Blackwell Reference Online

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[xiv] ‘Shaman’ is the name given by the Tungus of Siberia to ritual practitioners who are considered to act as intermediaries with the spirit world. In an ecstatic state, the shaman journeys to the realm of the spirits, seeking help as a healer or seer and conducting the soul of a newly deceased person. The journey is experienced as a flight or as possession. The shaman additionally binds society together by the ritual enshrining of an account of historical origins. ‘Shamanism’ labels the practices of such practitioners, and is used by extension for similar activities among Arctic and Ural-Altaic groups. As a result of diffusion and cultural survival shamans are found among the Lapps, Inuit (see Eskimoaleut), American Indians, the Ainu in Japan, the Koreans, in many parts of south-east Asia such as Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia, and elsewhere. The term ‘shaman’ is also employed in the sciences of religion where the provenance would include Africa, ancient Israel, the Pacific and parts of Europe.The Finnish folklorist Ake Hultkrantz defines a shaman as an intermediary who exhibits behaviour which supports the belief that he or she is inspired by spirits [26]. To Mircea Eliade [27], ecstasy is itself the defining force in what he labels an archaic technique. Eliade thus excludes or differentiates non-ecstatic sorcerers and priests, as do many other accounts. However, it is now noted ... log in or subscribe to read full text