Gilles Tarabout - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (original) (raw)
Papers by Gilles Tarabout
In Éva Pócs and András Zempléni (eds), Spirit Possession. Multidisciplinary Approaches to a Worldwide Phenomenon, pp.53-74. Budapest/ Vienna / New York: Central European University Press., 2022
The aim of this chapter is to explore the semantics of “possession” in the particular context of ... more The aim of this chapter is to explore the semantics of “possession” in the particular context of contemporary Kerala, on the southwestern coast of India. In this region, as in other parts of the world, actions and discourses of some people in certain circumstances may be attributed as those of other beings, gods or spirits, who are thus temporarily embodied – a situation commonly characterized in the English language as one of “possession.” My main interest here is not to present and analyze its social context and dynamics: rather, it is to examine how people in Kerala express themselves about it.
On Chattan. Conflicting Statements about a South Indian Deity (published in: Manu V. Devadevan (ed.), Clio and Her Descendants. Essays for Kesavan Veluthat. Delhi: Primus Books), 2018
This essay aims at discussing conflicting representations of a South Indian deity, Cāttan (or Cha... more This essay aims at discussing conflicting representations of a South Indian deity, Cāttan (or Chathan, according to its popular rendition in English), well known throughout South India for its magical powers.
One of the issues addressed by this study is how to characterize a deity who is the object of conflicting opinions and practices. As a way to sideline this difficulty in English, I shall use here ‘deity’, but Cāttan has also been variously described as a ‘spirit’, a ‘ghost’, an ‘imp’, a ‘demon’, and a ‘god’. The terminology itself implies a moral judgment—a condemnation, a disregard, a fear, or a devotional feeling, that is, socially and ideologically marked viewpoints. How then is the social scientist supposed to write about Cāttan? I take the case of this deity only as an example, as I trust that the question equally concerns the description of many other ones.
Religions, 2019
The Constitution of India through an amendment of 1976 prescribes a Fundamental Duty ‘to have com... more The Constitution of India through an amendment of 1976 prescribes a Fundamental Duty ‘to have compassion for living creatures’. The use of this notion in actual legal practice, gathered from various judgments, provides a glimpse of the current debates in India that address the relationships between humans and animals. Judgments explicitly mentioning ‘compassion’ cover diverse issues, concerning stray dogs, trespassing cattle, birds in cages, bull races, cart-horses, animal sacrifice,
etc. They often juxtapose a discourse on compassion as an emotional and moral attitude, and a discourse about legal rights, essentially the right not to su er unnecessary pain at the hands of humans (according to formulae that bear the imprint of British utilitarianism). In these judgments, various religious founding figures such as the Buddha, Mahavira, etc., are paid due tribute, perhaps not so much in reference to their religion, but rather as historical icons—on the same footing as
Mahatma Gandhi—of an idealized intrinsic Indian compassion.
Mémoire épique et Génie du Lieu, sous la direction de Caroline Cazanave. Lille, CEGES (collection "Bien Dire et Bien Aprandre", hors-série n°2), 2017
Il existe à l'heure actuelle sur la côte sud-ouest de l'Inde, dans l'état régional du Kérala, un ... more Il existe à l'heure actuelle sur la côte sud-ouest de l'Inde, dans l'état régional du Kérala, un théâtre chrétien dont l'origine remonte au XVIe siècle et où sont célébrés, entre autres, les exploits de Charlemagne et de ses pairs : le Chavittu Nâtakam, littéralement « théâtre en frap-pant des pieds ». Il est pratiqué au sein d'une petite communauté de catholiques, où prédomi-nent des gens originaires de castes de pêcheurs et de récolteurs de vin de palme. Que peut représenter pour eux la geste carolingienne ?
South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ), 2018
The Indian Constitution posits a separation between a secular domain regulated by the State, and ... more The Indian Constitution posits a separation between a secular domain regulated by the State, and a religious domain in which it must not interfere. However, courts of law are regularly called upon to resolve a multiplicity of issues related to religion, and their decisions may have a far-reaching impact on religious conceptions and practices. The judicial process requires that standardized, clear-cut definitions of many notions (such as " religion " itself, or " worshipper, " " custom, " " usage, " " religious service, " " religious office, " " religious honor, " etc.) be established in order for them to be manageable within a legal context. Moreover, even though a religious domain may be distinguished from a secular one and protected from State intervention, there are litigations concerning civil rights that involve religious issues on which civil courts may therefore have an explicit duty to rule. Interventions such as imposing legal definitions or deciding on religious matters on which civil rights depend are systemic in character and intrinsic to " modern " law itself. In this they do differ from any explicit policy of state secularism or the no less explicit reformist will of some judges, which may change according to the historical period or to their personal
South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ), 2018
For anthropologists as well as for historians, law practices and their discursive productions pro... more For anthropologists as well as for historians, law practices and their discursive productions provide a way of studying interactions and decisions in a variety of domains of social and political life—from social and family relationships to issues such as criminality, environmental protection, natural resource management, religious practices, or human rights. The following studies deal with such issues by using the " lens of the law " as a vantage point over society, giving access to sometimes intimate situations otherwise difficult to document for an observer, as well as a filter through which social issues have to be shaped when evolving into court cases. Thus studying how law is used by people and how it impacts their lives is all the more important as, despite delays, poor facilities, and widespread corruption, courts often represent the main if not the only hope for many to redress their grievances. As a consequence the Courts are bustling with an activity that testifies to the vital role they play in society as sites of power that affect every aspect of life therein.
In: Dictionnaire des faits religieux, dir. Régine Azria et Danièle Hervieu-Léger. Paris, PUF, collection "Quadrige"., 2010
Notice du Dictionnaire des faits religieux (dir. R. Azria et D. Hervieu-Léger) présentant une syn... more Notice du Dictionnaire des faits religieux (dir. R. Azria et D. Hervieu-Léger) présentant une synthèse des débats et des travaux concernant la "possession religieuse".
Yazid Ben Hounet & Deborah Puccio-Den (eds), Truth, Intentionality and Evidence. Anthropological Approaches to Crime. London & New York: Routledge, 2017
In this paper we explore how the notion of ‘truth’ is invoked and managed practically in criminal... more In this paper we explore how the notion of ‘truth’ is invoked and managed practically in criminal cases in India. We address this issue by first evoking the (rather idealistic) principle it officially represents for justice, then by analyzing some of the techniques intended to elicit a judicial truth in the context of the adversary system adopted in India. Despite the propensity with which witnesses contradict the previous statements they made to the police, legal professionals are able to suggest in writing an alternative narrative to the oral testimonies given at the bar. In order to understand this situation, it is necessary to take into account the social, economic and political settings, as these out-of-court factors heavily weigh on the way a trial unfolds - and on the kind of ‘truth’ it may establish.
In recent years, men born into various non-Brahmanical castes, including former 'untouchables', ... more In recent years, men born into various non-Brahmanical castes, including former 'untouchables', have been appointed as priests at Brahmanical public temples in Kerala. The constitutionality of such appointments has been challenged and was eventually upheld by the Supreme Court in 2002. This decision, I suggest, has to be seen as the outcome of developments by which the courts came to define priesthood in terms of technical procedures performed by expert, but 'secular' persons, i.e. employees selected solely on merit. Such a legal understanding, however, conflicts with widely held expectations about priesthood in terms of birth qualifications. Birth equality for temple priestly services, I argue, has now become a possible legal claim as a result of the progressive administrative 'rationalization' of Hindu religious institutions through State action, and because it also meets for various reasons with political consensus.
The Indian and the Nepalese Constitutions posit a separation between a secular domain regulated b... more The Indian and the Nepalese Constitutions posit a separation between a secular domain regulated by the state and a religious domain in which it must not interfere. However, defining the difference between the two has proved difficult. Moreover, the state is directly and increasingly involved in various ways in the direct administration of many religious institutions. Given that the legal status of Hindu idols is recognized, deities may sue or be sued; and the courts are frequently asked to decide on various rights linked to religious functions and bodies. Such decisions often have a far-reaching impact on rituals and on religious specialists, and contribute to (re)defining religious categories and practices. Indeed, it is our view that the courts' apparently ‘technical’, legalistic action actually shapes the place religion occupies in Indian and Nepalese society, perhaps even more so than the ideology of any political party.
Dans cette conribution nous nous proposons d’explorer comment la notion de vérité est invoquée et... more Dans cette conribution nous nous proposons d’explorer comment la notion de vérité est invoquée et mise en œuvre dans les procès criminels en Inde. Les termes dans lesquels, non sans idéalisme, la recherche de la vérité est affirmée être au fondement de la justice seront d’abord présentés, avant de voir comment les juges du procès sont confrontés à la nécessité de parvenir à une vérité judiciaire, voire simplement procédurale, reposant sur les techniques du système dit « accusatoire » suivi en Inde. Face à des témoins de l’accusation qui se rétractent très fréquemment, provoquant l’acquittement de l’accusé faute de preuves, le juge fait souvent apparaître en filigrane un contre-récit distinct de ce qui fonde le verdict afin de suggérer une vérité alternative à la vérité légale. Les revirements des témoins sont pour leur part liés à la réalisation de compromis hors tribunal, ce qui aboutit de fait à imposer une « vérité sociologique ». Le poids du contexte social, économique et politique peut enfin s’avérer tel que le déroulement des procès et la forme que peut donc y prendre la vérité sont parfois directement attribués à l’impact de la corruption.
Many Hindu temples in Kerala are called 'groves' (kāvu), and encapsulate an effective grove – a s... more Many Hindu temples in Kerala are called 'groves' (kāvu), and encapsulate an effective grove – a small spot where shrubs and trees are said to grow 'wildly'. There live numerous divine entities, serpent gods and other ambivalent deities or ghosts, subordinated to the presiding god/goddess of the temple installed in the main shrine. The paper discusses this situation along two main lines. One is to trace the presence of these groves and of their dangerous inhabitants to religious ideas found in Kerala about land and deities, and about forests as a major source of divine (wild) power. The other is to point out recent discourses ascribing an antique ecological purpose and consciousness at the origin of temple groves, thus equating ecology with a strictly contained – and tiny – 'wilderness'.
This paper is an introduction to a collection of studies that aim to contribute to a better under... more This paper is an introduction to a collection of studies that aim to contribute to a better understanding of the relationships between justice and the exercise of power in various societies of Africa, Asia and Europe.
If the promulgation of laws and rules on the one hand and the resistance or processes of adjustment to these by people at local levels of society on the other hand are the object of regular in-depth studies, there is still often the need to better understand the interactions between the standards promoted by the state and the effective modalities that are in place for the arbitration of conflicts.
Cet article aborde l’imbrication des questions de religion et d’environnement dans les procédures... more Cet article aborde l’imbrication des questions de religion et d’environnement dans les procédures judiciaires en Inde. Il examine des cas de figure qui témoignent de la complexité de certains problèmes que les juges ont à trancher. L’approche privilégiée ici est anthropologique plutôt que juridique et l’accent est mis sur la pluralité des dimensions des phénomènes envisagés dans le contexte des transformations que connaît la société indienne. Outre une présentation du rôle des cours supérieures de justice en Inde les auteurs examinent la manière dont des projets de développement susceptibles de porter atteinte à l’environnement sont contestés devant les tribunaux en faisant aussi appel à des arguments religieux.
The present paper describes how doubts may be expressed, manipulated and tentatively dispelled in... more The present paper describes how doubts may be expressed, manipulated and tentatively dispelled in the context of an astrological practice dealing with Hindu temples in Kerala, on the south-western coast of India. This practice is called deva prasnam, ‘divine query’. I present its main characteristics before detailing the process by which astrologers try to clear their own doubts as well as those of their clients – a process which some astrologers like to compare, rather superficially, to a trial in a court. However, astrologers may fail to manage the situation to the satisfaction of their clients: this leads in some cases to accusations against them before an actual law court. I suggest that while the procedures in the astrological and judicial contexts may show some superficial similarities, a judgment is enforceable whereas an astrological opinion is not. Doubts in astrology are never completely dispelled and their perpetuation depends not so much on the possible failure of the astrologers to impress on their audience the rationality of their procedures and of their statements, as on particular interests and expectations.
Les imaginaires du cerveau, dir. P.Pajon et M.-A.Cathiard, 2014
Comme dans beaucoup d’autres sociétés, les représentations du cerveau en Inde semblent avoir été ... more Comme dans beaucoup d’autres sociétés, les représentations du cerveau en Inde semblent avoir été pratiquement inexistantes avant la diffusion, à l’époque coloniale, de connaissances anatomiques venant d’Europe. Les conceptions du corps y étaient pourtant multiples et détaillées, mais le cerveau, comme la plupart des organes internes à l’exception du coeur, ne semble pas avoir été l’objet d’un quelconque intérêt. Comment, alors, parler d’un absent ? Les lignes qui suivent se proposent de résumer les grandes caractéristiques des conceptions du corps qui ont rendu possible un tel désintérêt. Ce n’est pas que les Indiens ignoraient l’existence du cerveau : mais, d’une part, les conceptions n’y localisaient pas nécessairement l’activité de « l’esprit », et, d’autre part, il ne représentait aucun enjeu de connaissance pour le type de théorie du corps qui était recherché et débattu. Ce sera donc en « creux », par rapport à des notions qui sont, elles, davantage présentes, que pourra être approché l’absence d’un imaginaire spécifique du cerveau.
Diogène 239-240 (juillet 2012), numéro "Les frontières de la loi. Justice, pouvoirs et politique", dir. D.Berti et G.Tarabout, 2013
Introduction à un recueil d’études qui se propose de contribuer à une meilleure compréhension des... more Introduction à un recueil d’études qui se propose de contribuer à une meilleure compréhension des rapports entre justice et exercice du pouvoir dans différentes sociétés d’Afrique, d’Asie et d’Europe. La connaissance croissante que l’on a des pratiques judiciaires dans le monde conduit en effet à s’interroger à nouveaux frais sur leurs relations aux rapports de force concrets qui participent de la structuration du champ sociopolitique.
L’enjeu est d’autant plus important que les évolutions sont rapides : l’influence de groupes de citoyens animés par des perceptions renouvelées de la notion de justice, la volonté de réforme de certains gouvernements, la référence à des normes internationales concourent à créer de nouvelles situations judiciaires qui témoignent de relations de pouvoir changeantes au sein des diverses sociétés comme dans les relations de celles-ci avec une dynamique plus générale de mondialisation. Dans ce contexte, si la production des lois et des règles, d’une part, les résistances ou les ajustements des personnes à des niveaux locaux de la société, d’autre part, font l’objet d’études régulières et approfondies, il reste souvent à mieux comprendre les interactions entre les normes promues par le pouvoir d’État et les modalités effectives d’arbitrage de conflits.
Rechtsanalyse als Kulturforschung, ed. Werner Gephart. Frankfurt am Mein, Vittorio Klostermann, 2012
Les Ancêtres, dir. Sylvie dreyfus-Asséo, Gilles Tarabout, Dominique Cupa & Guillemine Chaudoye, 2012
in: Phyllis Granoff & Koichi Shinohara (eds), Sin and Sinners. Perspectives from Asian Religions, 2012
In Éva Pócs and András Zempléni (eds), Spirit Possession. Multidisciplinary Approaches to a Worldwide Phenomenon, pp.53-74. Budapest/ Vienna / New York: Central European University Press., 2022
The aim of this chapter is to explore the semantics of “possession” in the particular context of ... more The aim of this chapter is to explore the semantics of “possession” in the particular context of contemporary Kerala, on the southwestern coast of India. In this region, as in other parts of the world, actions and discourses of some people in certain circumstances may be attributed as those of other beings, gods or spirits, who are thus temporarily embodied – a situation commonly characterized in the English language as one of “possession.” My main interest here is not to present and analyze its social context and dynamics: rather, it is to examine how people in Kerala express themselves about it.
On Chattan. Conflicting Statements about a South Indian Deity (published in: Manu V. Devadevan (ed.), Clio and Her Descendants. Essays for Kesavan Veluthat. Delhi: Primus Books), 2018
This essay aims at discussing conflicting representations of a South Indian deity, Cāttan (or Cha... more This essay aims at discussing conflicting representations of a South Indian deity, Cāttan (or Chathan, according to its popular rendition in English), well known throughout South India for its magical powers.
One of the issues addressed by this study is how to characterize a deity who is the object of conflicting opinions and practices. As a way to sideline this difficulty in English, I shall use here ‘deity’, but Cāttan has also been variously described as a ‘spirit’, a ‘ghost’, an ‘imp’, a ‘demon’, and a ‘god’. The terminology itself implies a moral judgment—a condemnation, a disregard, a fear, or a devotional feeling, that is, socially and ideologically marked viewpoints. How then is the social scientist supposed to write about Cāttan? I take the case of this deity only as an example, as I trust that the question equally concerns the description of many other ones.
Religions, 2019
The Constitution of India through an amendment of 1976 prescribes a Fundamental Duty ‘to have com... more The Constitution of India through an amendment of 1976 prescribes a Fundamental Duty ‘to have compassion for living creatures’. The use of this notion in actual legal practice, gathered from various judgments, provides a glimpse of the current debates in India that address the relationships between humans and animals. Judgments explicitly mentioning ‘compassion’ cover diverse issues, concerning stray dogs, trespassing cattle, birds in cages, bull races, cart-horses, animal sacrifice,
etc. They often juxtapose a discourse on compassion as an emotional and moral attitude, and a discourse about legal rights, essentially the right not to su er unnecessary pain at the hands of humans (according to formulae that bear the imprint of British utilitarianism). In these judgments, various religious founding figures such as the Buddha, Mahavira, etc., are paid due tribute, perhaps not so much in reference to their religion, but rather as historical icons—on the same footing as
Mahatma Gandhi—of an idealized intrinsic Indian compassion.
Mémoire épique et Génie du Lieu, sous la direction de Caroline Cazanave. Lille, CEGES (collection "Bien Dire et Bien Aprandre", hors-série n°2), 2017
Il existe à l'heure actuelle sur la côte sud-ouest de l'Inde, dans l'état régional du Kérala, un ... more Il existe à l'heure actuelle sur la côte sud-ouest de l'Inde, dans l'état régional du Kérala, un théâtre chrétien dont l'origine remonte au XVIe siècle et où sont célébrés, entre autres, les exploits de Charlemagne et de ses pairs : le Chavittu Nâtakam, littéralement « théâtre en frap-pant des pieds ». Il est pratiqué au sein d'une petite communauté de catholiques, où prédomi-nent des gens originaires de castes de pêcheurs et de récolteurs de vin de palme. Que peut représenter pour eux la geste carolingienne ?
South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ), 2018
The Indian Constitution posits a separation between a secular domain regulated by the State, and ... more The Indian Constitution posits a separation between a secular domain regulated by the State, and a religious domain in which it must not interfere. However, courts of law are regularly called upon to resolve a multiplicity of issues related to religion, and their decisions may have a far-reaching impact on religious conceptions and practices. The judicial process requires that standardized, clear-cut definitions of many notions (such as " religion " itself, or " worshipper, " " custom, " " usage, " " religious service, " " religious office, " " religious honor, " etc.) be established in order for them to be manageable within a legal context. Moreover, even though a religious domain may be distinguished from a secular one and protected from State intervention, there are litigations concerning civil rights that involve religious issues on which civil courts may therefore have an explicit duty to rule. Interventions such as imposing legal definitions or deciding on religious matters on which civil rights depend are systemic in character and intrinsic to " modern " law itself. In this they do differ from any explicit policy of state secularism or the no less explicit reformist will of some judges, which may change according to the historical period or to their personal
South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ), 2018
For anthropologists as well as for historians, law practices and their discursive productions pro... more For anthropologists as well as for historians, law practices and their discursive productions provide a way of studying interactions and decisions in a variety of domains of social and political life—from social and family relationships to issues such as criminality, environmental protection, natural resource management, religious practices, or human rights. The following studies deal with such issues by using the " lens of the law " as a vantage point over society, giving access to sometimes intimate situations otherwise difficult to document for an observer, as well as a filter through which social issues have to be shaped when evolving into court cases. Thus studying how law is used by people and how it impacts their lives is all the more important as, despite delays, poor facilities, and widespread corruption, courts often represent the main if not the only hope for many to redress their grievances. As a consequence the Courts are bustling with an activity that testifies to the vital role they play in society as sites of power that affect every aspect of life therein.
In: Dictionnaire des faits religieux, dir. Régine Azria et Danièle Hervieu-Léger. Paris, PUF, collection "Quadrige"., 2010
Notice du Dictionnaire des faits religieux (dir. R. Azria et D. Hervieu-Léger) présentant une syn... more Notice du Dictionnaire des faits religieux (dir. R. Azria et D. Hervieu-Léger) présentant une synthèse des débats et des travaux concernant la "possession religieuse".
Yazid Ben Hounet & Deborah Puccio-Den (eds), Truth, Intentionality and Evidence. Anthropological Approaches to Crime. London & New York: Routledge, 2017
In this paper we explore how the notion of ‘truth’ is invoked and managed practically in criminal... more In this paper we explore how the notion of ‘truth’ is invoked and managed practically in criminal cases in India. We address this issue by first evoking the (rather idealistic) principle it officially represents for justice, then by analyzing some of the techniques intended to elicit a judicial truth in the context of the adversary system adopted in India. Despite the propensity with which witnesses contradict the previous statements they made to the police, legal professionals are able to suggest in writing an alternative narrative to the oral testimonies given at the bar. In order to understand this situation, it is necessary to take into account the social, economic and political settings, as these out-of-court factors heavily weigh on the way a trial unfolds - and on the kind of ‘truth’ it may establish.
In recent years, men born into various non-Brahmanical castes, including former 'untouchables', ... more In recent years, men born into various non-Brahmanical castes, including former 'untouchables', have been appointed as priests at Brahmanical public temples in Kerala. The constitutionality of such appointments has been challenged and was eventually upheld by the Supreme Court in 2002. This decision, I suggest, has to be seen as the outcome of developments by which the courts came to define priesthood in terms of technical procedures performed by expert, but 'secular' persons, i.e. employees selected solely on merit. Such a legal understanding, however, conflicts with widely held expectations about priesthood in terms of birth qualifications. Birth equality for temple priestly services, I argue, has now become a possible legal claim as a result of the progressive administrative 'rationalization' of Hindu religious institutions through State action, and because it also meets for various reasons with political consensus.
The Indian and the Nepalese Constitutions posit a separation between a secular domain regulated b... more The Indian and the Nepalese Constitutions posit a separation between a secular domain regulated by the state and a religious domain in which it must not interfere. However, defining the difference between the two has proved difficult. Moreover, the state is directly and increasingly involved in various ways in the direct administration of many religious institutions. Given that the legal status of Hindu idols is recognized, deities may sue or be sued; and the courts are frequently asked to decide on various rights linked to religious functions and bodies. Such decisions often have a far-reaching impact on rituals and on religious specialists, and contribute to (re)defining religious categories and practices. Indeed, it is our view that the courts' apparently ‘technical’, legalistic action actually shapes the place religion occupies in Indian and Nepalese society, perhaps even more so than the ideology of any political party.
Dans cette conribution nous nous proposons d’explorer comment la notion de vérité est invoquée et... more Dans cette conribution nous nous proposons d’explorer comment la notion de vérité est invoquée et mise en œuvre dans les procès criminels en Inde. Les termes dans lesquels, non sans idéalisme, la recherche de la vérité est affirmée être au fondement de la justice seront d’abord présentés, avant de voir comment les juges du procès sont confrontés à la nécessité de parvenir à une vérité judiciaire, voire simplement procédurale, reposant sur les techniques du système dit « accusatoire » suivi en Inde. Face à des témoins de l’accusation qui se rétractent très fréquemment, provoquant l’acquittement de l’accusé faute de preuves, le juge fait souvent apparaître en filigrane un contre-récit distinct de ce qui fonde le verdict afin de suggérer une vérité alternative à la vérité légale. Les revirements des témoins sont pour leur part liés à la réalisation de compromis hors tribunal, ce qui aboutit de fait à imposer une « vérité sociologique ». Le poids du contexte social, économique et politique peut enfin s’avérer tel que le déroulement des procès et la forme que peut donc y prendre la vérité sont parfois directement attribués à l’impact de la corruption.
Many Hindu temples in Kerala are called 'groves' (kāvu), and encapsulate an effective grove – a s... more Many Hindu temples in Kerala are called 'groves' (kāvu), and encapsulate an effective grove – a small spot where shrubs and trees are said to grow 'wildly'. There live numerous divine entities, serpent gods and other ambivalent deities or ghosts, subordinated to the presiding god/goddess of the temple installed in the main shrine. The paper discusses this situation along two main lines. One is to trace the presence of these groves and of their dangerous inhabitants to religious ideas found in Kerala about land and deities, and about forests as a major source of divine (wild) power. The other is to point out recent discourses ascribing an antique ecological purpose and consciousness at the origin of temple groves, thus equating ecology with a strictly contained – and tiny – 'wilderness'.
This paper is an introduction to a collection of studies that aim to contribute to a better under... more This paper is an introduction to a collection of studies that aim to contribute to a better understanding of the relationships between justice and the exercise of power in various societies of Africa, Asia and Europe.
If the promulgation of laws and rules on the one hand and the resistance or processes of adjustment to these by people at local levels of society on the other hand are the object of regular in-depth studies, there is still often the need to better understand the interactions between the standards promoted by the state and the effective modalities that are in place for the arbitration of conflicts.
Cet article aborde l’imbrication des questions de religion et d’environnement dans les procédures... more Cet article aborde l’imbrication des questions de religion et d’environnement dans les procédures judiciaires en Inde. Il examine des cas de figure qui témoignent de la complexité de certains problèmes que les juges ont à trancher. L’approche privilégiée ici est anthropologique plutôt que juridique et l’accent est mis sur la pluralité des dimensions des phénomènes envisagés dans le contexte des transformations que connaît la société indienne. Outre une présentation du rôle des cours supérieures de justice en Inde les auteurs examinent la manière dont des projets de développement susceptibles de porter atteinte à l’environnement sont contestés devant les tribunaux en faisant aussi appel à des arguments religieux.
The present paper describes how doubts may be expressed, manipulated and tentatively dispelled in... more The present paper describes how doubts may be expressed, manipulated and tentatively dispelled in the context of an astrological practice dealing with Hindu temples in Kerala, on the south-western coast of India. This practice is called deva prasnam, ‘divine query’. I present its main characteristics before detailing the process by which astrologers try to clear their own doubts as well as those of their clients – a process which some astrologers like to compare, rather superficially, to a trial in a court. However, astrologers may fail to manage the situation to the satisfaction of their clients: this leads in some cases to accusations against them before an actual law court. I suggest that while the procedures in the astrological and judicial contexts may show some superficial similarities, a judgment is enforceable whereas an astrological opinion is not. Doubts in astrology are never completely dispelled and their perpetuation depends not so much on the possible failure of the astrologers to impress on their audience the rationality of their procedures and of their statements, as on particular interests and expectations.
Les imaginaires du cerveau, dir. P.Pajon et M.-A.Cathiard, 2014
Comme dans beaucoup d’autres sociétés, les représentations du cerveau en Inde semblent avoir été ... more Comme dans beaucoup d’autres sociétés, les représentations du cerveau en Inde semblent avoir été pratiquement inexistantes avant la diffusion, à l’époque coloniale, de connaissances anatomiques venant d’Europe. Les conceptions du corps y étaient pourtant multiples et détaillées, mais le cerveau, comme la plupart des organes internes à l’exception du coeur, ne semble pas avoir été l’objet d’un quelconque intérêt. Comment, alors, parler d’un absent ? Les lignes qui suivent se proposent de résumer les grandes caractéristiques des conceptions du corps qui ont rendu possible un tel désintérêt. Ce n’est pas que les Indiens ignoraient l’existence du cerveau : mais, d’une part, les conceptions n’y localisaient pas nécessairement l’activité de « l’esprit », et, d’autre part, il ne représentait aucun enjeu de connaissance pour le type de théorie du corps qui était recherché et débattu. Ce sera donc en « creux », par rapport à des notions qui sont, elles, davantage présentes, que pourra être approché l’absence d’un imaginaire spécifique du cerveau.
Diogène 239-240 (juillet 2012), numéro "Les frontières de la loi. Justice, pouvoirs et politique", dir. D.Berti et G.Tarabout, 2013
Introduction à un recueil d’études qui se propose de contribuer à une meilleure compréhension des... more Introduction à un recueil d’études qui se propose de contribuer à une meilleure compréhension des rapports entre justice et exercice du pouvoir dans différentes sociétés d’Afrique, d’Asie et d’Europe. La connaissance croissante que l’on a des pratiques judiciaires dans le monde conduit en effet à s’interroger à nouveaux frais sur leurs relations aux rapports de force concrets qui participent de la structuration du champ sociopolitique.
L’enjeu est d’autant plus important que les évolutions sont rapides : l’influence de groupes de citoyens animés par des perceptions renouvelées de la notion de justice, la volonté de réforme de certains gouvernements, la référence à des normes internationales concourent à créer de nouvelles situations judiciaires qui témoignent de relations de pouvoir changeantes au sein des diverses sociétés comme dans les relations de celles-ci avec une dynamique plus générale de mondialisation. Dans ce contexte, si la production des lois et des règles, d’une part, les résistances ou les ajustements des personnes à des niveaux locaux de la société, d’autre part, font l’objet d’études régulières et approfondies, il reste souvent à mieux comprendre les interactions entre les normes promues par le pouvoir d’État et les modalités effectives d’arbitrage de conflits.
Rechtsanalyse als Kulturforschung, ed. Werner Gephart. Frankfurt am Mein, Vittorio Klostermann, 2012
Les Ancêtres, dir. Sylvie dreyfus-Asséo, Gilles Tarabout, Dominique Cupa & Guillemine Chaudoye, 2012
in: Phyllis Granoff & Koichi Shinohara (eds), Sin and Sinners. Perspectives from Asian Religions, 2012
All institutions concerned with the process of judging - whether it be deciding between alternati... more All institutions concerned with the process of judging - whether it be deciding between alternative courses of action, determining a judge’s professional integrity, assigning culpability for an alleged crime, or ruling on the credibility of an asylum claimant - are necessarily directly concerned with the question of doubt. By putting ritual and judicial settings into comparative perspective, in contexts as diverse as Indian and Taiwanese divination and international cricket, as well as legal processes in France, the UK, India, Denmark, and Ghana, this book offers a comprehensive and novel perspective on techniques for casting and dispelling doubt, and the roles they play in achieving verdicts or decisions that appear both valid and just.
