The Coronavirus Came with the (One of the) World

• Published in: South Asia multidisciplinary academic journal
• Main Author: Schlemmer, Grégoire
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Association pour la recherche sur l'Asie du Sud (ARAS) 2022
• Subjects: disease; ritual; popular Hinduism; Nepal

April 2019. In an indigenous community in the Nepalese Himalayas, a ritual is performed for Sansari, “the One of the World,” to ward off coronavirus. Why respond to an epidemic with a ritual? On what basis do we associate a virus with a spiritual entity? How do we articulate anchoring in tradition a...