Witchcraft Practices Research Articles

Women and witchcraft practices in South Africa: An intersectional analysis of selected isiZulu fiction

Women and witchcraft practices in South Africa: An intersectional analysis of selected isiZulu fiction

Elderly Victimization in the Context of Witchcraft Accusations and Persons Accused of Witchcraft Practices Living Within the Gambaga Witches’ Camp: Understanding of Human Rights

The practice of sociocultural belief systems in Ghana such as witchcraft accusations leads to situations where some elderly people in the northern part of Ghana are likely to be victimized based on sociocultural belief systems. Persons accused of witchcraft practices can be denied some of their basic fundamental human rights. The lack of a clear understanding of human rights standards among many rural folks, especially in a rural part of Northern Ghana, makes many people consider accusations of persons suspected of witchcraft practices as a non-abuse of victims’ human rights when persons accused of witchcraft are encamped in witches’ camps. Hence, this study sought to explore the accused persons of witchcraft practice’s understanding of human rights and how their conceptualization of human rights has led to elderly victimization based on sociocultural practices regarding witchcraft accusations. The study employed a qualitative method where 37 participants were selected consisting of persons accused of witchcraft practices living within the Gambaga witches’ camp. A thematic approach was used in the data analysis. The study found that accused persons of witchcraft practices have a distinctive understanding of human rights, which they conceptualized to include social and cultural rights, economic rights, civil and political rights and legal rights and missed out on the civil and political aspects of human rights. The study found that the accused persons’ lack of understanding of the civil rights concept of human rights made most of the persons living within the Gambaga witches’ camp to be victims of torture, undergo forced labour, lack their right to protection, gender discrimination and slavery within the camp. The study recommended that traditional leaders should engage in community dialogues that facilitate open and inclusive community dialogues to discuss the negative impact of witchcraft accusations on individuals and the community as a whole.

Analisis Kriminalisasi Terhadap Santet Sebagai Tindak Pidana

Santet is generally difficult to understand or understand its meaning, as a supernatural belief phenomenon involving the use of magic or black magic, has become part of local culture in Indonesia. Santet, from some opinions, can also cause someone to become a victim due to the misuse of witchcraft which is used as a medium to cause harm, illness, or even death, including criminal acts. This article focuses on an analysis of the criminalization of witchcraft as a criminal act. Through an exploration of the existing legal basis, this research seeks to provide a deeper understanding of how criminal law can be applied in order to suppress an act of witchcraft practice that harms the community. This research provides a clear picture of the role of criminal law in dealing with the phenomenon of witchcraft, although challenges related to belief, culture, and the unclear definition of the practice remain complex. Thus, this article is intended to provide a basis for further discussion regarding the criminal analysis of witchcraft as a criminal offense, with the aim of creating fair law enforcement and protecting the public from the negative impact of supernatural practices.

Socio-Religious and Cultural Perspectives of the Sacred Place in Bastar, Chhattisgarh

Acursory observation of the religious traditions of the tribes of Chhattisgarh, particularly in the Bastar region of the state would draw attention to the presence of a combination of traditional and Hindu features. Such an intermixture has been taking place from historical times in response to tribes’ close contact with the Hindus. Traditionally, in this region, tribes believe in Gods and goddesses and the practice of witchcraft. They have their places of worship, considered very sacred, and they worship these Gods and Goddesses in various forms and places. One of the sacred places in the villages of the tribes is called Devgudi and in some regions as Matagudi and Gaondevi. In Devgudi the presiding deity of the village is enshrined. Other associate deities like Higanlajan Mata, Pardeshi Mata, Guje Dokri, Dongri Mata, Bhandarin Mata, Jalni Mata, Jharandpurin Mata, Aanga Devbelonging to their belief system are also worshiped in the shrine. In most of the Devgudi Iconographies represent Deities /Gods and Goddesses; any rough stone, wood, iron, a piece of any other metal, or any object like conch, cowry or bell are worshipped in these shrines. Traditional faith, beliefs and practices have responded to several forces of change over the years. Nevertheless, Devgudiin each village shows continuity of its religious significance in the belief system of the tribes even in the present time. In view of this, the paper is designed to study structural and functional elements of village Devgudi with reference to Bastar region of Chhattisgarh and delineate its place in changing situation.

TINDAK PIDANA PERDUKUNAN TINJAUAN PASAL 545, 546, 547 KUHP DENGAN PASAL 252 KUHP 2023

In Indonesia, the practice of black magic is not new. Although the practice is opposed to religion because it associates partners with God, it is still carried out by people who want to achieve their goals practically or harm someone. In the legal regulations in the Criminal Code, the practice of witchcraft is regulated in Articles 545, 546 and 547. In reality, this article is rarely used as a legal basis for the arrest or sentencing of black magic practitioners. The article on black magic has been discussed for a long time in the draft Bill of the Penal Code, there are many pros and cons about this article on shamanism which is called the’pasal santet’. In 2023 the new Penal Code was passed and the article on witchcraft was regulated in Article 252. with the legal research method, this research focuses on examining the normative law that applies in Indonesia with descriptive analysis until this research concludes that the act of shamanism is a disturbing thing, articles 545, 546, and 547 are considered inappropriate in dealing with this, so that article 252 is needed as legal certainty.

FROM THE BLACK CAULDRON TO THE WHITE PAGE: THE WITCH AS A NARRATOR OF POE’S “THE TELL-TALE HEART”

Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” is a famous short story of crime fiction first published in 1843. The tale starts with an unnamed and unreliable narrator addressing an unknown person, often regarded as the reader, about the details of a crime that the narrator had committed in the past. Many details such as the relationship between the narrator and the victim (who happened to be an old man), the motivation behind the crime, the gender of the narrator, and many other related issues are not sufficiently explained in the story. Nevertheless, critics have provided various ideas and interpretations as to what remained ambiguously unstated in the story. This paper aims to look at the story from a quite different perspective, that is to say, this paper will point to the possibility that the narrator could be a young female servant who is secretly involved in some witchcraft practices. This hypothesis will be established by highlighting relevant ritual elements in the tale which suggest that the narrative includes more than a mere portrayal of a perfect crime. Additionally, before launching into the examination of the story, this paper will review some critics’ significant suppositions as well as interpretations of some inexplicit notions of the story.

НАРОДНА МЕДИЦИНА ТА ЇЇ РОЛЬ В ТРАДИЦІЙНІЙ КУЛЬТУРІ УКРАЇНЦІВ: СТИСЛИЙ ІСТОРИЧНИЙ ЕКСКУРС

From generation to generation, the Ukrainian people have passed on to their descendants the rich experience accumulated over many centuries. Subsequent generations have carefully preserved the instructions of their ancestors, trying not to distort their meaning, but rather to develop them further and pass them on to other generations. One of the types of such a truly precious heritage that has come down to our time from the depths of centuries is folk medicine. Traditional medicine is one of the oldest methods of treatment known to mankind. The need to survive in a cruel world, various diseases that required treatment, prompted humanity to seek help from the environment and develop self-medication skills. Ukrainians, like other peoples, widely used herbal treatment, various rituals and other methods of folk medicine. Despite the long existence of the practice of witchcraft, it remained an integral part of the social life of the Ukrainian population in the twentieth century and remains so today, despite the existence of developed official medicine. This article is devoted to the study of historical and ethnic aspects of folk medicine in Ukrainian traditional culture. It aims to highlight the evolution of this complex and multilayered system of Ukrainian folk knowledge and practices, from Kyevan Rus to the present day. Therefore, through the prism of studying the ethnic roots and history of folk medicine in Ukrainian traditional culture, we have the opportunity to better understand the uniqueness and depth of Ukraine’s national heritage, as well as to open new horizons for further research in this area. Ukrainian folk medicine is an integral part of traditional culture. The knowledge and practices accumulated over centuries define the uniqueness of Ukrainian medicine, which combines traditional methods with elements of modern medicine. It has been and continues to be of particular interest to scholars, as it is a complex phenomenon that lies at the intersection of two important scientific fields: medicine and ethnography. In this context, this article is devoted to the study of the ethnic roots and history of medicine in Ukrainian traditional culture.

Introduction. Witchcraft, Magic, Divination and the Twenty-First Century

Magic, witchcraft, and divination have been intensely exploited fields throughout the history of anthropological thought. One of the relevance for focusing on this topic in the twenty-first century is that no other field could connect better postmodernity to the past and present of “traditional” societies; another possible focal point is that the magic and witchcraft practices give voice to represent fine recorders for social change within contemporary societies. The “Introduction” of this special issue of Martor overviews the research on this topic in Romania, done in the late twentieth century, but also in these past 23 years, and presents the articles that are included in the volume.

Witchcraft as Social Metaphor: Exploring the Supernatural Beliefs Among the Ogoni and Ikwerre of the Niger Delta

This paper explores the underlying philosophy, beliefs, and practices surrounding witchcraft among the Ogoni and Ikwerre ethnic groups inhabiting the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Throughout recorded history, humanity has embarked upon a rational journey to identify solutions to the myriad vicissitudes and afflictions that have plagued human existence. Belief in supernatural phenomena such as witchcraft has conventionally furnished reasonable explanations for tragedy and occurrences deemed odd or inexplicable through conventional epistemologies. Within these cosmologies, witches are frequently perceived as enemies of societal equilibrium, capable of inflicting ill health, misfortune, and diverse forms of affliction upon communities. However, while beliefs related to witchcraft and the supernatural may serve as metaphors for powerful forces or social dysfunction, they simultaneously constitute autonomous systems of signs, symbols, and meanings that can potentially generate tangible positive effects for adherents, with historical origins rooted in indigenous cultures. This paper uses the descriptive methodology to argue that witchcraft, as a construct dependent on human agency, is not inherently immoral or detrimental. Rather, the central issue lies in the improper application of knowledge, experience, and intelligence derived from witchcraft practices toward selfish ambitions, such as harming others for personal advantage. The paper concludes that if oriented toward serving the greater good, advancing human society, and promoting human dignity, witchcraft merits encouragement, provided it is harnessed ethically through proper use.

A Witchcraft-related cases in India during the Outbreak of Covid 19 Pandemic


 Abstract
 In India the belief in witches is a phenomenon that is linked to specific elements both of Hindu cults, whose devotional expressions and folkloric elements are rooted in the Vedic texts, and the belief systems of some indigenous communities. Indeed, although influenced by the expressions of the Hindu faith, these groups have retained specific characteristics, in which magical elements like the relationship with evil powers, from which the belief in witchcraft practices derives, are paramount. However, a study of witch-hunting episodes must also consider the social dimension in which they occur, as scholars working on this subject over the last decades did. Most witch hunts occur within closed social systems, based on patriarchy (or which have undergone patriarchalization processes in recent decades) and affected by Hinduization and tribalization. Finally, the analysis of beliefs in witchcraft helps to unveil the power relations that underlie these beliefs. On the one hand, this paper aims to reflect on the religious roots of the belief in witches, without neglecting the possible interpretations just mentioned above; on the other hand, it aims to present an initial assessment of the incidence of the phenomenon in 2020, at a particularly dramatic historical moment marked by the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic. The data presented are partial but indicative as they have been collected through daily monitoring of the main Indian newspapers in English and some national and local newspapers in Hindi.

Spiritual warfare in Africa: Towards understanding the classical model in light of witchcraft practices and the Christian response

The socio-religious panorama of the African religion deserves a close observation of its foundation and function. The perception of the spirit world is dominant in Africa. Similarly, spiritual warfare in the African context is prevalent in the mind and worldview of an African. Spiritual warfare derives its framework from African Traditional Religion (ATR). Hence, understanding ATR’s complexity helps us with the understanding of spiritual warfare. Some essential questions to understand would be what is spiritual warfare from an ATR perspective? How do Africans perceive spiritual warfare? And how do Africans engage in spiritual warfare? What is the place of ATR in spiritual warfare? African Traditional Religion acknowledges the reality and functionality of witchcraft. The perception of the reality of evil forces in Africa attracts all forms of spiritual rites, seeking more extraordinary spiritual powers for defensive and offensive spiritual warfare. This article argues that the effectual Christian response to spiritual warfare with witchcraft practices in Africa is ‘the classical model’ of spiritual warfare. The article provides a synopsis of the models of spiritual warfare, that is, the classical model (CW), world systems model (WSM), ground-level deliverance model (GLDM), and strategic-level deliverance model (SLSW). Subsequently, the article provides the framework for African spiritual warfare and witchcraft practices from traditional and contemporary perspectives. Lastly, the article argues that the Evangelical Christian Response to witchcraft practices is rooted in ‘the classical model’ of spiritual warfare.Contribution: The article contributes to African religiosity within the African context. It reveals the ongoing argument about the continuity and discontinuity of the ATR beliefs and practices in Christianity. The article adds to the evangelical or classical arguments in support of the discontinuity of ATR beliefs and practices in Christianity.

Revisiting the traditional medicine of the tribals in the Jungle Mahals, 1947–2000

This paper deals with the medical system of the tribals (Santals, Oraons, Sabar and Birhors) of Jungle Mahals in eastern India. It also discusses the indigenous system of knowledge about the collection, preparation and medicinal practice highlighting the socio-cultural and ecological context of medicinal plants. The region faced excessive pressure from over-exploitation and the growing demand for forest resources resulting in biodiversity loss and species extinction. In the post-independent period, there was a major transformation in treatment methods among the healers. Most of the healers left the practice of exorcism due to increased awareness on witchcraft practices. This study found low levels of overlap in medicinal floras, even in the case of tribal communities who closely related linguistically, culturally, and ecologically. The efficacy of the medicine depends on the extent to which the healers properly followed the rules for the collection of medicinal plants, drug preparation and application. This medical practice is popular among the poverty-stricken tribal communities as they could not take facilities of western medicine because of their poverty and the high cost of allopathic medicine.

“The Witch’s Mirror”: A Review of Scholarship on Witchcraft and a Reassessment Based on the Intersectional Lived Experiences of Dalits and Adivasis

This article explores intersectionality of identities within Dalit and Adivasi traditions through a review of contemporary research on practices of witchcraft. Witchcraft practices occur all over the Indian subcontinent and form focal points of intersectionality beyond fixed structures and stereotypes. By approaching witchcraft through the perspective of the lived experience of the ones involved, we gain better understanding of the individuals involved, of the larger socio-economic context and of the practice itself without falling into the trap of recasting stereotypes. By approaching witchcraft from the perspective of lived experience, it becomes clear that the occurrence of witchcraft is the outcome of complex intersectional power structures, such as gender, caste, class and religion/spirituality. However, the approach accomplishes even more by addressing diversity, ambiguity and dynamics within intersectional (power) structures. The knowledge drawn from the approach of lived experience of Dalits and Adivasis leads to new academic discourses such as ‘Dalit and Adivasi Studies’, ‘Critical Caste Theory’, ‘Dalit Feminism’ and the ‘Dalit Queer Movement’. These discourses provide new counter-hegemonic knowledge, adding to and challenging academia.

The Perception of Witchcraft among the Digo Community of Mtongwe

This study examined the perception of witchcraft at the Coast of Kenya focusing on the Digo Community of Mtongwe. The aim of the study was to analyze how witchcraft is perceived among the Digo community of Mtongwe area. Through a qualitative research design, data were gathered using personal interviews and questionnaires with 25 local leaders of the area. The major findings that emerged were: 1. Witchcraft practice is a reality in the area. 2. It also established that the belief in and practice is strong among the youth, especially the female and 3.That witchcraft is practiced for various reasons among them jealousy, protection, love, material wealth, for healing among other reasons. The study concluded that some members of the Digo community still maintain their indigenous belief in and practice of witchcraft despite many years of Islamization. This means that these Digo still have and maintain trust in their traditional worldview more than in popular Islamic worldview about power and influence of sorcery.

An Illustration of Anthropology’s Contribution to Refugee Law Research

AbstractThis article contributes to the debates on the role of anthropology in refugee law research by showing the added value of an interdisciplinary approach to the understanding of complex asylum claims related to cultural and religious beliefs that are unfamiliar to the Western perspective. Based on the analysis of asylum claims in UK courts involving witchcraftbased persecution in the country of origin—both applicants who feared becoming victims of witchcraft practices and those who could be accused of having engaged in witchcraft practices—I demonstrate how anthropology can provide the tools for bridging the gaps between the law in the books and its implementation in practice and solving issues that are beyond the scope of the law. In particular, anthropology can feed into a broader legal conceptualization that accounts for the realities of our diverse societies and helps explain how fear of persecution due to witchcraft can indeed be real and connected with serious human rights violations. Moreover, cultural expertise can assist in assessing asylum claims in their cultural, historical, and political contexts, affording the claimant a fairer and better adjudicated outcome. Nevertheless, the use of anthropology inevitably comes with some challenges related to the different fields’ epistemologies, languages, and styles, as well as a lack of appreciation for interdisciplinarity in some areas of academia.

“In the broom closet”: exploring the role of online communities in shaping the identities of contemporary witchcraft practitioners

There are multiple lenses through which contemporary witchcraft practitioners are perceived in literature: self-identification; mainstream stereotyping; and counterculture. Contemporary witchcraft is a sociocultural phenomenon that has not received much attention outside of the disciplines of anthropology and sociology. Therefore, the individual views and experiences of self-identified practitioners have arguably been diluted within social research due to an emphasis on historical or group-based observations. With the aim of incorporating a psychological perspective into existing contemporary literature, the current study used semi-structured interviews to explore how practitioners personally engage with online communities to navigate the individual, social, and collective interpretations of their ‘witchcraft-related identity’. Using data from 16 participant interviews, it emerged that digitising witchcraft practices served two key roles in engaging with the practitioners’ identities by providing access to both group membership and interactive knowledge exchange. Positive and negative aspects of these experiences were discussed. Moreover, it was found that the relationship between online and face-to-face constructions of being ‘a witch’ was observably fluid, wherein digital practices could help practitioners compartmentalise their witchcraft-related identity to online spaces or, alternatively, enhance its in-person identity saliency. This investigation offers timely and novel insights into contemporary witchcraft by taking a psychological perspective that contributes to broader debates about the notion of identity and how this manifests in online communities.

Limitless Opportunities for Wealth? Witchcraft as a Strategy for (In)Equality and Economic (Dis) Empowerment

The persistence of witchcraft beliefs and practices in Africa contradicts earlier scholarly work that suggested it would disappear. In addition, theorising witchcraft as a local discourse that only exists between people in an intimate relationship in anthropology has also long been challenged. This strand of scholarship has sought to understand witchcraft within the local-global nexus pointing to a new direction in witchcraft studies. Unlike other themes in anthropology that began the discipline, witchcraft continues to be a ‘hot currency’ topic and has been termed by some scholars as the ‘long conversation’. This article presents a current ethnographic account of how witchcraft is utilised by individuals as a strategy for wealth gain and protection and serves as narrative for the challenges individuals are experiencing when having to navigate between often incompatible expectations placed on the individual vis-a-vis the community. This is further exemplified through the ethnographic account on how witchcraft strategies are employed against individuals who are pursuing success in neoliberal socio-economic model.

L’“altérité” de l’autre: quelques réflexions sur la représentation des Basques et des Tsiganes dans les œuvres de Pierre de Lancre1

In 1609, the Bordeaux judge Pierre de Lancre (1556-1631) was sent by King Henri IV to the border region of Labourd, in the Pyrenees, to investigate and try alleged cases of witchcraft. A few years later, in his Tableau de l’Inconstance des Mauvais Anges et Demons (1612), de Lancre describes the Basque population of Labourd as prone to vagrancy and versed in the practice of witchcraft, two characteristics that, in his L’Incredulité et mescreance du sortilege (1622), he will later apply to ‘Gypsies’. In light of de Lancre’s investigative and judicial work in Labourd, his “othering” of the local Basque population as a people in some ways similar to ‘Gypsies’ has profound implications. In such a perspective, the vagrancy of the ‘Gypsies’, on which he focuses in both Tableau and Incredulité, is a key to understanding not only his depiction of Labourd’s sorcerers, but also his conception of frontiers and boundaries. In order, then, to better understand the cultural and intellectual background to Lancre’s “othering” of the native Labourd population as well as of the ‘Gypsies’, this article will examine the various ways in which his attitudes to these groups are present in his works and reflect a wider, European fear of the “other” as evidenced, for example, in Italian literary sources such as comedies.

Prevalence on Witchcraft Beliefs and The Psychological Well-Being of Elderly People in Masaba South Sub-County Kisii County Kenya

Witchcraft is a world phenomenon. Some people do belief in it on their daily life and this has brought a lot of anxiety, fear from the threats given to the victims. This study investigated the prevalence on witchcraft beliefs and psychological well-being of elderly people in Nyakumbati Sub-location in Masaba South Sub-count, Kisii County Kenya. The study adopted a mixed method approach; a convergent parallel design was employed to enable the researcher investigate the relationship between prevalence on witchcraft beliefs and the psychological well-being of elderly people. Simple random sampling was employed to select a sample of 164 respondents from the 280 elderly people receiving cash transfer from the Kenyan Government in Nyakumbati Sub-location. Data was collected using questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics using statistical Software Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 22. Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient was used to ensure reliability of research instruments. The findings indicate that majority of the elderly People belief in witchcraft (56.3%). Many elderly people (48.3%) agreed that beliefs in witchcraft have interfered with relationships in the community. Also majority of the elderly people (60.3%) agreed that Witchcraft practices are dangerous in the community. Witchcraft practices are feared within the community this was taken by 61.6% of the respondents. At the same time majority of the elderly people (62.3%) agreed that Witchcraft practices are carried in hidden manners and finally 41.7% of the elderly stated that they are vulnerable to witchcraft activities. The findings on the relationship between psychological well-being and witchcraft beliefs show that there was: a weak relationship of 0.061 on self-acceptance, a moderate relationship of 0.331 on positive relations and a moderate relationship of 0.530 on purpose in life. The final findings show that there is a weak relationship between prevalence on witchcraft beliefs and the psychological well-being of elderly people. The study recommends and appeals to government leaders, educators and church stakeholders to strive further towards addressing witchcraft related issues. Additionally, social workers, counselors and psychologists should be assigned through the cooperation of church and government to cater for the psychological well-being of the elderly people in the community.

Cunning and Disorderly: Early Nineteenth-Century Witch Trials of Joseph Smith

Cunning and Disorderly: Early Nineteenth-Century Witch Trials of Joseph Smith