An Introduction to Shamanism

This Introduction surveys the beliefs, rituals and techniques found in shamanic traditions around the world.

Thomas A. DuBois (Author)

9780521873536, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 14 May 2009

330 pages, 13 b/w illus.
23.5 x 15.1 x 1.9 cm, 0.65 kg

'… the book stands out overall as one of the best of its kind.' Robert Wallis, Time and Mind: The Journal of Archaeology, Consciousness and Culture

Shamans are an integral part of communal religious traditions, professionals who make use of personal supernatural experiences, especially trance, as a resource for the wider community's physical and spiritual well-being. This Introduction surveys research on the topic of shamanism around the world, detailing the archaeology and earliest development of shamanic traditions as well as their scientific 'discovery' in the context of eighteenth and nineteenth century colonization in Siberia, the Americas, and Asia. It explores the beliefs and rituals typical of shamanic traditions, as well as the roles of shamans within their communities. It also surveys the variety of techniques used by shamans cross-culturally, including music, entheogens, material culture and verbal performance. The final chapters examine attempts to suppress or eradicate shamanic traditions, the revitalization of shamanism in postcolonial situations, and the development of new forms of shamanism within new cultural and social contexts.

Preface
Part I. Introductions: 1. Shamanism and the issue of religion
2. A history of shamanic encounters
3. Shamanism in archaeological evidence
Part II. Shamanic Soteriology and Ritual: 4. Cosmology and the work of the shaman
5. The call and initiation
6. Mediating the spirit world: shamanic roles and careers
Part III. Examining Ritual Effectiveness: 7. Séance, trance and the shamanic mind
8. Shamans, clients, and healing
Part IV. The Shamanic Arsenal: 9. Music and entheogens: pathways to ecstasy
10. The material culture of shamanism
11. Shamanic verbal art
Part V. Shamanic Politics in a Changing World: 12. Shamanism under attack
13. Shamanic revitalizations
14. Neoshamanism
Epilogue
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Shamanism, paganism & druidry [VXWS], Social & cultural anthropology, ethnography [JHMC], Anthropology [JHM], Other non-Christian religions [HRK], Religion: general [HRA]