Nag Baccha - Spirit Possession and Spiritual Healing in rural Western Odisha

Abstract (English)

The paper discusses the Nag Baccha puja - a common spirit possession healing ritual of rural Western Odisha.
Nag Baccha are initiated trance healers of rural western Odisha who through spiritual training, discipline and initiation become Nag Baccha - "the children of the snake". With their spiritual discipline and indigenous knowledge of ethnomedical plants, special prayer and body techniques these specialised indigenous spiritual healers treat mentally and physically suffering patients through performative and ecstatic trance rituals.
The paper discusses the nag baccha spiritual possession tradition as an example of indigenous knowledge and healing tradition, combining indigenous ontology with performances and trance body techniques.