Exú's Work – The Agency of Ritual Objects in Southeast Brazilian Umbanda
This article concentrates on the material side of religious intimacy in Afro-Brazilian Umbanda through an ‘ontographic’ perspective as well as looking at materiality as evidence. It is based on an eleven-month fieldwork among devotees, clients and individual practitioners of Umbanda in Southeast Bra...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Sciendo
2016-06-01
|
| Series: | Journal of Ethnology and Folkloristics |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.jef.ee/index.php/journal/article/view/232 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1832569575749713920 |
|---|---|
| author | Eleonora A. Lundell |
| author_facet | Eleonora A. Lundell |
| author_sort | Eleonora A. Lundell |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article concentrates on the material side of religious intimacy in Afro-Brazilian Umbanda through an ‘ontographic’ perspective as well as looking at materiality as evidence. It is based on an eleven-month fieldwork among devotees, clients and individual practitioners of Umbanda in Southeast Brazilian metropolises, especially in São Paulo. In people’s experiences of spiritual work (trabalho) and spiritual development (desenvolvimento) carried out with Exús – guardians, guides and protectors who have, after their death, returned in order to work for people’s wellbeing – ritual objects (such as bodies, clothes, beverages, herbs, cigarettes, candles, songs) are seen as constitutive in knowledge production and life transformation. The central claim in this article is that diverse material and immaterial objects through which Exús interact and materialise, are not primarily symbolic nor representative, but are re-configurative. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1e7d1f21e34f4d4a82546dc025e9d421 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1736-6518 2228-0987 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2016-06-01 |
| publisher | Sciendo |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Ethnology and Folkloristics |
| spelling | doaj-art-1e7d1f21e34f4d4a82546dc025e9d4212025-02-02T20:04:05ZengSciendoJournal of Ethnology and Folkloristics1736-65182228-09872016-06-01101436910.1515/jef-2016-0003140Exú's Work – The Agency of Ritual Objects in Southeast Brazilian UmbandaEleonora A. Lundell0University of HelsinkiThis article concentrates on the material side of religious intimacy in Afro-Brazilian Umbanda through an ‘ontographic’ perspective as well as looking at materiality as evidence. It is based on an eleven-month fieldwork among devotees, clients and individual practitioners of Umbanda in Southeast Brazilian metropolises, especially in São Paulo. In people’s experiences of spiritual work (trabalho) and spiritual development (desenvolvimento) carried out with Exús – guardians, guides and protectors who have, after their death, returned in order to work for people’s wellbeing – ritual objects (such as bodies, clothes, beverages, herbs, cigarettes, candles, songs) are seen as constitutive in knowledge production and life transformation. The central claim in this article is that diverse material and immaterial objects through which Exús interact and materialise, are not primarily symbolic nor representative, but are re-configurative.https://www.jef.ee/index.php/journal/article/view/232UmbandaExúritual objectsmaterialityAfro-Brazilian religionSão Paulo |
| spellingShingle | Eleonora A. Lundell Exú's Work – The Agency of Ritual Objects in Southeast Brazilian Umbanda Journal of Ethnology and Folkloristics Umbanda Exú ritual objects materiality Afro-Brazilian religion São Paulo |
| title | Exú's Work – The Agency of Ritual Objects in Southeast Brazilian Umbanda |
| title_full | Exú's Work – The Agency of Ritual Objects in Southeast Brazilian Umbanda |
| title_fullStr | Exú's Work – The Agency of Ritual Objects in Southeast Brazilian Umbanda |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exú's Work – The Agency of Ritual Objects in Southeast Brazilian Umbanda |
| title_short | Exú's Work – The Agency of Ritual Objects in Southeast Brazilian Umbanda |
| title_sort | exu s work the agency of ritual objects in southeast brazilian umbanda |
| topic | Umbanda Exú ritual objects materiality Afro-Brazilian religion São Paulo |
| url | https://www.jef.ee/index.php/journal/article/view/232 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT eleonoraalundell exusworktheagencyofritualobjectsinsoutheastbrazilianumbanda |