Week 2: Spirit Healers -Brittany Carlson

            In preparation for this week’s discussions, we read “Gifts from the Spirits: Spirit Possession and Personal Transformation among Silicon Valley Spirit Mediums” by Karen Fjelstad and Lisa Maiffret; “Shamanism in Trouble” by Chongho Kim; “Tarot Cards: The Desecrated Temple, The Farmer, and The Hangman” from the Open in Emergency box; and “The Pa Lor Story-The Journey Between Two Worlds” by Txawb-California Asian Directory. In

“Gifts from the Spirits: Spirit Possession and Personal Transformation among Silicon Valley Spirit Mediums” by Karen Fjelstad and Lisa Maiffret, the article talks about why people in Silicon Valley become mediums, how their perceptions of the world are shaped by connecting to the Spirit Realm, and what contributes to the power behind healing and personal transformation. This connects to the theme of the week because it discusses the topic of Mediums which is a type of spirit healer. In “Shamanism in Trouble” by Chongho Kim, the chapter discusses how traditional medicine and shamanism are not the same thing and also defines what shamanism means to Korean society. This reading also connects to the theme of the week because it tells us more about the shaman, which is another type of spirit healer. The Tarot Cards: “The Desecrated Temple, The Farmer, and The Hangman” from the Open in Emergency box were originally created to showcase the hidden aspects of Asian American emotional, psychic, and spiritual lives and the systems of violence that hinder them through the form of tarot cards to embody the fortune-telling practices of the Asian American community. These cards connect to the theme of the week because the fact that they are tarot cards which is a type of tool used by some types of spirit healers and also because the cards are made to embody the spiritual lives and connections of Asian Americans. In “The Pa Lor Story-The Journey Between Two Worlds” by Txawb-California Asian Directory, the reading talks about Pa Lor, a shaman who helps to heal Hmong people. She became a shaman at the age of 21 after being told by a shaman that her sickness was caused by the calling to become a shaman. This reading also connects to the theme of the week because it is about a shaman which is a type of spirit healer.

Question: According to the creators behind the Tarot Cards from the Open in Emergency box, fortune-telling practices are an important part of the Asian American community. Why is this the case?

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1750978990/asian-american-tarot-a-mental-health-project

Literature Cited:

Karen Fjelstad and Lisa Maiffret. “Gifts from the Spirits: Spirit Possession and Personal Transformation among Silicon Valley Spirit Mediums.” 

Chongho Kim, “Shamanism in Trouble.”

Open in Emergency. “Tarot Cards: The Desecrated Temple, The Farmer, and The Hangman.”

Txawb-California Asian Directory. “The Pa Lor Story-The Journey Between Two Worlds.”

Media Cited:

Camille Chew and James Kyung-jin Lee. “The Hangman” Tarot Card. <https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1750978990/asian-american-tarot-a-mental-health-project>.