From “mind–matter” duality to “body–situation” mechanism —the phenomenology of the body on how shaman soul retrieval heals the sick

Soul retrieval in modern Chinese shamanism is not a purely spiritual or purely material event but a bodily technique. Using phenomenology of the body, the paper examines three body states—soul loss, evocation, and return—in contemporary Chinese shamanic practices. The analysis shows that shamans adjust, configure, and reposition a patient's dislocated body state by temporarily sharing a body (Einleibung) with them. This body-centered turn, influenced by the body revitalization movement, moves beyond conventional mind-matter dualism. The work proposes an interpretive "body-situation" Einleibung mechanism to explain how shamans negotiate the semantics of illness and healing.

Study at a glance

Abstract

BACKGROUND: In recent years, the renewal of soul-centred shamanic soul retrieval theories has provided various theoretical interpretations of the shamanic soul retrieval phenomenon and has exacerbated the "explanatory gap" found in "mind-mater" dualism. However, these theories cannot explain the body-centred turn of modern Chinese shamans under the influence of the body revitalization movement and their unique soul retrieval process. METHODS: Using the phenomenology of the body as a working platform, this paper uses the three body states between body schema and body image as a case study of modern Chinese shamanic soul retrieval. RESULTS: The study of the three processes of soul loss, evocation and return shows that soul retrieval is not a purely spiritual mystical event or a purely material and scientific event but rather a body technique for shamans to adjust, configure, and reposition the dislocated state of the patient's body while temporarily sharing a body (einleibung) with the patient. CONCLUSIONS: This paper traces a discernible shift toward body in contemporary Chinese shamanic soul-retrieval practices. Through the analysis of select ritual case studies and the application of Schmitz's concept of Einleibung, we seek to delineate an interpretive "body-situation" einleibung mechanism that moves beyond conventional mind-matter dualism. Ultimately, this work aims to advance scholarly dialogue regarding how contemporary shamans negotiate the semantics of illness and healing through "body-situation" einleibung mechanism in present-day China.