Dictionary of Animistic Terms
You are invited to help build this
animism dictionary by suggesting definitions and sources where these definitions are found. Credit will be given for all definitions
accepted. E-Mail me at Rheenen@Bible.acu.edu.
Note the bibliography at the end of this dictionary.
Amulets and Charms: "visual symbols that are thought to carry spiritual power for protective purposes" among many animistic people (Van Rheenen 1996a, 229).
Ancestors and Ghosts: "spiritual beings who once lived in human form" (as contrasted to gods and spirits). Ancestors are "feared, respected, and venerated because they are specifically remembered and are part of the extended family. Ghosts, on the other hand, are those spirits of the dead who are disappearing into the past and are no longer individually remembered by their families." John Mbiti calls ancestors "the living dead" and ghosts "the dead dead" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 259).
Animism: "the belief that personal spiritual beings and impersonal spiritual forces have power over human affairs and, consequently, that human beings must discover what beings and forces are influencing them in order to determine future action and, frequently, to manipulate their power" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 19-20).
Channeling: in New Age thought, "the growing awareness of any part of the one Being that it can access any of the rest of itself" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 161).
Contagious Magic: "the [animistic] belief that objects which have been in contact exert an influence on each other even after they have been disconnected"; according to Sir James Frazer, "things which have once been in contact with each other continue to act on each other at a distance after the physical contact has been severed" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 221).
Curses: "verbalizations calling upon spiritual forces to harm a person" based upon an animistic understanding concerning "the power of words" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 225).
Death: (In Animistic Melanesian Contexts): "Death in animistic Melanesian thought is never understood as the cessation of existence or annihilation of man. It is better to view death as survival or "over-living": Humankind enters into the next form of existence, guaranteed through his spiritual double ("soul") by surviving or "living over" his own physical death. At the time of death, man transitions from the visible realm of Life to the invisible realm of the after-life." (Adapted from Bachor 1999). Read also the definition for spiritual double.
Demons: according to a theistic worldview, "servants of Satan" who stand against the kingdom of God. Frequently in the Old Testament demons "dressed themselves up in the garb of gods" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 266-67). Eight common characteristics can be deduced from the Gospels: Demons are (1) considered spiritual beings, not merely forces or structures of culture; (2) described as unclean or evil spirits; (3) pictured as disembodied spirits who desired to possess bodies and were pictured as wondering about seeking a body; (4) have power and knowledge beyond that of human beings; (5) operate as part of the kingdom of Satan; (6) seek to tempt human in a struggle between Jesus and the demonic realm; (7) are overcome by the power of God, and (8) can be overcome by the authority given to Christians by the resurrected and exalted Lord (Van Rheenen 1996a, 115-19).
Divination: "the decision-making process by which animists determine the impact of personal and impersonal powers upon themselves, . . . the method (according to Turner) for `bringing into the open what is hidden or unknown’" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 170). Methods of divination include (1) interpretation of omens, (2) astrology, (3) ritual techniques, (4) employment of ordeals, (5) reliance on the dead, (6) interpretation of dreams and visions, and (7) possession (Van Rheenen 1996a, 176-192).
Evil Eye: among animistic people "the projection of malevolent power upon a person or object by gazing upon it" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 230).
Gods and Spirits: according to an animist, "trans-empirical beings who have always existed in spirit form and have never been human beings" (as contrasted to ancestors and ghosts) (Van Rheenen 1996a, 252).
Imitative Magic: the animistic belief that "imitating a desired outcome causes it to happen" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 222-23).
Kingdom Theology: the biblical perception that God rules or reigns over the world he created; in regard to Christology, the perspective that "God in Christ has broken into the world to establish his own sovereignty and defeat the powers of Satan"; in regard to evangelism, "an interpretive model based on the Word of God for explaining the world" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 131, 139).
Magic: "the manipulation of spiritual power"; "the use of rituals and paraphernalia to manipulate spiritual powers" in contrast to religion, in which people seek to supplicate the God or gods (Van Rheenen 1996a, 218).
Mantras: "the attachment of spiritual power to certain types of sounds"; a term "literally meaning `voice’ or `sound’ in the Hindustani language of India (Van Rheenen 1996a, 228).
Medium: "a human oracle through whom an ancestor or spirit communicator communicates directly with the living" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 158).
Oaths: "a conditional curse directed toward oneself" frequently "taken voluntarily to prove innocence or loyalty to a cause" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 226).
Power Encounter: "a spiritual encounter that exposes and call to account the powers of darkness in their varied forms by the power of God for the purpose of revealing the identity of the one True God resulting in an acknowledgment of and/or allegiance to His lordship by those present" (Timothy Kamps in Van Rheenen 1996a, 84).
Priest: in the Anthropology of Religion, "a religious practitioner who receives his authority from a religious organization" (in contrast to a prophet) (Van Rheenen 1996a, 150).
Prophet: in the Anthropology of Religion, "a religious practitioner who receives his authority by some prophetic call and proclaims revitalization and change of society without being accountable to any religious bureaucracy" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 150).
Shaman: "a diviner who seeks to discern what spiritual being or impersonal force is causing sickness, discord, or catastrophe in order to prescribe some remedy" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 154).
Socially Defined Sins: "violations of culturally defined mores and laws that destroy social harmony" prevalent in most animistic cultures (Van Rheenen 1996a, 278-80). Read also the definition for theologically defined sins.
Sorcery: "the use of magical paraphernalia and rituals to harness spiritual powers to maliciously and premeditatively harm other people" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 215). Contrasted at least in Africa to the term witchcraft.
Spiritual Double (in Animistic Melanesian Contexts): "self-existing and self-conscious personality in the invisible realm, independent from man as its counterpart in the visible realm. It is the exact immaterial copy (mirror picture) of man in his dichotomical nature. The main function of the spiritual double is to provide benevolent protection of his body from evil spirits. The spiritual double is the guarantee for man to survive his own death and to continue existence in the after-life as part of the living-dead. Humankind thus has two complementary aspects, the psyche and body, make up one being. One being exists in the material realm the other as the exact copy of the material one exists in the immaterial realm" (Adapted from Bachor 1999).
Spiritual Warfare (based on Eph. 6:10-20): "standing with God in prayer and against the principalities and powers to defeat Satan through truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, and the word of God" (Gailyn Van Rheenen, in Spiritual Warfare Equipping Group, July 2000).
Theologically Defined Sins: "offenses that disrupt human relationships with God, gods, and spirits" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 281-83). Read also the definition of socially defined sins.
Totemic Spirits: among tribal animistic peoples the belief that "animals, plants, or physical features . . . are affinally linked with particular kinship groupings and individuals" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 249-50).
Witchcraft: "an inherent psychic or mystical power used either consciously or unconsciously to harm other people" (Van Rheenen 1996a, 215). Contrasted at least in Africa to the term sorcery.
Bibliography
Bachor, Armin. 1999. The Eschatological Message of the Bible and Native Religions in the Pacific: A Melanesian Case Study, Unpublished Manuscript.
Van Rheenen, Gailyn. 1996a Communicating Christ in Animistic Contexts. Pasadena, CA: William Carey Library.
Revised December 10, 2001.
Please give credit and source for any definitions used.