Melford Spiro's foundational anthropological study of Burmese nat worship, first published in 1967 and expanded in 1978, based on his own fieldwork in Burma (Myanmar). It documents the thirty seven officially recognized nats and their coexistence with Theravada Buddhism, giving particular attention to Min Mahagiri, the Lord of the Great Mountain, whose shrine at Mount Popa is the center of the nat cult, and to the legend of the Taungbyone brother and sister nats burned to death by a Bagan-era king and thereafter propitiated to avert misfortune. Its strength is direct fieldwork combined with careful attention to how Burmese villagers themselves reconcile nat propitiation with Buddhist merit-making. Its limit is a period study now several decades old, describing practice as it stood at mid-twentieth century.
Facts
Citation
AuthorMelford E. Spiro
PublisherInstitute for the Study of Human Issues
Publication Year1978
Source Typeacademic monograph
Assessment
Reliability Tier1
The foundational scholarly study of Burmese nat worship, grounded in the author's own fieldwork, standard in the field though describing practice as it stood in the mid-twentieth century. Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names Bagan directly: "and sister nats burned to death by a Bagan-era king and thereafter propitiated to avert misfortune."
This source names Min Mahagiri directly: "giving particular attention to Min Mahagiri, the Lord of the Great Mountain, whose shrine at Mount Popa is the center of the nat cult, and to the legend of the Taungbyone brother and sister nats..."
This source names Myanmar directly: "based on his own fieldwork in Burma (Myanmar)."
This source names Theravada directly: "nats and their coexistence with Theravada Buddhism, giving particular attention to Min Mahagiri, the Lord of the Great Mountain, whose shrine at Mount Popa is the center of the nat cult, and to the..."
Claims Backed By This Source (31 claims)
This source backs 31 claims across the atlas. As facts: 20 well-attested. As cited relationships: 7 holds, 1 connected. Plus 3 entities citing it as a general reference with no single fact or relationship attached.
Disposition By Topic
- Deities, 13 claims: 8 well-attested, 3 holds, 1 connected, 1 general references.
- Sources, 10 claims: 6 well-attested, 4 holds.
- Disciplines, 5 claims: 4 well-attested, 1 general references.
- Mythical Creatures, 3 claims: 2 well-attested, 1 general references.
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