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Paper short abstract

The talk examines how the breadth and historical depth of the code and discourse about spirits and possession in Afro-Brazilian religions interacts with Japanese widespread imaginary about spirits, haunted places and wandering souls, and the history and memory of the atomic bomb.

Paper long abstract

After moving to Japan, where there is a widespread imaginary about spirits, haunted places and wandering souls; a history of natural disasters, wars, the atomic bomb, and a high rate of suicides and lonely deaths, Brazilian immigrants' experiences with spirits became more intense.

Afro-Brazilian religions offer ways to develop mediumship, comprehend and manage interactions with spirits, and heal individuals, places, and spirits. These experiences revolve around the sensitive body and ways of attuning and "feeling with" places and their more-than-human occupants. Afro-Brazilian religions' practitioners, in particular, are profoundly affected by the memories of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima, which are etched in a devastated landscape and preserved through monuments, museums, artefacts, and events like Peace Memorial Day.

When radioactive ghosts persist in their wanderings, mediums perceive them through their cries, shouts, and vivid bodily sensations such as hunger, thirst, physical pain, and despair. These spirits can also take on strong performatic expressions in the distorted bodies of the mediums during "transport" (possession by suffering and obsessing spirits). Spirits are healed and assisted in transcending to the spiritual realm through rituals and prayers.

As I participated in the Peace Memorial Day in Hiroshima and observed locations, objects, and customs, my body became an additional tool of knowledge due to the impression of healing rituals for radioactive ghosts and their embodiment in mediums, and of the experiences, affects, and interpretations of my research participants.