Decoding the Superstitious: Spirit Possession and Ritual Healing as an Indigenous Knowledge Framework for Mental Health

Spirit possession and ritual healing in India offer an indigenous framework for addressing mental illness that challenges the dominant biomedical paradigm. Practices such as exorcism, trance, and ritual healing, particularly at the Mehendipur Balaji temple, externalize psychological distress through culturally meaningful narratives of possession, mobilize performative emotions through rituals, and integrate family and community participation. Colonial and postcolonial psychiatric institutions have historically marginalized these systems by labeling them as superstition. The paper argues that dismissing ritual healing as irrational overlooks its social and psychological functions and advocates for a pluralistic approach to mental health care that recognizes the coexistence of biomedical psychiatry and culturally grounded practices, essential for addressing the treatment gap in India and decolonizing psychological knowledge.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Mental health has become an increasingly global public policy concern, particularly through the rise of the Global Mental Health Movement and its emphasis on the biomedical and evidence-based psychiatric treatment. However, the universalisation of the Western psychiatric frameworks often overlooks culturally embedded ways of understanding and responding to mental afflictions. This paper examines spirit possession and ritual healing in India as an indigenous framework for addressing mental illness that challenges the dominant biomedical paradigm. Drawing on anthropological, psychological, and historical scholarship, the study dissects how practices such as exorcism, trance, and ritual healing, particularly in sites like the Mehendipur Balaji temple, operate as socially embedded therapeutic systems. These practices externalise psychological distress through culturally meaningful narratives of possession, mobilise performative emotions through rituals, and integrate family and community participation in the healing process. The paper further situates these practices within broader debates about the politics of knowledge, showing how colonial and postcolonial psychiatric institutions have historically marginalised indigenous healing systems by labelling them as superstition. Through an examination of the state responses, the Ervadi tragedy, and collaborative initiatives such as Dava and Dua programme, the study argues that dismissing ritual healing as irrational overlooks its social and psychological functions. Instead, the paper advocates for a pluralistic approach to mental health care that recognises the coexistence of biomedical psychiatry and culturally grounded healing practices. Such an approach is essential for addressing the treatment gap in countries like India while also contributing to broader efforts to decolonise psychological knowledge.