 |
| Mana |
Mana
A term indicating vital or magical force used widely throughout Polynesia. From his work in the South Pacific, R. H. Codrington observed: ‘‘The word is common, I believe, to the whole Pacific. . . . It is a power or influence, not physical, and in a way supernatural, but it shows itself in physical force, or in any kind of power or excellence which a man possesses. This Mana is not fixed in anything, and can be conveyed in almost anything; but spirits, whether disembodied souls or supernatural beings, have it and can impart it. . . . All Melanesian religion consists in getting this Mana for oneself, or getting it used for one’s benefit.’’ The techniques of arousing and acquiring mana were extensively explored by Max Freedom Long (1890–1971) in his study of the kahuna magic in Hawaii and described in his books, notably The Secret Science Behind Miracles (1948). Long estab established the Huna Research Organization to conduct research and spread knowledge of mana and its basis in kahuna magic.
A term indicating vital or magical force used widely throughout Polynesia. From his work in the South Pacific, R. H. Codrington observed: ‘‘The word is common, I believe, to the whole Pacific. . . . It is a power or influence, not physical, and in a way supernatural, but it shows itself in physical force, or in any kind of power or excellence which a man possesses. This Mana is not fixed in anything, and can be conveyed in almost anything; but spirits, whether disembodied souls or supernatural beings, have it and can impart it. . . . All Melanesian religion consists in getting this Mana for oneself, or getting it used for one’s benefit.’’ The techniques of arousing and acquiring mana were extensively explored by Max Freedom Long (1890–1971) in his study of the kahuna magic in Hawaii and described in his books, notably The Secret Science Behind Miracles (1948). Long estab established the Huna Research Organization to conduct research and spread knowledge of mana and its basis in kahuna magic.
The concept of mana has been expressed in many cultures under different names. Among the Iroquois and Huron Indians, it is known as orenda. In his book Primitive Man (vol. 1 of A History of Experimental Spiritualism, 2 vols., 1931), Caesar de Vesme wrote: ‘‘We are in a fair way to recognize that we find (approximately) Mana in the Brahman and Akasha of the Hindus, the Living Fire of Zoroaster, the Generative Fire of Heraclitus, the Ruach of the Jews, the Telesma of Hermest Trismegistus, the Ignis subtilissimus of Hippocrates, the Pneuma of Gallien, the Soul of the World of Plato and Giordano Bruno, the Mens agitat molem which Vergil drew from the Pythagorean philosophy, the Astral light of the Kabbalists, the Azoth of the alchemists, the Magnale of Paracelsus, the Alcahest of Van Helmont, the pantheistic Substance of Apinoza, the Subtle Matter of Descartes, the Animal magnetism of Mesmer, the Will of Schopenhauer, the Od of Reichenbach and Du Prel, the Unconscious of Hartmann, the
Entelechy of Driesch, the Plastic Mediator of Éliphas Lévi, the Psychode and Ectenic Force of Thury, the Force X and the Cryptesthesia of Richet, the Metether of F. W. H. Myers, the Spiritus of Robert Fludd, the Spiritus subtilissimus of Newton, the Spiritus Vitae of St. Thomas Aquinas, and many more Spiritus besides, if it were permissible to touch upon the different theologies.’’
Entelechy of Driesch, the Plastic Mediator of Éliphas Lévi, the Psychode and Ectenic Force of Thury, the Force X and the Cryptesthesia of Richet, the Metether of F. W. H. Myers, the Spiritus of Robert Fludd, the Spiritus subtilissimus of Newton, the Spiritus Vitae of St. Thomas Aquinas, and many more Spiritus besides, if it were permissible to touch upon the different theologies.’’
