Se soigner ou soigner les autres ? Dimensions thérapeutiques d’un culte de possession vietnamien

Spirit mediums of the Four Palaces, alongside other religious specialists, have long participated in Vietnam's therapeutic landscape, helping to treat various illnesses through rituals and spirit interventions despite historical disruptions. Healing is a central concern addressed to the spirits, alongside religious, political, and territorial issues. This paper examines two healing dimensions of the worship: performing spirit possession to cure others and to cure oneself. Disciples seek health, family harmony, and success from spirits and their mediums. Illness often initiates the process leading to regular spirit possession, and some mediums and spirits possess special healing powers. The paper also analyzes transformations in the mediums' social role.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Spirits mediums of the Four Palaces have been taking part for a long time, along with other religious specialists, in the Vietnamese therapeutic area. They have helped, and still do despite historical upheavals, taking care of different kind of illnesses through rituals and, more generally, through spirits’ interventions. If healing is only one side of the worship, beside religious, political and territorial issues, it is one of the main issues addressed to the spirits. This paper investigates healing dimensions of the worship which are of two kinds : performing spirit possession in order to cure others or in order to cure themselves. Indeed, the disciples seek health, harmony in family life, success in business or education, by the spirits and their mediums. Moreover, as for other spirit possession cults, illness often lies at the origin of the process that leads to regular spirit possession. For that purpose, some mediums and some spirits have special healing powers. Lastly, this paper analyses some transformations of the mediums’ social role.