Avatar Fandom as Nature-Religious Expression?

This article investigates spiritual trends in the fandom that has developed around the movie Avatar, asking in particular whether nature, represented by the 'goddess' Eywa, is seen as sacred by fans and if so, if this may influence fans' environmental practices. For this purpose I have analyzed the popular Internet-based fan forums avatar-forums.com and naviblue.com, because these sites show a broad, non-specialized interest in the movie. The result of the investigation shows a weight on pantheistic or animistic interpretations of nature. The practices springing from this view include meditation in nature to enhance awareness as well as daily practices like recycling, vegetarianism, and an ecological lifestyle. Radical environmental perceptions are expressed but such action-related initiatives are few; political action has been directed primarily at influencing politicians. A comparison to already-established fandoms indicates that a development in the direction of more communal and face-to-face fan activities, and even more development of Avatar-related nature religion, may well be on the way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]