Therapy, Spirituality, and East Asian Imaginaries

This volume explores the global circulation of practices, technologies, and ideas identified as ‘East Asian’ in alternative therapies and spiritual practices since the 1970s. Case studies range from the incorporation of traditional Chinese medicine into Brazilian naturopathy to self-development seminars promoting Korean national identity. In the context of modern global exchanges, an imagined and essentialised notion of ‘East Asia’ has served as both a source of inspiration and a catalyst for new connections, extending beyond the geographic boundaries of China, Japan, and Korea. This volume explores the global circulation of practices, technologies, and ideas identified as ‘East Asian’ in alternative therapies and spiritual practices since the 1970s. Case studies range from the incorporation of traditional Chinese medicine into Brazilian naturopathy to self-development seminars promoting Korean national identity. Rather than focusing on questions of authenticity, the book uniquely interrogates how and why the cultures of China, Japan, and Korea have been invoked over the last fifty years to promote specific therapeutic, spiritual, and political agendas worldwide. The Introduction and Chapter 5 of this book are freely available as downloadable Open Access PDFs at under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 International license.