Why do religious leaders abstain from some pleasures? In episode 83, Manvir Singh from Harvard University's Department of Human Evolutionary Biology discusses his research into why shaman healers among the a group of people off the coast of Indonesia observe costly prohibitions, such abstinence or food restrictions, especially given that they could exploit their position for self-serving ends instead. His open-access article “Why do religious leaders observe costly prohibitions? Examining taboos on Mentawai shamans” was co-authored with Joseph Henrich and published on June 11, 2020 in the journal Evolutionary Human Sciences.



Adhering to Prohibitive Taboos - Manvir SinghAdhering to Prohibitive Taboos - Manvir SinghAdhering to Prohibitive Taboos - Manvir Singh Adhering to Prohibitive Taboos - Manvir SinghAdhering to Prohibitive Taboos - Manvir SinghAdhering to Prohibitive Taboos - Manvir Singh {{svg_share_icon}}Click bottom of waveform to add your commentsSubscribe: iTunes | Google Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | RSS jQuery(document).ready(function ($){var settings_ap7664 = { design_skin: "skin-wave" ,autoplay: "off",disable_volume:"default" ,loop:"off" ,cue: "on" ,embedded: "off" ,preload_method:"metadata" ,design_animateplaypause:"default" ,skinwave_dynamicwaves:"off" ,skinwave_enableSpectrum:"off" ,skinwave_enableReflect:"on",playfrom:"off",default_volume:"default",disable_scrub:"off",soundcloud_apikey:"" ,skinwave_comments_enable:"on",settings_php_handler:window.ajaxurl,skinwave_mode:"alternate",skinwave_wave_mode:"canvas",pcm_data_try_to_generate: "on","pcm_notice": "off","notice_no_media": "on",design_color_bg: "111111",design_color_highlight: "FF4C65",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_number: "3",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_padding: "1",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_reflection_size: "0.25",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_mode:"normal",preview_on_hover:"off",skinwave_comments_playerid:"7664",embed_code:"<iframe src='https://www.parsingscience.org?action=embed_zoomsounds&type=player&margs=eyJjb25maWciOiJwb3dlcnByZXNzX3BsYXllciIsInNvdXJjZSI6Imh0dHBzOlwvXC9tZWRpYS5ibHVicnJ5LmNvbVwvcGFyc2luZ3NjaWVuY2VcL3d3dy5wYXJzaW5nc2NpZW5jZS5vcmdcL3dwLWNvbnRlbnRcL3VwbG9hZHNcLzIwMjBcLzA5XC9QYXJzaW5nU2NpZW5jZTA4My1TaW5naC5tcDMiLCJwbGF5ZXJpZCI6NzY2NCwidGh1bWIiOiJodHRwczpcL1wvd3d3LnBhcnNpbmdzY2llbmNlLm9yZ1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyMFwvMDlcL01TLXBpZy05NS5qcGciLCJhcnRpc3RuYW1lIjoiQWRoZXJpbmcgdG8gUHJvaGliaXRpdmUgVGFib29zIC0gTWFudmlyIFNpbmdoIiwiY2FsbGVkX2Zyb20iOiJwb29vd2VycHJlc3MifQ%3D%3D' style='overflow:hidden; transition: height 0.3s ease-out;' width='100%' height='152' scrolling='no' frameborder='0'></iframe>"

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Websites and other resources







Manvir's website and Twitter

The study's data, code and supplementary material

Manvir interviewed on The Dissenter:









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ijf8cNBgztA

 









Video documentary of a Mentawai wedding ceremony:









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e63F1oTz_YU



 

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