ANTB66H3 Lecture 7: ANTB66 Lecture VII
UTSC
ANTB66H3 - Spiritual Paths: A
Comparative Anthropology of
Pilgrimage VI: Chaos, Creativity and
Desire Part II
24 MAY 2018 / 12:00 PM / ROOM MW170
Dr. Dean Young
Office hours: 2:00-3:00, MW282
LECTURE 8 - Ritual at Sacred Centers
Quick Review to date!
Feudal: Complex, more division of labour
Diachronic: How structures change over history (Buddhist temples: Feudal /
medieval times: Movement of relics out of pilgrimage sites). In recent times
it is replication
Synchronic: Things working at the same time. Anthropologists are watching the
whole play of pilgrims / people are at the specific time practicing.
Anthropologists will write. Anthropologists…
Limen: Threshold (When you cross this, you are in the liminoid space. Cultural
inversions (high → low, vice versa). In archaic societies, your status
changes.
Busy intersection: PIlgrimage/ tourism, romany / catholicism, secular concerns
Cross section that brings things together…
Russian orthodox: Outpouring of the self into the community: Moral ethic to be
aware of others and to work for God (history of Forest Monks). It’s outpouring
of the icons (compassion for humankind…) to be carried into the secular world
Transfer of Sanctity and enshrinement: Idea that I take from one key religious
sites associated with the Buddhist and take the sanctity of the site to
another site for enshrinement
Invention of myths: Buddhists visited and left their footprints
Symbiotic relationships between secular: Explored both sncrinisity and
diacriniity: It didn’t matter if it was a feudal / monarchy, socialist
democracy. They all made pilgrimage and visited them.
- Money flows to the pilgrimage spot to turn it into a pilgrimage center
- Political figure that visits the pilgrimage center are seen with a moral
character = legitimate person
Historical influences: The life of him takes us through the 20th century of
historical influences. He is sent into a monastery at a young age. At every
age, there are the flow and the political that Thailand suffered. Everything
affects his life and the life of the Wat. Early 60s: Left leaning government
that spent tons of money building the Wat. BOth religious and secular
influences. Because he cares about nationality, Anderson puts attention to
this. Complete agreement with Pruess.
Pilgrimage and Diaspora: Looking to the Past ad the Future
●Diaspora: People who move from economic reasons and live away from their
hometown. Sometimes they keep ties with the past but at times they look
away from the past and into the future
●The essays assigned for this week focus on two Islamic forms of
pilgrimage
●The first is made by Senegalese who belong to a Sufi tradition called
Mouridism;
●Rosander compares the devotional and pilgrimage practices of local
Senegalese women and men living in Spain
Porokhane: Pilgrimage site of the first essay.
- It’s special because it’s a shrine to the mother of the actual founder
of the Sufi movement. It’s a very rare thing: Women are going to a
pilgrimage site that highlights the mother of the Saint.
- Here, they seek the power of the mother of the movement rather than the
other pilgrimage that goes to the founders
Mouridism
●Is a Sufi form of Islam found in Senegal where the mother of the founder
of venerated
●She is seen as a person who can answer all prayers and solve problems
●AUthor focuses on women who are found in rural / feudal societies that
seek the blessing of this venerated mother and compares them to other
women who have migrated to southern Spain where most are illegal
- They also have the opportunity to earn money
- They pick a few women to represent the diaspora women. They consider
this an act of going on pilgrimage. Presence of co-presence. It’s as if
the women are going with the money (Gets benefits of pilgrimage without
actually going to pilgrimage). Their ability to find these pilgrimages
actually increase their moral capital.
Cultural capital: The class system in class and there are two ways of
measuring capital. Some people have capital ($), but some people have cultural
/ social capital ($). Professors: They have less capital, but more social and
cultural capital. Sometimes cultural and real capital go against each other
- Want to draw attention to these poorly treated women. When they send
their money home, they are treated as stars and gain cultural capital.
- Transference of capital → social & cultural capital
●Focus on the pilgrimage practices of women as found in Senegal and in
the Diaspora
●Contrasts:
- Annual events to Porokhane by senegalese women
- Physical movement of objects ($) create imagined pilgrimage
(Co-presence) to increase moral capital by women in the diaspora
Document Summary
Desire part ii (cid:465)4 may (cid:465)(cid:463)(cid:464)(cid:471) / (cid:464)(cid:465):(cid:463)(cid:463) pm / room mw(cid:464)(cid:470)(cid:463) Diachronic(cid:485) how structures change over history (cid:513)buddhist temples(cid:485) feudal / medieval times(cid:485) movement of relics out of pilgrimage sites(cid:514). Anthropologists are watching the whole play of pilgrims / people are at the specific time practicing. Limen(cid:485) threshold (cid:513)when you cross this, you are in the liminoid space. Busy intersection(cid:485) pilgrimage/ tourism, romany / catholicism, secular concerns. Russian orthodox(cid:485) outpouring of the self into the community(cid:485) moral ethic to be aware of others and to work for god (cid:513)history of forest monks(cid:514). It(cid:495)s outpouring of the icons (cid:513)compassion for humankind (cid:514) to be carried into the secular world. Transfer of sanctity and enshrinement(cid:485) idea that i take from one key religious sites associated with the buddhist and take the sanctity of the site to another site for enshrinement. Invention of myths(cid:485) buddhists visited and left their footprints.
