An anthropological study on buuta worship and spirit possession in South India

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This is an anthropological study on buuta worship in South Kanara, a coastal area in Karnataka, India. Buutas are generally considered apotheosised local heroes or the spirits of wild animals dwelling in the forest. The buuta ritual comprises spirit possession, oracles, and interactions between devotees and buutas incarnated in mediums. This study investigates the history, political economy, and interactions between people and buutas in rural villages. This study explores how buuta worship is closely related to the system of land tenure and land ownership, the matrilineal inheritance system, and the division of labour and services among families and caste groups. Buuta worship plays an essential role in the reconstitution of power relations, social rank, and hierarchies in village societies. Furthermore, this study shows that the exercise of agency by buutas, primarily during spirit possession rituals, exerts a substantial influence on people's social relations and decision-making.