Does the Distinction between the Natural and Supernatural exist in all Cultures?

It is a common debate among many anthropologists whether or not the distinction between the natural and supernatural exists in all cultures. Two key anthropologists views which must be taken into consideration are Roger Ivar Lohmann who says Yes in his The Supernatural Is Everywhere: Defining Qualities of Religion in Melanesia and Beyond and Frederich P. Lampe who says No in his Creating a Second-Storey Woman: Introduced Delineation Between Natural and Supernatural in Melanesia. Although both sides brought up valid points, Mr. Lohmann was much more persuasive and had a significantly higher amount of evidence than Mr. Lampe. Lohmann defines the etic category of supernatural as a ubiquitous mental model that depicts one or more sentient, volitional agencies that are independent of a biological substrate and understood to be the ultimate cause of elements of physical reality. He explains that some people criticize the supernatural as being ethnocentric/misleading. These people, he goes on to say, believe that spiritual powers are not a part of the natural world. They also claim that only the natural world is real, while the supernatural isnt. This claim doesnt represent the views of those who believe in a spirit world. In their eyes, both worlds are separate, but real. He goes on to say that when these are distinguished, the supernatural concept clarifies both a scientific position on a major source of religious behavior and improves our ability to understand religious worldviews. When he begins speaking about Melanesians, he brings up that they are sometimes characterized as lacking a supernatural concept. They believe that spirits can take physical form rather than merely inhabiting an object. He says that Melanesians understand at least some spirits to be tangible and visible, so supernatural beings do appear in their cosmologies. In other words he claims that all cultures have this idea of the supernatural and the only thing brought into

question is how it is interpreted. He ends his article by saying that the natural/supernatural distinction is necessary for understanding religions for both etic and emic points of view. On the other hand, Lampe talks about how the distinction between the natural and supernatural does not exist in all cultures. He does not give a clear cut definition of supernatural which takes a huge toll on how persuasive his argument is. He describes how the dormitory in the University of Technology was set up. The student body was exclusively male in the early years of its founding, but it was eventually turned coed. He goes on to say how there was a need to protect the female students from the males, so they were housed on the second floor of the dormitory, under upper division males but on top of the first year students. The first year students believed that the power of the females sexual fluids would possibly cause the students potential danger, so they refused to sleep in their own rooms for the most part and would sleep on the floors of their upper classmen counterparts. Lampe does not tie this analogy into his argument very well, so it is not very persuasive towards his position for the reader. Additionally, he gives the example of women who would have to take residence in the menstruation hut in Melanesia. They were not allowed to have any contact with the rest of the group, whether it be social or handling of food and such. This was because there was a fear that the woman would taint the items if she handled them while she was menstruating. Overall, Lampe was not persuasive enough and did not give many stimulating answers to make the reader see his side of the argument. Both sides brought up valid points, but all in all Lohmanns points were upheld better by his facts and examples. The fact that Lampe did not really define supernatural hinders his arguments greatly, as his examples make the groups he is discussing seem like they are extremely superstitious of women and such, but in this case he should have given a definition

such as supernatural meaning something having to do with nonliving people, as his examples primarily have to do with mens cautious attitudes towards women in certain societies.

Works Cited Lampe, Frederich P. "Creating a Second-Storey Woman: Introduced Delineation Between Natural and

Supernatural in Melanesia." Anthropological Forum. Nov. 2003. Speech. Lowmann, Roger I. "The Supernatural Is Everywhere: Defining Qualities of Religion in Melanesia and Beyond." Anthropological Forum. Nov. 2003. Speech.