Spirits in Culture, History and Mind

Spirits in Culture, History and Mindreintegrates spirits into comparative theories of religion, which have tended to focus on institutionalized forms of belief associated with gods. It brings an historical perspective to culturally patterned experiences with spirits, and examines spirits as a locus of tension between traditional and foreign values. Taking as a point of departure shifting local views of self, nine case studies drawn from Pacific societies analyze religious phenomena at the intersection of social, psychological and historical processes. The varied approaches taken in these case studies provide a richness of perspective, with each lens illuminating different aspects of spirit-related experience. All, however, bring a sense of historical process to bear on psychological and symbolic approaches to religion, shedding new light on the ways spirits relate to other cultural phenomena. Included is a provocative theoretical chapter, co-authored by Robert Levy and theeditors. Unabashedly comparative at a time when most anthropologists confine themselves to interpreting local meanings, this chapter argues for a distinction between god-like and spirit-like beings, with gods representing the moral order while spirits are countered at its periphery. Issues associated with morality, power, control, conformity, possession, selfhood, the uncanny, and the impingement of high religions on folk beliefs, among others, are addressed in this chapter. The conclusion, by Michael Lambek, also excites controversy. Reflecting on the ethnographic material included in the volume, Lambek draws attention to the importance of understanding spirit-related experiences, in their historical contexts, for coming to grips with the very nature of religion.