Spirit possession in Buddhist Southeast Asia : worlds ever more enchanted / editor, Bénédicte Brac de La Perrière, Peter A. Jackson.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

NIAS Press, publisher.

Brac de La Perrière, Bénédicte, editor.

Jackson, Peter A., editor.

Series:

NIAS studies in Asian topics ; 74.

NIAS studies in Asian topics ; 74

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Spiritualism--Southeast Asia.

Spiritualism.

Spirit possession--Southeast Asia.

Southeast Asia--Religious life and customs.

Southeast Asia.

Physical Description:

xiii, 346 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Copenhagen K, Denmark : NIAS Press, Nordic Institute of Asian Studies, 2022.

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

In dramatic contrast to the reported growing influence of doctrinal and fundamentalist forms of religion in some parts of Southeast Asia, the predominantly Buddhist societies of the region are witnessing an upsurge of spirit possession cults and diverse forms of magical ritual. This is found in many social strata, including the urban poor, rising middle classes and elite groups, and across the different political systems of Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. This volume reveals both the central historical place of spirit possession rituals in the Buddhist cultures of mainland Southeast Asia and their important contemporary roles to enhance prosperity and protection. This book examines the increasing prominence of spirit mediumship and divination across the region by exploring the interplay of neoliberal capitalism, visual media, the network cultures of the Internet, and the politics of cultural heritage and identity. It advances beyond critiques of the "secularization" and "disenchantment" theses to explore the processes of modernity that are actively producing magical worldviews and stimulating the rise of spirit cults. As such, it not only challenges the assumptions of modernization theory but demonstrates that the cults in question are novel ritual forms that emerge out of inherently modern conditions.

Contents:

Worlds ever more enchanted : refomulations of spirit mediumship and divination in mainland Southeast / Bénédicte Brac de La Perrière, Peter A. Jackson

Whose religion is the cult of the four palaces? Genealogies of a Vietnamese pantheon / Paul Sorrentino

Mya Nan Nwe's birthday : a forum-like ritual event at Botataung Pagoda (Yangon) / Bénédicte Brac de La Perrière

The Buddhist-mediumistic pantheon in Northeast Thailand (Isan) : a symbiotic relationship / Visisya Pinthongvijayakul

Reorganisation and realignment of spirit mediumship and spirit possession in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand / Kazuo Fukuura

We will never get rich if we follow Buddhism : the rise of Brahmanism in Cambodia from 1979 until today / Paul Christensen

Lottery mania in Burma/Myanmar : prospetiry Buddhism and promoting the Buddha's dispensation / Niklas Foxeus

Looking for fortune in the city : the enchantment of divination, magic and spirit rituals in a Cambodian urban culture / Poonnatree Jiaviriyaboonya

Spirit bodies, angel dolls and baby corpses : transformations of child spirit practices in Thailand / Megan Sinnott

Oneiric encounters : materialisations of the invisible present in northern Thailand / Irene Stengs

Buriram's possession complex and the growing professionalisation of village mediumship in Thailand's lower Northeast / Benjamin Baumann

Afterword. Rethinking vernacular religion across mainland Southeast Asia / Erick White.

Notes:

Includes bilbiographical references and index.

ISBN:

9788776943097

8776943097

9788776943103

8776943100

9788776947262

8776947262

OCLC:

1298546747

Publisher Number:

90103975423