Drumming and Dancing in Mahābhārata Performances of the Himalayas
Possession as Transitional States
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4001303 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Andrew Alter (0000-0002-8814-3203, Faculty of Media, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 52 |
| Pages | 169-185 |
| Publication date | 2020-11-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Yearbook for Traditional Music (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0740-1558 • E-ISSN: 2304-3857 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/ytm.2020.4 |
| OpenAlex | W3097099693 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 8 |
This article considers the nexus that exists between drumming, dancing, and possession within the Pāndavalīlā, and draws on the work of Judith Becker (2004) to interpret the performance of possession as a theatre of transition. Most notably, while drumming effectively inspires possessed states, these are of different kinds and different orders. Performances like those of the Pāndavalīlā rely not only on altered states of consciousness in some form, but also on the performance of those altered states of being. Consequently, a broader focus on the transitional stages of possession as outlined through drumming admits a wider acknowledgement of the different forms and purposes of possession. Critically, drum patterns offer a metaphor for understanding the numerous levels of transition that operate within a Pāndavalīlā
Acknowledgement · Aesthetics · Altered state · Art · Biology · Computer security · Consciousness · Linguistics · Metaphor · Sociology · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Computer Science · History · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Neuroscience · Philosophy · Psychology · Southeast Asian Sociopolitical Studies
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |