The idea that possession should be treated as a modality of practice has been found in a variety of forms in the works of a number of contemporary anthropologists. This article discusses a series of theoretical points central to understanding possession as practice: the questions of agency, the relations between body and meaning, and temporality. Pursuing a phenomenological approach, I attempt to show that any adequate treatment of these three questions requires that we attend to the temporal constitution of practice (in this case, possession). More specifically, I argue that failing to include temporality as a factor may seriously distort our analysis of possession. This thesis is developed through an examination of three case histories of possession in candomblé cults in Salvador, Bahia.
Possession; Practice; Agency; Embodiment; Temporality