PART ONE: ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS AND MENTAL HEALTH: THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES The Cross-cultural Study of Altered States of Consciousness and Mental Health - Colleen A Ward From Disease to Discourse - Michael Lambek Remarks on the Conceptualization of Trance and Spirit Possession PART TWO: ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS AND PSYCHOPATHOLOGY 'Ravished of a Fiend' - Simon...
EthosVolume 12, Issue 4 p. 307-334 Thaipusam in Malaysia: A Psycho-Anthropological Analysis of Ritual Trance, Ceremonial Possession and Self-Mortification Practices COLLEEN WARD, COLLEEN WARD COLLEEN WARD is Lecturer in Psychology, Department of Social Work, National University of Singapore, Kent Ridge, Singapore.Search for more papers by this author COLLEEN WARD, COLLEEN WARD COLLEEN WARD is...
This paper offers a psycho-anthropological perspective on spirit possession and mental health in a variety of cultures and communities. Its prime focus is the distinction between two forms of possession: ritual and peripheral. The former is displayed in a ceremonial context and includes the social function of reinforcing cultural morality and established power. The latter, by contrast,...