripheralization d. incorporation Answer: a

page 89

28. A characteristic of the state of liminality is: a. sexual continence b. sacredness c. absence of rank d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 89-90

29. The rite of passage that revolves around the White Painted Woman is found among the: a. Yanomamö b. Apache c. Gururumba d. Haida Answer: b

pages 90-91

30. An example of a secular (nonreligious) rite of passage would be a: a. graduation ceremony b. fraternity initiation c. presidential inauguration d. all of the above Answer: d

page 91

31. Physical alterations of the human body function to: a. separate humans from nonhuman animals b. identify particular affiliations with certain groups c. mark completion of some type of ritual, including initiation rituals d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 91-92

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Chapter 4: Ritual

32. Types of modifications of the human body seen in human societies include: a. modifying the shape of the skull by wrapping the child’s skull with cord b. piercing a part of the body, such as lips or earlobes, and stretching the separated part c. cutting the foot and bending the foot back and binding it to create a very small foot d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 92-93

33. Closely related to tattooing is scaring. Scarification is known as: a. corseting b. cicatrization c. infibulation d. nullification Answer: b

page 92

34. Infibulation means: a. scarring c. tattooing Answer: b

b. d.

piercing stretching

pages 93-94

35. Examples of genital cutting performed on males include all of the following except: a. circumcision b. subincision c. infibulations d. none of the above; all are practiced on males Answer: c

page 93

36. Examples of pilgrimages includes the: a. Islamic hajj b. Catholic journey to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe c. Huichol journey to Wirikuta d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 94-97

37. Among the Huichol the peyote cactus is thought to be the: a. bride of the devil b. sacrifice of the creator god c. footprint of the sacred deer d. food of the sun god Answer: c

pages 96-97

38. The Huichol journey: a. reenacts the journey of the Ancient Ones b. involves each person assuming the identify of a god c. includes the eating of peyote which enables the Huichol to see what the gods see d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 96-97

39. The term tabu refers to: a. objects and persons that are sacred b. objects and persons who possess potentially dangerous supernatural power 53

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

c. d.

inappropriate modes of behavior all of the above

Answer: d

page 97

40. Mana can be thought of as: a. impersonal supernatural power c. a technique for divination Answer: a

b. d.

food provide by the gods an hallucinogenic cactus

page 98

41. Jewish food prohibitions are: a. based solely on health and nutrition concerns b. prescriptive and spelled out in the Torah c. concerned only with the prohibition on eating pork d. all of the above Answer: b

page 98

True/False Questions 42. The commandant to remember the Sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments. Sabbath rituals are therefore prescribed rituals.

Answer: T

page 78

43. Examples of ideological rituals include therapy and salvation rituals.

Answer: F

page 79

44. The first-fruit ceremonies of the Cahuilla of the California desert are an example of both a technological ritual and a hunting and gathering rite of intensification.

Answer: T

page 80

45. Generally speaking protective rituals tend to be performed in situations that are dangerous and unpredictable.

Answer: T

pages 81-82

46. Reciprocity between humans and gods is often part of the worldview that underlies sacrifices and offerings.

Answer: T

page 83

47. The essential difference between a sacrifice and an offering is that a sacrifice is of a human and an offering is of an animal.

Answer: F

page 83

48. Exorcism is used primarily for the cure of witchcraft.

Answer: F

page 84

54

Chapter 4: Ritual

49. Sand paintings are an important element in Navaho therapy rituals.

Answer: T

page 85

50. Revitalization rituals are the same thing as healing rituals.

Answer: F

pages 86-87

51. Bar mitzvahs and quinceañeras are examples of social rites of intensification.

Answer: F

page 87

52. In the Zulu male puberty ceremony the boy is taken to the river and bathed. His old cloths are destroyed and he puts on new clothes and is presented to the community. This phase of a rite of passage is known as separation.

Answer: F

page 88

53. Distinctions of rank and care for personal appearance are two of many characteristics of liminality.

Answer: F

pages 89-90

54. Pharanoic circumcision is a type of genital alteration performed on females in many societies in North and East Africa.

Answer: T

page 93

55. The hajj is a pilgrimage that is a central part of the Islamic religion.

Answer: T

page 96

56. Alcohol is used by the Huichol to achieve an altered state of consciousness during their pilgrimage.

Answer: F page 97 57. In many societies there are religious obligations that often take the form of ritual, such as saying grace before each meal.

Answer: T

page 97

58. Many societies have prohibitions against eating particular foods. An example would be kashrut, the Jewish laws regarding what foods can and cannot be eaten and how they must be prepared.

Answer: T

pages 98-99

Essay Questions 59. What is the relationship between myth and ritual? (pages 77-78)

55

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

60. While the textbook presents a classification of rituals, many rituals are difficult to neatly place into one category. Explain how you would classify a funeral ritual and why? (page 79) 61. The way in which hunters treat their prey is a reflection of their worldview. What is the relationship between nature and people among the Lakota and Inuit? (pages 80-81) 62. Rituals provide a mechanism by which people can control their lives to some extent, especially in difficult and unpredictable situations. How? (pages 81-82) 63. What are some of the causes of supernatural illness? How would each be treated? (page 84) 64. People who share the same experiences forge strong bonds. Describe what is meant by communitas? How does communitas function to create stability in society? (page 89) 65. Why do soldiers and members of a fraternity frequently place the same tattoo on their bodies? (page 92) 66. How does the hajj function as a rite of passage? Do you see evidence of liminality? What are the three stages of the rite of passage in the hajj? (page 96) 67. What are some of the religious obligations that you see in your own community? (pages 9799)

56

Chapter 9: Gods and Spirits

Chapter Nine

GODS AND SPIRITS CHAPTER OUTLINE SPIRITS The Dani View of the Supernatural Guardian Spirits and the Native American Vision Quest Jinn Spirit Possession in the Sudan Christian Angels and Demons GODS Types of Gods Gods and Society The Gods of the Yoruba Gods of the Ifugao Goddesses Ishtar (Ancient Near East) Isis (Ancient Egypt) Kali (Hinduism) Mary (Roman Catholic) Monotheism: Conceptions of God in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam Judaism Christianity Islam Atheism CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 9.1 CHRISTIAN DEMONIC EXORCISM IN THE UNITED STATES BOX 9.2 GAMES AND GODS

CHAPTER SUMMARY Gods and spirits are supernatural beings that generally do not have human origins. The distinction between gods and spirits is to some degree arbitrary. Spirits are less powerful than gods, are more localized, and are frequently collections of nonindividualized supernatural beings that are not given specific names and identity. Examples include the leprechauns of Ireland, the jinn of the Middle East, and the angels and demons of the monotheistic religions. Spirits include guardian spirits, ancestral spirits, and shamans’ spirit helpers. Spirits live in the human world, interacting with humans. They may provide protection, success, and luck but also are blamed for minor 103

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

mishaps. Spirits often reside in natural and human-made objects. Places of special beauty or unusual character may be inhabited by spirits.

Gods are more powerful than spirits. They control major forces of nature, such as the wind, rain, and fertility. Gods are anthropomorphic, with names, origins, and specific attributes. They are born, marry, and sometimes die; they love and lust; they are wise and dull, loving and hateful, generous and miserly; some are sympathetic to human beings, others are hostile. A hierarchy of gods makes up a pantheon, usually with a supreme god at the top. Many types of gods can be recognized, including creator gods, otiose gods, trickster gods, and attribute gods.

Theorists have proposed that the nature of the gods in a society mirrors important cultural elements, such as that group’s social structure. Horton proposed that the importance of a high god in African religions was related to increased contact with the outside world and the importance of achieved status over ascribed status. Swanson tested the functionalist ideas of Durkheim and found that religious hierarchy was more likely to be found in a society that also had a decision-making hierarchy that contained at least three different levels. He also found that the number of attribute gods related to amount of specialization. Psychosocial anthropologists believe that humans project qualities of important figures such as parents onto the gods.

Some scholars believe that the earliest human religions centered on fertility, a lunar cycle as opposed to solar one, and the worship of a goddess. Examples of goddesses are Ishtar of the ancient Near East, Isis of ancient Egypt, and Kali from Hinduism. From an etic viewpoint the role of the Virgin Mary in Catholicism has some characteristics of a goddess. With the development of the monotheistic religions the goddess was suppressed, as these religions conceived of god in largely male terms.

Polytheistic religions recognize many deities. The more familiar monotheistic religions believe in a single omnipotent and omniscient God. Judaism believes that the Jews have been chosen to enter into a special relationship with God. Out of Judaism came Christianity. The story of Christianity is essentially the story of Jesus—God who became human to lead people back to God. In Islam, Allah was believed to be identical to the God of the Jews and Christians, religions that were seen as having strayed from the authentic monotheism of Abraham, which Islam would seek to restore.

Atheism has historically meant not accepting the conception of the divine that is found in a particular society at a particular time. It was not until the end of the eighteenth century that atheism took on its present meaning of denying the existence of God.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 9 the student should be able to: • Define gods and spirits and describe the characteristics of each.

• Describe the spirit beings of the Dani, guardian spirits of the Native Americans, jinn of the Islamic religion, and angels and demons of the Christian religion.

• Identify the different types of gods.

• Explain the meaning and impact of the anthropomorphic nature of gods, including the theories of Durkheim.

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Chapter 9: Gods and Spirits

• • • • •

Explain the connection between the nature of society and the nature of the gods, including the work of Horton, Swanson, and Freud.

Describe the gods of the Yoruba and Ifugao.

Explain the role of the goddess, including Ishtar, Isis, Kali, and Mary.

Compare and contrast how God is conceived of in the monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

Explain the meaning of the term atheism and how this has changed over time.

GLOSSARY Achieved status: A status that one has because of a factor other than automatic membership due to gender, age, kinship affiliation, and so forth. (p. 198) Agnosticism: The idea that the existence of a god is unknowable, that it is impossible to prove the nonexistence of the supernatural as it is to prove it existence. (p. 209) Angel: In Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, spirit beings who act as mediators between god and human beings. (p. 192) Anthropomorphic: Nonhuman entities that have human characteristics. (p. 195) Ascribed status: A status one automatically has because of gender, age, kinship affiliation, and so forth. (p. 198) Atheism: Disbelief or denial of the existence of God or gods. (p. 209) Attribute god: God that rules over a narrowly defined domain. (p. 196) Avatar: The incarnation or embodiment of a god in human form. (p. 203) Creator gods: A gods that is responsible for the creation of the physical earth and the plants and animal that live upon it. (p. 196) Demon: A spirit being, usually evil. (p. 193) God: An individual supernatural being, with a distinctive name, personality, and control or influence of a major aspect of nature (such as rain or fertility), that encompasses the life of an entire community or a major segment of the community. (p. 189) Incubi: Male demons that have sex with human women while they sleep, resulting in the birth of demons, witches, and deformed children. (p. 194) Jinn: In the Islamic religion, a spirit being created of fire. (p. 192) Monotheism: A belief in one god. (p. 206) Mystery religion: A religion whose beliefs, practices, and true nature are known only to those who have been initiated into the religion. (p. 204) Omnibenevolent: State of being absolutely good. (p. 206) Omnipotent: Being all-powerful. (p. 206) Omniscient: Being all-knowing. (p. 206) Otiose gods: A gods who is too remote and too uninterested in human activities to participate in the activities and fate of humans. (p. 197) Pantheon: All gods and goddesses in a polytheistic system. (p. 196) Polytheism: A belief in many gods. (p. 206) 105

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Shrine: An object or building that contains sacred objects or is associated with a venerated person or deity. (p. 190) Spirit: A supernatural being that is less powerful than a god and is usually more localized; often one of a collection of nonindividualized supernatural beings that are not given specific names and identities. (p. 189) Succubae: Female demons who have sex with human men while they sleep, resulting in damnation of the men’s souls. (p. 194) Supreme god: The god who resides at the top of a pantheon. (p. 196)

DISCUSSION TOPICS • • • •

How does the nature of the gods, how they are conceived of in a particular society, influence that nature of the rituals that are conducted?

Do you think Mary from Roman Catholicism should be classified as a goddess? Why or why not?

Given the Catholic beliefs in the Trinity, do you believe that the religion should be labeled from an etic perspective as monotheistic or polytheistic? Why? Why do you think atheism is uncommon in the United States? Why is it more common in Europe?

STUDENT PROJECTS • •

In Michael Shermer’s book How We Believe: The Search for God in the Age of Science.

(New York: Freeman, 2000) Shermer asked people to give reasons for why they believe in God. Using the same survey as he did, redo the study with students on your campus.

Construct a survey about American beliefs in angels and other supernatural beings. Give the survey to a group of students and analyze the responses.

VIDEOS Children of the Seven-Headed Snake: The Sacred Waters of Cambodia. Filmakers Library. 52 min. The waters of the Tonle Sap are believed to be home to a divinity in the form of a sevenheaded snake. Shows a holiday to honor the deity and the asking of safe passage from the “genies of protection.”

The History of God. Insight Media. 1993, 60 min.

Based on Karen Armstrong’s book of the same name, the video looks at conceptions of God in the monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

Sons of Shiva. Insight Media. 1985, 27 min.

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Chapter 9: Gods and Spirits

Shows the four-day festival of Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction. Shows rituals and the participants entering altered states.

Voices of the Orishas. University of California Extension. 1994, 37 min.

Filmed in Havana, the film shows a Santeria ritual in which the deities, or Orishas, are invoked.

The ceremony recreates an important Yoruba myth.

WEB SITES godchecker.com

A database of all known gods.

www.desy.de/gna/interpedia/greek_myth/gods.html www.unrv.com/culture/major-roman-god-list.php www.orishanet.org/ocha.html

A list of the major Roman gods.

A list of the major Yoruba orisha.

www.inter-islam.org/faith/jinn.html#Intro www.atheists.org

A list of Greek gods.

Information about jinn.

The web site of the American Atheists.

www.amnh.org/exhibitions/meeting_god Meeting God: Elements of Hindu Devotion from the American Museum of Natural History www.religioustolerance.org/chr_god.htm ance.org.

Various ideas about God from Religious Toler-

www.newadvent.org/cathen/06608a.htm

Catholic beliefs about God.

members.aol.com/bjw1106/marian.htm

Apparitions of the Virgin Mary

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Michael Cuneo. American Exorcism: Expelling Demons in the Land of Plenty. New York: Doubleday, 200). A look at exorcism, largely Christian evangelical, in the United States.

Felicitas D. Goodman. How About Demons? Possession and Exorcism in the Modern World.

Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1988. A look at possession in different cultures, including a discussion of the role of altered states of consciousness.

Michael Shermer. How We Believe: The Search for God in the Age of Science. New York: Freeman, 2000. A look at reasons why people say they believe in God. 107

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

Generally speaking, all of the following are true about gods except: a. they are individualized supernatural entities b. they are anthropomorphic entities c. they are human in origin d. they are associated with a community or a segment of a community Answer: c

2.

Generally speaking, all of the following are true about spirits except: a. they are most often seen as classes of supernatural beings b. they tend to be associated with specific locations c. they provide protection and success, but also are blamed for minor mishaps d. they are responsible for some powerful aspect of nature Answer: d

3.

personal and clan guardian spirits all of the above

pages 190-191

page 191

In the Qur’an jinn are conscious beings made of: a. clay b. bread c. fire without smoke d. light Answer: c

7.

b. d.

In Native American cultures it is common for an individual to enter an altered state of consciousness and receive a gift of supernatural power. Seeking to do this is known as a: a. vision quest b. soul search c. spiritual boon d. guardian gift Answer: a

6.

pages 190-191

Example of Dani spirits are: a. ghosts c. forest and swamp spirits Answer: d

5.

pages 189-190

Among the Dani spirits can be classified on the basis of all of the following except whether they are: a. close or remote b. male or female c. beneficent or malevolent d. spirit or non-spirit life form Answer: b

4.

page 189

page 192

The Genii of the Aladdin story is a: a. zombie c. god Answer: d

b. d.

sorcerer jinn

page 192

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Chapter 9: Gods and Spirits

8.

Possession by jinn in Hofriyat usually involves: a. women of childbearing age b. politically prominent men c. village priests d. elder men and women Answer: a

9.

pages 192-193

In Hofriyat, zar possession functions to do all of the following except: a. explain failure b. provide an opportunity for social activity c. enable the zar to communicate with the community d. to provide supernatural power to be used in the attainment of wealth Answer: d

pages 192-193

10. Female demons are termed: a. incubi c. succubae Answer: c

b. d.

orisha zairan

page 194

11. Supernatural beings with humanlike qualities are said to be: a. anthropocentric b. hominoid c. heliocentric d. anthropomorphic Answer: d

page 195

12. The term pantheon refers to: a. a hierarchy of gods c. a coven of witches Answer: a

b. d.

a collective of spirits the followers of a culture hero

page 196

13. A goddess of agriculture is an example of a(n): a. creator goddess b. trickster goddess c. attribute goddess d. otiose goddess Answer: c

page 196

14. A god who withdraws from active interactions with the world is a(n) a. otiose god b. attribute god c. trickster god d. creator god Answer: a

page 197

15. The idea that supernatural beings reflect human behavior and provide a model for humans was developed by: a. Guy Swanson b. Sigmund Freud c. John Roberts d. Robin Horton Answer: d

pages 198-199

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16. A status given to someone based on attributes over which they have no control (e.g., gender) is called: a. ascribed b. achieved c. attributed d. credited Answer: a

page 198

17. Robin Horton proposed that which of the following is a variable that explains variation in the nature of gods in different societies?: a. how often people in that society encounter other people and the world outside their own community b. the degree to which an individual’s status in the society is ascribed or achieved c. the severity of childrearing practices in regards to feeding and toilet training d. both a and b are true Answer: d

page 198

18. The idea that religion can be seen as a symbolic expression of relationships between children and their parents was proposed by: a. Guy Swanson b. Sigmund Freud c. John Roberts d. Robin Horton Answer: b

pages 199-200

19. The orisha are the gods of the: a. Yoruba c. Dani Answer: a

Ifugao Shoshoni

b. d.

spirit beings trickster gods

pages 200-201

20. The orisha are an example of: a. otiose gods c. attribute gods Answer: c

b. d.

page 200

21. The society with one of the greatest number of gods is the Ifugao of the Philippines with over: a. 100 gods b. 500 gods c. 1200 gods d. 2000 gods Answer: c

page 200

22. Gods such as “Separator of Seeds from Cotton” and “Winder into Ball” are found among the: a. Yoruba b. Ifugao c. Dani d. Shoshoni Answer: b

page 201

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Chapter 9: Gods and Spirits

23. The goddess Ishtar was found in: a. Mesopotamia c. Greece Answer: a

b. d.

Egypt India

page 203

24. The embodiment of a god in human form is known as a(n): a. incarnation b. manifestation c. avatar d. materialization Answer: c

page 203

25. An important goddess found in Hinduism is: a. Isis b. Kali c. Ishtar d. all of the above Answer: b

page 204

26. Kali is a(n): a. agricultural and fertility deity b. war goddess and destroyer of demons c. destroyer of ignorance and bringer of knowledge d. goddess of love and marriage Answer: c

page 204

27. The importance of Mary for Roman Catholicism is evident in: a. the celebration of her birth and death b. the many shrines and pilgrimage sites associated with her c. worshippers directly addressing her for protection d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 205-206

28. An all-knowing deity is one who is: a. omniscient c. otiose Answer: a

b. d.

omnipotent monotheistic

page 206

29. Early Judaism: a. shared many of the same religious beliefs as other religions of the time b. may have implicitly accepted the existence of other gods c. used many different names for God d. all of the above Answer: d

page 206

30. The doctrine in Christianity that Jesus had been God in human form: a. is spelled out in the New Testament b. is not in the Bible, but is found in other writings of the apostles 111

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

c. d.

was established in the fourth century C.E. was established during the Protestant Reformation

Answer: c

page 207

31. Which of the following statements about Islam is false?: a. Islam accepts Jesus and Moses as prophets of God. b. The prophet Mohammad was visited by an angel who gave him the command to recite. c. Muslims have a duty to create a society that is just and equitable. d. The God of Islam is more personal and approachable than the God of Judaism.

Answer: d

page 208

32. An agnostic is one who: a. is polytheistic b. believes that the existence of a god in unprovable c. believes that there is no god d. none of the above Answer: b

page 209

True/False Questions 33. One can ask spirits for assistance and protection since they live in the human world and interact with humans.

Answer: T

pages 189-190

34. The division of Dani spirits into categories represents a fundamental classification scheme found in their religion and well-known by the elders.

Answer: F

pages 190-191

35. The attainment of a guardian spirit and supernatural power among the Ojibwa and Shoshoni is accomplished through the vision quest.

Answer: T

pages 191-192

36. In order to distance oneself from jinn one is careful to observe the many tabus surrounding blood and childbirth.

Answer: T

page 192

37. In the village of Hofriyat, anxiety in women surrounding marriage and children is mediated by possession by incubi and succubae.

Answer: F

page 192

38. Much of the popular Christian beliefs about angels comes not from the Bible, but from other Church writings.

Answer: T

page 193

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Chapter 9: Gods and Spirits

39. Gods are anthropomorphic, that is, they resemble people in their appearance and personality.

Answer: T

page 195

40. Gods that are remote and uninterested in human affairs are otiose gods.

Answer: T

page 197

41. Robin Horton suggests that the behavior of the gods provides a model for humans.

Answer: T

page 198

42. A study by Guy Swanson found that social characteristics of a group was predictive of the number and nature of supernatural beings Answer: T

page 199

43. The greatest number of gods ever recorded in a single society was found among Yoruba.

Answer: F

page 200

44. Ishtar was an Egyptian goddess who is the mother of the god Horus.

Answer: F

page 203

45. The Hindu goddess Kali is often pictured as dark skinned and naked, standing on a corpse dripping with blood.

Answer: T

page 204

46. From at etic perspective, Mary can be classified as a goddess in the Roman Catholic Religion.

Answer: T

page 205-206

47. The way in which God is portrayed changes over time in the Tanakh.

Answer: T

page 207

48. Atheism as a label one would use to describe one’s own belief in the non-existance of God began in the sixteenth century.

Answer: F

page 209

Essay Questions 49. What are the essential differences between gods and spirits? (page 189) 50. How does the analysis of Dani spirits illustrate the difference between etic and emic? (pages 190-191) 51. What are jinn? What are their relationships to humans? (page 192) 52. What are the functions of the Hofriyat belief in zairan? (pages 192-193) 113

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

53. What roles do angles and demons play in Christianity? (pages 193-194) 54. Many anthropologists have seen relationships between the social organization of the gods and human society. What are some of these ideas? (pages 198-200) 55. How does a society’s emphasis on games of skill or games of chance reflect the nature of that society? (page 199) 56. What role did goddesses play in ancient religions? (pages 202-203) 57. Although in Catholicism Mary is not a goddess, from an etic perspective the worship of Mary has many of the characteristics of worship of the goddess in other societies. Discuss. (pages 204-206) 58. In Judaism how does the concept of God change over time? (page 206-207)

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Chapter 10: Witchcraft

Chapter Ten

WITCHCRAFT CHAPTER OUTLINE THE CONCEPT OF WITCHCRAFT IN SMALL-SCALE SOCIETIES Witchcraft among the Azande The Zande Belief in Witchcraft A Case of Witchcraft An Analysis of Zande Witchcraft Beliefs Witchcraft among the Navaho Witchcraft Reflects Human Culture Sorcery, Witchcraft, and AIDS EURO-AMERICAN WITCHCRAFT BELIEFS The Connection with Pagan Religions The Witchcraze in Europe The Witchcraze in England and the United States Functions of Euro-American Witchcraft Beliefs Witches as Women Modern-Day Witch Hunts BOX 10.1 THE EVIL EYE BOX 10.2 SATANISM

CHAPTER SUMMARY The idea of witchcraft as an evil force bringing misfortune to members of a community is found in a great number of societies throughout the world. Unlike sorcerers who perform magic rituals to achieve their evil ends, witches simply will death and destruction and it happens, for the source of this evil is a supernatural power that lies within the body of the witch. Witches possess personal characteristics that are the antithesis of those that characterize a good, moral person.

The concept of witchcraft in small-scale societies is largely based on the work of E. E. EvansPritchard among the Azande of the Sudan. Evans-Pritchard concluded that a belief in witchcraft serves three functions: It provides an explanation for the unexplainable; it provides a set of cultural behaviors for dealing with misfortunate; and it serves to define morality.

Ideas of witchcraft in Europe were influenced by Christian ideas about the nature of evil.

Christianity accepts the existence of an evil spirit, known as Satan or the Devil. In this belief system witches are individuals whose evil power originates with a pact with the Devil. In Europe, witchcraft beliefs were merged with sorcery. Sorcery became associated with the invocation of spirits, which was defined as being hostile to God. Anyone doing any form of magic was seen as calling on the servants of Satan. Magic and witchcraft became not just crimes against society, but 115

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

heresy—crimes against God. The period known as the Witchcraze began at the end of the Middle Ages (around 1450) and lasted for about 200 years. In Euro-American witchcraft beliefs, witches define all that is wrong and immoral. People who exhibit antisocial behavior are the most likely targets of witchcraft accusations. Witches also fulfill our unconscious need to blame someone for the misfortunes that we experience in our daily lives. In general, patterns of witchcraft accusations reflect deeply felt conflicts and divisions in a society.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 10 the student should be able to: • Identify, compare and contrast the three different conceptions of witchcraft.

• Describe the basic beliefs and behaviors associated with witchcraft in small-scale societies, including the Azande and Navaho.

• Explain the ways in which witchcraft accusations and behavior reflect the underlying tensions existing in a society.

• Describe the origins of Euro-American witchcraft beliefs.

• Outline the historical development of the witch craze.

• Explain the functional approach to witchcraft beliefs for both small-scale and EuroAmerican cultures.

• Explain why women were the main targets for witchcraft accusations in certain cultures or at certain times.

KEY TERMS Eucharist: A Christian sacrament that commemorates Jesus Christ’s last supper by consecrating bread and wine. (p. 221) Hedonism: Pursuit of or devotion to pleasure as a matter of principle. (p. 226) Heresy: Crimes against God. (p. 220) Inquisition: A unit of the Roman Catholic Church that convened to judge cases of heresy. (p.

220) Witchcraft: The ability of a person to cause harm by means of a personal power that resides within the body of the witch. (p. 213)

DISCUSSION TOPICS • • • •

Why do you think that the conception of people who have the innate ability to do evil is found in so many different cultures?

Do we have any similar ideas in our modern culture?

What conceptions do modern Americans have of witchcraft and witches?

In what ways does witchcraft reflect human culture and human nature?

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Chapter 10: Witchcraft

• • •

What is meant by the statement that the main way of becoming a witch is to be accused of being one? What are the implications for understanding the ways in which witchcraft accusations function in a society?

What do you think of the role of the church in the European witch craze? How has the Catholic Church in more modern times dealt with such issues in its past as the Inquisition and the Crusades? Does the modern church bear any responsibility for these past actions?

In many cultures witches are equally male or female, but in Europe and America witches are predominantly female. What was the underlying gender ideology that made this the case? Do you think this is still true? If so, to what extent?

STUDENT PROJECTS • •

Develop a simple survey to use in collecting information from a series of at least one dozen individuals. Ask them questions about witchcraft and how witchcraft differs from sorcery.

Locate English translations of early documents that relate to the European Witchcraze, such as Malleus Maleficarum (www.mallesmaleficarum.org). Take a selection, rewrite it in modern English and discuss its meaning.

VIDEOS Witchcraft Among the Azande. Filmakers Library. 52 min.

A classic examination of witchcraft beliefs among the Azande, including the case of witchcraft among co-wives that is described in the textbook.

Witches. Insight Media. 1996, 50 min.

Looks at the witch craze and the Wiccan religion.

WEB SITES www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/SALEM.HTM Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692. www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/witches1.html Medieval Sourcebook: 15th Century Witchcraft Documents. www.malleusmaleficarum.org/ The text of the Malleus Maleficarum. www.churchofsatan.com/ Church of Satan website.

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www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/salem.htm www.nationalgeographic.com/salem

Salem Witchcraft Trials 1692.

National Geographic Salem Witchcraft Hysteria

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Alan Dundes, editor. The Evil Eye: A Casebook. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1992.

Description of the evil eye in different cultures.

Peter Charles Hoffer. The Devil’s Disciples: Makers of the Salem Witchcraft Trials. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996. A detailed analysis of the Salem witchcraft trails.

Alan Macfarlane. Witchcraft in Tudor and Stuart England: A Regional and Comparative Study.

Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press, 1970. A study of British witchcraft beliefs.

Jeffrey Russell. The History of Witchcraft: Sorcerers, Heretics, and Pagans. London: Thames and Hudson, 1980. A look at witchcraft in tribal societies, historical Europe and modern times.

Andrew Sanders. A Deed without a Name. Oxford: Berg Publishers, 1995. A detailed analysis of tribal and Euro-American witchcraft.

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

In small-scale societies witches differ from sorcerers in that witches kill by: a. using contagious magic b. using poisons and other lethal devices c. willing death to occur d. creating dolls in the image of the victim Answer: c

2.

One of the universal characteristics of witchcraft is that: a. witches are always female b. witches achieve their evil ends through magical techniques c. witches achieve their evil power through a pact or relationship with a supernatural power d. none of the above Answer: d

3.

pages 213-214

pages 213-214

The term witchcraft has several meanings. Which of the following is not an example of witchcraft?

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a. b. c. d.

a sorcerer using evil magic to kill a member of his or her own community a 17th century heretic being executed by the church for hearsay a person accused of willing death in another person all of the above are examples of witchcraft

Answer: c

4.

The study of witchcraft among the Azande of southern Sudan was conducted in the 1920s by: a. Bronislaw Malinowski b. Edward Tylor c. James Frazer d. E. E. Evans-Pritchard Answer: d

5.

pages 214-215

A case of witchcraft among the Azande is confirmed by the: a. prince b. shaman c. poison oracle d. priest Answer: c

9.

pages 214-215

Among the Azande, people accused of being witches are usually people who: a. are unknown enemies living in nearby villages b. have been initiated as witches by joining a witching society c. are known to the victims with whom there have particular social relationships d. hold high office, such as chief Answer: c

8.

pages 214-215

Which of the following is true about Zande witchcraft beliefs? a. witches normally depend upon magic rituals to attain their evil ends b. witchcraft is a substance found within the body of the witch c. some witches can use their power for beneficial ends d. all of the above Answer: b

7.

page 214

All of the following are true about mangu, the cause of witchcraft among the Azande, except: a. it is a physical substance found within the body of a witch b. it can be manipulated by shamans in healing rituals c. it can be seen when autopsies are performed d. it is inherited from the parent of the same sex Answer: b

6.

page 213

page 215

Which of the following is an oracle used by the Azande to discover the identity of witches? a. the rubbing board oracle b. spirit possession by a medium c. throwing of shells on a mat and reading the pattern formed d. studying the internal organs of a sacrificed chicken 119

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Answer: a

page 215

10. Which of the following is true about benge, the poison oracle? a. poison may be given directly to the accused witch b. poison is given to young pigs who either die or survive c. sticks are dipped in poison and then placed in termite mounds d. the poison is seldom strong enough to actually kill an animal Answer: a

pages 215-216

11. Which of the following event occurred in the case of the Zande co-wives? a. The younger wife was identified as the witch by an ordeal. b. The younger wife was beaten until she confessed. c. The younger wife cooled her witchcraft by spitting water. d. The husband was forced to divorce his younger wife because of witchcraft.

Answer: c

page 216

12. Witchcraft beliefs among the Azande: a. provides an explanation for unfortunate events b. provides stereotyped behavioral patterns in crisis situations c. eliminates deviant behavior from the society d. all of the above Answer: d

page 216

13. Witchcraft among the Azande functions to: a. cause seriously disruptive suspicions and accusations between individuals b. reinforce and sanction accepted morality c. provide a means of curbing the power of the ruling class d. none of the above Answer: b

page 216

14. Which of the following is true about Navaho witchcraft? a. Navaho witches are born with witchcraft substance within their bodies b. witchcraft is a common factor in Navaho life that is freely talked about c. witchcraft is learned from a close relative and requires initiation d. witches participate in healing rituals Answer: c

page 217

15. Which of the following is true about Navaho witchcraft? a. witches use materials taken from corpses such as corpse powder b. witches can turn themselves in animals at will c. witches will kill a close relative as part of the process of becoming a witch d. all of the above are true statements Answer: d

page 217

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16. In contrast to the Gwari of West Africa, Nupe witches are always female. It appears to be due to the fact that: a. Nupe wives engage in activities that their husbands cannot control b. political power is vested in female chiefs who rule through their husbands and brothers c. women sexuality and fertility is viewed as dangerous and powerful d. the Nupe were influenced by Christian missionaries at the time of Witchcraze in Europe Answer: a

pages 217-218

17. The spread of AIDS in small-scale societies is often attributed to witchcraft and sorcery because: a. AIDS is a poorly understood disease of which there is no clear cause in the minds of the people b. modern medicine is relatively ineffective in treating AIDS c. AIDS appears to strike random, especially among the poor d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 218-219

18. In contrast with tribal beliefs, Euro-American witchcraft beliefs are characterized by: a. witches were usually female b. the power of witches was derived from a pact with the Devil c. witchcraft was a crime against God and witches could be publicly executed d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 219-220

19. The Witchcraze: a. took place in Europe during the 15th through 17th centuries b. refers to witchcraft activity in New England during the 16th and 17th centuries c. is the term used by E. E. Evans-Pritchard to refer to certain witchcraft activities found in African tribal societies d. refers to Neo-Pagan rituals in the 20th century Answer: a

pages 219-222

20. The book Malleus Maleficarum was: a. written in the 15th century and set forth European witchcraft beliefs of the time b. a 17th century description of witchcraft beliefs in northern Africa c. a late 18th century anthropological study of European witchcraft d. was written by Gerald Gardner and became the basis of much Neo-Pagan belief Answer: a

pages 221-222

21. The book Malleus Maleficarum stated that witches: a. could shift shapes, and fly through the air b. were more likely to be women than men c. must be arrested, convicted, and executed d. all of the above 121

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Answer: d

page 222

22. A series of witchcraft trials and executions took place in the late 17th century in the United States, in the town of: a. Lancaster b. Salem c. Concord d. Springfield Answer: b

page 223

23. Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible used the Salem trials as an allegory for: a. illegal immigration b. McCarthyism c. the use of alcohol during Prohibition d. the breakup for the traditional family Answer: b

pages 225-226

24. Which of the following is true about the concept of the evil eye? a. a person can cause misfortune by looking at a person b. it is bad form to say something complementary about a child c. spitting and particular hand gestures can be used to protect one against the evil eye d. all of the above Answer: d

page 224

25. Hedonism and the symbol of a goat’s head within an inverted pentagram refer to: a. Wicca b. Asatru c. Satanism d. Druidism Answer: c

page 226

True-False Questions 26. Witches in small-scale societies derived their power from the knowledge and use of spells.

Answer: F

page 213

27. Among the Azande witchcraft is basically evil, but it is good when it is directed at enemies.

Answer: F

pages 214-215

28. An Azande is a witch because of the inheritance of mangu or witchcraft substance.

Answer: T

page 214

29. The Azande confirm the identity of a witch through autopsy after the witch has died or through autopsy of a blood relative of the same sex.

Answer: T

page 214

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30. Among the Azande, witchcraft accusations are most likely to occur between people with strong social ties.

Answer: T

page 214

31. Among the Azande, the diagnosis of an illness is confirmed by a medium through spirit possession.

Answer: F

pages 214-216

32. A granary has collapsed seriously injuring a man who was working underneath it. An Azande would be most like to blame the injury upon sorcery.

Answer: F

page 216

33 . Like Zande witches, Navaho witches are born with a physical substance within their bodies that are responsible for their witchcraft.

Answer: F

page 217

34. Since the Navaho witch is a personification of evil, witchcraft serves to culturally define immoral and antisocial behavior.

Answer: T

page 217

35. In many parts of Africa today, AIDS is being blamed on the activity of witchcraft.

Answer: T

pages 218-219

36. Euro-American witches in the 15th century obtained their evil power through contact with the Devil.

Answer: T

pages 222-223

37. The Witchcraze is a Neo-Pagan religion found in Europe and the United States.

Answer: F

page 221

Essay Questions 38. Explain the differences between witchcraft and sorcery. (page 213) 39. In what ways is Navaho witchcraft beliefs different from Zande witchcraft beliefs? (pages 214-215) 40. How do the Azande explain the existence of witchcraft in Zande society? (pages 214-215) 41. If Zande divination techniques can only give a yes/no answer, how are they used to identify the witch? How does this influence the behavior traits that are associated with witches? (pages 215-216) 123

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

42. How does a belief in witchcraft among the Azande regulate human conduct? (pages 215216) 43. In the case of the falling granary, termite infestation was clearly the primary cause of the collapse of the granary. However, witchcraft is the more socially relevant cause. Explain. (page 216) 44. How are beliefs in sorcery and witchcraft used to explain the presence of AIDS in many third-world societies? (pages 218-219) 45. What were the bases of witchcraft accusations during the Witchcraze in Europe? (pages 220222) 46. What were some of the causes that have been proposed for the witchcraft accusations in Salem in 1692? (page 223) 47. Why were women the primary targets for witchcraft accusations during the Witchcraze? (page 225)

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Chapter Eleven

THE SEARCH FOR NEW MEANING CHAPTER OUTLINE ADAPTATION AND CHANGE Mechanisms of Culture Change Acculturation Syncretism Haitian Vodou History of Vodou Vodou Beliefs Santeria REVITALIZATION MOVEMENTS The Origins of Revitalization Movements Types of Revitalization Movements Cargo Cults The Ghost Dance of 1890 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormonism) NEO-PAGANISM AND REVIVAL The Wiccan Movement Wiccan Beliefs and Rituals The Growing Popularity—and Persecution—of Wicca NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS The “Cult” Question Characteristics of High Demand Religious Groups Mind Control?

Genuinely Dangerous Religious Groups Examples of New Religious Movements Branch Davidians (Students of the Seven Seals) Unification Church (Moonies) UFO Religions Heaven’s Gate Raelians FUNDAMENTALISM Characteristics of Fundamentalist Groups Mormon Fundamentalism Islamic Fundamentalism CONCLUSION SUMMARY 125

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

BOX 11.1 THE JOHN FRUM CULT BOX 11.2 RELIGIOUS VIOLENCE AND TERRORISM

CHAPTER SUMMARY Culture change occurs through the processes of discovery, invention, and diffusion. Acculturation refers to the situation whereby a culture is significantly changed because of exposure to the influence of a politically and technologically dominant culture. Sometimes there is a reworking of the trait through a process known as syncretism, in which traits from two cultures fuse to form something new and yet, at the same time, permit the retention of the old by subsuming the old into a new form, such as Vodou in Haiti and Santeria in Cuba.

A revitalization movement is a movement that forms in an attempt to deliberately bring about change in a society. These frequently initiated by an individual or a small group that promises better times. We can recognize several types of revitalization movements. Nativistic movements develop in tribal societies and stress the elimination of the dominant culture and a return to the past but with desirable elements of the dominant culture brought under the control of the subordinate culture. Examples are the cargo cults of New Guinea and the Ghost Dance in the United States. Revivalistic movements attempt to revive what is perceived as a past golden age, and ancient customs come to symbolize the features and legitimacy of the repressed culture. For example, Wicca and other Neo-Pagan movements are attempts to revive pre-Christian religious traditions. Millenarian movements are based on a vision of change through an apocalyptic transformation. Messianic movements believe that a divine savior in human form will bring about the solution to the problems that exist within the society.

A new religious movement that has branched off of a more established religion and yet is still considered mainstream is referred to as a denomination. A sect is still connected to the mainstream religion but is generally associated with a founder or leader and new revelations. The term cult is used in many ways but usually in a negative sense. Many researchers today avoid the term cult and use the term new religious movement.

All religious groups require some degree of conformity from their members. However, groups do vary in the level of this demand and the degree of control the group attempts to exert over members. At one end of the spectrum are high demand groups, in which the beliefs and behaviors of group members are strictly controlled. Sometimes the activities of such groups become dangerous to its members and to society.

Fundamentalist groups are in many ways a protest against modernization and secularization.

They believe religion should be relevant to all aspects of society and perceive themselves to be caught up in a struggle between good and evil. Beliefs and actions are justified in reference to a religious text that is seen as inerrant and still relevant to modern life. The themes of fundamentalism are similar cross-culturally although individual movements have arisen in many different religions in response to specific historical circumstances.

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 11 the student should be able to: • Describe the mechanisms of cultural change.

• Explain the processes of acculturation, assimilation, and syncretism, and compare and contrast the three.

• Describe Haitian Vodou and Santeria as cases of religious syncretism.

• Explain what a revitalization movement is and under what circumstances one is likely to occur.

• Describe the stages of a revitalization movement.

• Identify the types of revitalization movements and provide an example of each.

• Describe cargo cults, the Ghost Dance, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

• Explain the different ways the term cult is used and the issues surrounding its use.

• Describe the characteristics of a high demand religion and the issues that surround these groups.

• Describe several examples of new religious movements.

• Explain the term fundamentalism.

• Outline the origins and basic beliefs of the Wicca religion.

GLOSSARY Acculturation: The process whereby a culture accepts traits from a dominant society. (p. 231) Assimilation: A condition whereby a dominated culture has changed so much because of outside influences that it ceases to have its own distinct identify. (p. 231) Athame: The ritual knife used in Wiccan rituals. (p. 242) Cargo cult: Religious movement occurring among small-scale societies of Melanesia in response to culture contact; the movement focuses on the attainment of trade goods. (p. 250) Choice fatigue: A situation in which individuals in a culture are faced with too many options, such as when a single dominant church is replaced by numerous denominations and sects. (p. 240) Chromolithograph: A type of colored poster. (p. 235) Cult: Historical meaning is a particular form or system of religious worship. Most commonly used to describe a small, recently created, and spiritually innovative group, often with a single charismatic leader. Connotations of the term include that the leader is evil, in total control of his followers, and believes that the end of the world is imminent. (p. 244) Denomination: A religious group that differs on just a few points from the mainstream religion. (p. 244) Diaspora: Movement of a population out of their homeland. (p. 232) Diffusion: The apparent movement of cultural traits from one society to another. (p. 242) Discovery: New awareness of something that exists in the environment. (p. 231) 127

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Fundamentalism: A religious movement characterized by a return to fundamental principles, usually including a resistance to modernization and an emphasis on certainty through a literal interpretation of scriptures. (p. 251) High demand religion: A religious group in which much is demanded of members in terms of strict adherence to rules for thought and behavior. (p. 244) Invention: Coming up with a solution to a problem using the technology at hand. (p. 231) Messianic movement: A type of revitalization movement that is based on the appearance of a divine savior in human form who will bring about the solution to the problems that exist within the society. (p. 237) Millenarian movement: A type of revitalization movement that envisions a change through an apocalyptic transformation. (p. 237) Nativistic movement: A type of revitalization movement that develops in traditional societies that are threatened by the activities of more technologically advanced societies. (p. 237) New religious movement: A historically recent religious movement, often involving new leaders and new scriptures or new interpretations of older religious traditions. (p. 244) Pidgin language: A simplified language that forms from the fusion of two languages. (p. 237) Revitalization movement: A movement that forms in an attempt to deliberately bring about change in a society. (p. 236) Revivalistic movements: A type of revitalization movements that attempts to revive what is often perceived as a past golden age. (p. 237) Scripturalism: The practice of justifying beliefs and actions by reference to the religious text. (p. 251) Sect: A new branch of a mainstream religion, usually involving new revelations, new scriptures, and a new leader. (p. 240) Stimulus diffusion: What occurs when an idea moves from one culture to another and stimulates the invention of a new trait. (p. 231) Syncretism: A fusing of traits from two cultures to form something new and yet permitting the retention of the old by subsuming the old into a new form. (p.232) Totalism: The belief that religion is relevant to, and should be a part of, all parts of a society. (p.

251) Traditioning: The idea that religious texts are relevant to life today. (p. 251)

DISCUSSION TOPICS • • • • •

Under what conditions do revitalization movements occur? Do any of these conditions exist in the United States?

In what ways are the Satanist and Wiccan religions similar? In what ways are they different?

Why do people join high demand religious groups?

Why do we label some religions as cults? Do you think this term should be used to describe any religious groups? If so, in what cases?

Do you think mind control is possible?

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• • •

• •

Should there by any limits to the free exercise of religion? If so, what?

Are UFO religions really religions? Why or why not? In what ways are descriptions of alien abductions descriptions of a religious experience?

The past decades in the United States have seen a decline in membership in traditional mainstream religions but an increase in membership in both New Age/Pagan religions and fundamentalist religions. In what ways are these two types of religious movements very different? In what ways are they similar? Why do you think they have been popular while traditional religions have declined?

Why do you think religiously motivated violence has increased in recent decades? Why do you think people commit such acts?

Mark Jurgensmeyer argues that acts of religious terrorism are highly symbolic and can be analyzed in much the same way that religious ritual is. What are the symbolic elements of such an act? In what ways are they like rituals?

STUDENT PROJECTS • • • • •

Research a new religious movement that is currently active..

Read accounts of alien abductions. In what ways are these stories of religious experience?

Analyze Judaism, Christianity or Islam as a revitalization movement.

Locate a store that sells books and paraphernalia for Neo-Pagan rituals. What types of ritual objects are used? If possible, observe a Wiccan ritual in your community.

Interview someone who is a member of a Neo-Pagan religion.

VIDEOS The Burning Times. National Film Board of Canada. 1990, 56 min.

Part of the Women and Spirituality trilogy. Looks at the witch craze from a Wiccan perspective.

Cults. Insight Media. 2000, 50 min.

Looks at groups such as the People’s Temple, Branch Davidians, and Heaven’s Gate.

Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti. Insight Media. 1985, 52 min.

Shows a vodou ritual.

Full Circle. National Film Board of Canada. 1992, 56 min.

Part of the Women and Spirituality trilogy. Looks at contemporary women’s spirituality and how it draws on past religious traditions.

The Gospel According to the Papuans. Filmakers Library. 52 min.

Looks at the effects of the many waves of different types of Christian missionaries coming to the Huli tribe in Papua New Guinea.

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Hail Umbanda. University of California Extension. 1988, 46 min.

Umbanda, a blending of Catholicism with traditional African and Native American religions, is the fastest-growing religion in Brazil.

The King Does Not Lie: The Initiation of a Shango Priest. Filmakers Library. 50 min.

Shows the initiation of a priest of Shango, the “Thundergod” of traditional Yoruba religion, among a group of Santeria practitioners.

Latter-Day Saints: Beginnings. Insight Media. 1998, 46 min.

The early history of the Latter-Day Saints.

The Mormon Rebellion. Insight Media. 1997, 50 min.

Examines the history of Mormonism in terms of the conflict between the church and the U.S. government.

New Religious Movements. Insight Media. 1992, 60 min.

Looks at the formation of sects and cults and the factors that determine which of these a new religion will be considered to be.

The Shakers: Hands to Work, Hearts to God. Insight Media. 1991, 60 min.

Documentary on Shakers produced by Ken Burns.

Sweating Indian Style. Women Make Movies. 1994, 57 min.

Follows the New Age activities of a group of California women constructing a sweat lodge. Examines the issue of the appropriation of Native American traditions by non-Natives.

Terrorism: A World in Shadows – Religious Terrorism. Insight Media. 2001, 60 min.

Looks at religious violence and terrorism in various religions.

Trobriand Cricket: An Ingenious Response to Colonialism. University of California Extension.

1976, 54 min. A classic documentary that shows how the islanders changed the game of British cricket to reflect their own culture and concerns.

Voodoo and the Church in Haiti. University of California Extension. 1989, 40 min.

Introduces the religion of vodou and the culture, history and politics of Haiti.

Yo soy hechicero (I am a Sorcerer). 1996, 48 min.

The religious practices of Eduardo, a Santeria priest. In Spanish with English subtitles. Available from the producer, Iván Drufovka, and the director, Ron Stanford, at www.hechicero.com.

WEB SITES www.unification.net The web site of the Unification Church.

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www.religioustolerance.org/newage.htm Discussions of New Age Spirituality. religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/welcome/welcome.htm Religious Movements Homepage at the University of Virginia www.psywww.com/psyrelig/hg/index.html Heaven’s Gate website. www.religioustolerance.org/witchcra.htm Information about Wicca. www.witchvox.com/xbasics.html Information on Neo-Pagan religions from The Witch’s Voice.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Nancy Tatom Ammerman. The Bible Believers: Fundamentalists in the Modern World. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1987. An ethnography of modern fundamentalists.

Richard T. Antoun. Understanding Fundamentalism: Christian, Islamic and Jewish Movements.

Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press, 2001. Looks at the common characteristics of fundamentalist movements.

Karen Armstrong. The Battle for God. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2000. A discussion of fundamentalism, focusing on Protestant fundamentalism in the United States, Jewish fundamentalism in Israel, and Muslim fundamentalism in Egypt and Iran.

Karen McCarthy Brown. Mama Lola: A Vodou Priestess in Brooklyn. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001. A person-centered ethnography of an immigrant woman practicing Vodou in New York City.

Michael F. Brown. The Channeling Zone: American Spirituality in an Anxious Age. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1997. An anthropological look at channeling in America, focusing on issues of identity and how channeling reflects American culture.

Susan Friend Harding. The Book of Jerry Falwell: Fundamentalist Language and Politics.

Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2000. A look at Christian fundamentalism as seen through the life of Jerry Falwell.

Michael Hittman. Wovoka and the Ghost Dance. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1990. A detailed description of the Ghost Dance religion with many original documents.

Mark Jurgensmeyer. Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000. A comparative look at religious violence and terrorism.

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Loretta Orion. Never Again the Burning Times: Paganism Revived. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press, 1995. An ethnography of Wiccans.

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

A shaman finds a new kind of bush whose leaves, made into a tea, soothes a stomach ache.

This is an example of: a. diffusion b. syncretism c. a discovery d. an invention Answer: c

2.

A solution to a particular problem that is found through the application of technology is a(n): a. discovery b. creation c. invention d. diffusion Answer: c

3.

page 231

The term syncretism refers to: a. the process whereby a culture accepts culture traits from a dominant culture b. a condition whereby a dominated culture has changed so much because of outside influences that it ceases to have its own distinct identity d. a fusing of traits from two cultures to form something new and yet, permitting the retention of the old by subsuming the old into a new form c. what occurs when an idea moves from one culture to another and stimulates the invention of a new trait Answer: c

6.

page 231

An anthropologist visits a remote tribal community and finds that they are wearing tennis shoes and using canned goods even though much of their original way of life remains intact.

We would say that this community has been: a. acculturated b. assimilated c. enculturated d. missionized Answer: a

5.

page 231

The movement of culture traits from one culture to another is termed: a. acculturation b. diffusion c. assimilation d. discovery Answer: b

4.

page: 231

page 232

The survival of culture traits often occurs when they are fused together with new, introduced traits. Thus a contemporary Australian aborigine band will preserve their traditional songs 132

Chapter 11: Syncretism and Religious Movements

and instruments by creating music that incorporates elements from the dominant culture, such as drums and guitars. This is an example of: a. diffusion b. assimilation c. syncretism d. revitalization Answer: c

7.

Haitians do not use the term Vodou. Instead they refer to their religion as: a. “serving the spirits” b. “Haitian Catholicism” c. “nature worship” d. “healing” Answer: a

8.

page 232

Vodou in Haiti grew out of the: a. the religions of West Africa c. Freemasonry Answer: d

9.

232

b. d.

Catholicism all of the above

pages 232-233

In Vodou, the term lwa refers to: a. places of worship that are sacred to particular spirits b. animals that are sacrifices to particular spirits c. spirit beings d. drums and musical idioms Answer: c

pages 233

10. Vodou resembles in many ways traditional West African religions in that Vodou is characterized by: a. pantheon of intermediary deities b. spirit possession c. offerings placed on altars d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 233-235

11. Which of the following is true about Vodou deities? a. God is a remote creator deity who is no longer directly involved with the everyday lives of the people b. Catholic Saints are seen as manifestations of Vodou deities c. during rituals deities will possess worshippers d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 233-235

12. A deliberate attempt to bring about change in a culture characterizes: a. rites of passage b. revitalization movements c. rites of intensification d. Neo-Pagan movements Answer: b

page 236

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13. Many religions similar to Vodou developed in the New World. In Cuba the deities are called orisha and are know by their Yoruba names. This religion is known as: a. Wicca b. Santeria c. Huichol d. Rastafarian Answer: b

page 235

14. A deliberate attempt to bring about change in a culture characterizes: a. rites of passage b. revitalization movements c. rites of intensification d. Neo-Pagan movements Answer: b

page 236

15. Revitalization movements may be brought about by: a. political and economic marginalization b. malnutrition and high level of epidemic disease c. perception that values of the community are being threatened d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 236-237

16. The Celtic revival in Ireland is an example of a: a. revivalistic movement b. millenarian movement c. nativistic movement d. messianic movement Answer: a

page 237

17. An example of a nativistic movement is: a. the Branch Davidians b. c. the Vailala Madness d.

Answer: c

Santeria Wicca

page 238

18. Peoples of New Guinea involved with cargo cults imitated the behavior of Europeans (such as writing on paper and sitting on chairs) because they: a. felt these were the rituals which made cargo available to the Europeans b. hoped to impress European officials and in turn receive more cargo c. wanted to be good Christians d. wanted to make proper use of their newly obtained wealth Answer: a

page 238

19. John Frum is: a. revered as a god in Vanuatu b. the anthropologist who first studied the Trobriand Islanders c. the founder of a high demand UFO religion d. the leader of the tribal association in the Amazon Answer: a

239

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20. The Ghost Dance of 1890: a. was begun by a Paiute prophet Wovoka b. promised the return of the ancestors and the disappearance of the dominant society c. is an example of a nativistic movement d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 239-240

21. The Massacre at Wounded Knee was associated with the: a. John Frum Cult b. Vailala Madness c. Ghost Dance d. Santeria Answer: c

page 240

22. Many revitalization movements developed within Christianity in the United States in the early nineteenth century. An example of such a movement which developed into a mainstream religion is the: a. Methodist Church b. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints c. Amish d. Vodou Answer: b

pages 240-241

23. An example of a neo-pagan religious system is: a. Wicca b. Santeria c. John Frum Cult d. Branch Davidians Answer: a

pages 241-242

24. Modern Wiccan beliefs are based upon the works of: a. E. E. Evans-Pritchard b. Margaret Murray and Gerald Gardner c. Edward Tylor and James Frazer d. Bronislaw Malinowski and Claude Lévi-Straus Answer: b

pages 241-242

25. Wiccan beliefs include: a. nature is a manifestation of deity b. folk and ritual magic is used for good and never for evil c. rituals associated with the goddess are performed at full moons d. all of the above Answer: d

page 242

26. Many religious groups develop by branching off of established mainstream religions. The groups that remain mainstream and differ the least from the origin religion are called: a. cults b. sects c. denominations d. movements Answer: c

page 244

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

27. A high demand religion is characterized by: a. strict control of outside information b. communal living c. members being given new names and identities d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 244-245

28. A new religious group that practices mass wedding ceremonies is the: a. Branch Davidians b. Unification Church c. Vodou d. Raelians Answer: b

pages 248-249

29. An example of a UFO religion is: a. Heaven’s Gate b. Unification Church c. Branch Davidians d. Wicca Answer: a

pages 249-250

30. Totalism, scripturalism, and traditioning are features of: a. fundamentalism b. high demand religious groups c. agnosticism d. revitalization movements Answer: a

page 251

31. The practice of justifying beliefs and actions by reference to religious texts held to be inerrant is: a. totalism b. scripturalism c. traditioning d. agnosticism Answer: b

page 251

True/False Questions 32. An invention occurs where someone uses technology to bring about a deliberate change.

Answer: T

page 231

33. Traits that diffuse from one culture to another are usually altered to fit into the cultural system of the receiving culture.

Answer: T

page 231

34. A remote, isolated society that nevertheless uses manufactured clothing and canned goods received from the outside is said to be assimilated.

Answer: F

page 231

35. The movement of the technology of processing acorns among the tribes of California is a good example of syncretism.

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Chapter 11: Syncretism and Religious Movements

Answer: F

page 232

36. The lwa of Vodou closely resemble the orisha of the Yoruba.

Answer: T

page 233

37. In Haitian Vodou, the identification of the Yoruba deity Legba as St. Peter is an example of syncretism.

Answer: T

page 232-234

38. Cargo Cults are high-demand forms of Christianity that developed in West Africa in the early twentieth century.

Answer: F

pages 237-238

39. The Massacre at Wounded Knee in 1890 was an aftermath of the breakup of the Ghost Dance by the U.S. government.

Answer: T

page 240

40. The origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was that of a revitalization movement.

Answer: T

page 240

41. The Witchcraze was a Neo-Pagan movement in 19th century Europe that attempted to rehabilitate healers and midwives.

Answer: F

page 241

42. Wicca has been described as a polytheistic religion.

Answer: T

page 242

43. The Branch Davidians were more of a political than a religious group.

Answer: F

pages 246-248

44. UFO religions, such as the Unification Church and the Branch Davidians, describe extraterrestrial beings in much the same way that supernatural beings are described in more traditional religions.

Answer: F

pages 246-249

45. Traditioning is the idea that Biblical texts are relevant to life today.

Answer: T

page 251

46. Fundamentalism is found in a number of different religions, including Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.

Answer: T

pages 251-255

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Essay Questions 47. When a new trait enters a culture from an adjacent culture through the process of diffusion, what changes occur to that trait before it becomes fully accepted and integrated into the receiving culture? (page 231) 48. What is the essential difference between an acculturated community and an assimilated community? (page 231) 49. Illustrate the concept of syncretism using Vodou in Haiti. (pages 233-235) 50. You are a government official in New Guinea when a Cargo Cult erupts. How would you use your anthropological training to deal with the situation? (pages 237-238) 51. What are the basic tenets of Wicca? How does Wicca differ from the concept of witchcraft during the Witchcraze? (pages 241-242) 52. Define and contrast the concepts of denomination, sect, and cult. (page 244) 53. What are some of the strategies used by high demand religions to maintain member’s affiliation with the group? (pages 245-246) 54. What are UFO religions? What are some of their characteristics? Why are they considered to be religions? (pages 249-250) 55. New religious movements are emerging around the predicted end of the world “predicted” by the Mayan calendar on the Winter Solstice, 2012. Some of these movements are bringing in elements of UFO religions. Research these current religious movements and discuss. (page 249)

138

Instructor’s Manual to Accompany

The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft Third Edition

Rebecca L. Stein Los Angeles Valley College

Philip L. Stein Los Angeles Pierce College

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

© 2011 by PEARSON EDUCATION, INC. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

ISBN 10: 0-20-571812-4 ISBN 13: 978-0-20-571812-2 ii

PREFACE

We are pleased to present an Instructor’s Manual to accompany the third edition of our text, The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft. This Instructor’s Manual is designed to aid the instructor in developing and organizing a course in the anthropology of religion. Each chapter contains the following features: • • • • • • • • • •

Chapter Outline Chapter Summary Learning Objectives Glossary Discussion Topics Student Projects Videos Web Sites Additional References Test Questions Multiple Choice True/False Essay

Finally, we have concluded with appendices. The first are the student learning outcomes and course objectives for our course on the Anthropology of Religion. The second is an observational assignment that we have successfully used for a number of years. The third is a set of study questions for three books that we have used to supplement the main text. The last appendix provides the addresses of the sources of videos and films that have been listed with each chapter. Please note that we have not been able to view a number of the videos—the videos listed are suggestions to explore.

This original edition of the text was a direct result of several years of teaching a course titled “The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft.” We are sharing our experiences and we would very much like you to share yours. Please feel free to send us any comments and suggestions. They will be most welcome.

Rebecca L. Stein steinrl@lavc.edu Philip L. Stein steinpl@piercecollege.edu iii

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter One THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL STUDY OF RELIGION

1

Chapter Two MYTHOLOGY

18

Chapter Three RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS

30

Chapter Four RITUAL

42

Chapter Five ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS

57

Chapter Six RELIGIOUS SPECIALISTS

67

Chapter Seven MAGIC AND DIVINATION

77

Chapter Eight SOULS, GHOSTS, AND DEATH

89

Chapter Nine GODS AND SPIRITS

103

Chapter Ten WITCHCRAFT

115

Chapter Eleven THE SEARCH FOR NEW MEANING

125

Appendix One STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES AND COURSE OBJECTIVES

139

Appendix Two FIELD STUDY OF RELIGION

141 v

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Appendix Three STUDY QUESTIONS FOR SUPPLEMENTARY BOOKS

143

Appendix Four VIDEO AND FILM SOURCES

147

vi

Chapter 5: Altered States of Consciousness and Religious Specialists

Chapter Five

ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS CHAPTER OUTLINE THE NATURE OF ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS Entering an Altered State of Consciousness Fasting Sacred Pain The Biological Basis of Altered States of Consciousness Drug Induced Altered States The Importance of a Ritual Setting The Role of Altered States in Religious Practice ETHNOGRAPHIC EXAMPLES OF ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS The Holiness Churches San Healing Rituals The Sun Dance of the Cheyenne Religious Use of Drugs in South America Rastafarians CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 5.1 ALTERED STATES IN UPPER PALEOLITHIC ART BOX 5.2 THE NATIVE AMERICAN CHURCH

CHAPTER SUMMARY An altered state of consciousness is any mental state that differs from a normal mental state.

Such states are characterized by a number of psychological experiences, such as alterations in patterns of thinking, disturbed sense of time, change in emotional experience, distortion in body image, and others.

A person can enter an altered state through a number of situations including reduction of external stimulation, increase of external stimulation, increased alertness or decreased alertness, pain, or alterations in body chemistry such as those that accompany fasting and sleep deprivation. These factors create observable changes in the activity of the brain. Many religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, include fasting as a part of their religious practices. Another common practice associated with mental changes is pain. Pain is associated with stigmata in Christianity. Blood-sacrifice through self-inflicted pain was a key element in Mayan religious practices. Pain is also involved with body modifications found in many rites of passage.

Altered states of consciousness are manifestations of alterations in the operating of the brain.

For examples, the aura frequently associated with migraines may be interpreted as a religious 57

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

experience. Overstimulation of the orientation association structure of the brain softens the boundary between self and other, resulting in an unitary state.

Altered states of consciousness can also be brought about by drugs and chemical agents, such as the use of tobacco, coffee, alcohol, marijuana, peyote, and a number of manufactured substances. However, the use of these substances in religious practice occurs within a religious context. The experience is strongly influenced by cultural expectations.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 5 the student should be able to: • Define and describe the features of an altered state of consciousness, including how one is entered.

• Describe how fasting and pain are used in a religious context and explain their significance.

• Explain the importance of altered states and how they are used in religious contexts, using examples.

• Explain how altered states are interpreted from an emic perspective, including the concept of a unitary state.

• Explain how altered states are interpreted from an etic perspective.

• Describe the use of altered states in the Holiness churches, San healing rituals, and the Sun Dance.

• Describe the religious use of drugs in South America and other cultures.

• Compare and contrast religious and secular drug use.

GLOSSARY Altered states of consciousness: Any mental state that differs from a normal state. (p. 103) Entopic phenomena: Visual effects that have their origin in physical changes within the eye. (p. 109) Fasting: The act of abstaining from eating food and drinking water over a period of time. (p.

104) Orientation association structure: The part of the brain that enables us to distinguish ourselves from the world around us and to orient ourselves in space. (p. 108) Pan-Indian: Refers to activities that draw from many different Native American traditions. (p.

111) Peyotism: The ritual use of peyote, an hallucinogenic cactus. (p. 111) Spirit possession: An altered state of consciousness that is interpreted as a spirit taking over control of a human body and is either deliberately by a ritual performance or taking control by a spirit causing illness. (p. 116) Stigmata: Bodily wounds or pain considered by Christians to be visible signs of participation in the sufferings of Christ. (p. 106) 58

Chapter 5: Altered States of Consciousness and Religious Specialists

Sympathetic system: The arousal system of the brain. (p. 108) Therianthropes: Creatures that are part human and part animal. (p. 109) Unitary state: An altered state of consciousness in which an individual experiences a feeling of becoming one with the supernatural. (p. 109)

DISCUSSION TOPICS • • • •

Altered states of consciousness are actually common occurrences. What altered states have you experienced? Which are experienced as part of a normal day? What was the experience like? Did it have any meaning for you?

Why do rites of passage commonly involve painful elements? How does this affect the experience of the individual undergoing the ritual?

How do we define what is a drug and what is not? Why do we allow some drugs (e.g., alcohol, tobacco) but prohibit others (e.g., marijuana)?

What are the adaptive and maladaptive uses of drugs? What are the differences between secular and religious drug use?

STUDENT PROJECTS • •

Interview a person who practices meditation. What types of experiences does the person have?

Fasting is found in Islam and Judaism, and several branches of Christianity. Interview individuals who practice fasting as a part of their religious practice. Why do they fast? How do they feel when fasting?

VIDEOS Healers of Ghana. Films for the Humanities. 58 min.

Religious specialists among the Bono of Ghana, who undergo spirit possession as part of their healing practices. Includes addressing cases of witchcraft.

Huichol Sacred Pilgrimage to Wirikuta. University of California Extension. 1991, 29 min.

Follows the annual peyote pilgrimage of the Huichol of western Mexico.

Sons of Shiva. Insight Media. 1985, 27 min.

Shows the four-day festival of Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction. Shows rituals and the participants entering altered states.

59

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

WEB SITES www.sci-con.org Science & Consciousness Review On-Line Journal. religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu The Religious Movement Homepage Project at the University of Virginia. www.meteoros.de/hilde/hildee.htm Reproductions and discussion of Hildegrad of Bingen’s visions.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Ariel Glucklich. Sacred Pain: Hurting the Body for the Sake of the Soul. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. Examines ideas about and uses of pain in religious contexts.

Barbara G. Myerhoff. Peyote Hunt: The Sacred Journey of the Huichol Indians. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1974. A detailed description of the Huichol pilgrimage.

David S. Whitley. The Art of the Shaman: Rock Art of California. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 2000. A study of the rock art of California and how they visualize altered states of consciousness.

David Lewis-Williams. The Mind in the Cave. London: Thames & Hudson, 2002. A study of Paleolithic cave paintings.

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

Characteristics of an altered state of consciousness include: a. acceleration or slowing of time b. sudden and unexpected displays of intense emotion c. various parts of body may appear or feel shrunken, enlarged, distorted, heavy, or weightless d. all of the above Answer: d

2.

page 104

Characteristics of an altered state of consciousness include: a. attachment of new meaning to experiences b. perceptual distortions and hallucinations c. sudden and unexpected displays of emotional extremes d. all of the above 60

Chapter 5: Altered States of Consciousness and Religious Specialists

Answer: d

3.

The term synesthesia refers to: a. hypersuggestibility b. fear of losing self-control c. one form of sensory experience is translated into another d. distortion of time Answer: c

4.

Pages 106-107

Hildegard of Bingen, who lived in the twelfth century, is known for her: a. descriptions of her mystical experiences b. paintings of the saints c. medicines and medical practices d. high political position Answer: a

9.

page 106

Which of the following statements about religious use of pain is false: a. Religious pain is often shared pain. b. The pain may cause the person to enter an altered state of consciousness. c. Pain may induce an euphoric state. d. Religious pain often isolates the individual from the social group.

Answer: d

8.

pages 105-106

Self-inflicted pain leading to a sacrifice of blood characterizes the ritual of the: a. Huichol b. Maya c. Yoruba d. Nuer Answer: b

7.

page 105

The Jewish Yom Kippur and the Islamic Ramadan are both characterized by: a. fasting b. ingestion of wine c. spirit possession states d. meditation Answer: a

6.

page 104

An altered state of consciousness can be brought about through: a. fasting b. meditation c. sleep deprivation d. all of the above Answer: d

5.

page 104

page 108

The part of the brain that enables us to distinguish our selves from the world around us is the: a. cerebellum b. orientation association structure c. Broca’s area d. frontal lobe Answer: b

page 108

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

10. Neurologist Oliver Sachs believes that the visions described by Hildegard of Bingen are likely to be associated with: a. fasting b. use of hallucinogenic drugs c. migraines d. self-inflicted pain Answer: c

page 109

11. Therianthropes are: a. images of transformed shamans c. diviners Answer: a

b. d.

guardian spirits a class of gods

page 109

12. The feeling of being at one with the universe or supernatural beings is called a(n): a. nirvana b. sympathetic state c. unitary state d. entoptic phenomena Answer: c

page 109

13. David Lewis-Williams suggests that Upper Paleolithic cave paintings are: a. decorations b. a form of imitative magic designed for successful hunting c. representations of altered states of consciousness d. a part of coming-of-age rituals Answer: c

page 109

14. A drug that causes visions and hallucinations is classed as a(n): a. euphoria b. phantastica c. hypnotica d. excitania Answer: b

page 110

15. Peyote is used in rituals of: a. the Holiness Church c. Vodou Answer: b

b. d.

the Native American Church San

page 111

16. In the Huichol ritual an altered state of consciousness is mainly brought about by: a. eating the peyote cactus b. meditation c. fasting d. drumming Answer: a

page 112

17. Features that characterize an altered state of consciousness in the Holiness Church include: a. energetic dancing for long periods of time b. speaking in tongues c. jerking of the body and trancelike states d. all of the above Answer: d

page 112

62

Chapter 5: Altered States of Consciousness and Religious Specialists

18. The Holiness Church is separated from most other Christian sects by: a. the handling of poisonous snakes b. the drinking of poisoned beverage c. speaking in tongues d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 112

19. In the Holiness Church the observed altered state of consciousness is most similar to which of the following behaviors found in tribal cultures: a. spirit possession b. divination c. healing d. shamanism Answer: a

page 112

20. In the Holiness Church, an altered state of consciousness is brought about by: a. music and dance b. the drinking of poison c. drumming d. the use of peyote Answer: a

page 112

21. In the Holiness Church, an altered state of consciousness is interpreted as a physical manifestation of: a. demonic possession b. possession by the Holy Ghost c. the need for salvation d. being chosen for an afterlife with God Answer: b

page 112

22. Dancing to heat up the energy known as n/um to enable healing characterized the: a. Yanomamö b. Blessing Way c. Sun Dance d. San healing ritual Answer: d

page 112

23. Pain brought about by piercing the body, a practice found in many Native American groups, characterized the: a. Yanomamö b. Blessing Way c. Sun Dance d. San healing ritual Answer: c

pages 113-114

24. Among the Yanomamö, hallucinogenic snuff is taken by shamans in order to: a. divine the future b. locate the location of animals c. entice spirits into the body d. feed the gods Answer: c

pages 114-115

25. Rastafarians smoke ganga or the “wisdom weed.” This is actually: a. tobacco b. marijuana c. material from a jungle vine d. none of the above Answer: b

page 115

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

26. Marijuana is used in the religious practices of the: a. Holiness Church b. Rastafarians c. Yanomamö d. Native American Church Answer: b

page 115

True/False Questions 27. Any mental state that is different from one’s usual mental state, including day dreaming, is an altered state of consciousness.

Answer: T

page 103

28. Characteristics of altered states of consciousness include disturbances in concentration, attention, memory, and judgment.

Answer: T

page 104

29. Fasting leads to an alteration of the body chemistry which, in turn, leads to an altered state of consciousness.

Answer: T

pages 104-105

30. Both very loud rhythmic noise and the absence of sound are capable of creating an altered state of consciousness.

Answer: T

page 105

31. The Mayan carvings from Yaxhilán show the ingestion of drugs to achieve a hallucination of a serpent.

Answer: F

page 106

32. In some cultures certain biologically-based experiences, such as migraines, are interpreted as visions.

Answer: T

page 108

33. The goal of many religious altered states of consciousness is to achieve a unitary state.

Answer: T

page 109

34. Entoptic phenomena are images of anthropomorphic animals.

Answer: F

page 109

35. In a unitary state one feels a disequilibrium and disconnection with the world.

Answer: F

page 109

36. Problems such as drug addiction frequently accompany religious drug use.

Answer: F

page 110

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Chapter 5: Altered States of Consciousness and Religious Specialists

37. The Holiness Churches use tobacco and alcohol as a sacrament to create contact with the Holy Ghost.

Answer: F

page 112

38. The handling of poisonous snakes is a practice of the Native American Church.

Answer: F

page 112

39. Pain, caused by placing skewers through the skin, characterizes the Cheyenne Sun Dance.

Answer: T

pages 113-114

40. Marijuana is considered as a sacrament in the Native American Church.

Answer: F

page 115

41. Altered states of consciousness are experienced in the way in which the culture interprets it.

For example, it might be interpreted as spirit possession.

Answer: T

page 116

Essay Questions 42. Many religions require fasting as a part of ritual. What effects does fasting have upon the individual? (pages 104-105) 43. Do you think that the volume and regular rhythms of a rock band are capable of producing an altered state of conscious? Why or why not? (page 105) 44. How can a medical symptom such as a migraine be interpreted as a religious vision? (page 106) 45. Describe what we seen in the Mayan carving from the temple at Yaxchilán. What factors bring about an altered state of consciousness? (page 106) 46. Many religious systems require adherents to do things, such as self mutilation, that causes pain. What is the effect of this? (pages 106-108) 47. How do biologists and psychologists explain altered states of consciousness? (pages 108109) 48. Describe how David Lewis-Williams explains the paintings on the walls of Upper Paleolithic caves. (page 109) 49. What kinds of altered states of consciousness do you find in American religious services? (page 112) 65

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

50. How are the effects of a particular drug experienced differently by people in different cultures? (page 113-115) 51. How can we explain spirit possession in terms of an altered state of consciousness? (page 117)

66

Chapter 6: Religious Specialists

Chapter Six

RELIGIOUS SPECIALISTS CHAPTER OUTLINE SHAMANS Defining Shamanism Becoming a Shaman The Shamanic Role and Rituals Siberian Shamanism Yakut Shamanism Shamanism among the Akimel O’odham Korean Shamanism Pentecostal Healers as Shamans Neoshamanism PRIESTS Zuni Priests Okinawan Priestesses Eastern Orthodox Priests OTHER SPECIALISTS Healers and Diviners Prophets CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 6.1 CLOWN DOCTORS AS SHAMANS BOX 6.2 AFRICAN HEALERS MEET WESTERN MEDICINE

CHAPTER SUMMARY Most religious systems identify specialists to carry out specific religious functions. Two of the most frequently found specialists are priests and shamans.

A shaman receives his or her power directly from the spirit world and acquires the ability to do sacred things through personal communication with the supernatural. Shamans are part-time independent contractors whose authority lies in their charisma and ability to heal. A Siberian shaman works with a spirit familiar or animal soul that helps the shaman in his or her work of dispelling a disease-causing spirit or retrieving a lost soul.

Practices similar to shamanism are found in American society. In some ways Pentecostal faith healers act in ways similar to those of shamans, as do clown doctors in hospital settings.

Neoshamanism is a movement based on universal core shamanistic principles, but is more focused on the well-being of the individual than on the community.

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Priests are full-time religious specialists who are associated with formalized religious institutions and tend to be found in more complex food-producing societies. The priest acts as a representative of the community to the deity or deities and is responsible for the performance of prescribed rituals. The skill of a priest is based on the learning of ritual knowledge and sacred narratives and or knowledge of how to perform these rituals for the benefit of the community. Priestly rituals usually take place in a space that is set aside for ceremonial activities, such as a temple or shrine.

Another type of religious specialist is the prophet, who is a mouthpiece of the gods. It is the role of the prophet to communicate the words and will of the gods to his or her community and act as an intermediary between the people and the gods.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 6 the student should be able to: • Compare and contrast priests and shamans.

• Identify a specialist as either a priest or shaman given an ethnographic example.

• Describe the role and importance of a religious specialist, using cultural examples.

• Identify other religious specialists, including healers, diviner, and prophets.

GLOSSARY Axis Mundi: A central axis that is seen as lining the three different levels of the world, the central world containing humans and the supernatural layers above and below it. (p. 122) Core shamanism: Michael Harner’s concept of the core and nearly universal methods of shamanism without a specific cultural context. (p. 126) Diviner: A religious specialist who specializes in divination. (pp. 131-132) Healer: A religious specialist who concentrates on healing. (p. 130) Herbalist: A specialist in the use of plant and other material in curing. (pp. 130-131) Neoshaman: A modern spiritual practice that draws on some concepts and practices of traditional shamanism, but is usually used as a method for improving an individual’s life. (p.

126) Priest: A full-time religious specialist who is associated with formalized religious institutions. (p. 126) Prophet: Someone who communicates the words and will of the gods to his or her community; acting as an intermediary between the people and the gods. (p. 132) Shaman: A part-time religious specialist who receives his or her power directly from the spirit world and acquires status and the ability to do things through personal communication with the supernatural. (p. 120) Tensegrity: A technique of body movements that aims to increase awareness of the body’s energy fields; developed by Carlos Castaneda. (pp. 125-126) 68

Chapter 6: Religious Specialists

DISCUSSION TOPICS • •

Can you think of any religious specialists working within American culture who we would classify as shamans? Why would they fit this classification?

What is the importance of religious specialists? Is the answer different for shamans and priests? Why or why not?

STUDENT PROJECTS • •

Interview a religious specialist. Why did he or she become a religious specialist? What type of training was required? What are his or her responsibilities as a religious specialist?

Watch a film of a religious ritual. Can you identify the type of religious specialist leading the ritual? What characteristics led you to that conclusion?

VIDEOS Healers of Ghana. Films for the Humanities. 58 min.

Religious specialists among the Bono of Ghana, who undergo spirit possession as part of their healing practices. Includes addressing cases of witchcraft.

The King Does Not Lie: The Initiation of a Shango Priest. Filmakers Library. 50 min.

Shows the initiation of a priest of Shango, the “Thundergod” of traditional Yoruba religion, among a group of Santeria practitioners.

L.A. Mohel. Filmakers Library. 30 min.

Looks at three mohels (Jewish ritual circumcisers) in Los Angeles.

Pomo Shaman. University of California Extension. 1964, 20 min.

Shows the second and final night of a shamanistic healing ritual among the Pomo. This version is edited from a longer (45 min.) film called “The Sucking Doctor.”

Prophets: Soul Catchers. Insight Media. 1997, 50 min.

Examines the prophets of the Old Testament, Spite: An African Prophet-Healer. Filmakers Library. 54 min.

A religious specialist from the Ivory Coast draws on Moslem, Christian and traditional African beliefs in his healing ceremonies.

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Yo soy hechicero (I am a Sorcerer). 1996, 48 min.

The religious practices of Eduardo, a Santeria priest. In Spanish with English subtitles. Available from the producer, Iván Drufovka, and the director, Ron Stanford, at www.hechicero.com.

WEB SITES www.shamanism.org Website of The Foundation for Shamanistic Studies (Michael Harner). www.castaneda.com Carlos Castaneda’s Magical Passes. www.mnh.si.edu/arctic/index.html Arctic Studies Center of the Smithsonian.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Nicholas Black Elk (as told through John G. Neihardt). Black Elk Speaks. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2000. The story of a Lakota shaman living during the years of white settlement at the end of the nineteenth, early twentieth centuries.

Autobiographies about personal religious experiences: Karen Armstrong. Through the Narrow Gate. New York: St.Martin’s Press, 1995. Armstrong, who has written on many religious topics, tells of her own spiritual life, including seven years in a convent.

Frederick Buechner. The Sacred Journey: A Memoir of Early Days. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1982. Autobiography of Buechner’s childhood, finding Christ, and becoming a reverend.

Madeleine L’Engle. The Irrational Season: The Crosswicks Journal, Book 3. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1984. L’Engle’s journal follows a church year and her own questioning of her faith.

Merete Demant Jakobsen. Shamanism: Traditional and Contemporary Approaches to the Mastery of Spirits and Healing. New York: Berghahn Books, 1999. A study of shamanism among the Angakkoq of Greenland and the story of neoshamanism.

C.S. Lewis. Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1995.

Lewis’s autobiographical account of his life, including as a Christian and as an atheist.

Thomas Merton. The Seven Story Mountain: Fiftieth-Anniversary Edition. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1998. Merton discusses his early doubts, conversion to Catholicism and his decision to take life vows as a Trappist monk.

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Chapter 6: Religious Specialists

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

The development of full-time religious specialists is associated with: a. foraging societies b. small-scale horticultural societies c. large, technologically advanced societies d. all of the above Answer: c

2.

The term shaman comes from the Tungus language of: a. Siberia b. the American Southwest c. West Africa d. Australia Answer: a

3.

page 121

The term “wounded healers” is used to describe: a. shamans b. priests c. prophets d. herbalists Answer: a

6.

pages 120-121

Shamans: a. may receive a call from the spirits through an altered state of consciousness to become a shaman b. may become a shaman because of recovering from a illness c. are sometimes call “wounded healers” in that they are often driven to become shamans because of illness, accident, spirit possession, and so forth d. all of the above Answer: d

5.

page 120

Which of the following features characterizes a shaman? a. shamans are usually full-time specialists b. shamans are usually associated with permanent shrines and temples c. the power of a shaman is determined by his or her personal ability to contact the supernatural d. shamanistic rituals are usually prescriptive and periodic Answer: c

4.

page 119

page 121

Central to the role of a shaman is: a. conducting period rituals b. controlling spirit helpers and entering an altered state of consciousness c. conducting rituals to ensure a good harvest d. all of the above Answer: b

page 121

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

7.

Shamans are able to cure illness by: a. sending their souls to recapture the lost soul of the patient b. removing spirits and objects from within the body of the patient c. allowing a deity to possess their body d. all of the above Answer: d

8.

Characteristic of Siberian Shamanism is the use of: a. hand held drums b. hallucinogenic snuff c. dancing d. self-inflicted pain Answer: a

9.

pages 121-122

page 121

Among the Yakut (Shkha) of Siberia: a. although most people are Russian Orthodox, many continue to practice shamanism b. many Christian elements are found in modern shamanism c. new groups are forming around charismatic shamans d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 122-123

10. Kyta Baaly is a shaman from: a. Korea c. Okinawa Answer: b

b. d.

Shkha, Siberia the American Southwest

page 123

11. A Korean shaman may be asked to: a. guide the dead to the underworld b. locate game for hunters c. identify and remove layers of illness d. travel along the Axis Mundi to the underworld Answer: a

page 124

12. Examples of practices that can be labeled shamanism that are found in today’s American society are: a. Pentecostal healers b. Neoshamans c. clown doctors d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 124-125

13. A technique of body movements call tensegrity is associated with: a. Neoshamanism b. Akimel O’odham shamanism c. Korean shamanism d. Siberian shamanism Answer: a

pages 125-126

14. Neoshamanism differs from traditional shamanism as seen in small-scale societies in that neoshamanism: 72

Chapter 6: Religious Specialists

a. b. c. d.

focuses on the individual with the goal of improving one’s life is based on core shamanism, the universal aspects of shamanism deals with the positive aspects of shamanism all of the above

Answer: d

page 126

15. A full-time religious specialist, who is associated with a formalized religious institution, is a: a. priest b. healer c. shaman d. diviner Answer: a

pages 126-128

16. Religious specialists who are usually responsible for the performance of prescribed, periodic rituals are: a. shamans b. diviners c. priests d. healers Answer: c

pages 126-128

17. All of the following are true about priests except: a. priests are associated with temples and shrines b. priestly offices are often inherited from father to son c. priests obtain supernatural power from a spirit familiar d. priests are responsible for the correct performance of rituals Answer: c

pages 126-128

18. A complex series of priesthoods where political authority is vested in the priesthood characterizes the: a. Zuni b. Akimel O’odham c. Navaho d. Cahuilla Answer: a

page 128

19. Okinawan priests are: a. always women from specific clans b. communicate with the ancestors and the kami c. practice divination and healing d. all of the above Answer: a

pages 128-129

20. Which of the following statements about Eastern Orthodox Priests is true? a. Monks are priests who live in isolated communities. b. Priests primarily perform social rites of intensification. c. Priests perform rites of passage, such as birth, baptism, marriage and death. d. All of the above are true.

Answer: d

page 130

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

21. A specialist who uses techniques to obtain information about things that are not normally knowable is a: a. herbalist b. diviner c. healer d. priest Answer: b

page 131

22. Herbalists are: a. healers c. diviners Answer: a

prophets witches

b. d.

prophets priests

pages 130-131

23. Handsome Lake and Ngundeng were: a. diviners c. herbalists Answer: b

b. d.

page 132

24. A _________ is a mouthpiece of the gods. a. diviner b. prophet c. herbalist d. priest Answer: b

page 132

True/False Questions 25. The term shaman is a term used for a kind of religious specialist; the term is derived from Latin.

Answer: F

page 120

26. Shamans are frequently individuals who are driven to become shamans because of illness including mental illness.

Answer: T

page 121

27. The power of a shaman lies in her ability to successfully memorize religious texts and rituals.

Answer: F

page 121

28. The ability to enter an altered state of consciousness is central to the role of shaman.

Answer: T

page 122

29. A shaman is more likely to have a direct experience with a supernatural being than is a priest.

Answer: T

pages 122

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Chapter 6: Religious Specialists

30. Periodic rituals associated with an agricultural cycle are usually performed by shamans.

Answer: F

pages 121-122

31. Priests are usually associated with some sacred space, such as a temple or shrine.

Answer: T

pages 121-122

32. The revival of shamanism among the Yakut (Shkha) is, in part, a rejection of Christian elements introduced by the Russian Orthodox Church.

Answer: F

page 123

33. Shamans in Korea are usually women who have experienced some type of psychological stress in their lives.

Answer: T

page 123

34. Pentecostal preachers resemble shamans in that they will enter altered states of consciousness to contact the supernatural, in this case God, as a part of a healing ritual.

Answer: T

page 124

35. Shamans can only be found in small-scale societies.

Answer: F

page 124-126

36. Core shamanism is a concept that was developed by Carlos Castaneda.

Answer: F

page 126

37. In contrast with traditional shamanism, neoshamanism focuses on the individual, often as a self-help means of improving one’s life.

Answer: T

page 126

38. A priest is more focused on individual problems such as a person’s illness than on community-wide rituals.

Answer: F

pages 126-127

39. The training of a priest normally involves the memorization of vast amounts of ceremonial knowledge so as to be able to perform rituals correctly.

Answer: T

page 127

40. Zuni society recognizes many different priesthoods.

Answer: T

page 128

41. Okinawa is the only known society in which women lead a mainstream, official, publicly funded religion that is practiced by both sexes.

Answer: T

page 128

42. A deity might communicate to a community through a prophet.

Answer: T

page 132

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Essay Questions 43. While a priest is usually visualized as an ideal role model, shamans are very often people who live on the edges of society and are feared by members of the society. Why? (pages 121-122) 44. What methods does a shaman use to cure an illness? (pages 121-122) 45. Describe the Siberian shaman Kyta Baaly. How is this an example of syncretism? (page 123) 46. How does Korean shamanism affect the role of woman in Korean society? (pages 123-124) 47. Why do some anthropologists consider Pentecostal preachers as being shamans? (page 124) 48. Describe Michael Harner’s concept of core shamanism. (page 126) 49. How does neoshamanism differ from the practice of shamanism in traditional societies? (page 126) 50. How does a priest differ from a shaman? (pages 126-127) 51. How does the relationship between the person and the supernatural differ between a priest and a shaman? (pages 126-127) 52. Describe the role of priests as political leaders in Zuni society. (page 128)

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Chapter 7 Magic and Divination

Chapter Seven

MAGIC AND DIVINATION CHAPTER OUTLINE THE WORLD OF MAGIC Magic and Religion Magic and Science Rules of Magic Homeopathic Magic Contagious Magic The Function of Magic Why Magic Works MAGIC IN SOCIETY Magic in the Trobriand Islands Learning Magic Magical Ritual Magic among the Azande Sorcery among the Fore Wiccan Magic DIVINATION Forms of Divination Divination Techniques Inspirational Forms Ordeals Fore Divination Oracles of the Azande Divination in Ancient Greece: The Oracle at Delphi Astrology CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 7.1 TROBRIAND ISLAND MAGIC BOX 7.2 I-CHING: THE BOOK OF CHANGES

CHAPTER SUMMARY Magic refers to activities by which a person can compel the supernatural to behave in certain ways. Key components of magical acts are the words that are spoken or the spell and objects that are manipulated in set ways. Magical rituals usually can be performed only at special places and at special times. The performer must often observe certain restrictions such as abstention from 77

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

sexual intercourse and avoidance of certain foods. A magician is usually a worker in the kind of magic that is on the whole public and good, whereas a sorcerer deals in matters that are evil and antisocial.

Frazer articulated the Law of Sympathy, which states that magic depends on the apparent association or agreement between things. There are two parts to the Law of Sympathy. The first is the Law of Similarity, which states that things that are alike are the same. The second is the Law of Contagion, which states that things that were once in contact continue to be connected after the connection is severed. The Law of Similarity gives rise to homeopathic or imitative magic, and the Law of Contagion to contagious magic.

Tylor addressed the question of why people believe that magic works. The answer is because magic appears to never fail. There are several reasons for this. Because magic always works, failure must be due to the inadequacies of the magician. Magic usually attempts to bring about events that will naturally occur; people do not generally ask impossible things of magic.

Finally, there is the issue of selective memory.

Techniques for obtaining information about things unknown, including events that will occur in the future, is known as divination. Inspirational forms of divination involve some type of spiritual experience, such as a direct contact with a supernatural being through an altered state of consciousness. Noninspirational forms are more magical ways of doing divination and include the reading of natural events as well as the manipulation of oracular devices. Fortuitous forms simply happen without any conscious effort on the part of the individual; deliberate forms are those that someone sets out to do. Examples of divination include omens, presentiments, possession, prophecy, ornithomancy, oneiromancy, necromancy, astrology, dowsing, flipping a coin, ordeals, palmistry, phrenology, and reading tarot cards.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 7 the student should be able to: • Compare and contrast magic, sorcery, divination, illusion, and science.

• Describe the key elements of magic, including how magic is learned and performed, and the laws that magic follows.

• Explain the functions that magic and divination serve.

• Explain why magic always appears to work.

• Identify the different forms of divination, as well as examples of each.

• Describe ethnographic examples of the use of magic and divination (e.g., among the Azande, Fore, Wiccans, and in ancient Greece).

GLOSSARY Aleuromancy: Divination by use of flour, as in fortune cookies. (p. 151) Apantomancy: Divination by a chance meeting with an animal. (p. 150) Artificial divination: Refers to noninspirational divination. (p. 148) 78

Chapter 7 Magic and Divination

Astrology: The belief that all of the stars, planets, as well as the sun and moon influence the destiny of people and that the sky can be used as a divination technique. (p. 150) Cleromancy: Divination by the casting of lots such as the rolling of a die or the drawing of straws. (p. 155) Contagious magic: Magic that is based on the Law of Contagion, utilizing things that were once in physical contact with an individual. (p. 138) Deliberate divination: Divination that someone sets out to do. (p. 148) Divination: Supernaturally based techniques for obtaining information about things unknown, including events that will occur in the future. (p. 148) Doctrine of signatures: Belief that physical structures found in nature, such as the shape of a plant, are indicative (or signatures) of their potential use in healing. (p. 139) Dowsing: Method of divination whereby water and other underground resources are located by use of a forked stick. (p. 151) Emotive divination: Inspirational divination. (p. 148) Empirical: Made through our senses. (p. 137) Fortuitous divination: Divination that simply occurs without any conscious effort. (p. 148) Graphology: Divination through handwriting analysis. (p. 151) Haruspication: Divination by the examination of entrails of sacrificed animals. (p. 150) Homeopathic: Magic that is based on the Law of Similarity. (p. 138) Hypothesis: In science, a tentative statement based upon experimental and observational data that is subject to further study. (p. 137) Image magic: A form of homeopathic magic in which an image represents a living person, which can be killed or injured through doing things to the image. (p. 138) Imitative magic: Magic that is based on the Law of Similarity. (p. 138) Increase rite: A type of ritual whose purpose is to aid the survival and reproduction of a totemic plant or animal. (p. 138) Inspirational divination: A type of divination that involves a spiritual experience, such as a direct contact with a supernatural being through an altered state of consciousness. (p. 148) Law of Contagion: Things that were once in contact continue to be in contact after the physical connection is severed. (p. 138) Law of Similarity: Things that are alike are the same. (p. 138) Law of Sympathy: Magic depends on the apparent association or agreement between things. (p.

138) Magic: Ways in which a person can compel the supernatural to behave in certain ways. (p. 136) Medium: A practitioner who intentionally communicates with the supernatural to find information. (p. 152) Natural divination: Inspirational divination. (p. 148) Necromancy: Divination through contact with ancestors or the dead. (p. 150) Neo-Paganism: A revival of pre-Christian religious practice. (p. 147) Noninspirational divination: Forms of divination that are performed without the direct involvement of supernatural beings. (p. 148) Omen: A fortuitous happening or condition that provides information. (p. 150) Oneiromancy: Divination by the interpretation of dreams. (p. 149) Oracle: A specific device that is used for divination. (p. 148) 79

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Ordeal: A trial by divination that is performed on the body of the accused person to determine guilt or innocence. (p. 153) Ornithomancy: Divination from reading the path and form of a flight of birds. (p. 150) Palmistry: Divination through the reading of the lines of the palm of the hand. (p. 151) Phrenology: Divination through the study of the shape and structure of the head. (p. 151) Possession: An altered state of consciousness that is interpreted as a deity taking control of a person’s body. (p. 152) Presentiment: A feelings that a person may have. (p. 150) Prophecy: Divination through the communication of a prophet. (p. 152) Scapulamancy: A divination technique in which a dried scapula, or shoulder blade is placed in a fire and the pattern of cracks and burns are interpreted. (p. 150) Sorcerer: A magician who specializes in antisocial, evil magic. (p. 136) Spell: The words that are spoken in a magic ritual. (p. 143) Tasseography: Divination through the reading of tea leaves. (p. 151) Testable: The ability to develop new experiments and observations that will test the validity of a conclusion. (p. 137) Theory: In science, a framework for understanding that is supported by a large amount of consistent scientific data. (p. 137)

DISCUSSION TOPICS •

• • •

•

What do Americans commonly think of when they hear the term magic? How is this different than the anthropological definition of magic? Do Americans do anything that would be classified as magic by anthropologists? Would the people who perform these behaviors classify this as magic themselves? Why or why not? How does this illustrate the issues of the emic and etic perspectives?

Can you think of any examples of magical thinking from your own life?

How does magic differ from science? Do non-Western people have science?

Astrology in our culture is sometimes labeled as entertainment (e.g., horoscopes are in the entertainment section of the newspaper). However, many people take them quite seriously. Are horoscopes and other forms of divination just harmless entertainment? Are there any negative consequences of living one’s life relying on astrology and fortune telling? Are there any positive consequences?

Several individuals who claim they can contact the dead have become popular on television. Do you they really possess this ability? Why or why not? Does it matter if they really can? Is it harmless and just providing solace to the bereaved or could it actually do harm?

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Chapter 7 Magic and Divination

STUDENT PROJECTS • • • •

Interview students about what they do to prepare for an exam outside of studying. Do they carry anything for luck? Could any of their practices be described as magical in nature? How do they explain their behavior?

Watch several players at a sporting event. Do you see any behavior that could be labeled magical? In what situations is this behavior most often seen?

Go into a large toy store and find as many divination techniques as you can. Catalog and classify these divination techniques.

Look at predictions made by tabloids, especially in their predictions issues. What kinds of things are predicted? If you can obtain back issues of a prediction issue, did any of these predictions come true? How were the predictions worded to maximize the probability of being able to say that the prediction did come true after the fact?

VIDEOS Bisha: The Awesome Fire Test. Filmakers Library. 52 min.

Looks at the ritual of Bisha, a trial by ordeal in which suspects lick a white-hot iron pan with their tongues, among the Bedouin.

Trobriand Cricket: An Ingenious Response to Colonialism. University of California Extension.

1976, 54 min. A classic documentary that shows how the islanders changed the game of British cricket to reflect their own culture and concerns, including the use of magic.

WEB SITES www.bartleby.com/196 An on-line copy of James Frazier’s The Golden Bough. www.era.anthropology.ac.uk Spider divination of the Mambila people of West Africa, including simulation. skepdic.com/divinati.html Discussion of divination methods from The Skeptic’s Dictionary. www.lib.umich.edu/pap/magic Traditions of Magic in Late Antiquity exhibit from the University of Michigan

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Tahir Shah. Sorcerer's Apprentice. New York: Time Warner, 2002. Shah’s travels across southern India to find and learn the art of magic from one of India's greatest practitioners.

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Paul Stoller and Cheryl Olkes. In Sorcery’s Shadow. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1987. The story of Stoller’s work with sorcerers in the Republic of Niger.

Stuart Vyse. Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. Examines the psychological and cognitive reasons behind magical thinking.

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

Magic refers to the: a. belief in a generalized supernatural power b. belief in an ancestor that has been transformed into a god c. use of ritual to cause injury or death d. use of ritual to control events through supernatural mechanisms Answer: d

2.

Magic refers to rituals that people use to: a. control the supernatural b. call upon the deities for help c. move a person from one status to another d. explain a society’s worldview Answer: a

3.

page 136

page 136

Edward Tyler did not consider magic to be a part of religion because magic: a. did not involve the performance of rituals b. was not performed by religious specialists c. did not involve gods and spirits d. is used primarily to achieve evil ends Answer: c

page 136

4. Émile Durkheim did not consider magic to be part of religion because: a. religion involves the whole community but magic focuses on an individual b. magic is not performed by religious specialists c. magic does not involve gods and spirits d. magic does not involve the performance of rituals Answer: a

5.

p. 137

Important features of magic are that magic: a. creates hypotheses and theories b. comes to testable conclusions c. deals only with empirical observations d. assumes a causal relationship between things that look similar 82

Chapter 7 Magic and Divination

Answer: d

6.

Magic ritual usually includes: a. a spell b. the manipulation of objects c. special conditions for the performer of the ritual d. all of the above Answer: d

7.

Robert Marett James Frazer

page 138

The Law of Similarity states that: a. magic depends on the apparent association between things b. things that were once in contact continue to be connected c. things that are alike are the same d. none of the above Answer: c

9.

pages 136-137

The Law of Sympathy was developed by: a. Edward Tyler b. c. Branislaw Malinowski d.

Answer: d

8.

pages 137-138

page 138

Magic that is based upon the Law of Similarity is termed: a. contagious magic b. homeopathic magic c. sympathetic magic d. none of the above Answer: b

page 138

10. The Law of Contact (Contagion) states that: a. magic depends on the apparent association between things b. things which are alike are the same c. things that were once in contact continue to be connected d. none of the above Answer: c

page 138

11. An example of homeopathic magic is: a. praying for a god's blessing b. Hopi villagers performing a kachina dance c. imitating the mating and reproduction of an animal d. reciting an evil spell over an enemy's hair clippings Answer: c

page 138

12. Image magic is an example of: a. contagious magic c. harmonious magic Answer: b page 138

b. d.

homeopathic magic representational magic 83

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

13. The doctrine of signatures tells us that: a. plants have signs that proclaim their use b. the future can be read in a person’s signature c. cures occur when a person touches the correct sign painted on a cave wall d. certain hand gestures must be avoided or else the individual will fall ill Answer: a

page 139

14. An example of contagious magic as a part of American folk medicine is: a. a tea made of red flowers is good for bleeding b. drawings of deer on the side of a barn will bring success in hunting c. rub a penny on a wart and then throw the penny away to get rid of the wart d. none of the above Answer c:

page 139

15. Branislaw Malinowski theorized that magic rituals serve to help the person who practices them to: a. keep his mind off the upcoming activity b. try to control or eliminate the elements of chance and uncertainty c. fit into his society’s norms d. remove the supernatural influence on everyday endeavors Answer: b

page 140

16. Magic-like rituals are an important part of the behavior of athletes in athletic competition.

Certain ritual behaviors, such as wearing the same clothing or washing one’s hands after a losing inning, are: a. learned and passed down in particular baseball teams b. adopted because the player associated certain activities with success c. purchased from magical specialists d. none of the above Answer: b

page 140

17. Magic is most frequently found in situations that are: a. unpredictable b. reasonably reliable c. associated with those at the fringes of society d. associated with the politically powerful Answer: a

page 140

18. To people who practice magic it appears never to fail because: a. if you do not get the expected result it is because you did not do it right b. if it does fail, someone else was doing countermagic c. humans tend to remember successes and forget failures d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 140-142

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Chapter 7 Magic and Divination

19. Among Australian aborigines, the family will react to what they believe is an impending death by: a. singing ancestral songs b. withdrawing from the dying person c. withholding food and water d. all of the above Answer: d

page 142

20. The oral text of a magical ritual is often known as a: a. spell b. recitation c. charm d. liturgy Answer: a

page 143

21. Magic involves the use of plant material, called medicines, in which supernatural power resides among the: a. Trobriand Islanders b. Fore c. Azande d. Wiccans Answer: c

page 145

22. Magic that is worked for antisocial and evil ends is known as: a. witchcraft b. sorcery c. oneiromancy d. necromancy Answer: b

page 146

23. Which of the following statements about Wiccan magic is false?: a. It is based on the worldview that there is a power that exists in all things. b. Objects such as crystals, oils, candles and images are often used. c. Working of magic requires a consideration of nature (e.g., season, weather). d. Magic can be done to cause harm only if the person truly deserves it.

Answer: d

page 147

24. Divination refers to method for: a. controlling the behavior of spirits and deities b. controlling events of nature c. obtaining information about the normally unknowable d. curing illness Answer: c

page 148

25. Divination can be used to: a. determine the cause of an illness b. provide the result of an undertaking that is about to begin c. locate game for hunters d. all of the above Answer: d

page 148

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

26. Noninspirational fortuitous forms of divination include: a. astrology b. prophecy c. omens d. mediums (psychics) Answer: c

pages 148-149

27. Tarot cards and the reading of palms are examples of: a. mechanical type of divination b. possession c. omens d. ordeals Answer: a

page 149

28. A feeling that something is about to happen, such as an impending disaster, is known as: a. necromancy b. a presentiment c. apantomancy d. dowsing Answer: b

page 150

29. Deliberate inspirational forms of divination include: a. mediums (psychics) b. reading palms c. Zande poison oracle d. prophecy Answer: a

pages 152-153

30. Inspirational fortuitous forms of divination include: a. astrology b. prophecy c. omens d. mediums (psychics) Answer: b

pages 152-153

31. In some societies guilt and innocence are determined by having a red-hot knife pressed against some part of the accused person’s body. This is an example of a(n): a. presentiment b. ordeal c. omen d. none of the above Answer: b

page 153

32. The Zande poison oracle is an example of: a. noninspirational deliberate divination b. noninspirational fortuitous divination c. inspirational deliberate divination d. inspirational fortuitous divination Answer: a

pages 154-155

33. The origins of Astrology appear to have been in: a. Egypt b. India c. Babylonia d. Iran Answer: c

page 157

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Chapter 7 Magic and Divination

True/False Questions 34. Edward Tylor did not include magic in his definition of religion.

Answer: T

page 136

35. Magic involves the manipulation of words and objects so as to compel a deity to bring about the desired result.

Answer: F

pages 136-137

36. The apparent connection between things that are no longer connected as a basis of magic defines homeopathic magic.

Answer: F

page 138

37. By acting out the mating behavior of animals, Australian Aborigines believe that they are affecting the reproductive cycle of the animal. Such increase rituals are a form of homeopathic magic.

Answer: T

page 138

38. Contagious magic is based on the premise that things that were once in contact always maintain a connection.

Answer: T

page 139

39. A student picks up a coin from the sidewalk and puts it in her pocket. Later that day she takes an exam on which she scores an A. She then carries her “lucky coin” to her next exam.

This is an example of magical thinking.

Answer: T

pages 140-141

40. Among the Trobriand Islanders, a “man with knowledge” is one who possesses technological knowledge as well as knowledge of magic.

Answer: T

page 142

41. The Azande utilize medicines that are objects in which supernatural power resides.

Answer: T

page 145

42. The Fore believe that kuru is caused by sorcery based on homeopathic magic.

Answer: F

pages 146-147

43. Divination is a technique for finding out information about the unknown.

Answer: T

page 148

44. A presentiment is a feeling that something is about to happen.

Answer: T

page 150

45. The observation of animal behavior or objects in the sky such as comets is called omens.

Answer: T

page 150

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Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

46. Possession and prophecy are examples of deliberate inspirational divination.

Answer: F

pages 152-153

47. In benge or the poison oracle of the Azande poison is fed to pigs.

Answer: F

pages 154-155

Essay Questions 48. Why did many of the late nineteenth century anthropology consider magic not to be a part of religion? (page 137) 49. What is the essential difference between technology and magic? (pages 137-138) 50. How is magical thinking the basis of folk medicine? Can you find examples in contemporary American society? (pages 138-139) 51. Why do athletes so often practice magic-like rituals? (page 140) 52. Explain the statement: “Magic always works.” (pages 140-142) 53. How do the Trobriand Islanders view knowledge? (page 142) 54. How does a Trobriand Islander obtain magic? (pages 142-143) 55. How does Wiccan magic differ from Trobriand Island magic? (page 147) 56. What is the function of divination? (pages 147-148) 57. What is the main distinction between fortuitous and deliberate divination? Between inspiration and Noninspirational divination? Provide examples. (pages 148-149) 58. Explain the difference between prophets and mediums. (pages 152-153) 59. How are ordeals used in courts of law? (page 153)

88

Chapter 8: Souls, Ghosts, and Death

Chapter Eight

SOULS, GHOSTS, AND DEATH CHAPTER OUTLINE SOULS AND ANCESTORS Variation in the Concept of the Soul Souls, Death and the Afterlife Examples of Concepts of the Soul Yup’ik Souls Yanomamö Spirits and Souls Hmong Souls The Soul in Roman Catholicism The Soul in Hinduism and Buddhism Ancestors Yoruba Ancestors Beng Ancestors and Reincarnation Tana Toraja Ancestors Ancestors and the Departed in Japan BODIES AND SOULS Ghosts Dani Ghosts Bunyoro Ghosts Japanese Ghosts The Living Dead: Vampires and Zombies Vampires The Viking Draugr Haitian Zombies Zombies in Modern American Culture DEATH RITUALS Funeral Rituals Disposal of the Body Burial The African Burial Ground Secondary Burials Cremation Mummification Exposure U.S. Death Rituals in the Nineteenth Century U.S. Funeral Rituals Today DAYS OF DEATH 89

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Halloween Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) CONCLUSION SUMMARY BOX 8.1 HOW DO YOU GET TO HEAVEN? BOX 8.2 DETERMINING DEATH BOX 8.3 ROADSIDE MEMORIALS

CHAPTER SUMMARY The belief in the existence of a spirit entity residing within a person appears to have grown out of observations of sleep, coma, and death. A soul is the noncorporeal, spiritual component of an individual. Usually, each individual possesses a soul that takes on the personality of the individual and has an existence after death. During life the soul may leave the body. Dreams are seen as adventures of the soul, and illness may be caused by an absence of a soul that must be retrieved by a shaman. Death is the permanent withdrawal of the soul. How the soul is perceived varies widely, including the number of souls, the size of the soul, and where the soul is located in the body. The soul may retain its identify after death for a limited time or eternity. The destination of the soul after death may depend on the behavior of the person during life, the social status of the individual, or perhaps the way in which the person died. Funeral rituals may assist the soul on its journey to the land of the dead and serve to protect the living from any negative influences of the soul. Sometimes the soul returns and animates another individual, a concept termed reincarnation.

One possible fate for a soul is that it becomes part of the group of supernatural beings known as ancestors. Even after death a person is still a valued member of the kinship group and reinforces ideas of social roles, contributes to social harmony and social solidarity, and punishes descendants for misbehavior.

Ghosts are negative forces that remain in the vicinity of the community after death. They can bring about illness and other misfortune, although their role is sometimes ambiguous. In contrast, vampires and zombies are creatures that have no souls. Vampires are believed to be individuals who have recently died, usually before their time, and have returned to bring death to others. The body of an alleged vampire will be exhumed and “killed” or destroyed in some way.

Zombies are corpses that have been raised from their graves and animated. They are not necessarily feared, because the main reason for their existence is to provide slave labor.

Death rituals or funerals are rites of passage that move the individual from the status of living person to that of ancestor or other postdeath status. Funerals vary among cultures in a number of ways: the form of the expression of grief, the role of the ritual in terms of what will happen to the individual in the afterlife, the ritual ways in which the family and community separate themselves from the dead to avoid contamination or illness, how the living are reorganized in society to accommodate for the absence of the deceased, and the method of disposal of the corpse.

Many cultures allow for the return of the spirits of the dead at special times of the year. A familiar example is Halloween, which is based on an old Celtic holiday when the gates that nor90

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mally separate the worlds of the living and the dead were opened and the souls of those who had died during the past year could then move into the otherworld. The early Church transformed this celebration into All Saints Day and All Souls Day on November 1 and 2, respectively. The Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) in Mexico is also associated with these Catholic holidays. The family, including both the living and the dead, gather together for celebration.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading Chapter 8 the student should be able to: • Define the concept of a soul and describe variations in beliefs about the soul that are found cross-culturally, including what happens to a soul after death.

• Describe the soul beliefs of the Yup’ik, Yanomamö, and Hmong, as well as those of Roman Catholicism, Buddhism, and Hinduism.

• Explain why ancestors remain important figures in some cultures, including the role played by ancestors among the Yoruba, Tana Toraja, and in Japan.

• Discuss the connection between body and soul and describe creatures that are lacking one or the other, namely ghosts, zombies, and vampires.

• Explain the functions and importance of funeral rituals.

• Describe the various means of disposing of the body, and explain any connections this may have with soul beliefs.

• Describe how death rituals in America have changed over time, including the present time.

• Describe holidays that frame death as a concept, including the examples of Halloween and the Day of the Dead.

KEY TERMS Ancestor worship: The veneration of ancestors, who may bring aid to their descendants or, if neglected, may bring misfortune. (p. 168) Endocannibalistic anthropophagers: The term endocannibalism refers to the eating of one’s own people, and the term anthropophagers refers to the eating of human bodies. (p. 180) Geomancy: Originally a form of divination in which patterns of markings made on the ground or by thrown dirt are read. Today it refers primarily to feng shui, a method of determining the location and orientation of buildings, tombs, and other objects on the land. (p. 172) Ghost: A soul of an individual after death that remains in the vicinity of the community. (p. 172) Karma: The effect of a person’s behavior during the series of phases of a person’s existence.

Karma is seen as determining the person’s destiny. (p. 166) Mummification: A technique of preserving a dead body involving drying and preservatives (p.

181) Purgatory: A place for souls who die with lesser faults for which there is no repentance or for which the penalty is not wholly paid during the lifetime. (p. 166) 91

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Reincarnation: A belief in an immortal, eternal soul that is born again and again in different bodies. (p. 166) Soul: The noncorporeal, spiritual component of an individual. (p. 161) Transmigration: A situation in which a soul passes from one body to another—human animal, or even an inanimate object. (p. 163) Vampire: A person who has died before his or her time and who brings about the death of friends and relatives until his or her corpse is “killed.” (p. 174) Zombie: A corpse that has been raised from the grave and animated. (pp. 175-177)

DISCUSSION TOPICS • • • • • • •

What makes us alive? Do you think humans have souls? If so, what is the soul like? What happens to it when the person dies?

How do we know when someone is dead? What do you think of brain death as the criteria? Would you personally be willing to be an organ donor? Why or why not?

Why do you think a belief in a soul is universal?

What are American funerals like today? How much emotional expression is allowed at the funeral? How long are you supposed to grieve afterwards?

How do Hollywood depictions of ghosts, vampires and zombies differ from the descriptions of these entities as they appear in actual cultural systems? Why do you think stories and movies about vampires and zombies are so popular?

What customs are associated with the current festival of Halloween? Are there any religious elements in the modern holiday?

Why do you think cremation is becoming a more popular option in the United States?

STUDENT PROJECTS • •

• • •

Investigate the activities of modern ghost hunters in the United States. How much of their activity would you classify as “science” and how much as “religion”?

Investigate the controversy around modern American mediums, especially those with television shows, who say they can speak with the dead. Do you think they really can speak with the dead? What techniques could they be using to create the illusion that they are speaking with the dead?

Discuss the issue of determining death and organ donation in different cultures, such as in the United States and Japan. How are these topics seen differently in different cultures?

Discuss the grief recovery movement in the United States.

Watch several vampire or zombie movies from different decades. How do these movies reflect the culture of the time?

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VIDEOS Crypts, Coffins, and Corpses. Insight Media. 2002, 50 min.

Looks at methods of dealing with a deceased body around the world.

Dead Birds. Insight Media. 1968, 83 min.

Profiles the Dani of New Guinea, including funeral celebrations.

Last Rites: Death Ceremonies. Insight Media. 1997, 50 min.

Looks at how different societies deal with death.

The Reincarnation of Khensur Rinpoche. University of California Extension. 1999, 49 min.

The story of a Tibetan monk’s search for his reincarnated former master.

Slave Island: New York’s Hidden History. Films for the Humanities. 50 min.

An excavation in downtown Manhattan unearths an eighteenth century burial ground of African slaves.

The Trials of Telo Rinpoche. University of California Extension. 1999, 49 min.

The story of Telo Rinpoche, also known as Edie Ombadykow, a 21-year-old American from Philadelphia who is recognized by the Dalai Lama as an important reincarnate lama.

WEB SITES www.africanburialground.gov/ABG_Main.htm rican Burial Ground National Monument.

The National Park Service website for the Af-

www.archaeology.org/online/interviews/blakey/index.html An interview with physical anthropologist Michael Blakey about the African Burial Ground. www.africanburialground.duke.edu/abgfaq.htm Ground Project. www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_h9Xx-a1B0

Research Bibliography for the African Burial

African Burial Ground Documentary (6 minutes).

www.ancientegypt.co.uk/mummies/home.html Site that explores mummification from The British Museum. www.si.edu/Encyclopedia_SI/nmnh/mummies.htm Smithsonian. www.deathonline.net

Site about Egyptian mummies from The

An Australian Museum online exhibit on death.

altreligion.about.com/library/weekly/aa102202a.htm 93

Death rituals from around the world.

Instructor’s Manual for The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

www.grief-recovery.com

Grief Recovery Institute website.

www.loc.gov/folklife/halloween.html ter of The Library of Congress.

Site about Halloween from The American Folklore Cen-

www.palomar.edu/multicultural/DiadelosMuertos the Dead.

Site about Días de los Muertos, the Day of

www.nicholasbeatty.com Short video on the Day of the Dead.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES Paul Barber. Vampires, Burials and Death: Folklore and Reality. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988. Looks at European folklore about vampires and the scientific explanations for some of the phenomena.

Nigel Barley. Grave Matters: A Lively History of Death around the World. New York: Henry Holt, 1995. A look at how different cultures define and react to death.

Wade Davis. The Serpent and the Rainbow. New York: Touchstone, 1985. An ethnobotanist’s experiences in Haiti searching for the “zombie drug.”

Anne Fadiman. Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. New York: Farrar, Strauss & Giroux, 1998. The story of the Hmong in Merced, California.

Gary Laderman. The Sacred Remains: American Attitudes Toward Death, 1799-1883. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1996. Presents the history of mortuary practices in the United States in the nineteenth century.

Peter Metcalf and Richard Huntington. Celebrations of Death: The Anthropology of Mortuary Ritual. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1991. A cross-cultural study of the rituals that accompany death.

TEST QUESTIONS Multiple Choice Questions 1.

A belief in souls is probably found in all societies. This belief is likely derived from the experience of: a. dreams b. hallucinations c. fainting d. all of the above Answer: d

page 161

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2.

Differences in the concept of the soul among human societies include: a. the size of the soul b. the number of souls a human possesses c. the location of the soul in the human body d. all of the above Answer: d

3.

In some societies souls may be acquired during one’s lifetime, such as through a vision. This is found among the: a. Jivaro b. Yanomamö c. Shoshoni d. Beng Answer: a

4.

page 163

Among the Yup’ik of western Alaska seals have souls. These souls are returned to the sea during an annual festival when the ________ of the seal, which contains its soul, is shoved through the hole in the ice. a. liver b. bladder c. heart d. brain Answer: b

8.

page 163

Which of the following is true about the concept of the soul in small-scale religions? a. the soul may be destroyed on its way to the other world b. the fate of the soul may be the result of the social statuses of the individual during life c. the souls of people who die a special death, such as in war, may share a fate different from those who die a different death d. all of the above Answer: d

7.

pages 162-163

The term transmigration refers to: a. the attainment of new souls through visions b. the movement of souls from one person into another c. the soul being reborn into the body of an animal d. the soul moving from one afterlife to another Answer: c

6.

page 162

Which of the following is true about the concept of the soul? a. in some societies one’s soul is in one’s shadow or in one’s reflection in a mirror b. the destiny of one’s soul after death always depends on how one behaved in life c. there is always a single soul d. all of the above statements are true Answer: a

5.

page 162

pages 163-164

The Yanomamö believe in: a. several different souls that have different destinations after death 95

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b. c. d.

a single immortal soul that recycles from grandparent to grandchild a perfect afterlife only for those people free of sin the necessity of burial to preserve the soul for a coming new world

Answer: a

9.

page 165

The Hmong of Laos believe that: a. illness occurs when one of many souls is frightened out of the body or stolen by demons b. the immortal souls recycles from grandparent to grandchild c. one aspect of the soul lives near the liver and can be stolen by a shaman causing illness d. only souls of people free of sin will go to Heaven Answer: a

pages 165-166

10. The belief that an immortal, eternal soul is born again and again in different bodies is found in: a. Catholicism b. Islam c. Hinduism d. Judaism Answer: c

page 166

11. In Buddhism, rebirth is seen not as the transmission of a distinct personality, but as a transmission of: a. consciousness b. karma c. lineage d. thoughts Answer: b

page 167

12. The importance of ancestors in a society is often a reflection of the importance of: a. kinship b. death c. inheritance of wealth d. reincarnation Answer: a

page 168

13. The egungun are spirits that travel from the land of the lead to visit the living among the: a. Hmong b. Yoruba c. Tana Toraja d. Jivaro Answer: b

pages 168

14. The Beng of West Africa believe that during the first several years of a baby’s life: a. the baby’s soul is transitioning from the afterlife to this world b. animals must be sacrificed so that one of the animal souls becomes the baby’s c. the egungun dancers must drum the baby’s soul into its body d. the baby has no soul and is therefore not talked to Answer: a

page 169

15. A clear separation of biological and social death is found among the: a. Beng b. Yoruba c. Tana Toraja d. Hmong 96

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Answer: c

pages 169-171

16. In Japan, a distinction can be made between ancestors and those who died in more recent memory. The latter are referred to as: a. the departed b. ghouls c. kindred d. the near gods Answer: a

page 171

17. A ghost can best be thought of as: a. a dead person brought to life through magic b. a soul that remains in the world of the living c. an evil spirit or deity d. none of the above Answer: b

page 172

18. Much of Dani behavior, including the fear of traveling outside of the village at night, is based upon their belief in the existence of: a. sorcerers b. zombies c. ghosts d. witches Answer: c

pages 172-173

19. In eastern European folk belief (not Hollywood folk belief) a vampire is: a. an evil spirit that sucks blood from its victims b. a person who, having died before his time, returns to life to bring death to his friends and neighbors c. a dead person brought back to life by a sorcerer d. a person who turns into an animal upon death Answer: b

page 174

20. Descriptions of vampires are based upon: a. early folk tales found in eastern Europe b. observations made of corpses that were exhumed several months after burial c. descriptions of invaders that overran eastern Europe from Asia during the 14th and 15th centuries d. observations made of recently executed criminals Answer: b

pages 174-175

21. From an etic perspective, the appearance of exhumed bodies thought to be vampires were actually the result of the: a. acidic nature of the soil found in some eastern European cemeteries b. natural process of decay c. mutilation of bodies by people wanting the village to believe in vampires d. real work of supernatural forces Answer: b

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22. The Viking draugr was a(n): a. animated corpse that could wander the countryside, much like a vampire b. ghost seeking revenge for its own death c. reanimated corpse, much like a zombie d. soul that resided in Valhalla after dying in battle Answer: a

page 175

23. Haitian Zombies are: a. living persons who have been placed in a zombie state in order to work in the fields b. reanimated dead persons who eat brains c. a special class of especially evil and troublesome ghosts d. people who have died before their time and return to life to bring death to friends and neighbors Answer: a

pages 175-176

24. Wade Davis believes that from an etic perspective, Haitain zombies really: a. did not exist b. have been given a powder containing tetrodotoxin c. were in it for the fame and wealth d. were animated from the dead to work in the fields Answer: b

page 176

25. Death rituals or funerals serve many purposes among which is (are): a. channeling the expressions of grief b. determining the fate of the soul c. protecting the community of ghosts d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 177-178

26. Burials differ in different societies in many ways. Among these is: a. the location of the grave b. the position the body is placed in c. objects placed in the grave with the body d. all of the above Answer: d

page 178

27. The African Burial Ground is a cemetery in: a. West Africa which has been studied by anthropologists b. East Africa where secondary burials of skeletons have been found c. New York city that contains the burials of slaves from the 18th century d. South Africa containing cremated remains Answer: c

pages 179-180

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28. All of the following statements about the African Burial Ground are correct except: a. most of the remains are those of adults b. the cemetery dates to the 1700s c. individuals were buried in coffins d. the bodies were buried with their heads oriented to the west so that on the Judgment Day they will sit up and face the rising sun Answer: a

pages 179-180

29. The term secondary burial refers to: a. a separate burial for specific body parts (e.g., the head and hands) b. any burial for those lower in the social stratification c. a later burial during which the remains are dug up, processed, and reburied d. a burial for a person who dies out of grief after the passing of their spouse Answer: c

page 180

30. The custom of drinking the cremated ashes of the dead is found among the: a. Yanomamö b. Jivaro c. Berawan d. Nuer Answer: a

pages 180-181

31. The earliest examples of the American custom of embalming and the establishment of the first military cemeteries took place during the: a. Revolutionary War b. French and Indian War c. Civil War d. World War I Answer: c

page 182

32. American mortuary customs are characterized by: a. discomfort on the part of those attending the funeral b. restrained expressions of grief c. restoration of the body to lifelike appearance for purposes of display d. all of the above Answer: d

pages 182-183

33. All Hallows Eve or Halloween takes place on the evening before: a. Memorial Day b. dama c. All Saint’s Day d. Hollows Day Answer: c

pages 183-184

34. The origins of Halloween can be found in a(n): a. ancient Celtic festival called Samhain b. Satanic celebration of the horned deity c. new tradition for burials that began during the Civil War d. U.S. department store attempt to sell more items in the Fall Answer: a

page 183

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35. The Day of the Dead in Mexico is a time for: a. driving evil spirits out of the village b. a family reunion for all family members, living and dead c. fasting and repentance d. all of the above Answer: b

page 185

True/False Questions 36. The soul is the noncorporeal, spiritual component of an individual.

Answer: T

page 161

37. The concept of a single soul that animates the living body and leaves upon death is found in the vast majority of societies that have been studied.

Answer: F

page 162

38. In most societies, the fate of the soul after death depends upon the behavior of the individual when living.

Answer: F

page 163

39. The majority of Americans believe there is a Heaven.

Answer: T

page 164

40. Among the Yup’ik the souls of the seal moves to the bladder. The bladders of all of the seals killed during the year are inflated and returned to the sea in an annual festival.

Answer: T

page 165

41. The Hmong believe that at death the soul travels to the place where its placenta (afterbirth) has been buried and puts it on like an article of clothing.

Answer: T

page 166

42. In Roman Catholicism, souls travel to one of two places: Heaven or Hell.

Answer: F

page 166

43. Reincarnation means that souls are reborn as animals.

Answer: F

page 166

44. The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism state that life is imperfect and inevitable involves suffering.

Answer: T

page 167

45. The Tana Toraja separate biological and social death in that social death occurs some time after biological death.

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Answer: T

pages 169-170

46. The distinction between a soul and a ghost is not always a clear one.

Answer: T

page 172

47. Among the Dani a major function of a funeral is to appease the ghost.

Answer: T

page 173

48. Vampires and zombies as depicted in American movies are very similar to actual ethnographic examples.

Answer: F

pages 174-176

49. Supernatural figures such as vampires and zombies reflect our contemporary fears and anxieties.

Answer: T

page 176

50. The African Burial Ground is a Yoruba cemetery located in what is today Nigeria.

Answer: F

pages 179-180

51. The term ethnocannibalistic anthropophagers refers to societies who eat the bodies of one’s own group.

Answer: T

page 180

52. Examples of endocannibalistic anthropophagers are the Yanomamö and the Fore.

Answer: T

page 180

53. The routine embalming of bodies developed during the Civil War. Answer: T

page 182

54. The Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) in Mexico was a time when ghosts and evil spirits returned to take revenge on the living.

Answer: F

pages 184-185

Essay Questions 55. Why is the concept of the soul found in virtually all human societies? (pages 161-162) 56. In what ways does the concept of the soul vary among human cultures? (pages 162-163) 57. Culture places meaning on physical and biological events. How does culture redefine death among the Tana Toraja? (pages 169-171) 58. How does a ghost differ from a soul? (page 172) 101

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59. Contrary to Hollywood depictions, what are vampires and zombies and how do they differ from one another? (pages 174-177) 60. In what ways do supernatural figures such as vampires and zombies reflect our contemporary fears and anxieties? (pages 174-177) 61. What are the several functions of death rituals or funerals? (pages 177-178) 62. Death rituals differ from other rituals in that the society must deal with the corpse. Describe some of the ways this is done and why. (pages 178-181) 63. How were bodies handled in rural America in the early half of the nineteenth century? (pages 181-182) 64. In what ways did the handling of bodies change during the Civil War and why? (page 182) 65. Describe the development of Halloween as an example of syncretism. (pages 183-184)

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Appendices

Appendix One

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES AND COURSE OBJECTIVES We have reproduced the Student Learning Outcomes and Course Objectives that we have developed for our own course, which is based upon this text. We hope that they will prove useful Course Description This course provides an introduction to the basic principles of Cultural Anthropology, and applies these principles to the study of Religion. Two major questions that are asked in Cultural Anthropology are: What are the commonalities or universals of human behavior and human society? And what is the variation among the world’s societies? We will study the basics of religious behavior including myths, religious symbolism, religious rituals, religious specialists, magic, divination, and witchcraft. Each subject will be illustrated with examples from various cultures, focusing on traditional or tribal societies although examples will be drawn from more familiar religions.

Student Learning Outcomes Upon completion of this course, students will be able to: 1. Reason about and interpret religious behavior, both past and present, in comparative terms.

2. Be aware of and sensitive to cross-cultural differences with the aim of developing a perspective of cultural relativism and an ability to recognize and avoid ethnocentrism.

3. Apply anthropological principles in everyday life, including as related to self, family, community, and professional careers.

Course Objectives Upon completion of this course, students will be able to: 1. Name the major subfields within anthropology and explain the content of each.

2. Describe the nature of anthropological fieldwork and contrast this methodology with that of other disciplines.

3. Analyze the concepts of ethnocentrism and cultural relativism and use these concepts to judge contemporary social issues.

4. Explain how the term culture is used in anthropology.

5. Describe how anthropologists define the term religion.

6. Explain and differentiate between the different theoretical approaches to the study of religion.

7. Recognize the role that myth plays in religious practice and the ways in which anthropologists analyze myth.

8. Understand the concept of symbol and be able to identify religious symbols in religious art, music, and dance.

9. Explain the concept of ritual and categorize different types of ritual.

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10. Compare and contrast different types of religious specialists.

11. Explain altered states of consciousness and describe the role it plays in religious experiences.

12. Compare magic to other aspects of religion.

13. Differentiate between various types of supernatural entities including gods, spirits, souls, ghosts, and ancestors.

14. Explain the concept of witchcraft and compare witchcraft beliefs to other types of beliefs such as magic.

15. Discuss how cultures change through time and analyze the effects of culture contact on the religious systems of small-scale societies.

16. Using the concepts developed in the course; analyze non-mainstream religious practices in the United States including Wicca and various cults.

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Appendix Two

FIELD STUDY OF RELIGION Introduction This project has three purposes: (1) to expose you to a religion other than your own, (2) to have you apply anthropological principles learned in class to a specific situation, and (3) to have you experience anthropological fieldwork.

Choosing a Religion for Study Your first task will be to choose a religion to study. Some questions you may ask in selecting a religion to study are: Do you know someone who could be an informant? Do you know the location of a specific church, temple or mosque? Will the ceremony be conducted in English? An answer of “no” to any of these questions does not mean you cannot study that religion; it just means it will be a bit more challenging.

If you have no idea what religion you would like to study, consider looking at The Encyclopedia of American Religions. Possibilities include Catholic, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Methodist, Pentecostal, Baptist, Adventists (including Jehovah's Witness), Fundamentalist, Mormon, Coptic, Greek and Russian Orthodox, Unitarian, Christian Science, Jewish, Muslim, Baha'i, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, New Age, Pagan, or Wicca. Note that with certain religions you will need to make a further choice between different subgroups (e.g., Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist Judaism).

Doing the Fieldwork Your next step is to attend a ritual in the religion you have selected. The ritual can be a public ceremony such as a Sunday morning church service, a rite of passage such as a wedding, or even a ritual held in a home. Make plans to go to your site. If you do not have an informant to go with, you may want to call ahead and make arrangements. Tell them who you are and why you want to attend, find out when and where services are, and ask any additional questions such as how to dress. If you are unsure about this last point, err on the side of being conservative. Your dress and behavior reflects on the college.

Attend the ritual, watching for things that will help you write your paper. You may also want to ask questions of an informant (e.g., What did that mean? Why did they do that?) or to look up information in books or on the Internet. Make sure you either take good notes or tape record any interview and consider discretely taking notes at the ceremony, if it is permitted.

However, never make a tape recording without the permission of the person you are speaking with and do not record the ritual without the permission of the person in charge. If you asked for permission to attend the ritual, sending a note of appreciation afterwards would be a nice gesture.

In general, while you are attending the ritual you should do as they do. For example, if they stand, so should you. If they are all wearing head coverings and they are provided, you should wear one too. The exception is when it comes to actually participating in the ritual such as taking communion in a Catholic church. If you are unsure, ask.

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You might want to make arrangements to speak with the ritual specialist (priest, rabbi, minister, monk, etc.), although this is not a required part of the assignment. Most will more than happy to speak with you and they would be an invaluable source of information. This person can also serve as your informant.

Keep all of your field notes. The instructor reserves the right to ask you to turn them in if he has some questions about your work. The instructor may also want to discuss your project with you.

Do not wait until the last minute. Fieldwork often does not go as planned; allow yourself time for unforeseen difficulties. This is not a paper that can be written at the last minute.

The Paper Use your field notes on your observations of the ritual, and your notes from any interviews, reading or Internet material, if any, to write your paper. Organize your paper into four sections and label each section with a heading.

I.

Introduction a. Identify the religion you chose to study. b. Identify the place where you observed the ritual. c. Identify the sources that you used. List any published material. If you had an informant, provide a brief biography, but do not identify your informant by name.

II. Write a brief outline of the ritual describing step-by-step what occurred. Do not make any interpretations of the ritual at this time.

III. Discuss specific topics about the ritual you observed. a. Classify the ritual according to the classification discussed in your text. Is this ritual a prescriptive or situational ritual? A periodic or occasional ritual? What type of ritual did you observe: rite of passage, social rite of intensification, etc. If you attended a rite of passage, did you see evidence of the three stages? b. Describe the setting: the building, auditorium, sanctuary, and so forth. Where did the participants sit? Where are the leaders positioned? c. How many people participated in the ritual? What was the audience like in terms of age and gender? Did men and women sit in different locations? d. What were the important symbols either in the setting or in the ritual itself? Give several examples. Include art, dance, and music symbols. e. List and describe the ritual specialists. What role did they play in the ritual? How are they chosen? Do they have any special training or qualities? How were they dressed? If there were no ritual specialists, how were things run? f. Was there any evidence of altered states of consciousness? g. Discuss other topics that you find interesting about the ritual you observed.

IV. Finally, write a one-paragraph conclusion summarizing your findings.

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Appendix Three

STUDY QUESTIONS FOR SUPPLEMENTARY BOOKS In this Appendix we are presenting study questions for three books that we have successfully used in our classes.

Karen McCarthy Brown. Mama Lola: A Vodou Priestess in Brooklyn. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001.

1.

What is the worldview of Haitian Vodou?

2.

How do the lwa differ from Christian portrayals of God and the Saints? What accounts for these differences? How does the nature of the lwa reflect Haitian society and culture?

3.

How does the author connect the story of Joseph Binbin Mouvant, Azaka and the arrival of Alourdes in New York?

4.

What is your initial opinion of Alourdes? Of Karen McCarthy Brown? Of Vodou?

5.

Why is Ogou so important to Haitian Vodou? Why is he important to immigrants? Why is he important to Alourdes?

6.

Explain what author means by “Haitian Vodou is not a religion of the empowered and privileged (page 98).”

7.

What are some examples of Vodou rituals described in the book? How would you classify these rituals using the classifications discussed in lecture?

8.

What do you learn about the lives of Haitian women? How is this reflected in Vodou?

9.

Karen McCarthy Brown says that the decision to serve the spirits has “never been made quickly or easily” by the women in Alourdes’s family (including Philomise, Maggie and Alourdes herself). Why is this the case? What are the pros and cons associated with serving the spirits?

10. What is the role of dreams in Vodou?

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11. Mama Lola has been called a “postmodern ethnography.” Part of the emphasis of postmodernism is hearing multiple voices/viewpoints. Brown writes that postmodernism questions whether it is possible for someone of her background to write about Haitian Vodou in a way that is not “exploitive, distorting and destructive.” Postmodernism questions whether it is possible to truly understand another person, especially from another culture. What do you think?

12. What is the importance of ancestors and the dead in Vodou?

13. What is the importance of possession? How is the possession experience described?

14. Brown writes that in order to understand Vodou healing, you also need to understand the “Vodou view of person and the Vodou philosophy of life (page 344).” What does she mean by this?

15. Vodou is a religion of Haiti. How have the circumstances of life in Haiti impacted the development, beliefs and/or practices of Vodou?

16. The tradition in anthropology is for “participant observation.” However, Karen McCarthy Brown becomes much more involved than most observers, even participant observers, do, becoming a Vodou practitioner. How do you think this influences her work? Does it make her ethnography better? Or worse?

17. Now that you have read the entire book, what is your opinion of Alourdes? Of Karen McCarthy Brown? Of Vodou? Did your opinion change at all from when you first started the book? What is your opinion of the book itself?

Anne Fadiman. Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. New York: Farrar, Strauss & Giroux, 1998.

The publisher maintains a web site with a great deal of information including an update on the Lee family. The address is www.spiritcatchesyou.com.

1.

Culture overlays meaning upon life processes. Compare and contrast the cultural meaning and events of childbirth in traditional Hmong and American societies.

2.

The placenta or afterbirth plays an important role in the Hmong worldview. How is the placenta disposed of after birth in traditional Hmong society? What happens to the placenta or afterbirth in an American hospital? How can an American doctor accommodate Hmong beliefs following a birth in an American hospital?

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3.

What is the significance of the soul-calling ceremony? The soul-calling ceremony is an example of what anthropologists call a rite of passage. Describe Lia’s soul-calling ceremony.

4.

What are some of the causes of illness in Hmong culture?

5.

How does the Hmong worldview lead to conservatism and stability? Does the Hmong worldview make conflict with American culture inevitable? Why?

6.

How did Lia’s family explain her epilepsy? What caused the illness? What special role do epileptics play in Hmong society?

7.

How does a txiv neeb or shaman handle a case of illness? How does this differ from the practice of an American doctor? What medical procedures does a shaman perform?

8.

What are the reactions of a Hmong to American medical procedures such as the drawing of blood, anesthesia, and surgery?

9.

American doctors make certain assumptions about the behavior of their patients (and their patient’s parents). What problems were encountered regarding the giving of medications that an American doctor would not be aware of?

10. When Lia returned home, her parents sacrificed a cow. What was the meaning of this sacrifice? The Hmong, routinely sacrifice animals, often in their homes. How do Americans react to such practices?

11. Describe the Hmong New Year.

12. What customs are observed when a person is thought to be dying?

13. This book provides several examples of cross-cultural misunderstandings. What are some of them? What differences in Hmong and American culture led to these misunderstandings?

What are some of things that can be done to improve Hmong medical care and minimize cross-cultural misunderstandings?

Rudolfo Anaya. Bless Me Ultima. New York: Warner Books, 1999.

1.

Is Bless Me Ultima a rite-of-passage novel? How so?

2.

How is the religion of Catholicism contrasted with the indigenous religion of Antonio and Ultima? What conflicts are presented between the two?

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3.

What other conflicts or oppositions can you find in the book (e.g., good/evil; llano/farm; Marez/Luna; Catholicism/indigenous religion)? Give several examples.

4.

How are myths, such as the myth of the Golden Carp, used in the story?

5.

What are some of the symbols used in the novel (e.g., juniper tree, bridge, river, sun/moon, the owl, numbers, woman)? What do they represent?

6.

How is nature characterized in the novel? Give several examples of the sacredness of nature.

7.

What role is given to Antonio’s dreams?

8.

What must Antonio learn to become an “adult”? What questions must he address?

9.

How is power and healing associated with the sacred? Give several examples of Ultima’s sacred experiences and their relation to power and healing.

10. How is a blending of both Catholicism and indigenous religious expressions suggested in the book? How is change viewed by Ultima? What does she give Antonio as her blessing? (See pages 247 and 261.)

11. How are witches described in this novel? Is Ultima a witch?

12. What is magic? What examples of magic are there in this novel?

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Appendix Four

SOURCES OF FILMS AND VIDEOS Filmakers Library 124 East 40th Street, New York, NY 10016 1-212-808-4980 www.filmakers.com Films for the Humanities & Sciences PO Box 2053, Princeton, NJ 08543-2053 1-800-257-5126 www.films.com Insight Media 2162 Broadway, New York, NY 10024-0621 1-800-233-9910 www.insight-media.com PBS Video 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, VA 22314-1698 1-800-344-3337 teacher.shop.pbs.org University of California Extension Center for Media and Independent Learning 2000 Center Street, Fourth Floor, Berkeley, CA 94704 1-510-642-0460 www-cmil.unex.berkeley.edu/media/ Women Make Movies, Inc. Film & Video Department 462 Broadway, Suite 504R, New York, NY 10013 1-212-925-0606 www.wmm.com

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