Contemporary Shamanism Research Articles

Contemporary shamanism and alternative spirituality : exploring relationships and intersections

Contemporary shamanism and alternative spirituality : exploring relationships and intersections

‘The Hermit Next Door’: The Role of Eremitism/Asceticism in Contemporary Shamanic Healing Practices in North-East Scotland

Based on an ethnographic study of ‘Western’ forms of contemporary shamanism in North East Scotland, the article discusses the significant role that eremitism plays in folk healing systems, particularly in shamanism. The tendency to live an isolated life is not only a key feature of traditional shamanic healing practices, but it can also be found in contemporary manifestations of them. Two such cases are discussed in this article. Terry Mace and Norman Duncan are two contemporary shamanic healers who live and offer services in the wider region of North East Scotland. For different individual reasons, they have self-consciously decided to isolate themselves geographically, living simply and self-abundantly, and leading an eremitic way of life away from materialism and socialising. The article thus focuses on examining the role of eremitism in the life of these two healers in an attempt to highlight the significance of the phenomenon in contemporary shamanisms.

Animals in Saami Shamanism: Power Animals, Symbols of Art, and Offerings

In this paper, we study the role of power animals in contemporary Saami shamanism and how past and present are entwined in the presentation of power animals. In the old Saami worldviews, in addition to animals, spirits and sacred rocks (sieidi, SaaN) were also considered to be able to interact with people. Animals were an important part of offering rituals because livelihood and rituals were intertwined. Past “religions” are used as an inspiration for contemporary shamanistic practices, in line with one of late modernity’s core concepts, namely creativity. Present-day shamanistic practices can be described as ritual creativity, and they combine traces of old and new ritual activities. At the shamanistic festival Isogaisa, organized in northern Norway, these different roles of animals and ritual creativity become evident. Here, animals appear as spirit animals, as well as decorative elements on drums and clothes and as performance. In this paper, we combine material culture studies, interview data, and participatory observations in order to reflect the meanings and use of power animals in contemporary spiritual practices. How are traces of the past used in creating contemporary spirituality? How are animals and their artistic presentations entangled in contemporary shamanism?

ШАМАНСТВУЮЩИЕ ПЕРСОНЫ ТУНГУСО-МАНЬЧЖУРОВ (ЭВЕНКИ, ЭВЕНЫ, НАНАЙЦЫ) В СОВРЕМЕННОМ МИРЕ: ОПЫТ МЕНТАЛЬНОЙ ХАРАКТЕРИСТИКИ»

This article studies common spiritual representations about contemporary Tungus-Manchu “shamanising persons”. It analyses ethnographic material gathered by the authors between 1994 and 2020 among the Evenki, Even, and Nanai of Yakutia, the Amur region, Kamchatka, Novorossiysk, and Khabarovskii krai, as well as the relevant scholarly literature. Under Soviet anti-religious policies, the traditional shamans of these peoples went into significant decline: the last traditional shamans passed away in the 2010s, thus potentially disrupting the transmission of the shamanic function. Nevertheless, according to collective representations, the spirits are still active and continue elect people to become shamans. Our paper argues that these peoples are enduring “ritual wanderings”, wedged between a lack of individuals able to transmit the knowledge required to become a traditional shaman and the fact they reject urban/western neo-shamanism (in contrast to other Siberian peoples like the Buriat, Tuva, Yakut, and Altai). Through the analysis of a mosaic of case studies on shamanising persons who are neither traditional shamans nor neo-shamans, we reveal many relationships with the spirits, the ways these people deal with shamanic election, and the common core of the spiritual representations of the Tungus-Manchu. This paper contributes to the study of contemporary shamanism, Tungus-Manchu cultures, and human-nature relationships.

<i>Microbes and Other Shamanic Beings</i> By C. E. Giraldo Herrera (2018)

Review of César Enrique Giraldo Herrera, Microbes and Other Shamanic Beings. Engages with wider scholarship about historical and contemporary shamans and animists in the Carbbean, Central and South America. Argues the medical and epidemeological knowledge aids better understanding of what shamans do. In particular, the biology of eyes and relationships with microbes propels an argument for the value of Amerindian medical and relational knowleges.

Becoming a Shaman: Narratives of Apprenticeship and Initiation in Contemporary Shamanism

This article, based on an open-question survey completed in 2018, engages with McAdams and Manczak’s approaches to life stories (2015) and Mayer’s ten elements of the shaman myth (2008) to explore the way contemporary people based in the UK, who define themselves as shamans, talk about their becoming a shaman. Individual narratives point out the intricate meeting points between different shamanic traditions and the importance of continuous innovation. They highlight the complex network of human and beyond-human authority and problematize the place, meaning and agency of the self. Contemporary shamanism is a widespread, manifold and multifaceted phenomenon, which we argue is not as different from traditional forms of shamanism as some studies suggest.

Shamanism in a Post-socialist City

Citation: Szmyt Z. (2020) Shamanism in a Post-socialist City. Mir Rossii, vol. 29, no 3, pp. 51–65. DOI: 10.17323/1811-038X-2020-29-3-51-65
 This article focuses on shamanic placemaking and the struggles for public space in the Siberian city of Ulan-Ude. Special attention is given to the indigenization of the city, which is a result of the mass immigration of Buryats from rural areas and the decay of the Soviet urbanization model. The article investigates how contemporary shamanism is involved in the decolonization of the urban space, new temporalization, and indigenous placemaking. Instead of dealing with traditional shamanist mediation between spirits and people, the emphasis is on mediation between the idea of ethnicity and the urban space.

Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics

Book Review| October 01 2019 Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics Trude Fonneland. Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics. New York: Oxford University Press, 2017. 234 pp. Lisbeth Mikaelsson Lisbeth Mikaelsson University of Bergen Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scandinavian Studies (2019) 91 (3): 410–413. https://doi.org/10.5406/scanstud.91.3.0410 Cite Icon Cite Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Permissions Search Site Citation Lisbeth Mikaelsson; Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics. Scandinavian Studies 1 January 2019; 91 (3): 410–413. doi: https://doi.org/10.5406/scanstud.91.3.0410 Download citation file: Zotero Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All Scholarly Publishing CollectiveUniversity of Illinois PressScandinavian Studies Search Advanced Search The text of this article is only available as a PDF. Copyright 2019 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois2019 Article PDF first page preview Close Modal You do not currently have access to this content.

Review: Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics by Trude Fonneland

Review: Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics by Trude Fonneland

Changing the Sense of Self Through Ritual: Psycheritual as a Psychotherapeutic Intervention

This paper will show the results of a study into the experience of using ritual in contemporary psychotherapy*. Dr. Kress and Kerr have named this experience psycheritual as it is relevant for psychotherapy work and is a form of transition ritual which has transformative properties. Psycheritual can be defined as: an intentional act of communication between the conscious and the unconscious, where symbolic objects or actions are used to represent and/or to affect the psychic world, and where a close connection between the body and the mind is required. In this qualitative study we will illustrate how the ancient art of ritual can be successfully imple-mented in the modern discipline of psychotherapy, particularly in the process of changing the sense of self; and that indeed, psychotherapy itself already contains many elements that are generally associated with ritual. Our theoretical background is based in Transpersonal Psychotherapy, and we will also refer to an-cient and indigenous understandings that have been drawn together into the practice of contempo-rary Shamanism. To put the results of this study in context, we will start our exploration with a brief review of the Transpersonal and Shamanic worldviews, and then proceed to examine how ritual already plays a part in both these traditions. KEY WORDS Psychoyherapy, rituals, Self

Trude Fonneland.Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics

Trude Fonneland.<i>Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics</i>

Male and Female Shamans of Buryatia: Their Mystical Experiences and the Author’s Field Research. Part Tw

Goals. Proceeding from multi-year field research data, the paper attempts to review some trends in the development of Buryatia’s contemporary shamanism. Methods. The work applies historical-comparative and comparative-contrastive research methods; a variety of field ethnographic research methods were used to collect corresponding analytical materials. Results. The study provides an overview of current shamanistic practices in Buryatia. It is noteworthy that the new generation of shamans are university-educated individuals with experience in different specialities. Thus, the ‘shamanistic intelligentsia’ has taken shape. Their practices include not only traditional rites but also public conversations in the media aimed to facilitate the promotion of shamanistic beliefs and world outlooks. They write books, appear in documentary films, leave their ancestral lands for different Russian and foreign cities to perform their practices there — which has been frown upon in classical shamanism. The emergence of associations and alliances of shamans have resulted in that nowadays they engage in publishing and teaching (educational) activities. The new challenges required that personalities of traditional shamans change accordingly, and the new generation of in-demand shamans do possess such personal qualities. The article comprises two parts. Part One generally characterizes the topic and depicts portrayals of three female shamans — representatives of the mentioned ‘shamanistic intelligentsia’, namely: Nadezhda Stepanova, Yeshir-Khorlo Tsybikzhapova, and Vera Taglasova. Their shamanistic evolutions are traditional enough and have included certain stages, such as shamanistic illness and shamanistic roots (even in cases of mixed parentage). At the same time, all the mentioned present-day female shamans of Buryatia have university degrees (in the humanities and culture), maintain close relations with academic circles, stay at the forefront of public life, being activists of shamanistic associations and regularly promoting corresponding beliefs and representations. Part Two examines places of shamans and their associations in the new Russia. The paper shows that the newly emerged shamanistic organizations seek to keep performing their practices in changing environments when, acting as an official, shamans can register their sacred places as specially protected territories. On the other hand, another challenge of theirs is to protect the public from pseudo-shamans that have significantly increased in numbers recently. This part also contains sections to deal with the issues, such as ‘shamans and scientists’, ‘shamans and ecology’. Both the parts of the article to be published in two consecutive issues of the journal shall be supplemented with complete references.

Scientism and Post-Truth

The last decades have seen an increasing interest towards Shamanism in the Western world, both among scholars and those who practise shamanism. The academic interest has been mainly focussed on identifying the differences between forms of contemporary Shamanism in the West and traditional Shamanisms as experienced among indigenous peoples. A related aspect that needs further development in the field is the analysis of the philosophical underpinning that lies behind this relatively new religious tradition and its manifestations.&#x0D; Initial findings, derived from data collected as part of a research project on autochthonous and trans-cultural Shamanism in Italy, suggest that there are two paradigms shaping the neo-shamanic experiential approach. I will start by clarifying the notion of paradigm as the founding basis of every reasoning process, cultural production and hence religious movement. Then, I will argue that the Scientistic and Post-truth paradigms represent two founding bases of Neo-shamanism and its scholarly recognised traits and will conclude by addressing the issue of a potential contradiction between the two will be addressed.&#x0D;

Trude Fonneland, &lt;i&gt;Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics&lt;/i&gt;

Trude Fonneland, Contemporary Shamanisms in Norway: Religion, Entrepreneurship, and Politics (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017), 248pp., $99 (hardcover), $97.99 (ebook).

CONTINUITY AND CHANGE IN SUNDANESE PANANYAAN: Contesting an Islamicate Tradition in West Java

This paper aims to discuss the development of pananyaan , a name for Sundanese-Priangan local shaman in terms of continuity and change. Using ethnographical method, it will provide an anthropological account of these elderly people through the investigation of the major shifts of them and their meanings, to the grand narration of Islamization process. The exploration based on the research questions leads to several conclusions. The existence of pananyaan has become primordial nature of the belief toward supernatural being. There are, at least, several major shifts in the origins pananyaan to the present. First, the shift of domestic spiritualism from local spirit to Islamic saints that reflected an elementary form of the intersection of Islam and local customs. Second, the emergence of ahli hikmah , that reflected such an outward appearance in the intersection as represented by several hybrid incantations and supernatural powers. Third, the contemporary shaman, whose Islam and local customs are united in one fashion with the influence of modern determinations. In addition, the still-taking place Islamization has become a challenge for the next development of pananyaan.

Concepts of Evil Spirits, Bewitchment and Purification Rites Among Contemporary Tuvan Shamans

The article is a study of concepts related to curses and evil spells in contemporary shamanism in Tuva. The author draws attention to the point that although curse, as a “diagnosis” pointing to the character of relationships between people, goes side by side with traditional ideas of supernatural substances or evil spirits in the culture of post-Soviet shamans, it still more often than not functions as the main or even sole explanation of diseases, depressions, energy losses, and other problems in human lives. Curse is understood by shamans as a material, even though invisible, energy or essence that has to be cast off to ensure a person’s recovery or to prevent possible trouble. Therefore, purifying rites of various kinds assume paramount importance in the activities of today’s shamans in Tuva. The complex of corresponding practices and concepts is analyzed in detail in the article.

SHAMANISM AND INDIGENOUS YOUTHHOOD IN THE BRAZILIAN AMAZON

This article deals with contemporary shamanism among young Indians in Brazilian Amazonia. It explores the meaning of shamanic practices for today’s Amazonian young Indians. The article focuses on the ayahuasca ceremonies practiced by young Manchineri living in both the indigenous reserve and urban areas in the State of Acre, Brazil. Ethnographic fieldwork was carried out between 2005 and 2007. Shamanic practices produce symbolic capital that may credit in one’s own native community and in interethnic relations. The spiritual and traditional knowledge, trust, values, and instructions on life generate cultural capital, social capital, as well as ethnic capital. Through shamanism young people have an active role in the construction of their agency and personhood, as it also is about youth’s own decision to interact with the spirits and other humans. Shamanic practices have marked a turning point in the lives of many native young people. Keywords: Shamanism, ayahuasca, Manchineri

The Role of Anthropological Literature in Contemporary Shamanic Practices

Anthropology and anthropological literature have had an irreversible effect on the practice of contemporary shamanism. In this small-scale study, I look at the complex ways the literature has been recorded, initiated interest, revived and verified the shamanic practices. Over the years, anthropologists have also caused distortions in revived practices as they have left some things unrecorded. On the basis of written responses and interviews from shamanic practitioners and active drumming-group members, I demonstrate that the argument of neo-shamanism as the only form of shamanism still alive is not completely true. Attention is drawn also to the claim about the cycle of learning in contemporary shamanism. My argument is that the main part of learning in the deeper levels of shamanic practices still happens in face-to-face situations.

The Music Therapist: Creative Arts Therapist and Contemporary Shaman

While much of contemporary psychotherapy practice often focuses primarily on verbal exchange between therapists and clients, it is important to recognize that verbal expression is just one mode of expression, and not necessarily the deepest or most profound. Many clients in therapy may be more comfortable in expressing themselves in other ways through the modes of music, art, dance and psychodrama. The sources of the arts in healing extend back for many thousands of years and their modern expression through the creative arts therapies are now widely utilized in the mainstream of modern psychotherapy. Traditional healing practices are still widely practiced in many indigenous cultures around the world today and an appreciation of these practices can deeply enrich our understanding of the essential role of the arts in human expression. The aim of this paper is to consider the roots of the arts therapies and really all of psychotherapy, going as far back as pre-historic evidence, followed by an overview of living indigenous healing practices in such settings as Bushman culture in Namibia, Native American Indian culture, as well as in Kenya, Bali, Malaysia, Mongolia and more.

Scepsis, veldwerk en de bestudering van hedendaags sjamanisme

Scepsis, fieldwork and the study of contemporary shamanism Scepsis, fieldwork and the study of contemporary shamanism The author describes the way his first fieldwork experiences among contemporary shamanism in the Netherlands influenced his methodological stance in relation to his subject. His scepticism guided him towards moderate participation rather than active participation, concentrating on observation instead of participation. With the help of the conceptual framework of Bourdieu, he started to interpret the various forms of shamanism as products of people who take position in a specific field, wherein certain forms of capital are valued. His attention turned to their habitus, their self-legitimising imagination and the logic of their field. Ultimately, shamanism in the Netherlands became only a small part of his thesis, as his sceptical habitus guided him towards a genealogy of interpretations of shamanism. In this historical enterprise, academic interpreters are also contextualised within certain fields. Their habitus and self-legitimising imagination come into view because in academic as well as in religious fields, the real is relational.