Transformation in Dang-ki Healing: The Embodied Self and Perceived Legitimacy.
Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry September 1, 2016 DOI: 10.1007/s11013-016-9497-4 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Case study Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 20 |
| Population | A male dang-ki, 10 temple assistants, and 9 clients at a shrine in Singapore |
| Topics | Shamanism |
| Keywords | Dang-ki Embodied self Embodiment Spirit mediumship Spirit possession Transformation |
| Citations | 39 |
| Key findings | The dang-ki's self-transformation is related to the perceived legitimacy of his mediumship, and he develops spiritually by internalizing his god's positive traits. |
Abstract
Since spirit possession in mediumship and shamanism resembles psychotic symptoms, early researchers perceived spirit mediums and shamans as psychiatric patients whose psychopathology was culturally sanctioned. However, other researchers have not only challenged this assumption, but also proposed that spirit possession has transformative benefits. The idiom of spirit possession provides cultural meanings for spirit mediums and shamans to express and transform their personal experiences. The present case study focuses on dang-ki healing, a form of Chinese mediumship practiced in Singapore, in which a deity possesses a human (i.e., dang-ki) to offer aid to supplicants. This study seeks to explore whether involvement in dang-ki healing is transformative; and if so, how the dang-ki's transformation is related to his self and the perceived legitimacy of his mediumship. At a shrine, I interviewed 20 participants, including a male dang-ki, 10 temple assistants, and nine clients. The results obtained were supportive of the therapeutic nature of spirit possession. First, there is a relationship between his self-transformation and the perceived legitimacy of his mediumship. As his clients and community have recognized his spirit possession as genuine, and the healing power of his possessing god, he is able to make use of mediumship as a means for spiritual development. Second, he has developed his spirituality by internalizing his god's positive traits (e.g., compassion). Deities worshipped in dang-ki healing can be conceptualized as ideal selves who represent a wide range of positive traits and moral values of Chinese culture. Thus, the possession of a deity is the embodiment of an ideal self. Finally, the dang-ki's transformation may run parallel to his god's transformation. In Chinese religions, gods have to constantly develop their spirituality even though they are already gods. An understanding of the god's spiritual development further sheds light on the dang-ki's self-transformation.
Comparable studies
Other case reports and case series on shamanism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brain changes during a shamanic trance: Altered modes of consciousness, hemispheric laterality, and systemic psychobiology A normal subject with extensive training in the Mongolian shamanic tradition | 2017 | Case study | n = 1 |
| The Diaspora of Brazilian Religions | 2013 | Ethnographic case studies | |
| (Neo)Shamanic Dialogues Members of a Guarani Indian village on the Atlantic coast of Santa Catarina, Brazil | 2012 | Case study | |
| Kambô: A Shamanic Medicine - Personal Testimonies | 2018 | Case study | |
| Shamanic Healing for Veterans with PTSD: A Case Series. Veterans with PTSD | 2017 | Case series | n = 6 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 3
- Dang-Ki healing: An embodied relational healing practice in Singapore. Transcultural Psychiatry December 1, 2020
- Scoping review on shamanistic trances practices. BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies November 4, 2024
- Spirit Mediumship and Mental Health: Therapeutic Self-transformation Among Dang-kis in Singapore. Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry June 1, 2023
Cites 5
- The Unmaking and Making of Self: Embodied Suffering and Mind–Body Healing in Brazilian Candomblé Ethos August 4, 2010
- Theory and method at the intersection of anthropology and cultural neuroscience Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience December 3, 2009
- Trance and Possession: Are They The Same? Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review March 1, 1996
- Therapeutic processes and perceived helpfulness of dang-ki (Chinese shamanism) from the symbolic healing perspective. Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry March 1, 2010
- EXAMINING THE STRUCTURE AND ROLE OF EMOTION: CONTRIBUTIONS OF NEUROBIOLOGY TO THE STUDY OF EMBODIED RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE March 1, 2005