The Spiritist in Popular Beliefs in Székelyhodos (Hodoşa) Cover Image

A spiritista hiedelemköre Székelyhodos község hiedelemvilágában
The Spiritist in Popular Beliefs in Székelyhodos (Hodoşa)

Author(s): Enikő Balássy
Subject(s): Anthropology
Published by: Erdélyi Múzeum-Egyesület
Keywords: popular beliefs; supernatural powers; spiritist; fortune-teller; table-turning

Summary/Abstract: The study presents the spiritist, a personage holding supernatural powers according to popular beliefs, with the aim to unveil the beliefs built around this fi gure in the small village of Székelyhodos, situated in the upper course of the Nyárád (Niraj) river. In Székelyhodos the spiritist is a distinct character. Although its actions are very similar to those taken by the fortune teller, orthodox priest, the seer etc., it has a very well defi ned scope and operates with unique techniques when establishing the connection between the profane and transcendental worlds. The popular beliefs concerning the spiritist are living part of the popular mythology. The sheer amount of texts gathered during the fi eld research, the genre and contents of the texts and the attitude of the informants prove that these beliefs are still functional.

  • Issue Year: LXXIV/2012
  • Issue No: 4
  • Page Range: 85-100
  • Page Count: 16
  • Language: Hungarian