A LINHA DO ORIENTE NA UMBANDA: função e construção de um campo simbólico religioso.

Abstract

The aim of this work is to analyse the existence of eastern simbolic elements in the Umbanda religiosity in general and in a particular manner, in the city of Goiânia. Also, its objetive is to define how these simbolic elements become manifest and how they are characterized within the Umbanda context, as well as what functions they perform and how they are articulated with the national Umbanda ideology. This research points out that these elements end up structuring a whole ritualistic field in itself, known as "eastern line". In some cases, it determines the formation of differenciated Umbanda groups, which pass to denominate themserves as "esoteric Umbanda". In the second part of this work we offer a demonstration of how the presence of the "eastern line" in Umbanda, indicates the articulation of that religion with the challenges that modernity/globalization brings to the market of simbolic-religious goods. Based on that assumption, one can conclude that Umbanda is an extremely dynamic form of religion, which in its process of dialoging with modernity, makes use of syncretism in a differenciated and up-to-date way, which was conceptualized as sincretic-ecletism . This research was based on the analysis of an extensive Umbanda bibliografy as well as on the study of the form in which the "eastern line" presents/articulates itself in three centers (religious places) where Umbanda is practiced in Goiânia.