What is Shamanism?
What is Shamanism? A cursory internet search lends itself to a wide, varied and sometimes vague understanding of what shamanic practices entail. The terms shaman and shamanism have been used to describe a vast array of practices and beliefs over time, culture and space.
Let us start from the beginning: the word Shaman originates from the Tungus language of Siberia and Northern Asia to refer to those who “have the ability to heal the sick, to communicate with the otherworld, and often to escort the souls of the dead to that otherworld.” In the strictest sense, the term Shaman should only refer to these shamanic practitioners. However, the terms shaman and shamanism have experienced a kind of semantic shift over time. Early German and Russian adopters of the word shaman used it to describe any indigenous religious practitioner who uses trance to heal and communicate with spirits. In the 1980’s anthropologist Micheal Harner, studied indigenous healing practices all over the world and found some essential commonalities among them. He designed a course of study for Westerners called Core Shamanism. “This system is based upon the underlying universal, near-universal, and common features of shamanism—rather than upon culture-specific variations and elaborations”.
Over the course of history the words shaman and shamanism have shifted meaning from being in reference to a specific culture to being a term used for any pre-colonial indigenous practice of relating to ones' world. What those practices are specifically depends on who you ask, what culture they are from and what language one chooses (There's a discussion about whether we should use the words "shaman" and "shamanism," which we'll talk about in a future post.). For now, we will use these words and I would like to offer my own evolving understanding of them. I think this is the nature of shamanism, as you may soon glean, to be a living and adaptive practice. In my view I observe four main components of a shamanic practice: Animism, Direct Revelation, Oneness and Relationship.
Animism- the belief that everything has a spirit, including rocks, animals, places, land, stars, and objects like chairs
Direct revelation- through a process of trance, meditation or divination- knowledge is received, often through communication with spirits. There is no need for a priest or intermediary to receive divine messages or to communicate with spirits
Oneness- The idea that we are inherently and intrinsically part of nature, the universe, the cosmos and Source/God
Relationships- shamanism is about nurturing relationships. Our connection with ourselves, mentors, plant essences, nature spirits, and the elements like wind, water, and sky
These components all lead to a deep and abiding respect for nature and our role in the universe. When applied to a practice, ritual, modality or spiritual belief, it becomes shamanic. If you look deeply at things, people, and practices you will see threads of shamanism in places you might not have expected. I have a hunch that this world view- the deep and abiding reverence for nature and our place within it- is innate in our humanity. It is our essential nature to consider ourselves part of the greater world. Or put another way, the Spirit of Shamanism lives within us. I imagine it being part of our epigenetic makeup. And right now the conditions are right for the “spirit of shamanism” gene to be be turned on. Like a seed lying dormant underground until a wildfire ignites it and it begins to grow again. I believe this is why we are seeing a resurgence of shamanic practices and ways of living all over the world. We have forgotten our true nature in the haze of colonialism and capitalism and lost our way. The time has come for a collective re-membering, a collective soul retrieval.