萨满主义:《旧约》中的医疗

Notes on Healing in the Old Testament

本文讨论的是希伯来圣经可能透露出的古代以色列的医疗专家及康复过程。为了达到这一目标,本文考察了文献证据;运用了比较文学、比较人类学以及考古学的方法。其结论包括:(a)在前流放时期的以色列,可能存在萨满式的治疗师;(b)后流放时期的托拉群体在后期试图将这些萨满医师驱逐出以色列人的生活;(c)在这一时期持续存在某种医疗活动;(d)古代的祈祷仪式(个人的哀悼)可能转变成一种言语仪式,用于非正式的治疗礼仪中;(e)有充分的理由相信,由神与人之间的中介角色所引领的传统的治疗仪式,在古代以色列起到了重要的作用。

This article discusses what the Hebrew Scriptures may reveal about healing experts and rehabilitating procedures in ancient Israel.To achieve this goal,it examines textual,comparative literary,comparative anthropological,and archaeological data.Among its conclusions,(a)shamanistic healers might have existed in pre-exilic Israel,(b)the post-exilic Torah-community later tried to purge them from Israelite life,(c)this said,some sort of healing activities continued in that period;(d)ancient prayers(individual laments)may have been transformed into word-rituals for casual rites of healing,and(e)there is good reason to think traditional healing rituals,led by mediators between humans and the divine,played a main role in ancient Israel.