Lines of descent in alternative spirituality : experiencing the agency of ancestors through spiritual energy

Bužeková, Tatiana (author)

This paper presents the results of ethnographic research carried out in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, among people who adhere to various spiritual ideas and practices. I consider the role of lines of descent in shaping how people experience the agency of the dead. I argue that, within urban spiritual milieux, descent lines are linked to the concept of energy that connects the world of the deceased with that of the living. Specific cultural settings influence the concept of personhood and, consequently, experiences of the agency of ancestors. A focus on individualism, combined with a moral emphasis on personal development, gives rise to specific interpretations of these experiences, as well as to a specific type of essentialism grounded in moral reasoning.

• Language: English
• Keywords: alternative spirituality, the agency of the dead, ancestors, spiritual energy, moral essentialism, Bratislava, Slovakia
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FF - Faculty of Arts
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Publication date: 31.08.2026
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: Str. 161-185
• Numbering: Letn. 29
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-188131
• UDC: 2-186:39(437.6Bratislava)
• ISSN on article: 1408-6271
• DOI: 10.3986/SMS20262909
• COBISS.SI-ID: 291619075
• Publication date in RUL: 18.09.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Studia mythologica Slavica
• Shortened title: Stud. mythol. Slav.
• Publisher: Znanstvenoraziskovalni center Slovenske akademije znanosti in umetnosti, Inštitut za slovensko narodopisje, Università degli Studi di Pisa, Dipartimento di Linguistica, già Istituto di Lingua e Letteratura
• ISSN: 1408-6271
• COBISS.SI-ID: 75272960

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Rodovne linije v alternativni duhovnosti : doživljanje delovanja prednikov prek duhovne energije

Abstract

Članek predstavlja rezultate etnografske raziskave, izvedene v Bratislavi, glavnem mestu Slovaške, med ljudmi, ki sledijo različnim duhovnim idejam in praksam. Obravnavam vlogo rodovnih linij pri oblikovanju načina, kako ljudje doživljajo delovanje mrtvih. Trdim, da so znotraj urbanih duhovnih miljejev rodovne linije povezane s konceptom energije, ki povezuje svet pokojnih s svetom živih. Specifična kulturna okolja vplivajo na pojmovanje osebnosti oziroma osebe in posledično na izkušnje delovanja prednikov. Osredotočenost na individualizem, skupaj z moralnim poudarkom na osebnem razvoju, vodi do specifičnih interpretacij teh izkušenj ter do posebne vrste esencializma, utemeljenega na moralnem presojanju.

• Keywords: alternativna duhovnost, delovanje mrtvih, predniki, duhovna energija, moralni esencializem, Bratislava, Slovaška

Projects

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Project number: 101095729
• Name: The roles of the agency of the dead in the lives of individuals in contemporary society
• Acronym: DEAGENCY

• Funder: Other - Other funder or multiple funders
• Funding programme: Slovak Research and Development Agency
• Project number: APVV-22-0063
• Name: Reproduc- tions of Religious and Worldview Structures in Slovakia. One hundred and fifty years of changes