Hand Trembling, Frenzy Witchcraft, and Moth Madness
196 pages, 5 1/2 x 8 1/2
Paperback
Release Date:01 Jan 1988
ISBN:9780816515721
Hand Trembling, Frenzy Witchcraft, and Moth Madness
A Study of Navajo Seizure Disorders
The University of Arizona Press
According to traditional Navajo belief, seizures are the result of sibling incest, sexual witchcraft, or possession by a supernatural spirit—associations that have kept such disorders from being known outside Navajo families. This new study is concerned with discovering why the Navajos have accorded seizures such importance and determining their meaning in the larger context of Navajo culture. The book is based on a 14-year study of some 40 Navajo patients and on an epidemiological survey among the Navajos and among three Pueblo tribes.
Jerrold E. Levy is a professor emeritus of anthropology at the University of Arizona whose special interest has been Indian health problems. Raymond Neutra is the chief of the Epidemiological Studies and Surveillance Section, California Department of Health. Dennis Parker (1912-1984) was a Navajo who devoted much of his life to promoting better health for his people.
