The mysticism of the marginal spirits

Authors

  • José Jorge de Carvalho University of Brasilia, Brazil

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22380/2539472X.1279

Keywords:

.

Abstract

This essay offers a panoramic view of the forms of brazilian religions which are marginal as regards the dominant christian creeds, catholic and protestant. some of these forms are Kardecist spiritualism and various types of Afro-Brazilian religions, all based on oral tradition. A common characteristic of these religious expressions is the experience of trance and possession, which I try to theorize as instances of radical apophasis. In the second half of the essay I present an anthology of AfroBrazilian sacred texts and offer comments on them based on a perspective of comparative symbology. They point to the presence of a mysticism similar to that of the mystics who belonged to the so-called “world religions”, or “religions of the book”. Thus, I propose to include these marginal traditions as part of the religious experience of humanity as a whole.

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Published

2001-01-01

How to Cite

de Carvalho, J. J. . (2001). The mysticism of the marginal spirits. Revista Colombiana De Antropología, 37, 112–150. https://doi.org/10.22380/2539472X.1279