What Is A Shaman - Essay Example

a). What is a Shaman? Kallen defines a shaman as a person who intermediates the natural and the supernatural worlds by using magic to cure illness (4). The supernatural functions of shamans are believed to be possible because they have abilities to allow their spirits depart their bodies and travel to upper or lower worlds. Shaman also foretells the future events and controls the spiritual forces because they have the power to predict the unknown and command the spirits to do as they wish. Shamans have visions and dreams that equip them with information and contexts of the supernatural worlds (Kallen 13).

The shaman deals with only mysterious and dangerous events such as illnesses, malevolence, impotent, and death. Spirits impose shamanic power into people through intensive initiations and ordeals. Regardless of the difficulty process through which they acquire them, shamans may be exposed to lose of their powers in battles with spirit foes or if they fail to perform the rituals appropriately (Wilson 22). b). The Relationship between Shamans and Priests Shamans differ with the practices of priests since their powers are personal and intermediate.

The supernatural world is believed to be linked to occurrences in the natural world. Shamans allow their souls to venture in to spirit worlds in order to find the causes of undesirable events. They launch immediate intercessions, fighting, or requests to the spirits to cure the affairs of human beings. In contrast, priests are concerned with the conduct of several events that enables them to bring the congregation into sacred forces (McNamara 19). Priests do not encounter supernatural worlds and their expectations are not immediate.

It is critical to understand the contrast between shamans and priests as it enables people to distinguish their faiths from those they do not believe in and devote themselves to thorough understanding of their option. Works Cited Kallen, Stuart A. Shamans. San Diego, Calif: Lucent Books, 2004. Print. McNamara, Patrick. Where God and Science Meet: How Brain and Evolutionary Studies Alter Our Understanding of Religion. Westport, Conn: Praeger Publishers, 2006. Print. Wilson, David G. Redefining Shamanisms: Spiritualist Mediums and Other Traditional Shamans as Apprenticeship Outcomes.

London: Bloomsbury Pub, 2013. Print.