Influence of Lisu People’s Religious Beliefs on their Traditional Medicine

Abstract

The Lisu, inhabitants of Nujiang River Canyon in China’s northwestern Yunnan Province, believe in three set of religious beliefs: their own primitive religion, Christianity and Catholicism, introduced by Western missionaries in the 18th century (Yang et al. (Eds.), 1993). Religious convictions permeate all aspects of life conducted by Lisu and do have a profound impact upon various aspects of their traditional culture. The present article explores how religious tenets have helped shape and have affected traditional Lisu medicine, investigating the relationship between religion, culture, and traditional medicine, tracking the path from Lisu ancient history down to modern times.