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Shamanism or samanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman or saman) interacting with the spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance.[1][2] The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritual energies into the physical world for the purpose of healing, divination, or to aid human beings in some other way.[1]
Beliefs and practices categorized as "shamanic" have attracted the interest of scholars from a variety of disciplines, including anthropologists, archeologists, historians, religious studies scholars, philosophers and psychologists. Hundreds of books and academic papers on the subject have been produced, with a peer-reviewed academic journal being devoted to the study of shamanism.
In the 20th century, Westerners involved in countercultural movements, such as hippies and the New Age, created modern magico-religious practices influenced by various Native American religions, creating what has been termed neoshamanism or the neoshamanic movement.[3]
- ^ a b Singh, Manvir (2018). "The cultural evolution of shamanism". Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 41: e66: 1–61. doi:10.1017/S0140525X17001893. PMID 28679454. S2CID 206264885.
- ^ Mircea Eliade; Vilmos Diószegi (May 12, 2020). "Shamanism". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
Shamanism, religious phenomenon centred on the shaman, a person believed to achieve various powers through trance or ecstatic religious experience. Although shamans' repertoires vary from one culture to the next, they are typically thought to have the ability to heal the sick, to communicate with the otherworld, and often to escort the souls of the dead to that otherworld.
- ^ Gredig, Florian (2009). Finding New Cosmologies. Berlin: Lit Verlag Dr. W. Hopf.