Anthropology
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Anthropology Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion: A Reader in the Anthropology of Religion 8th Edition Moro−Myers McGraw-Hill=>? McGraw−Hill Primis ISBN−10: 0−39−021268−7 ISBN−13: 978−0−39−021268−9 Text: Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion: An Anthropological Study of the Supernatural, Eighth Edition Moro−Myers−Lehmann This book was printed on recycled paper. Anthropology http://www.primisonline.com Copyright ©2009 by The McGraw−Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher. This McGraw−Hill Primis text may include materials submitted to McGraw−Hill for publication by the instructor of this course. The instructor is solely responsible for the editorial content of such materials. 111 ANTHGEN ISBN−10: 0−39−021268−7 ISBN−13: 978−0−39−021268−9 Anthropology Contents Moro−Myers−Lehmann • Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion: An Anthropological Study of the Supernatural, Eighth Edition Front Matter 1 Preface 1 1. The Anthropological Study of Religion 5 Text 5 2. Myth, Symbolism, and Taboo 46 Text 46 3. Ritual 87 Text 87 4. Shamans, Priests, and Prophets 143 Text 143 5. Altered States of Consciousness and the Religious Use of Drugs 188 Text 188 6. Ethnomedicine: Religion and Healing 240 Text 240 7. Witchcraft, Sorcery, Divination, and Magic 280 Text 280 8. Ghosts, Souls, and Ancestors: Power of the Dead 332 Text 332 9. Old and New Religions: The Changing Spiritual Landscape 360 Text 360 10. Religion as Global Culture: Migration, Media, and Other Transnational Forces 412 Text 412 Back Matter 459 Glossary 459 Bibliography 465 iii Index 503 iv Moro−Myers−Lehmann: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill 1 Magic, Witchcraft, and Companies, 2010 Religion, Eighth Edition Preface The Story of This Book Together we share the goal of conveying our ex- citement about anthropology and providing students This volume was initially inspired by our desire to as- with a solid grounding in the issues, theories, and semble a book of readings that would captivate and fundamental ethnographic content of the discipline. engage students in undergraduate courses on the an- We want to help students apply anthropological per- thropology of religion. At the time of the first edition, spectives to issues that are relevant both in their own the other available texts—though of high scholarly lives and in the world at large. standards—failed to communicate the excitement of anthropology in a form accessible to undergraduate The Approach of the Text students with relatively little background in the field. In our view, the cross-cultural study of religion and As editors, our thinking about the content and scope the supernatural is one of the most compelling sub- of this book has also, of course, been shaped by our fields of anthropology, a topic guaranteed to motivate own experiences as ethnographers. One of the origi- students if presented in the right manner. The title nal editors, Arthur Lehmann, held a career-long fasci- Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion: A Reader in the Anthro- nation with religion, medicine, and healing in Central pology of Religion was selected to highlight the broad Africa and the Caribbean, as his numerous trips to realm of religious expression addressed by anthro- the field attested. James’s research in the United pologists, far beyond what many students might States, initially with Native American communities initially think of as “religion” or “church.” in California and later on nonmainstream forms of Informed by our own experiences as classroom body modification, led him to issues of identity, resis- teachers, we continue to feel that the best way to tance, and, perhaps most simply, what it’s like to be teach this subject is to present a range of scholarly a minority in a complex, rapidly changing society. voices in anthology format, from both classic and Pamela’s research on music in Thailand has brought contemporary authors, with ethnographic materials her to consider the interplay of music, ritual, festival, from North America as well as the rest of the world. and the sacred worldview associated with Buddhism. The original co-editors—Arthur Lehmann and James Long hours watching dance processions at temples in Myers—held decades of experience teaching at a northern Thailand, sitting with musicians at crema- state university with students of widely varying tion services in Bangkok, and observing altars honor- motivations and academic backgrounds, at gra- ing the deities associated with music have inspired duate and undergraduate levels. Co-editor Pamela her consideration of religion as an integral part of Moro’s teaching experience has been at liberal arts human experience. Much of the thinking behind the colleges, where instructors are likely to emphasize recent editions of this book springs from these expe- classroom discussion and the critical reading of texts. riences as well as our observations of changes within ix 2 Moro−Myers−Lehmann: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill Magic, Witchcraft, and Companies, 2010 Religion, Eighth Edition x | PREFACE the anthropological study of religion itself. Our inclu- vocabulary and style of scholarly writing varies from sion of a chapter on globalization is a response to the author to author, often reflecting the time period of inescapable fact of global change and its preeminent each article’s original publication. Our hope is that place in current anthropological scholarship. Our the contrasts and continuities among the various arti- combined research experiences on three continents cles within each chapter will help readers begin to leave us profoundly aware of the significance of reli- compare and evaluate not only content but also the gious change in our world today. approaches of different anthropologists. The study of religion is historically significant The book is divided into ten chapters, beginning within the discipline of anthropology. Some of the with a broad view of anthropological ways of looking earliest questions asked by 19th-century anthropolo- at religion and moving on to some of the core topics gists had to do with the development of religion and within the subject, such as myth, ritual, and the vari- the pan-human concern with the ultimate. Through- ous types of religious specialists. Although instruc- out the 20th century, all major anthropological theo- tors may choose to utilize articles in any order they rists addressed religion in one way or another. In the wish, there is a loose continuity to the chapters: more recent eras of feminist, postmodern, and critical thinking about certain types of specialists (for exam- anthropology, religion and the supernatural have re- ple, shamans) leads us to consider altered states of mained key concerns—grounds for experimental consciousness, which in turn takes us to religion and ethnographic writing and grist for new ways of healing and then to the related topics of magic, div- thinking about culture. The study of religion has been ination, and witchcraft. The scope of the book widens amenable to the four-fields approach of anthropol- again in the concluding chapters, as we present mate- ogy, most evident in studies of altered states of con- rials on religious change, from small-scale move- sciousness (including the religious use of drugs), eth- ments of protest to contemporary flows of culture, nomedicine, and questions about the relationship transcending the boundaries of nations. between science and religion. Inquiry into this subject brings us to many of the issues facing humanity Key Features today—such as ethnic, political, and economic con- flicts expressed in terms of religion; controversies re- • Chapter-Opening Essays: These succinct, garding religious autonomy versus state authority, in informative essays introduce the reader to the the United States and elsewhere; religion as a force central concepts that unify each chapter. for emancipation as well as a way to maintain the sta- • Article Introductions: Each article is prefaced with tus quo, for local agency and globalization. In our a brief introduction, drawing attention to the key own multicultural society, religion is one of the most themes and arguments of the work. In some salient features of difference, and, for many of us, cases, we have used these article introductions to brushing up against individuals of different faiths is make connections between selections in the one of the main ways we encounter cultural contrast volume or to recommend related scholarly on a local level. We sincerely feel that the anthropo- works. Students may wish to use these short logical approach to understanding religion (assisted editorial introductions not only as preparation by contributions from related fields, such as religious for reading each article but also as a review. studies, sociology, and psychology) offers sound hope for a just and tolerant humanity. • Breadth of Coverage: As in previous editions, we have retained our commitment to integrating the analysis of religion in the West with Content and Organization ethnographic studies of less familiar examples. As in earlier editions of this book, in our selection of In most chapters, one or two articles deal content we have chosen not to emphasize any partic- specifically with contemporary North America. ular ideological angle within the anthropology of re- • Classic and Modern Selections: Although the ligion. The multiple authors included in each chapter majority of the articles are contemporary pieces, represent a range of interests, geographic foci, and we have also included classic readings by Mary ways of looking at each subject. Discipline-based Douglas, E. E. Evans-Pritchard, Clifford Geertz, Moro−Myers−Lehmann: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill 3 Magic, Witchcraft, and Companies, 2010 Religion, Eighth Edition PREFACE | xi Horace Miner, Bronislaw Malinowski, Victor Supplements Turner, Anthony F.