Spirit possession and cultural innovation: the case of two Japanese femane religious leaders
Revista de Antropologia July 3, 2020 Peer reviewed DOI: 10.11606/2179-0892.ra.1995.111442 via DOAJ
Summary
This article argues that religion can be a transformative force, not merely a conservative one. It examines the lives of two Japanese religious founders, Miki Nakayama and Nao Deguchi, to explore three levels of religious experience: personality reintegration, social status change, and the capacity of transformed individuals to alter the sociocultural system. The analysis emphasizes that special states of consciousness, such as possession, oneiric visions, and hallucinations, create the possibility for such change.
Study at a glance
| Design | theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Key finding | Religion can have a great transforming potential through special states of consciousness, as illustrated by the histories of Miki Nakayama and Nao Deguchi. |
Abstract
lt's usual to consider religion as a conservative institution. Nonetheless , this article shows that it may also have a great transfoming potential. The history of two Japanese religious founders, Miki Nakayama (1789-1887) and Nao Deguchi (1836-1918) is taken to discuss three leve is of religious experience: (I) the person' s personality reintegration level, (II) the person's social status change, and (III) this "transformed" person's chance of interfering or changing lhe sociocultural system. More than the change itself what really matters here is the possibility of change created by special states of consciousness (possession, oneiric visions, hallucinations, etc.)