Fri, Sep 18, 2009 page2

• Witches act to preserve Paiwan ancient rituals

  COMMUNITY CULTURE The power of magic is passed down through families, but Chunrih Township has just four living witches, so one woman has started a class

  • STAFF WRITER, WITH CNA
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  A campaign to preserve Paiwan Tribe Aboriginal witchcraft has been launched in a small township in Pingtung County.

  Wong Yu-hua (翁玉華), head of the social affairs section of the Chunrih Township (春日) government, hails from a Paiwan witch family.

  Wong launched a campaign to preserve witchcraft rituals a year ago because she was worried that her tribe’s unique spiritual culture could soon die out.

  ‘PULINGAU’

  Witches, or pulingau in Paiwan, have traditionally enjoyed high status in Aboriginal communities, she said.

  But the adoption of foreign religious beliefs, as well as changes in lifestyles and habits in tribal settlements over the past decades, mean this culture is gradually disappearing, she said.

  “Nowadays there are only fragmented and disorganized records of the craft,” Wong said.

  Up to half a century ago, there were still more than 100 Aboriginal witches in Pingtung County alone, she said.

  “Today, there are fewer than 20,” she said.

  In the absence of written records, witchcraft mantras are passed on orally and the number of people who know them has been shrinking, she said.

  “Now we can piece together the details of original witchcraft rituals from the recollections of our tribal elders and surviving witches,” Wong said, adding that it often takes several months of hard work to revive something like a 10-minute rite soliciting divine blessings.

  An even bigger challenge lies in fighting against entrenched social customs and thinking, Wong said.

  Traditionally, a career in witchcraft was inherited on the strength of bloodlines, she said.

  Wong said her mother, who is one of only four living Aboriginal witches in Chunrih, was initially opposed to the idea of starting a class to teach witchcraft.

  “My mother said ritual mantras could not be passed on in this way because only those who come from sorceress families have the spiritual power to learn witchcraft. She believes that our ancestors would make their power felt by boycotting the teaching program,” Wong said.

  DYING TRADITION

  Wong said she discussed the possibility that Aboriginal witchcraft would die out and be replaced by foreign religious rituals if something was not done.

  In the end, her 87-year-old mother and the three other witches, all in their 70s, agreed in July last year to open a witchcraft class as part of the township’s community college courses.

  Every Tuesday and Friday evening, the four elders take turns at the town’s senior citizens’ activity center to give lectures on mantras and festival rituals.

  There are also practical and field study sessions to teach the students the witchcraft rites, Wong said.

  There were 15 students at first, but the number dropped to 10 this semester.

  Most of the students are Paiwan, but there are also some non-Aborigines who are interested in tribal culture, Wong said.

  She said that when she was a child, there were many witches taking part in the harvest festival celebrations.

  “Those occasions were boisterous, colorful and joyful. Nowadays, there is usually just one elderly witch performing the rituals. I’m often overwhelmed by nostalgia at those ceremonies,” she said.

  “I hope that I will live to see young witches regain prominence on festive occasions and at special rituals,” Wong said.

  ONE MALE STUDENT

  Sung Wen-sheng (宋文聖), a township council member, is the only male student in the witchcraft class. But he said he does not plan to practice.

  “My purpose is to become familiar with the details of tribal rituals and to pass on the culture to younger generations,” he said.

  Sung said his late aunt was a witch who was often consulted on domestic matters, including relocation and health issues.

  “In addition to performing ancestral worship and religious rituals, my aunt was often asked to perform witchcraft whenever family members or tribe members fell ill,” he said.

  “As a child, I was in awe of her magical powers, and I hope to learn what her mantras meant,” he said.
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