Module Code and Title:        ATH305 Anthropology of Religion and Rituals

Programme:                         BA in Anthropology

Credit:                                  12

Module Tutor:                      New Tutor #3

General Objectives: This module introduces students to the theories and approaches used to help understand the variety of social and cultural phenomenon labelled religion, as well as rituals. The module delves into theories and approaches that focus on cultural meaning and beliefs, as well as others that focus on religious practice, cross-cultural similarities, or which question the very category of religion itself. Beginning with an overview of key theories of religion, this module moves into examining anthropological research on religion and ritual from around the world.

Learning Outcomes – On completion of the module, students will be able to:

1. Define key concepts in the Anthropology of religion.
2. Explain a diverse range of theoretical approaches to religion.
3. Apply theories of religion to real-world examples, including Bhutanese examples.
4. Analyse religious rituals and religious narratives.
5. Explain key debates in the Anthropology of religion.
6. Use real-world examples to explain the connection between religion and other aspects of culture.
7. Analyse important trends in Bhutanese religious life.

Learning and Teaching Approach:

Assessment Approach:

A. Describe and analyse a religious ritual. 15%

Students will work with one or two partners to document and analyse a religious ritual from multiple theoretical perspectives. Rituals could be anything from large formal gatherings to daily demonstrations of devotion. Students will submit a research paper that contains an introduction and description of the ritual including any elements of material culture used in the ritual. After the description, students will briefly write an analysis of the ritual from a theoretical perspective. Each student will take responsibility for one part of the paper. If there are three in a group, the paper should include two different theoretical analyses. Students will be graded on the quality of their description, whether they use one of the theorists discussed in class, how well they use their selected theorist to interpret the ritual, and the integration of the different parts of the paper.

The research paper will consist of two phases:

Students will first submit a description and introduction of the ritual as a group as well as an individual outline for the theoretical sections. Students must have completed their observation of the ritual prior to submitting this section.

Then, a final draft will be submitted that includes the theoretical analysis as well as edited descriptive sections. The final paper will be 750-1000 words in length.

The paper will be assessed on:

2%       Quality of Draft

6%       Content (including the quality of description and analysis, ability to apply relevant module concepts and techniques, claims made are well stated and supported)

1%       Language

1%       Referencing

1%       Organization

3%       Improvement (in comparison to draft, with particular emphasis on consideration and incorporation of feedback provided)

1%       Individual contribution (process)

B. Describe and analyse a religious narrative: Portion of final Mark: 10%

Students will work individually to document and analyse a religious story told in Bhutan. The students must examine the context in which they heard the story told, the relationship between the audience and the teller of the story, and summarize the narrative itself. Students will submit a paper that contains a description of the storytelling event as well as a theoretical analysis. Students will be graded on the quality of their description, the thoughtfulness of their analysis, and the integration of the different parts of the paper. The assignment will be 600-800 words in length.

2%       Proposal (completeness, thoughtfulness, feasibility)

5%       Quality of description and analysis (including the thoughtfulness of the ethnographic details, ability to apply relevant module concepts and techniques, claims made are well stated and supported)

1%       Language

1%       Referencing

1%       Organization

C. Leading a Key Term Discussion: Portion of Final Mark: 10%

Students will be responsible for working with one or two partners to lead class discussion about one of the key terms covered in the class. The discussion will be expected to last most of a class period or at least 40 minutes. The tutor may take up the last ten minutes of class (or spend time in the next class) going over doubts, confusions or inaccuracies but will be a silent observer during the discussion. During the discussion students will be responsible for (1) identifying and explaining key terms and concepts in their own words, (2) preparing discussion questions to stimulate class discussion (3) helping the class understand how the key term through examples (4) facilitating a clear and helpful discussion that will help the class as a whole to both understand the key term and discuss different ways of interpreting it. Before the discussion, each pair will meet with the tutor to discuss the current event they have chosen and the source or sources they are using, clarify any doubts or questions they have about the reading and share their strategy for leading the discussion including potential discussion questions.

2%       Pre-discussion meeting (attendance and preparedness)

2%       Quality and accuracy of explanation of key term

3%       Thoughtfulness and effectiveness of discussion questions  

2%       Quality and effectiveness of facilitation of discussion (including balance between facilitator and class participation)

1%       Teamwork (including meaningfulness of each member’s participation)

D. Class Participation and Preparedness: Portion of Final Mark: 10%

Students will be expected to participate substantially in class discussions, with contributions reflecting adequate preparation for topics under discussion. 5% of class participation and preparedness will be assessed before midterm, and the remaining 5% post midterm

E. Midterm Examination: Portion of Final Mark: 15%

Students will take a written exam of 1.5 hr duration covering topics up to the mid-point of the semester.

Pre-requisites: ANT 101: Introduction to Anthropology

Subject Matter:

1. Unit I: Introduction to Anthropological Theories of Religion
   • History of anthropological studies of religion
   • Marx, Weber, and Durkheim on religion
   • Evans-Pritchard’s studies of religion
   • Mircea Eliade’s approach to religion
   • William James’s approach to religion
   • Clifford Geertz’s approach to religion
   • Evolutionary psychology’s approach to religion
2. Unit II: Symbols and Rituals
   • Definition and examples of symbols
   • Examples of how rituals use symbols
   • The structure of rituals: separation, transition, reintegration
   • Explanation of liminality and communitas as effects of ritual
   • Examples of rituals as communication
   • Definition and examples of syncretism
3. Unit III: Political Economy and Religion
   • Examples of materialist studies of religion
   • Definition and examples of religious sources of authority
   • Definition and examples of religious specialists and religious hierarchy
   • Examples of the links between material culture and religion
   • Comparing the role of women across religious traditions
4. Unit IV: Myths, Narratives, and Texts
   • Introduction to myths and other types of religious narrative
   • Purity, danger, and other concepts in religious narratives
   • Examples of the social lives of religious texts
   • Examples of the historical development religious canon
   • Examples of how religious narratives are used to teach ethics and morals
   • Explanation of the role of interpretation in religion
5. Unit V: Religion in Bhutan
   • Describing and classifying the diverse religious traditions of Bhutan
   • Syncretism: Buddhism and the taming of local deities
   • Analysing examples of religious rituals in Bhutan
   • Buddhist modernism and other changes in the practice of religion in Bhutan

Reading List:

1. Essential Reading
   • Gutschow, K. (2009). Being a Buddhist nun: The struggle for enlightenment in the Himalayas. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
   • Kumagai, S. (Ed.). (2014). Bhutanese Buddhism and its culture. Kathmandu: Vajra Books
   • Lambek, M. (Ed.). (2002). A reader in the anthropology of religion (Vol. 2). Malden, MA: Blackwell.
   • Narayan, K. (1989). Storytellers, saints, and scoundrels: Folk narrative in Hindu religious teaching. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press
   • Rappaport, R. A. (2000). Pigs for the ancestors: Ritual in the ecology of a New Guinea people. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.
2. Additional Reading
   • Aris, M. (1987). ‘The boneless tongue’: Alternative voices in the context of Lamaist societies. Past and Present, 115, 131-164.
   • Chhoki, S. (1994). Religion in Bhutan I: The sacred and the obscene in Bhutanese religion. In M. Aris and M. Hutt (Eds.), Bhutan: Aspects of culture and development (107-122). Gartmore, Scotland: Kiscadale.
   • Dorji, T. (2004). The spider, the piglet and the vital principle: A popular ritual for restoring the srog. In K. Ura and S. Kinga (Eds.), The spider and the piglet: Proceedings on the first international seminar on Bhutanese studies (598-607). Thimphu: Centre for Bhutan Studies
   • Conklin, B. A. (2001).Consuming grief: Compassionate cannibalism in an Amazonian society. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press.
   • Danforth, L. M. (2016). Firewalking and religious healing: The Anastenaria of Greece and the American firewalking movement. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
   • Darlington, S. M. (1998). The ordination of a tree: The Buddhist ecology movement in Thailand. Ethnology, 37(1), 1-15.
   • Douglas, M. (2003).Purity and danger: An analysis of concepts of pollution and taboo. London:
   • Evans-Pritchard, E. E., & Gillies, E. (1976). Witchcraft, oracles and magic among the Azande. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
   • Geertz, C. (1971). Islam observed: Religious development in Morocco and Indonesia (Vol. 37). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
   • George, K. M. (2011). Picturing Islam: Art and ethics in a Muslim lifeworld. Malden, MA: John Wiley & Sons.
   • Ortner, S. (1978). Sherpas through their rituals. Cambridge University Press: New York.
   • Pals, D. L. (2006). Eight theories of religion. New York: Oxford University Press, USA.
   • Ura, K., Penjore, P., & Dem, C. (2017). Mandala of 21^st century perspectives: Proceedings of the international conference on tradition and innovation in Vajrayana Buddhism. Thimphu: Centre for Bhutan Studies

Date: March 15, 2018