Nailing Heads and Splitting Hairs
Conflict, Conversion, and the Bloodthirsty Yaksi in South India
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8200858 |
|---|---|
| Authors | C Dempsey, Carol J Dempsey (University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2005 |
| Volume | 73 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 111-132 |
| Publication date | 2005-03-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of the American Academy of Religion (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0002-7189 • E-ISSN: 1477-4585 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/jaarel/lfi006 |
| OpenAlex | W2093985089 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 3 |
The yakṣi, once a pan-Indian figure of female fecundity and awesome power, has been relegated to the margins of Indian traditions during the past millennium. In Kerala she lives on as a shape-shifting, vampiric maiden, memorialized in folklore, cinema, and as a focus for propitiation. Appealing to Christian and Hindu sentiments the yakṣi is as versatile as she is enduring. This article explores how the yakṣi, cast as a foil against which religious adepts prove their mettle, complicates easy distinctions between religious traditions, good and evil, and questions whether conversion is a desirable aim. Using similar strategies to fight a common foe Christian and Hindu holy men appear to inhabit common religious turf. Upon close inspection, this turf is the yakṣi’s as well; she is not an Other to eliminate but an opponent with whom holy men are interdependent. The de-centered contemporary yakṣi has her own de-centering job to do. Oru paṭṭikya oru paṭṭiye kaṇdukuṭā. A dog’s worst enemy is another dog. —Malayalam proverb
Adversary · Hinduism · Interdependence · Social science · Sociology · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Computer Science · History · Indian History and Philosophy · Philosophy · Religious studies · South Asian Studies and Conflicts
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |