In J. Chamel et Y. Dansac (éd.), Relating with More-than-Humans: Interbeing Rituality in a liwing World

In the Nepalese Himalaya, yak herding systems depend on cooperative interactions involving the shepherd with his animals. For the milking of the yaks, grazing and returning to the settlement, the shepherds are using inter-individual techniques aiming to build trust-based relationships over time. The construction of these relationships is negotiated on a daily basis between the two of them. Indeed, each of these relationships is lost if it is not nurtured. Strongly based on ethological results and studies on domestication mechanisms, this chapter will question the importance of setting up daily rituals and rhythms—as Erving Goffman (1974) has defined them for the human daily life—as a condition for extensive pastoral sustainability. At the same time, we will see how the shepherds organize their working life and their relationship with the yaks and their surrounding environment around strong moral values and a symbolic organization of the realm of life.

The domestic yak, a type of cattle native to the Himalayan region and Siberia, is known for its ability to withstand harsh climatic conditions at high altitudes and is primarily domesticated for its milk, wool, and meat. Most of the research on yaks has been conducted in China, where approximately 94% of the total estimated yak population can be found. In this study, the authors conducted an ethology study on the social behaviour of yaks in the Annapurna Valley of Nepal, where they are raised for their milk, wool, and meat and are also used for transportation. The authors used ethnographic inquiries to gather data on the social behaviour of yaks and the coping strategies used by herders to manage them. They also equipped cattle with one Actigraph wgt3x-BT to measure activity using an accelerometer and spatial associations using a proximity recorder. They found that yaks in both herds exhibited cohesive and synchronized behaviour, with similar activity patterns during the day and a peak of activity at night. They also observed that yaks in the first herd were more reactive to the presence of humans, while those in the second herd were more reactive to the presence of other yaks. The authors suggest that these differences in behaviour may be due to the different herding management practices used in each herd.

In J. Chamel et Y. Dansac (éd.), Relating with More-than-Humans: Interbeign Rituality in a Living World

Relationships between humans and non-human entities are at the heart of Biodynamic Agriculture, founded by Rudolf Steiner and inspired by the esoteric current he created, Anthroposophy. Biodynamic Agriculture’s spiritual origins have practical consequences. It is not about improving the productivity of the farm but is rather an agriculture of care, aiming to reach a symbiotic welfare for the individual and his environment through a process of ritualization of practices. This chapter, based on the ethnography of a peasant network involved in Biodynamic Agriculture living in Southwestern France (Occitanie), shows how ritual anthropology in its relational approach framed by Michael Houseman and Carlo Severi can give a special enlightenment to this peasant practice that is intertwined between agriculture and spirituality. Analysing the analogical way of thinking in order to understand the ontological recomposition that Biodynamic Agriculture proposes, this practice can be seen as an everyday life rituality through an anthropology of gestures. Biodynamicists develop gestures as techniques to understand and relate to the “Living”, as much for self-development.

Ce texte porte sur les Cotlatlaztin, antipodistes rituels nahuaphones appelés « hommes-vents ». Ces « danseurs » oeuvrent comme auxiliaires des cérémonies de demande de pluie du mois de mai dans le sud-ouest du Mexique. Le propos est d’analyser la praxis individuelle d’exercice physique qui forge l’endurance des corps et construit la masculinité à l’intérieur de cette classe d’âge de jeunes adultes. Cette pratique est associée à une narration mythique et idéologique développée au sein du « groupe de danse » qui les institue comme protecteurs du village. On s’intéressera à leur rôle officiel — vêtir les croix du village, mais aussi personnifier les vents et appeler la pluie — ainsi qu’à leur aspect occulte, à travers leur pratique de courses à pied nocturne. La course à pied a été resémantisée comme mécanisme de transformation de soi et comme processus thérapeutique contre les addictions (alcool, psychotropes). Les pratiques ritualisées des Cotlatlaztin constituent un registre d’actions duel autour des processus d’actualisation et de transformation (du biologique comme de soi-même), que l’on interrogera avec les catégories d’analyse du « virtuel » et de « l’empowerment ».

Mots-clés : danse rituelle ; antipodisme ; Cotlatlaztin ; Nahuas ; Mexique ; empowerment.