by: RUSSELL LEE
Witchcraft exists in many forms in many xocieties.
voodoo, black magic, Taoist sorcery, Shamanism
these are all part of the same process whereby deeds
are committed through supernatural means. However,
“witchcreft” as a general definition has been combined
with that of Satan worship and hardful black magic. It
Is assumed to be diabolical, evil and destrutive.
Hence witches have been blamed in the past for all
sorts of misfortunes, ranging from the untimely death of
one’s pet to freaky weather. T he witch-hunts took place
In the fifteenth century are but examples of the amount
of hatred and fear ordinary peoples felt against witches.
In Eastern societies, supernatural activities do not
possess the stigma they suffer in the West, ans are not
regarded as taboo. They are not labelled evil by virtue of
their un-Christian. Rather, good magic that does good
receives positive response and evil magic that does evil is
condemned.
The Malay bomoh is an equivalent of the sorcerer in our
region, as are the Chinese Taoist, the medicinal Buddhist
monk, the temple medium, etc. It is interesting to note that
their methods are as different as their cultural heritage.
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