The Call of Spirits and Mental Disorders: Belief Narratives of Prospective Shamans in Contemporary Northeast China
Haozhen Li
Narrative Culture March 1, 2026 DOI: 10.1353/ncu.2026.a987468 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Spirit mediums in contemporary northeast China |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key findings | Argues that prospective shamans in northeast China perceive the call of animal spirits as a two-sided illness with both biomedical symptoms and supernatural etiology, a perception shaped through "vernacular theorizing" and spread and consolidated via belief narratives. |
Abstract
Abstract: This article investigates the belief narratives about shamanic illness experienced by the spirit mediums in contemporary northeast China where various mental and physical disorders are believed to be the manifestation of the call of animal spirits. Taking sociocultural background, narrative patterns and structures, and the narrators' epistemological models into account, this article explores how prospective shamans perceive the call of spirits as a two-sided illness with bio-medical symptoms and supernatural etiology. This perception is shaped through the process of vernacular theorizing and spread and consolidated via belief narratives.