Reclaiming the Eclipsed Female in the Sacred

• Main Authors: Thambiah, Shanthi, Chopil, Tijah Yok, Leong Yoke Lian, Rosalind
• Format: Article
• Published: Brill Academic Publishers 2018
• Subjects: HQ The family. Marriage. Woman
• Online Access: http://eprints.um.edu.my/20484/; https://doi.org/10.1163/22134379-17402002
• Institution: Universiti Malaya

This article examines an indigenous religion in Malaysia - that of the Semai of Kampung Chang, Sungai Gepai in Bidor, Perak - and expounds the changes in women's position in Semai cosmology, rituals, and roles. We show that the Bidor Semai religion is neither hierarchical nor egalitarian in ter...