Performing identity: expanding Shenist ritual on a Thai island

Thesis

The Chinese Shenist Festival of the Nine Emperor Gods allegedly originated in Fujian Province, China, and was first documented among the Sino-Thai community in Phuket, Thailand, in 1825. However, since the late 1980s and early 1990s, this nine-day religious event has experienced a rapid increase in size and significance. Utilizing ethnographic fieldwork and literature, the rituals and their inherent cosmology are framed against mythical and historical contexts in order to assess the relevance of theories for the growing numbers of shrines, devotees, attendees, and spirit mediums (mah song). Within the framework of the festival, the prominence of identity and the creation of the self as a Chinese person is discussed through the work of anthropological theorists such as Radcliffe-Brown(1965), Csordas (2002), Tambiah (1985), and Turner (2012). Ultimately, the liminal space of the rituals performed enables a Chinese identity to take priority in a Thai domain despite a history of forced assimilation. In addition, identity political are also linked to the rise of festival participants in Phuket as some Southeast Asian countries perceive a threat to their state government's authority from this festival's "cult" beliefs and practices, particularly those involving circumambulation.

Authors: Wibell, S

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-9rdkzbxeq
• Type of award: MPhil
• Level of award: Masters
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: mah song; ritual; performativity; identity politics; Phuket; identity
• Subjects: Anthropology; Identity politics; Ritual