ABSTRACT
The chapter looks into the conversion of Zhavame village residents from animism to Christianity in Nagaland’s Phek District, which borders Manipur. It examines the conflict between these two religions, one of Judaeo-Christian origin and the other an animist faith with ontological legitimacy derived from traditional indigenous experiences and knowledge systems. The chapter highlights this debate by attempting a critical biography of the author’s maternal grandfather and his encounters with Naga animism’s spirit world. As a result of proselytisation in the early 1980s, only a few villages had some animism practitioners, all in their mid-50s. This chapter uses the biography of the maternal grandfather, the great-grandson of a seer, as a case study to understand the discursive shift from animism to Christianity. The chapter would highlight the nuanced rituals of conversing with spirits and serving as a link between the dead and the living.
