Saturday, October 3, 2009
Reflections on Spirit Possession & Shamanism
This weekend I would like you all to write about what some European Sinoogists have called "the shamanic substrate." By this term they mean that the Chinese religious imagination, indeed its entire universe is constituted on the ground of shamanism. Of course, shamanism is a practice, but it is what it assumes that is key--a continuous relationship between the living and the dead and between the human and natural worlds where spirits operate within the social and political order. We have had some exposure to this phenomenon in our recent readings in Dorfman and Potter and I want you to offer some reflections on it. Compare the behavior and beliefs demonstrated in the two essays. How exactly do spiritual forces effect change in the human realm? How are such changes recognized and dealt with? How is the social structure of community affected by the shamanic work required to restore the original balance of forces between humans and spirits? Lastly, consider what is explicitly different in the shamanic operations as observed by Dorfman and Potter.
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One unmistakable fact that we can pull from both Dorfman and Potter is that relations between spirits and the living is extremely influential over the well-being of those in Chinese society, whether for better or worse. Both articles also deal with scenarios featuring "nongmin," or village people. As we discussed in class, until recently a very large majority of the Chinese population was living in rural conditions, so spirit possession was very widely practiced. The way in which spirits have an effect on these people though differs between the two authors. Dorfman argues that the activity of the spirits, in this case evil ones, was spurred by political corruption and disruption in the state. This helped to explain natural phenomena such as luck, wealth, morality, etc... The spirits find opportunities to show themselves in times of political turmoil, creating a cause-and-effect relationship. In contrast, Potter makes the point that spirits are actually the cause of illness. The woman shamans are necessary to maintain relations between people and their angry ancestors. These ancestors, unlike grandparents and such in Western culture, never lose their influence and are always present. This gives power to a population that can only be influenced and communicated to through mediums, elevating the status of those who possess these powers. However, as mentioned before, this system primarily exists among villagers. Higher status member of the Communist party, for example, may not believe in this so heavily, creating an even greater class divide. Religion and belief in spirit possession ultimately serves to solidify the social structure favorable to the Communist Party or those who consider themselves above these beliefs.
ReplyDeleteThe primary difference in the "shamanic substrate" described in the two articles is the cause attributed to the possessions by spirits. In the Dorfman article, the shamamic substrate possesses a political and economic undertone. Illness, possession, and other signs of bad fortune descend upon the villages when an immoral ruler governs the country. For example, during the governance of Mao Zedong, the animal spirits that plagued the village were driven away. During the Deng Xiaoping era, these spirits are active "because they do not recognize the power of Deng," and "Deng's lack of power over them enables the spirits." Thus, Deng is presented as an illegitimate ruler, alienated from the moral peasants, or nongmin. Illness caused by spirits is cured by healers, who can be male or female. In the social structure of the nongmin described by Dorfman, the service offered by female healers is limited to personalized care, while male healers have no restrictions. However, in the view of the nongmin, the root cause for spirit related bad fortune is the government and corruption.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, the Potter article presents an image of spirit possession as a result of a lack of filial piety. Possession and illness occur because of malevolent spirits bringing misfortune upon the household. In many cases, families must appease the spirits in order to cure their problems. In this social structure, women who have lost their children, and thus their status in the community, may become shamans. In this way, they regain their status and importance in the village. With the help of the shamans, the villagers are able to appease their ancestors.
Thus, in the Dorfman article, the shamanic substrate has a political and economic undertone. In the Potter article, it is concerned more with ancestor worship.
One thing I think is worth pointing out is that the Dorfman article's spirits were politicized because of their connection to the People's Republic of China as opposed to British controlled Hong Kong in the Potter article. The Mao-era PRC was a highly politicized place, with communist propaganda brainwashing the denizens of even very small towns. This propaganda would seem to me to be the reason for the distinction between the two sets of villagers' practices. The Cantonese people in the Potter article are not being brainwashed with communist propaganda in the way that the Dorfman nongmin are.
ReplyDeleteSpiritual forces in the human realm often seem to be able to be controlled by special humans designated with the role of controlling such spiritual forces. Spiritual forces in effect become humanized on a level that laypeople can relate to. Some people need visual support in order to solidify their belief in the supernatural.
In the Potter article, the shamans provide an outlet for women to become powerful in an overwhelmingly male dominated society.
Why is Shamanism the basis for all Chinese religious thought? Meaning, why are shamans the necessary intermediary for the dialogue between the spirit and human world? Potter and Dorfman look at this question in tow different ways. Potter, who works in the Canton, sees the shamans as means of rectifying illness. This illness could be physical or social imbalance. In Potter, spirits change the physical world by disrupting the normal social workings of a community. Alternatively, Dorfman does not tie shamanism to social or physical imbalance, but political imbalance. It is interesting to observe how the actions of spirits was adopted to the political sphere.
ReplyDeleteI really liked Mitch's comment about the historical context of the Dorfman article.
In approaching similar phenomena through different styles, Potter and Dorfman reveal many striking effects of shamanism on community life in China. As spiritual forces appear to be an integral aspect of everyday living, the role of the shamans is vital in society, not only as an intermediary of the two realms, but as a impetus for change. As ones who can understand and/or explain things of which others can only guess at the cause, shamans maintain social order and prevent despair. This concept functions in both articles, as Dorfman claims, "beliefs interplay with economic and political circumstances". Similarly, in the Potter article, a more narrative style discusses the necessity of a shaman to help when children become sick. In both circumstances, the nongmin of the north and Cantonese villagers would be likely to panic and upset the social order if their problems, whether they be sickness or tough economic times, go undiagnosed, unexplained, and untreated. In the Dorfman article, the original relation of the spirits and humans seemed to be off-balance inherently, whereas in Potter the shamans were working to restore a natural order disrupted by spirits. Change was accepted by both groups of people, however spirits were necessary to cope with the change and inspire effort to bring things if not back to normal, to a tolerable condition.
ReplyDeleteShamans seem to serve many functions in chinese society. They are not just a religious entity, but also a political and spiritual one. Shamans act as doctors, fortune tellers, seers, and advisors all at the same time. The way that shamans are integrated into Chinese culture is truly unique - they serve many structural functions.
ReplyDeleteIn the Potter article, the Shaman's main function seems to be a healing and peace-making one. By acting as intermediaries between the spirit world and the villagers, they can resolve disputes and encourage mutually beneficial behavior. They can enforce community norms by sending messages "from the beyond". As described in the article, spirits often request new burials and increased worship. This enforces the importance of ancestor worship in the village. Ghosts also often encourage filial piety and obedience, which further enforces societies structure.
In the Dorfman article, shaman have a much more political role. They help the peasants deal with the failures of the CCP. These beliefs are more involved with economics and politics than enforcing normative social structure.
The articles seem to reinforce the many services that the shaman provide and their importance in modern chinese society.
Through the works of Dorfman and Potter which we have studied this week, it becomes evident that shamanism is paramount to the Chinese religious imagination. Shamanism is centered around the constant, dynamic interplay and contact between the living and the dead and the presence and action of spirits within various aspects of society. Through the works of Dorfman and Potter we see that spirits do have tangible effects on society. Dorfman suggests that spirits affect government policies; when problems exist and economic or political reforms are not helping, the only way to fix the problems is by exorcising the spirits. In Potter’s article on Cantonese Shamanism, he asserts that spirits affect individual people; he suggests that all live in the world affect by spirits and that society’s well-being depends on how one cares for the dead as well as each other. An offended spirit that is not sufficiently appeased will wreak havoc and death upon their family and angry spirits kidnap souls, most often for ransom. To solve these problems, shamans must work to control the spirits and protect those whom spirits attack. For example, shamans can make a weak child who has had their soul kidnapped protected by establishing a fictive-kinship relationship.
ReplyDeleteThis shamanic work changes the social structure of community because it allows women to become more powerful. Women are inherently less powerful in Chinese society. Most shamans are women that have had a bad fate and have lost children. However, because of their child loss, they become powerful as shamans. Thus, a loss becomes a gain and they become from a nonentity in the community to a major entity. They become crucial for society because they converse with the dead and possess powers of healing.
Furthermore, the main difference between the articles of Dorfman and Potter is that Dorfman describes the “shamanic substrate” within a political and economic context. However, Potter describes shamanic work within a familial context of ancestor worship. Dorman talks of the connection between spirits and the success of political or economic reforms and emphasizes that the dynamic of healing is caught up with politics. Potter, on the other hand, suggests that shamanic work is based upon curing children of soul loss and protecting families from angry spirit ancestors that need to be appeased correctly.
Shamanism is an ancient practice that has lingered until this very day in certain areas of China. It would seem to us that shamanism is an uncivilized practice and a detriment to Chinese society. But, are we really justified in saying that? The difference between Western ways of thinking compared to the Eastern way of thinking is striking. In Chinese society, the well-being of the people is directly linked to the living’s relationship with the dead. I believe that this particular Chinese way of thinking is a disadvantageous to the more logical and rational thinking in the West. Sickness and misfortunes that a family face can not, and should not, all be attributed to strains in a relationship with a deceased family member. It simply flies in the face of all modern medicinal and rational knowledge. I think the shamanistic tradition of the Chinese is damaging to their own society; it may allow people to not be held accountable for their actions. Of course, I would think this way, because I am a Westerner.
ReplyDeleteSpiritual forces, according especially to the Potter article, have more authority than human forces and so can be used, through the shamans to change a societal or family situation that could not be changed through the intercession of persons affected by the situation. We talked in class, for instance, about women who change an abusive or unpleasant family situation through being ‘possessed’ by spirits who demand such a change. The woman herself does not have the authority to make such a demand, but a spirit does have the authority to make the demand on her behalf and can elicit a change. Spirits have power because of Chinese’s fear of their power and capabilities. They fear the spirits can negatively affect their families and fortunes, but they also believe these spirits can positively affect their fortunes if they keep the spirits appeased. Their power comes from their interaction with the human world through the shaman, who also has power based on this connection. Any change in health or fortune is attributed to a spirit and will elicit an immediate trip to the shaman to determine the problem. These Chinese believe they can defer any bad fortune or health by appeasing the spirits involved through material offerings. Shamanic work affects the social structure by affording the shaman status that she would otherwise not have had access to. We discussed in class the life experiences of the shaman women. All three shamans discussed in the Potter article had lost their husbands and children to premature deaths. In this culture women’s status is defined by their children, so the loss of children is equivalent to the loss of status for the women. Ironically it is just this loss that affords the women status. This new status, as shaman, is afforded through their connection with their children in the spirit realm so in some senses, this social structure is identical to that of most women in this society. Even after their death, these children afford their mother social status and she still depends on them for her status. Professor Jensen said in class that after the deaths of their husbands and children these women do not fit into any normal social structure and can even disrupt the basis for the social structure. Thus, by continuing their role as spirits, the children uphold the normal social structure.
ReplyDeleteExamining these essays by Potter and Dorfman, it is interesting that a practice like Shamanism is practiced in such vastly different locales. While Dorfman studies the practice in the north, and Potter in the south, we are led to believe that it is widely understood in China (at least amongst the poor) that one's well-being is tied to the spiritual world. Whether it be related to health or economics, shamans are the necessary intermediaries between worlds in order to avoid misfortune.
ReplyDeleteIn each instance, though, the societal structure seems to affect the work of the shamans differently. In Potter's look at shamanism in the south, the people seem to believe that the troublesome spirits take a more personal approach. The structure of the locale society may influence the belief in certain spirits. Such are the cases of the spirits of deceased daughters-in-law "seeking revenge" on their mothers-in-law, or the role of the shaman as arbiter in familial disputes. But, in each situation, the spirits themselves seem to be focused on individuals.
In contrast, the spirits in Dorfman's account of the north seem to affect society as a whole. While the nongmin Dorfman describes do utilize the shamans in personal matters, the people believe the spirits as a whole disappeared while Mao led China. In fact, the nongmin believe that it was his spirit that drove them away. So, rather than a belief that the spirits punish people based on current societal mores, in the south it seems the people believe the spirits are punishing society as a whole.
Lastly, while the spirit mediums may be driven to their role due to circumstance, I find it interesting that both Dorfman and Potter describe how the shamans are paid: under threat of further curse. It seems that they truly believe in their work, yet, like any true businesspeople, they certainly know how to work a situation to their own benefit.
The Dorfman article emphasized that rises in spirit possessions are seen as caused by “the lack of a moral leader, corruption, and disregard for social ties fueling individuals’ pursuit of profit margins.” This would result in the community viewing rises in spirit possession as evidence of the presence of these conditions in society, causing dissatisfaction with the government or other aspects of the power structure.
ReplyDeleteThe Potter article emphasized the contribution of the shamans, and the same spiritual forces that choose a shaman- a woman followed by the ghosts of her children- gives her status and power in human society after a devastating event (the loss of said children) the might have consigned her to life with a much lower social status. Other changes the spirit realms impose upon the human realm include illness (and in some cases, protection.) These changes are brought to the attention of the shaman by the affected parties, and she then identifies the source of the trouble in the spirit realm- usually a relative whose worship has been neglected. The affected parties placate the dead relative (and usually offer something to the shaman for the advice) and the problem is resolved.
The social structure of the community is often disrupted by the influence of the spiritual world, and the intervention of the shaman is often sought after. Using the spiritual world as the reason for an illness (or the identification of a political party as harmful) can be seen as method to transform a problem into something that can be fought and dealt with by a member of the community- the shaman. The shaman is consulted and used to solve the community’s problem, often successfully, and is then presented with some sort of gift.
The shaman is given power by the community, and sometimes uses that power to mask how powerless the community really is (in regards to political power, or the ability to mitigate illness) with the implicit consent of the people.
In the Dorfman article, the healer might make weekly offerings (one made weekly offerings to the “snake spirit”) and accepted offerings by those he healed. This cycle was referred to as “an extension of the cosmic reciprocity between gods, humans, and the earth” when Dorfman compares this cycle of gifts to practices in the Navajo religion.
However, in the Potter article, those who ask for the intervention of the shaman are often the ones asked to perform certain specific rites for the dead spirit they have offended. The dead spirits in the Potter article seem a great deal more personally involved- they are reacting to the actions (or inaction) of specific individuals whereas the spirits in the Dorfman article are reacting to the actions of the community.
B Murphy
aka vrynosybookwyrm
Both the spirits and all material beings are made of the substance called Qi, which creates a kind of bridge between the two. This enables spirits to descend upon the living to haunt them maliciously or provide support when needed. This form of spirit interaction causes a need for Shamans to reciprocate the communicative bridge. According to Potter, they act by identifying the problem and telling the paying beneficiary how they can appease the spirit. Usually this spirit is a women who feels she was wronged in life ora person who met an unusually untimely death. The Shamans themselves are always women who have lost children of some kind and no longer fit within the hierarchal material position assigned to them by their community.
ReplyDeletePotter deals entirely with small communities where Shamanism governs major aspects of daily life especially illness as oppossed to affecting a more major infastructure, such as the community as a whole or the government.
Dorfman addresses the spirits from a political perspective, saying they reflect the current polical and social situation. He attributes Shamanism to a religion that is no longer distinguishable from the political realm. When Mao was in power, the nongmin were the center of attention and greed and economic power was frowned upon. After his death and the ensuing reign of Dend and his economic reform, the general mantra has transformed to a more capitalistic, materialistic view. Dorfman associates Mao with good and healing spirits, even noting that Mao was thought of as a spirit himself, while Deng's corrupt system has created a spirit world rife with evil and corrupt spirits. The spirits, it seems, mirror the general consensus of the authorities in power at the time.
The shamanic culture is clearly pervasive in Chinese life and practices. As opposed to the Western world, the Chinese value deep relations with the dead, relations that we find out of the ordinary. According to shamanic practices, the dead have a large influence over the livings' day to day lives. If the living do not honor their dead, they will be punished by the dead. This means that the living always have to honor the dead, in order to keep them happy. This makes it different than other religions in that the dead are never forgotten.
ReplyDelete