Mo 1984 Black Magic and Illness in a Malaysian Chinese Community_medanth

5/28/2018 Mo 1984 Black Magic and Illness in a Malaysian Chinese Community_medanth

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Sot. .%I. M&. Vol. 18. No. 2, pp. 147-157. 1984Printed m Great Britain. All rights reserved 0277-9536/84 3.00 + 0.00Copyright cc 1984 Pergamon Press Ltd

BLACK MAGIC AND ILLNESS IN AMALAYSIAN CHINESE COMMUNITY

BERTHA MODepartment of Anthropology, Kroeber Hall, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, U.S.A.

Abstract-Ah Yuk Je is a successful Hakka Chinese spirit medium practicing in a small Chinesecommunity in Malaysia. Her clientele consists largely of young children suffering from a culturally specificcondition called husk gerzg or soul loss and women concerned about infertility, prenatal problems anderrant spouses. While in a trance state, assisted by her tutelary spirits, she diagnoses, prescribes and treatsillnesses. Her treatment includes naturalistic and magico-religious elements such as cooling herbal teas,tonics to strengthen the body, rituals and amulets. Because Ah Yuk Je is a wife and mother, women findher sympathetic and astute at solving family problems.When faced with an illness herself, which she suspects to be the result of kong tao (black magic)instigated by someone in her own village, she seeks assistance from a healer outside her own ethnic groupas well as outside her community. Four important factors influence Ah Yuk Jes decision to seek out thishealer. The first two, recommendation from a trusted friend and a positive previous experience, are obvious.and require no further discussion. The remaining factors are the special nature of the illness, which requirestreatment from a specialist, and her practice as a spirit medium. Successful spirit mediums are perceivedto have a certain immunity to and control over supernatural forces. Thus the need for secrecy when aspirit medium becomes the victim of evil forces. She is able to preserve her professional reputation byconsulting someone outside her ethnic group of potential clients as well as outside her physical community.

INTRODUCTIONMalaysia, with a heterogeneous population of 12million people roughly comprised of 50% Malays,35% Chinese, 10% Indians and 5% others (includingEuropeans, Eurasians and Orang Asli aborigines)presents medical anthropologists with a rare oppor-tunity to study medical pluralism [l-6]. In addition tostudying the health and medical culture of eachseparate group, there is the fascinating opportunityto examine medical behavior across ethnic bound-aries [7-91. The work of Golomb [IO] on the role ofSiamese magical/medical practitioners in treatingMalay and Chinese clients is an important first step.In this paper, I examine the case of a 42 year oldHakka Chinese female spirit medium and one illnessepisode for which she chose to consult an outgrouphealer. In Chinese society, female spirit mediumstermed mahn sahn poh in Cantonese (women whospeak to the gods), intercede for villagers with beingsin the supernatural world. When possessed by theirtutelary spirits, these women can predict the future,and diagnose and cure illnesses. Some female spiritmediums also engage in calling the spirits of the dead.This practice is called mahn maih (ask rice) becauserice is scattered or offered in a bowl to attract thespirits. Women specializing exclusively in seances arecalled mahn maih poh (ask rice women) [I l-131.Ah Yuk Je, the female spirit medium who is thesubject of this paper is a specialist in curing illnessesof women and children. Applying the term magico-religious specialist to her inadequately describes thescope of her work. Although her diagnostic tech-niques are magico-religious in nature and much ofher treatment also falls under this category, she hasskills used in naturalistic treatment. Her practice

encompasses a broad spectrum of beliefs and prac-tices from Chinese folk medicine (with some uniqueMalaysian variations).To place this case in a social/cultural context, I willfirst give some background information about thefieldsite, and then briefly discuss Malaysian Chinesefolk theories of illness causation. Then I will give ashort biography of the female spirit medium, herpractice and the details of this single illness episode.The latter will be discussed as an example of integra-tion of medical beliefs and care within a multi-ethnic,medical pluralistic context.

SETTING OF THE STUDYThe Federation of Malaysia consists of Sarawak

and Sabah in Northern Borneo and eleven states inthe southern two-fifths of the Malayan Peninsula.Today, the former two states are known as EistMalaysia, while the latter eleven are referred tocollectively as Peninsular Malaysia. As used in thispaper, Malaysia means Peninsular Malaysia. Thematerial presented here was collected as part of alarge study of health and illness behavior of ruraJChinese in the Kinta District of Perak State fromJanuary 1978 to June 1980.Prior to the 18OOs, Chinese settlements on theMalay Peninsula were limited to small numbers oftraders and laborers who made the Straits Set-tlements (Malacca, Penang and Singapore) a tempo-rary base. At that time, Perak was a sparsely popu-lated part of the Malay States. However, from the1840s Chinese laborers. followed closely by mer-

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48 BERTHAMOchants, flooded into Perak from other parts of thePeninsula, attracted first by tin and later by rubberand other cash crops. Today Perak, particularly theKinta District, is known as the tin mining center ofthe world.

According to the 1970 census, 309,23 1 Chinese livein the Kinta District as compared with 104.064Malays, 68,025 Indians and 1640 Others [14]. One ofthe largest towns in the district is Gam Luhng (apseudonym meaning golden dragon) which in 1970had a population of over 26,000. By 1980, communityleaders estimated the population of Gam Luhng to beapprox. 50,000, which was spilling over into severalsuburbs. Although all three major ethnic groups(Chinese, Indians, Malays) are represented, Can-tonese and Hakka Chinese make up most of thepopulation. The town is the locus of social andeconomic activities for Indian workers from rubberestates, Malays from nearby kampongs (villages withprimarily dispersed settlement) and Chinese living insurrounding new villages. The term new villagesrefers to the predominantly Chinese communitiesformed during a period of Malayan unrest, called theEmergency (194%1960), during which more thanhalf a million individuals living in dispersed set-tlements or in isolated villages were forcibly resettledin new villages behind barbed wire. Many of thosemoved were Chinese, thought by government officialsto have aided the predominantly Chinese communistguerrillas. Although the villages are no longer newand the wire fences have been torn down, the termitself and the communities remain as a reminder of atraumatic period in Malaysian history.

Tin Saan New Village (a pseudonym meaningheavenly mountain), the home of Ah Yuk Je, thespirit medium and subject of this paper, has a popu-lation of over 2000 people. The village is locatedabout 7 miles from Gam Luhng just off the maintrunk road that runs from Malaysia to Thailand inthe north and Singapore in the south. The majorityof the population are Chinese who speak the Hakkadialect, although the market language is Cantonese.Most residents are employed as wage laborers in tinmines and on rubber estates. Others have marketgardens or commute to jobs in Gam Luhng or Ipoh.According to official definitions, the village is rural[15]. However, it does possess amenities such asrunning water and electricity. The most notableinstitutions in the community include the Chineseprimary school, police station, several sundry andcoffee shops,.and the Goddess of Mercy (Gun Yum)temple and orphanage, in addition to several spiritmedium shrines. Although the temple and spiritmediums provide some of the same services to clients,they all specialize to some extent. For example, nomedium is available at the temple for consultation.Instead divination is done by throwing yarrow sticksand having the abbess or one of the nuns interpret thefortune slip that corresponds to the number on theparticular stick. Even the two female spirit mediumsfrom this village with whom I became personallyacquainted specialize; one is skilled at advising indi-viduals on business ventures and changing ones luck.and performing rites to insure future prosperity. Theother, Ah Yuk Je, specializes in healing women andchildren. I will return to Ah Yuk Je later.

CHINESE FOLK THEORIES OF ILLNESSChinese spirit mediums specializing in healingdraw from a wealth of knowledge about folk medi-

cine and are not merely magico-religious specialists.Therefore the reader must be apprised of the majorelements of Chinese folk medicine. the medical tradi-tion in which they work. Chinese folk medicine.defined as the day-to-day beliefs and practices usedby people to promote health and deal with illnessencompasses a broad spectrum of ideas from classicalChinese medicine. both Western and Chinese popularmedicine, magico-religious healing and bio-medicine.The concept of systematic correspondence, popularlyknown as the yin/yang five element theory. originatedby the Chinese philosopher, Tsou Yen (c. 350-270B.C. , forms the basis for classical Chinese medicine[16]. Thought to be the primordial elements fromwhich the universe evolved. the yin represents thedark, cold, wet, feminine aspect while the yangrepresents the bright, hot, dry, male aspect. Health isviewed as the balance within the body of these twoforces. Imbalance brought about through external.internal, physical or mental causes results in disease.More complex concepts such as the five elements.wood, fire, metal, water and earth. as well as theircorresponding organs (spleen. liver, heart. lungs andkidneys), which are further developed as a complexsystem of interaction and opposition to the planets.colors. directions and tastes are beyond the grasp ofmost lay Chinese. For a more comprehensive dis-cussion of Chinese philosophy and medicine seeNeedham [17], Porkert [18] and Unschuld [19].

The concepts of hot and cold, wet and dry (inCantonese yihr, feuhng, sup and gon, respectively)implicit in the yin/yang dichotomy, are beliefs centralto Chinese folk medicine. Illnesses [20], foods,different types of medication and other treatments arecategorized as hot or cold and sometimes also as wetand dry. Health is viewed as resulting from balanceamong the various elements. For example, a commoncomplaint of imbalance among Malaysian Chinese issaid to be due to overexposure to the sun or to eatingtoo much hot, spicy foods. In Cantonese, the condi-tion and the major symptom are termed yihr or yihtlrei (hot breath). (Heatiness is the colloquial Malay-sian English term meaning the same thing.) To offsetthe imbalance caused by this condition. beveragesthought to possess a cool quality (not related totemperature) such as sugar cane juice, wintermelonboiled with cane sugar or various cooling (Malay-sian English term meaning to have a cool quantity)herb teas are taken.

Other concepts important in Malaysian Chinesefolk medicine which may be mentioned briefly in-clude wind (.fing), poison (&Ilk). blood (hyut) andenergy (hei) [21]. After the hot/cold syndrome, windis probably the most important causal explanation ofillness among Malaysian Chinese. They believe thatwind is easier to prevent than to cure. Exposure todrafts (and nowadays to fans or air conditioning),drinking unboiled water, soda water or bathing incold water are likely to result in wind. After child-birth a women is especially susceptible to this condi-tion because of blood loss and the notion that herjoints are open. Consequently special dietary and


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Black magic and illness in a Malaysian Chinese community 149behavioral prohibitions are prescribed during thistime. Due to the tropical climate of Malaysia, wherebathing several times a day is necessary to maintaincomfort and health, the usual Chinese prohibitionagainst bathing during the confined period of 3&40days after childbirth is modified to allow women tobathe in hot water to which ginger, lemon grass andother heaty herbs are added.In Chinese folk medicine poison is analogous toallergen in cosmopolitan medicine. Skin diseasesand wounds contaminated with pus are described aspoison and are defined as a negative reaction tosome irritant. Also labeled poison are foods thoughtto aggravate these conditions or believed to be detri-mental to the sick or to persons convalescing from anillness. The Chinese believe that these poison foods,which include shellfish, duck, lamb and certain typesof fish, contain natural toxins which tend to ex-acerbate the condition of those who are physicallyweak.Blood represents energy, which is difficult toreplace when lost. Hence the reluctance of Chinese todonate blood and to have blood drawn for medicalanalysis. This also accounts for the proliferation ofblood replenishing tonics (bou hyut) for womenafter their menstrual periods, during the confinementperiod and for patients of both sexes convalescingfrom an illness. Hei (more commonly known by theMandarin term chi) translated loosely means lifeforce or life breathe, which flows through the meridi-ans of the body. Chinese normally speak of hei lihkwhich refers specifically to physical power. Having animbalance of hei or a blockage due to disease orbroken bones adversely affects ones health.Magico-religious explanations for disease causa-tion, common in ancient China, were viewed withdisfavor after Han times (202 B.C. to 221 A.D. .Nevertheless, recent studies in contemporary Chinesesocieties demonstrate that such explanations continueto flourish [22-251. They also incorporate the conceptof a harmonious equilibrium between the yin and theyang. Beliefs about the other world (the yin world ofhell) are manifestations of Chinese ideas regardingthe continuous relationship between those who live inthis world and the dead, who inhabit the yin world.The relationships are maintained through ancestralworship and other religious rites. Because the dis-tinctions between the various religious practices andphilosophies are often blurred even in the minds ofthe Chinese, I will not attempt to discuss differenceshere.Supernatural beings dwelling in the yin worldinclude gods, ancestors, ghosts and demons. Gods aremythical beings or humans who have died and havebeen deified by the people because of miracles orgreat deeds they have performed. Ancestors are onesown deceased kin. Although there is a controversyover the definition of ghosts among scholars [26-281,Chinese Malaysian informants claimed they wouldnever call their own kin ghosts, reserving the termfor other peoples deceased relatives. Gods and ances-tors are not normally feared. If propitiated regularlythey will not cause trouble. On the other hand, ghostsare felt to be capricious and can bring misfortune andillness at any time. They are especially dangerousduring the seventh lunar month, when the gates of the

underworld are open and ghosts can wander on earthas they desire. Demons, believed to be intrinsicallyevil, act independently or as agents for human mas-ters in deeds of sorcery.Black magic or sorcery as a cause of misfortuneincluding illness appears primarily in accounts ofancient China [29,30] and are conspicuously absentin contemporary studies of Chinese societies [31].Nonetheless the phenomenon does occur and inMalaysia is quite a common topic of conversationamong the Chinese (as well as among individuals ofother ethnic groups). Chinese often speak of individ-uals who practice the art alone. In Malaysia, informa-nts report that devotees of a local cult called MaoSuan practice black magic. This cult appears to beconcerned with invulnerability and is named for amountain in China where three brothers surnamedMO lived and are reputed to have achieved immor-tality through the practice of alchemy [32]. Thissuggests that present day concepts of black magicdeveloped from the alchemists tradition which exis-ted in Chinese antiquity 133,341.The Malaysian-Chinese phrase for black magic iskong tao. This is a derivation from Hokkien andliterally translates as to surrender head, to lose oneshead. In Cantonese the term is kong tauh. A morecommon Cantonese expression for black magic orsorcery is cheh seuht. The word cheh refers to ritualpollution associated with evil. Ritual pollution withno evil connotation, such as that arising from contactwith menstrual blood, is luaht tai or luh ju, whichliterally means dirty (dangerously dirty) [35, 361.Black magic, an acquired skill, involves a humanagent who voluntarily and deliberately instigatesactivities to harm another. A noxious substanceingested by the victim constitutes the most prevalentform of kong tao. In his discussion of sorcery inpre-revolutionary China, deGroot [37] describes apoison ku in Mandarin) derived from the remains ofvenomous reptiles and insects confined in a cauldronuntil all have been devoured save one. In Malaysia,the actual poison used is not specified. However, oneresearcher reports that ground glass added to foodwas said to be a common method of kong tuo amongHokkien peoples in Penang (J. DeBernardi, persona1communication). The raising and use of demons insorcery discussed by deGroot [38], and more recentlydeveloped by Unschuld [39] in a social history ofdemonic medicine in Chinese antiquity are rumoredto be evident among kong tuo adepts in Malaysia.(Chinese friends warned me that a medium I knewraised devils under her bed and one individual evensuggested that I was a likely victim. In the lastinstance, the man who was a Thai medium hoped toingratiate himself to me by first lodging an accusationagainst a protagonist and then offering himself asboth healer and protector).

BIOGRAPHY OF THE SPIRIT MEDIUM, AH YUK JEChinese friends in the village in Perak where I livedand worked, introduced me to Ah Yuk Je, who lived5 miles away. Many of them consulted her when they

or their family members were sick. They describedher as a friendly and helpful person whose diagnosesand predictions are leng (usually meaning pretty,


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150 BERTHAMObut used here to mean accurate or efficacious). Thespirit medium willingly consented to my observingher in her practice and interviewing patients.Ah Yuk Je was 42 years old in 1980. She describedher early life as difficult. Born to a poor family nearKuala Lumpur, she was sold to a Chinese family asa sun pouh jai (little daughter-in-law) when she wasless than 5 years old. The arrangement, virtuallysevering any ties she might have with her natal family,meant that she would stay and work for the familyuntil she was old enough to marry the familys elderson [40]. At the age of 12, after being treated like aslave for 7 years, she ran away and found a job at atin mine. There she was well taken care of andeventually met her future husband. At age 20 shemarried and moved to Tin Saan New Village, whereher husband had relatives and job prospects werebetter. Soon after her marriage, her biological motherdied and her natural brother and sister felt free tocontact her. Although bitter about her early experi-ences, Ah Yuk Je claims she harbours no resentmentagainst her remaining family and maintains contactwith them.Ah Yuk Je worked at odd jobs for the Malaymanager of a rubber estate until she became ill over3 years ago. Villagers described the disorder as a kindof mental illness or nervous breakdown (in politelanguage sahn ging behng and in colloquial termsngong or crazy) [41]. They recalled that she neglectedher home and children, and wandered aimlesslyabout the village. She looked disheveled and scoldedwhomever she happened upon. When I questionedher, she was ambivalent about the precise nature ofher illness. She merely said that, at the time, sheexperienced weakness and felt anxious and uneasy(mh ngon fohk). She consulted many healers and wasfinally cured by eating paper charms from thetemple of Ho Hsien Gu near Ipoh, the capital ofPerak. (Thefuh as these charms are called are burnedand the ashes are mixed with water or tea blessed bythe gods and the resulting liquid ingested.) Ho HsienGu, she said, is one of the famous Eight Immortals.Local folklore attributes the healing powers of thisimmortal to her father, a famous herbalist in China.She often helped her father collect wild herbs andbecame immortal because of her diligence and filialpiety. As part of her cure, Ah Yuk Je became a spiritmedium and today practices this profession full time.She lives with her husband and seven of her ninechildren, plus one granddaughter, in a house-cum-shrine baai taahn) in a side street of Tin Saan. Herhusband is away all day working as a tin mine laborerand she is left to care for the house and children andconduct her practice, assisted only by her 16-year-olddaughter. As is common practice among poor fami-lies, the daughter, Ah Lan, left school after com-pleting the Chinese primary level (6 years) to help athome.

THE ME IUMS SHRINEThe spirit mediums house of unpainted plankswith a tin roof and floor of concrete is modestcompared with the homes of rich villagers, whichhave painted walls and are enclosed by fancy metalfences. However, it is of finer construction than thehomes of poorer villagers which have only roofs of

atup (a type of palm frond) over a dirt floor and barewooden walls. What immediately distinguishes AhYuk Jes house from the others are two objects in herfront yard. The first is an elaborately decoratedshrine to the Jade Emperor. The second are thecolorful spirit medium flags flying from a tall tree.The Jade Emperor, known as Yuk Wohng or TinGung, is the powerful but benevolent deity who rulesover all the other gods and spirits. In Malaysia. he isan important part of domestic worship. Almost everyChinese house has an incense burner for Tin Gung.attached either to a post opposite the doorway or onthe wall to one side of the entrance. At temples andshrines he serves as a special protector against de-mons. The elaborateness of the shrine at Ah Yuk Jeshouse attests to her success and prosperity, which sheattributes to Tin Gungs patronage. The mediumflags, made of triangles of green, red, yellow, whiteand black cloth, correspond to the five cardinaldirections. They serve as an advertisement for themedium and also as a protection against evil spirits.

An altar approximately five feet high by six feetlong, dominates the back wall of Ah Yuk Jes frontroom. On this altar stands figures of her two maintutelary guardians, Gun Yam (Goddess of Mercy) andFuht Mou (another name for the Goddess ofHeaven). To one side is a large framed figure of thethree Taoist spirits, Fuk, Luk, Suuh (happiness, pos-ition or affluence and longevity). Written on redsheets of paper are the names of other spirits whohelped her, including the Seven Sisters Chat Je), themonkey god Dui Sing Yeh) and Guu Ling. Of thelatter, she could not tell me much except that theywere nine related spirits. The Seven Sisters are thedaughters of the Jade Emperor.

Most Chinese are familiar with the romantic taleassociated with the weaving maid, the seventh andmost beautiful of the Jade Emperors daughters, andher lover, the heavenly cowherd. Preoccupied withone another, they neglected their duties and incurredthe wrath of the Queen of Heaven. They were sepa-rated and now are only allowed to meet, weatherpermitting, on the seventh day of the seventh lunarmonth. In Malaysia, at 12 midnight the precedingnight or at 12 noon of the seventh day of this month,water is drawn from wells and taps into bottles andkept to use in case of illness. Malaysian Chinesebelieve that the Seven Sisters bestow medicinal proper-ties on the water, which can be taken either plain,mixed with the ashes of burnt paper charms, orbrewed with herbs. A large incense burner, packets ofincense sticks, vases of flowers, plates of fruit andother offerings crowd the altar of Ah Yuk Je. In frontof the two statues are three cups of weak Chinese tea(sometimes plain water is used instead). This godstea suhn chub) given to patients as part of thetreatment was constantly replenished from a largemetal tea kettle kept in the next room. In its ownniche under the altar was a wooden plank with thename of the household or earth god Touh DeihGung) carved upon it. He is also a part of domesticworship. He has his own incense burner and offeringsare placed right on the floor in front of his tablet.This places him within easy reach of toddlers who areattracted to the offerings. Although Touh Deih Gungis not a malicious god, it is believed that he gets angry


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Black magic and illness in a Malaysian Chinese community 151with these young children who play with his incenseburner or offerings and may make them sick. Thecure is quite simple. It involves propitiating him withan offering and a verbal apology.In front of the altar about a foot away, leaving justspace enough for one individual to pass through, isa table at waist level holding an overflow of offeringsfrom the main altar. In front of this table is aWestern-style desk with several drawers for storingpaper offerings to the gods and spirits such as spiritmoney and clothes, as well as the yellow paper andred ink used in writing paper charms (/iah). On topof her desk is a Chinese almanac (rung sing) and acurious version of the wooden divining blocks (biu)favored by priests and fortune tellers. Instead ofthe usual wood, these were of silver-colored metal.Shaped like two crescents with one side flat and oneside convex, they were each attached to a pencil-likeobject by a short chain. In divination, the stick is heldup and the bui are allowed to fall on the table. If theyland so one side faces up and one down, the oracleapproves of the activity. If the blocks land with thesame side facing up, the implication is of disagree-ment with the decision. Although the medium claimsno forma1 education, she reads enough written Chi-nese to consult the almanac. Using it as a referencebook to locate the cosmic correlates of a personshoroscope she uses the former to discover lucky andunlucky days for activities as mundane as washingones hair or getting a haircut, and as universallyimportant as marriage. Ah Yuk Je pointed out onesection of the almanac that is especially useful in herown practice. This was an illustrated list of 100barriers or bridges (gwaan) young children mustcross in early childhood. The gwaan represent partic-ular periods or stages of a childs life. When a childbecomes sick. the medium matches the childs horo-scope to the present data and its correspondinggwnan. To cure the sickness and help the child overthe bridge a simple ritual called gwo gwaan, crossingthe bridge, is performed by the medium.

encounters observed only 10 were male; of 91 patientsdiagnosed, 64% (58) were female. Patients agesranged from a baby, 20 days old, to one 80 year oldman. The largest single category was children under8 years of age. Most of these younger patientssuffered from a culturally specific condition calledha& geng or fright. They believe that the childssoul has been frightened from its body, making himill. Women concerned about infertility, prenatal careand those seeking advice about marital problemscomprised the second largest group of patients. Thesethree categories are combined here because in Malay-sian Chinese society the desire for male progeny tocarry on the family name is still important. Con-sequently, infertility, or a lack of male heirs oftenleads to marital problems. Marital problems alsoarise from another cultural norm, which is the customfor men to express their status, wealth and prowessby taking mistresses or secondary wives.

Along both sides of the room, which served as herb i t hn as well as living room, are low chairs whereclients sit waiting their turn. The room is alive withthe activity and chatter of Ah Yuk Jes children,combined with the conversation of clients and theirchildren which dies down only when Ah Yuk Jebegins her trance. The informal atmosphere lendsitself to casual conversation about childcare, cooking,folk remedies and the untrustworthy nature of men.

AH YUK J ES CLIE NTS

In Malaysia prior to 1976 non-Christian marriageswere contracted according to customary law. In thecase of the Chinese, polygamous unions were recog-nized and this custom was sanctioned by Malaysiancourts long after China prohibited the practice [42].At the same time, non-Christian marriages requiredno registration and a man could unilaterally divorcehis wife. However, a woman in a similar situationcould not do the same [43]. In contrast, traditionalChinese clan rules, which prescribe and sanctionmarriage and divorce, protect the rights of the firstwife and children by requiring at least nominalconsent of the first wife to the second union and bymaking a clear distinction between the former andsecondary wives or concubines and their progeny. inaddition, divorce was forbidden under certain cir-cumstances [44]. In Malaysia, the lax laws making itdifficult for women to prove abuse of current maritalregulations coupled with the absence of the tradi-tional Chinese clan organization and its rules govern-ing marriage and divorce, leave men free to contractliaisons with other women, both informally andformally as marriages. (In some instances, the newrelationship begins without either the first wifes orthe second womans knowledge of the mans situ-ation). In the past, Malaysian authorities focusedattention on this problem only in terms of its effecton inheritance [45]. Although recently laws makingpolygamy illegal and requiring the registration ofmarriages have been instituted [46], irreparable harmhas already been done to many innocent women andchildren. In addition, legislation has not been able toreverse overnight what has been both a cultural normand an attitude of male privilege.Most of Ah Yuk Jes clients came from within a 25 This issue is discussed at length because femalemile radius. Although they represented all dialect informants recognize it as a problem that createsgroups, the majority were either Hakka or Cantonese.The range of educational levels varied from those distress and anxiety. Both are seen by Chinese as animbalance of emotions, which can result in illnesswith no education to one university graduate. How- (both mental and physical). My observation of heal-ever most clients had little forma1 education. Females ers at work suggests that spirit mediums in theirout-numbered males as both clients and patients. (A diagnostic trances are not averse to defining maritaldistinction is made between client and patient be- stress as an underlying cause of ill health. Mediumscause the person coming for the consultation is not in this special liminal state, in which they speak onnecessarily the person who is sick. In practice, diag- behalf of the gods, are not confined by social norms

nosis and even treatment can take place without the which determine topics appropriate for conventionalpatients presence. The patient is represented symbol- healer/patient interaction. Ah Yuk Je, because of herically by the bat ji ; see p. 152.) Of a total of 79 personal history as a former sam pouh ai, is especially


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52 BERTHA MOcognizant of the problems of powerless women inChinese society. Although she never gave a hint ofproblems with her own husband, in informal con-versations she often counseled young women to bewary of men.AH YUK J ES TRANCE, DIAGNOSES AND TREATMEN T

Clients who desire to consult the gods enter her baitaahn and without any ceremony approach her altar.Sometimes Ah Yuk Je, anticipating a client beforeone appears in the doorway, begins lighting andplacing incense in the incense burners outside andinside the shrine. These preliminaries completed, andseated on a chair behind the desk, facing the altar, shebegins to chant rhythmically, all the while swingingher head around in small circles and keeping timewith her bare feet. As she goes deeply into her trance,her entire body starts to shake and she makes soundsas she were alternately burping and vomiting. At thispoint one of her tutelary spirits enters her body andshe begins to speak with that voice. The spirit asksthe client what she has come for and requests the batji of the patient. The bat ji are the eight Chinesecharacters associated with the exact hour, day,month and year of a persons birth, much like ahoroscope. Although the horoscope determines onesfate in life, the Chinese believe it is possible to alterthis fate jyun wahn) [47]. Using this information AhYuk Je locates the patient in the Heavenly Garden ofFlowers. The condition of the flowers indicates thepatients health status as well as present fate.Ah Yuk Jes diagnoses are quite complicated andmay involve both natural and supernatural causes ofa particular illness. Here we will touch on a fewaspects of the standard treatment. Included in everycure there are three cups of the gods tea sahn chah),which are poured from the three cups on the altarinto a plastic bag for the patient to take home, andan equal number of paper charms fuh), which arehandwritten for each patient during the trance. Forthree consecutive days, the patient burns a fuh andputs the ashes into one cup of sahn chah. The tea maythen be strained to remove the ashes because it is onlynecessary to ingest their essence and not thefuh itselfIf the patient is present and the condition is judgedto be serious, the medium may suggest that a cup ofthe preparation be taken immediately.Prescriptions for herbal teas are also given topractically every patient. Since the medium is illiter-ate, she chants the recipe to her daughter who writesit on a piece of yellow paper. The yellow paper is asign to the herbalist filling out the order that it is asahn dam, a prescription from the gods. Ah Lan, themediums daughter, said the suhn duun her motherprescribes were of two types, one for children andanother for adults. Herbalists I consulted describedboth as cooling teas feuhng chub), harmless and acommon beverage to counteract heatiness. Sug-gestions for dietary changes, behavioral constraintsand much reassurance are also conveyed during thetrance (and may continue informally afterwards).Sometimes, she prescribes patent medicines (West-ern or Chinese), herbs to strengthen the body orreduce heatiness and rituals. The latter can beperformed by the medium or in some instances at

home by a knowlegeable person, usually an olderwoman. The last activity of the medium before shecomes out of the trance is to predict the likelihood ofmonetary success for either the client or the patient.If success is likely, she scribbles a four-dieit lotterynumber on a piece of yellow paper for the rndividualto buy.TWO of the most common rituals prescribed by themedium were huum geng. a rite to call back a soulthat has been frightened from its body and kui(usually kui suhn, which refers to ritual adoption bya deity). The former constitutes part of the treatmentfor fright huuk geng), mentioned earlier as the mostcommon condition brought to the medium. The mostcommon type of home treatments were Chinesepatent medicines with names such as afraid of wind-powder and green box pill pill. These were alsorecommended by the medium. If fever was a symp-tom, the child would be taken to a cosmopolitanphysician after home care and before referral to themedium. Fright is a result of natural causes such asthe loud noises made by dogs or cars as well assupernatural forces and beings such as ghosts or thefetal soul inside a pregnant woman. The Chinesebelieve that the frightened childs soul is scattered orlost. The rite, for which Hakka women are particu-larly noted, is usually performed at dusk on the lanein front of the patients house or at the intersectionof two roads. The latter is believed to be a placewhere wandering spirits congregate. Candles andincense sticks, usually in multiples of threes, are litand stuck in the ground. The spirits are invoked byscattering raw rice and green peas, and are givenofferings of cooked rice, a small fried fish or raw eggin its shell, and perhaps some wine and suits of paperclothing. The spirits are told that the child meansthem no harm and they should go away and leave italone. A shirt belonging to the sick child is wavedover the incense and candlesticks as the childs nameis called. The soul of the child is thought to slip intothe shirt. Depending on personal preference, the shirtis placed on the childs bed for several days and thengiven to him to wear. Alternately the shirt is given tothe child to wear immediately. To conclude theceremony, the wine is poured on the ground. the foodscattered and the paper clothing set afire. The onlyvariation when the ritual is performed by the mediumis that the latter often puts a protective stamp (chop)on the shirt.When a child is weak and always sick, Chineseoften suspect that the horoscope of the child and theparents, usually that of the mother, are incompatible.In this case, the medium may recommend that thechild kai suhn, that is, become the godchild of a deity(often Gun Yam). On the designated day, the childarrives at the shrine with an adult (usually its mother)bearing offerings for the goddess: pink colored cakes,fruits and several suits of brightly colored paperclothes. They must also bring a set of new clothes forthe child and perhaps a jade talisman on a red stringor chain. The latter may be of any shape, althoughrecently jade carved in the shape of Gun Yam hasbecome popular.The medium lays the offerings on the altar. lightsthe incense and goes into her trance. The child ismade to bow three times towards the altar and a


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Black magic and illness in a Malaysian Chinese community 153to the side of the main altar, he rubbed ashes (ofsanctified cow dung) from a small brass container onhis forehead as a protection against evil spirits. Hebegan to chant in an almost inaudible voice, swayinghis body and stamping his bare feet. Punctuating hischant with grunts, he began to make scratchinggestures with his arms, while his head swayed backand forth. Ah Yuk Je whispered to me that the priestwas now Dai Sing Ye/r, the monkey god in theChinese pantheon of supernaturals. Speaking in Ma-lay and Tamil, Ravi seemed to address his commentsto no one in particular. The assistant stood close toRavi and translated his words for us. This in essenceis what he said:

request is made to Gun Yam to adopt the child. Therequest is granted and the goddess agrees to protectthe child until it grows up. The medium blesses theclothes and returns them to the mother with in-structions to put them on the child. The medium thentakes the jade talisman and blesses it (hoi gwong),imparting to it the goddess protective power. Aftercoming out of the trance, she returns a portion of theofferings of fruit and cakes to the mother (Chinesesense of reciprocity dictates that the giver shouldleave with a portion of what was given), and presentsthe child with a pair of red chopsticks, a spoon anda bowl of uncooked rice. For 100 days, or as long asthe rice lasts, a few grains of it should be cooked withthe familys daily rice. The metaphor is that of eatingun yam s rice and being under her care and protec-tion. From now until the child marries, he mustworship the deity on her feast days as his own parent,addressing his biological parents as auntie and uncle.This relationship continues until just before marriagewhen he terminates the special association by coming

to her temple with gifts to thank the goddess for herprotection.AH YUK JES ILLNESS EPISODE

During the second week of my observations andinterviewing, the following incident occurred. On thisparticular morning there were few clients and AhYuk Je seemed restless. She had been complainingabout not feeling well, yelling at the children andtelling no one in particular that she should go seesomeone about her condition. Im going crazy, sheyelled. These children are driving me crazy. All thisnoise and I never seem to be able to get away fromhere. To my surprise, she suddenly looked at me andrequested that my (female) research assistant and Iaccompany her to find out the cause of her illness (tarhehng). Since it appeared that the day was going tobe an oppressively hot, slow one, making field workespecially trying, we agreed and suggested that weleave immediately. Now Ah Yuk Je seemed reluctantto go. worrying out loud how her children wouldmanage lunch without her and whether she couldleave her practice.Finally agreeing, Ah Yuk Je changed her clothesand we left to catch the bus to Gam Luhng. Ourdestination was a small isolated Hindu shrine at theedge of town. There, a young Indian boy greeted usin Malay. informing us that the priest (who I will callRavi) had left for town and would return shortly.After 10 minutes. the priest returned and the follow-ing interchange took place in Malay, Tamil, Can-tonese and English: The priest communicated withAh Yuk Je in Malay and with my assistant and mein English. We three woman spoke Cantonese to-gether. while I threw in some English occasionallywhen conversing with my assistant. Exchanges be-tween the priest Ravi and his assistant were in Tamil.Questioned by the priest as to the reason for the visit,Ah Yuk Je replied vaguely that she wanted to consultthe gods. not giving him the real reason why she hadcome. which only became apparent later.

In preparation for going into a trance, Ravi lit afew sticks of incense and placed them in variousburners in front of the gods in the shrine. Standing

Someone, a woh seung (Buddhist priest) was bothering her.He was doing some kind of black magic (kong fao). Thisman lived nearby. The Indian priest advised her to eat limesand to cleanse her house and altar with pomelo leaves.Then he gave her ashes from the brass containerinstructing her to drink them in tea. As Ravi con-tinued his mumbling trance, Ah Yuk Je excitedly toldus she knew who the woh seung was. He lived in TinSaan New Village, just down the street from her.Because he was jealous of her success he was makingher sick by doing kong tao. In fact, this was not thefirst occurrence. She continued, I knew that I shouldcome to this shrine. Every night I dream aboutcoming here. For three months Ive wanted to comehere and ask the gods, but something kept me fromcoming. Bad people were keeping me from cominghere. I wouldnt have been able to come if you twohadnt accompanied me.When the priest came out of his trance, he askedhis assistant to repeat the message he had givenduring the trance, and he elaborated upon it for us.Most of what he said was repetitous, although heemphasized the necessity of ritually cleansing thehouse and altar carefully because the woh seungcaused them to become cheh (ritually polluted). AhYuk Je told him of the urgency, yet reluctance, withwhich she had come to consult him. He reassured herby saying that the god knew she was to come. He hadbeen on his way home when the god made him returnto see her. Ah Yuk Je need not be afraid if she dideverything the god, Dar Sing Ye/r, told her to do. AhYuk Je replied that cleansing the house and altarwould be no problem, and she liked eating limes.After paying the standard fee of 5.00 Malaysian(ringgit) dollars ( 1.00 US = 2.40 M), we walkedback to the bus stand. On the way Ah Yuk Jeconfided that she felt much better, more at ease afterthe visit. She also said she had been to this shrine ona previous occasion. When asked who had taken herthe previous time, she said it was a friend from aChinese village about 15 miles away.

CROSSING ETHNIC BOUNDARIES TO SEEKMEDICAL C RE

Four important factors influenced Ah Yuk Jesdecision to seek the assistance of the Indian healer.The first two, recommendation from a trusted friend,and positive previous experience are obvious, and


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54 BERTHAMOrequire no further discussion. The remaining factorsare the special nature of her illness, which requiresattention from a healer with specialized knowledgeand skills, and her practice as a spirit medium.Successful spirit mediums mediate between this worldand supernaturals. Clients perceive mediums as hav-ing power and control over supernatural forces.Consequently, being a victim of black magic is theantithesis of what it means to be a spirit medium.Illness caused by black magic is particularly fearedamong Chinese because it is difficult to treat and ina spirit medium the illness indicates a vulnerability tosupernatural power that does not inspire confidenceamong prospective clients. In addition not all healersare versed in treating black magic. Consequently, forreasons of preserving confidentiality regarding herneed for specialized care, she sought the assistance ofan outgroup healer.Successful interaction between clients and healersis aided by shared assumptions about the causes ofillness, agreement on correct diagnostic techniquesand symbols, as well as on what constitutes propertreatment for the diagnosed condition. Althoughthere is little written evidence about the belief in blackmagic among Chinese in Malaysia and the idea thatillness might be one result, the subject is a commontopic of discussion in all sectors of Malaysian society.Beliefs about black magic are not uniform in contentnor are they applied in every case of misfortune [48].Malaysian friends agree that, generally, Malays andThais are specialists in curing illnesses caused byblack magic [49]. Persons able to reverse black magicare also likely to use the same evil force. Treatmentfor an illness caused by black magic is lengthy, costlyand difficult. In this case Ah Yuk Je heard from afriend that this Indian healer was skilled at treatingillnesses caused by black magic. In his diagnosis andrecommendations for treatment, Ravi .used tech-niques and symbols that were familiar to Ah Yuk Je.The Indian priests gestures while in trance weresimilar to those of a Chinese medium possessed bythe Chinese monkey god, Dai Sing Yeh. To bridge thecultural gap even further, the Indian referred to thegod as Dai Sing Yeh instead of using its correctIndian name, Hanuman, the Indian monkey god.Although Dai Sing Yeh and Hanuman may havesimilar origins, the myths associated with them arequite different. Some Chinese claim that Dai Sing Yehis the incarnation of the mischievous monkey kingwho drank the elixir of immortality and helped tobring Buddhism to the West. Others say that while hisorigins are unknown, he is especially skilled at diag-nosing and curing disease. In the Hindu Ramayanatale, Hunuman is the ally of the hero Rama in hisbattle with the villain Ravana. After one particularbattle, Hanumun goes off to the mountains to collectmedicinal herbs to heal the wounded. In return,Rama rewards him with the gift of immortality[50,51]. Because local knowledge of the origins of thetwo deities is unclear it is quite easy to interchangethem, as well as to invent new meanings and func-tions or embellish old myths. The recommendationthat she eat limes draws on the general belief amongMalays, Indians and Chinese that limes are a clean-sing, purifying agent [52, 531. What is unusual aboutthe suggestion is that the customary Chinese method

of treatment is to bathe with limes. either whole orsliced into large pieces, rather than eat them. Pomelosare a citrus fruit resembling grapefruit which areprized by the Chinese for their auspicious yellowcolor (yellow in Cantonese is rvohng, which alsomeans royal and is a protective color) and har-monious rounded shape. In Chinese religious ceremo-nies pomelo leaves are used with water as purifyingagent. Both the ashes (from sanctified cow dung)given to Ah Yuk Je to take with her tea and the ashesof paper charms that she gives her own clients todrink have powers to protect the drinker. This sameash is often worn on the forehead by Indians as aprotective charm [54]. The Chinese paper charm maybe used as an amulet. It can be folded into a triangleand sewed into a cloth case, or rolled up and placedin a metal container to wear on a chain or stringaround the neck.Although the belief in black magic is commonamong Malaysians, only certain specialists possessthe expertise and power necessary to neutralize it. Aswas stated previously, most experts who deal withblack magic are Malay or Thai. Although Chineseand Indian specialists on black magic do exist, theyare rare. One Chinese specialist in Gam Luhng wascalled the Siamese old lady because she trained witha Siamese healer and was perceived to be well versedin neutralizing kong tao. Her power was so great itwas rumored that she practiced the black artsherself.This Siamese old lady or Ah Sim Poh as she wascalled, had an extensive multi-ethnic family network.Her first husband was Chinese and she had one sonby him. She divorced him and married an Indian withwhom she had half a dozen children. One of thedaughters from the second marriage married anIndian spirit medium who learned the art from hisfather (who has a small Hindu temple outside of GamLuhng). This daughters husband has taken overfrom his aging mother-in-law many of the dutiesnormally assumed by spirit mediums, leaving hisbrother to preside in their fathers place at the Hindutemple. The latters brother is the priest, Ravi, thatAh Yuk Je consulted. The two brothers maintaincommunication with each other, and I have observedthem cooperating in religious activities. It is obviousthat they share religious knowledge and symbols. Infact, growing up in a predominantly Chinese townprobably ensures knowledge of certain Chinese sym-bols. Specialized information pertaining to Chinesereligious practices and symbols was acquired byRavis brother upon his interethnic marriage. I sus-pect that Ravi has also benefitted from his brothersmarriage in a similar, but less obvious manner. Fromdiscussions, it appears that Ah Yuk Je was not awareof the connection between the healer, Ravi. and thefamous Ah Sim Poh.Because of the fear attached to black magic and itspoor prognosis, victims or their family are reluctantto consider sorcery as a possible explanation forillness. Families who are forced to broach the topic,perhaps only in the context of seeking resources,deliberately couch the illness in vague terms. Theymay use the word cheh to describe the illness. oralternatively speak about an illness with an unknowncause which has exhausted conventional treatment.


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Black magic and illness in a Malaysian Chinese community 155(Conventional treatment includes home remedies,cosmopolitan physicians, practitioners of traditionalChinese medicine (in Hokkien, sensei), and folkhealers other than magico-religious specialists). In theincident described here, the victim acknowledged thecause of her disease post hoc, only after the conditionwas diagnosed and the course of treatment begun. AhYuk Jes statements after the visit indicate that theconsultation was cathartic and efficacious. I suspectthat her initial reluctance to divulge the nature of herconcern was overcome by the definitive diagnosis,culturally appropriate treatment and reassurance of apositive prognosis.In Malaysian Chinese society it is commonplacefor people to talk about black magic in general terms,but no one ever admits to being a victim or accusesanyone else directly of being able to do black magic.Victims of suspected black magic only reluctantlyacknowledge it as a cause of misfortune. Neutralizingits effects are costly and difficult, and specialistsskilled at reversing the condition are not easily found.Accusing someone of black magic in a small face-to-face society is unwise because it becomes an invita-tion for people to take sides, and some people areinclined to view the accuser as a trouble-maker. Anadmission of vulnerability to black magic by a spiritmedium casts aspersions on her ability to perform herduties. as the work presupposes patronage and pro-tection of the gods. Hence an illness of this type maybe perceived by others as a withdrawal of favor onthe part of the gods and thus is a special caserequiring secrecy, unlike an illness with a naturalcause.

of healers. Provencher (5.51 uggests and I concur thatthe belief in sorcery is widespread among Malaysiansof all ethnic groups [56]. Malaysian-Chinese friendsspeculate that the belief is reinforced by contact withMalays, and perhaps Thais, who possess an elaborateexplanatory system for black magic. In addition,both Thais and Malays are believed to be adept atinstigating black magic as well as neutralizing it[.57, 581. In the case described here, the Indian healer,Ravi, through his social and familial networks, hasknowledge of at least two magico-religious traditions,Indian and Chinese and perhaps a third, Thai (indi-rectly from his brothers mother-in-law, Ah SimPoh). Utilizing this information, he was able to treatthis case of illness caused by black magic, by manip-ulating healing symbols familiar to the Chinese client,Ah Yuk Je.The Andersons [59], writing a few years after the1969 ethnic conflicts, concluded that tensions amongthe dominant ethnic groups preclude additional inte-gration or syncretism of magico-religious beliefs.However, my research demonstrates a level of inte-gration of magico-religious beliefs and symbols re-lated to illness among Malaysians of diverse culturalbackgrounds, which facilitates crossing ethnic bound-aries to seek healers. These findings concur with thoseof Freedman [60], Golomb [61] and others who havefelt that the structure of ethnic relations in Malaysiais less rigid than some scholars suggest and, further-more, that groups have always formed close socialties across ethnic boundaries.

CONCLUSIONThe preceding biography of a 42 year old femaleHakka Chinese spirit medium demonstrates that theterm, magico-religious specialist inadequately de-scribes the scope of her work as a specialist indisorders of women and children. Although herdiagnostic techniques are largely magico-religious innature, and much of her treatment also falls underthis category, she has skills used in naturalistic treat-ment. Aided by her guardian spirit while in a trancestate, she diagnoses illness and prescribes treatment,which include gods tea, herbal remedies, patentmedicines (both Western and Chinese), and rituals,Two of the most common are haam geng, the ritual

to call back a lost soul and kai s&n, ritual adoptionby a deity (suggested for a child who becomes ill oftenbecause the horoscope of child and mother areincompatible). A woman with infertility and/or mar-ital problems is given herbs to strengthen her body(holr sari fai) and is encouraged to verbalize herconcerns. Ah Yuk Je, the spirit medium, is successfulbecause her diagnoses are perceived by patients asaccurate, her treatment is deemed effective, but moreimportant she offers them reassurance, comfort, andhope.

Acknowledgements-My fieldwork was supported by a pre-doctoral fellowship from Grant No. AI 10051 (UC-ICMR)to the Department of International Health, School ofMedicine, University of California, San Francisco from theNational Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, Na-tional Institutes of Health, U.S. Public Health Service.Unless otherwise noted, Cantonese Chinese terms areused and are spelled according to the method outlined inParker Po-fei Huangs Cantonese Dicrionarv. Yale Univer-sity Press, New Haven, 1970.I would like to thank the following individuals for readingand commenting on earlier versions of this paper, FrederickL. Dunn, Kris Heggenhougen, Nora Krantzler, MargaretMacKenzie, Jack Potter, Moses Pounds, Judy Strauch andDaniel Weisberg.REFERENCES

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25. Toolev M. Chinese traditional ideas and the treatmentof hisease: two examples from Hong Kong. Man 5,421-437, 1970.Ahern E. M. The Cult o f the Dead in a Chinese Village.Stanford University Press, Stanford. CA. 1973.Freedman M. (Ed.) Ancestor worship: two facets of theChinese case. Social Organization: Essays Presented toRaymond Firth, pp. 85-103 Frank Cass & Co., London.Aldine, Chicago, 1967.Wolf A. (Ed.) Gods, ghosts and ancestors. Religion andRitual in Chinese Society, pp. 13 -I 82. Stanford Univer-sity Press, Stanford, CA, 1974.deGroot J. J. M. The Religious Svstem of China, Vol. V.E. J. Brill, Leiden, 1907.Needham J. The Tao Chia (Taoists) and Taoism.Science and Civilization in China. Cambridge UniversityPress, London, 1956.Freedman M. op. cit. He concludes that Chinese societydoes not predispose its members to seek explanationsfor misfortune in the evil thoughts and practices of kinand neighbors. This suggests that the present study is aunique case in Chinese-society, but not in Malaysiansociety. Provencher R. op. cit. states that a belief insorcery is prevalent in all sectors of Malaysian society.Anderson E. N. amd Anderson M. L. Folk dietetics intwo Chinese communities, and its implications for thestudy of Chinese. Medicine in Chinese Cultures: Com-parative Studies of Health Care in China and OtherSocieties (edited by Kleinman A. et al.), pp. 143-171.PHEW Publ. No. (NIH) 75-653. John E. FogartyInternational Center, National Institutes of Health,U.S. Public Health Service. They speak briefly of Hok-kien peoples in Penang, Malaysia who claim to bebewitched by evil spirit mediums. Comber L. ChineseMagic and Superstitions in Malava. Malayan HeritageBooks No. 5, Eastern Universities Press, Singapore,1960. He discusses elements of Chinese magic popu-larized by fortune tellers and spirit mediums in Malaya.Although he does not mention black magic specifically.some of these concepts are used in the black arts.Welch H. and Seidel A. (Eds) Facets of Taoism. YaleUniversity Press, New Haven, 1979.ibid.

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traveled by the potential victim. The informant claimedthat the evil force would only harm the intended victimand not some unsuspecting passerby.53. ibid.54. ibid.55. Provencher R. op. cif.56. Gimlette J. D. Malay Poisons and Charm Cures. J. A.Churchill, London, 1923.57. Winstedt R. 0. The Mal ay M agician. Routledge &Kegan Paul, London, 1951.. _58. Winzeler R. L. Ethnic comnlexitv and ethnic relations.in an east coast Malay Town. SEasf A sian J. Sot. Sci.

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Mo 1984 Black Magic and Illness in a Malaysian Chinese Community_medanth

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