Encountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion

This paper examines the benefits of ethnographic film for the study of religion. It argues that the exploration of gaps between colloquial descriptions of divinities and their practical manifestation in ritual is instructive of the way religious categories are conceptualized. The argument is develop...

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Autor principal:	Arik Moran
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	MDPI AG 2021
Materias:	ethnographic film exorcism goddess himalaya hinduism khas Religions. Mythology. Rationalism BL1-2790
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/fc995a646e4c4d589c5bfde2c6ae0872
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id	oai:doaj.org-article:fc995a646e4c4d589c5bfde2c6ae0872
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:fc995a646e4c4d589c5bfde2c6ae08722021-11-25T18:53:27ZEncountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion10.3390/rel121110212077-1444https://doaj.org/article/fc995a646e4c4d589c5bfde2c6ae08722021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/12/11/1021https://doaj.org/toc/2077-1444This paper examines the benefits of ethnographic film for the study of religion. It argues that the exploration of gaps between colloquial descriptions of divinities and their practical manifestation in ritual is instructive of the way religious categories are conceptualized. The argument is developed through an analysis of selected scenes from the documentary <i>AVATARA</i>, a meditation on goddess worship (<i>Śaktism</i>) among the Khas ethnic majority of the Hindu Himalaya (Himachal Pradesh, India). Centering on embodiments of the goddess in spirit possession séances, it points to a fundamental difference between the popular depiction of the deity as a virgin-child (<i>kanyā</i>) who visits followers in their dreams and her actual manifestation as a menacing mother (<i>mātā</i>) during ritual activities. These ostensibly incongruent images are ultimately bridged by the anthropologically informed edition of the material caught on camera, illustrating the added advantage of documentary filmmaking for approximating religious experiences.Arik MoranMDPI AGarticleethnographic filmexorcismgoddesshimalayahinduismkhasReligions. Mythology. RationalismBL1-2790ENReligions, Vol 12, Iss 1021, p 1021 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	ethnographic film exorcism goddess himalaya hinduism khas Religions. Mythology. Rationalism BL1-2790
spellingShingle	ethnographic film exorcism goddess himalaya hinduism khas Religions. Mythology. Rationalism BL1-2790 Arik Moran Encountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion
description	This paper examines the benefits of ethnographic film for the study of religion. It argues that the exploration of gaps between colloquial descriptions of divinities and their practical manifestation in ritual is instructive of the way religious categories are conceptualized. The argument is developed through an analysis of selected scenes from the documentary <i>AVATARA</i>, a meditation on goddess worship (<i>Śaktism</i>) among the Khas ethnic majority of the Hindu Himalaya (Himachal Pradesh, India). Centering on embodiments of the goddess in spirit possession séances, it points to a fundamental difference between the popular depiction of the deity as a virgin-child (<i>kanyā</i>) who visits followers in their dreams and her actual manifestation as a menacing mother (<i>mātā</i>) during ritual activities. These ostensibly incongruent images are ultimately bridged by the anthropologically informed edition of the material caught on camera, illustrating the added advantage of documentary filmmaking for approximating religious experiences.
format	article
author	Arik Moran
author_facet	Arik Moran
author_sort	Arik Moran
title	Encountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion
title_short	Encountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion
title_full	Encountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion
title_fullStr	Encountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion
title_full_unstemmed	Encountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion
title_sort	encountering the goddess in the indian himalaya: on the contribution of ethnographic film to the study of religion
publisher	MDPI AG
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/fc995a646e4c4d589c5bfde2c6ae0872
work_keys_str_mv	AT arikmoran encounteringthegoddessintheindianhimalayaonthecontributionofethnographicfilmtothestudyofreligion
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Encountering the Goddess in the Indian Himalaya: On the Contribution of Ethnographic Film to the Study of Religion

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