The World of the Shaman - Case Study Example

One Variety of Shamanism Our earliest ancestors’ attempts to make sense of the various phenomena of nature and there effects on them gave rise to numerous faiths, rituals and practices many of which have survived the test of time. During those days ailments used to be more common and fatal and it was believed that the gods who were angry with the sinful people were responsible for the sufferings. From these feelings of insecurity developed the need for such a system that could heal diseases and bring a sense of well being for the community in the form of successful hunting, good rain, weather control and fertility of land. In order to activate that system a Guru was needed who could serve as the connective link between the lesser mortals and the Divine. These are the needs, which paved the way for Shamans and Shamanism. Since the earliest Homo sapiens, hundreds of cultures around the world have developed different varieties of Shamanistic traditions which have fascinated generations of scholars and researchers. The traces of shamanism can be found in every continent. Some of the varieties of Shamanism are the Celtic Shamanism, Vedic Shamanism, Siberian Shamanism, Mongolian Shamanism, Tibetan Shamanism, Chinese Shamanism etc. what is common to all these manifestations of Shamanism is the healing of the body, mind and soul – a kind of purification. The study of these aboriginal traditions broadens our understanding of Shamanism as a whole. Shamanism and its characteristics: The evidence of the fact that Shamanism is an age-old tradition can be found in ancient literary texts such as The Rig Vedas. Vedic Shamanism, which flourished in the East and Central Asia is very similar to the other Shamanistic traditions, and believed in an animating principle that permeates through all things and all beings. That unseen essence of being is called the soul. The Shamans used roots and barks and produced a rattle sound while healing. It is believed that the Shamans made the rock paintings of Bhimbetaka in India. The meditative tradition in Asia that advocates Yoga is an offshoot of the Vedic Shamanism. Yoga attempts to set the mind in a thoughtless zone. This meditative tradition explores the ancient wisdom that an unseen energy flows through all beings and is connected directly to the quality of life. By trapping that life force, physical, emotional and spiritual well-being can be ensured. Although the process is spiritual in nature, it is not confined to any religion. The Yoga masters suggest that it is necessary to have a clear perception of the Self. Unless one recognizes the inherent energy, the pilgrim’s progress towards eternity will be obstructed. How does one come to become a Shaman? According to Robert M. Huff, a Shaman “may have received” his “calling to become a shaman as a result of a near-death experience in which” he was “carried into the spirit world and met teachers who helped them to learn healing songs, medicines, and revelations about the future. A shaman may also be born into the role, or be trained for it after demonstrating some special aptitude for healing.” Every generation expects someone to take on the role of the shaman. The Roles of a Shaman: Michael Harner tells us that ‘Shaman’ is a Tungis word which originated in Siberia. It means one who can see with eyes closed or in the dark. The Shaman can be either a man or a woman. The chief role that the Shaman plays is that of a healer, as he knows the pragmatic techniques of diagnosis. Another important role of the Shaman is dealing with the spirits, because he is the one who can retrieve lost souls and banish the intruding souls. Davidson, in his book Gods and Myths of Northern Europe, writes, "The shaman acts as intermediary between the world of men and the gods, and has the power to descend into the realms of the dead. His spirit is believed to journey forth from his body, which remains in a state of trance. Sometime the long journey which it takes is described by him in a chant." (118). A significant role of the shaman, according to Mircea Eliade, is that of a custodian of the communitys soul-force or what he calls the “psychic integrity”. The Shaman helps those possessed by evil spirits be free from the influence. He leads the spirits of the dead to the proper place and makes sure that no one captures that soul and enslaves. He even negotiates with some spirits and bargains them out. The Shaman can also play the role of a seer or visionary, leader, counselor, priest or even priest-king as in case of the Taiwanese shamans. Divination: As a diviner, a Shaman prophesizes the future of his followers, for instance, the Shaman can tell the hunter in advance whether his hunting expedition is going to be successful or not. They can foretell what is going to happen to the community next year, whether there will be enough crops. The Shaman is also able to reveal the location of things that are missing. In order to divine, the Shaman uses different methods. He can know the future by using his connections with the spirits or by comprehending the various omens that he sees from time to time. This is how nature reveals itself to the Shaman – through various omens. Apart from being a soothsayer, the Shaman also answers questions while healing. Thus, divination is used in detecting the cause of the disease. Healing: Shamans use a natural healing system by drawing the cosmic energy. They converge into a patient the cosmic energy through various mediums of treatment – using natural herbs, through spiritual vibrations accompanied by drumming, dance, musical performances, by creating mental configurations or uttering chants. Traditionally, the Shamans delved into ecstatic trance to draw the cosmic energy from the other worlds. They undertook spiritual voyages into the realms of eternity while in trance. It was during these trance-like states that the Shamans received from the spiritual masters from the other worlds, the wisdom, training, assistance and guidance required to detect and cure the diseases. According to the contemporary Yoga Gurus, all human beings, by nature, are disease-free. It is only when the divine essence is contaminated by the non-divine that diseases attack us. The soul loss eats into the body automatically as the basis of existence is the spirit. The corporal constitution of all human beings is a combination of the same elements that the celestial bodies are made of. Therefore, eternity flows through the veins of all mortals. As long as this molecule of eternity remains in motion in our body, we remain the splendid creations of nature and belong to the higher order, where as when this flow becomes stagnant, all sorts of diseases capture us. This is more a spiritual immortality than a physical immortality. Sacrifice: In the earlier days, the Shaman used to conduct sacrifices. Sacrifices were a part of the annual rituals every year during fertility rites. Even when it was believed that a spirit had gotten into the body and must be removed there had to be a sacrifice. Animals were sacrificed and all ate the sacrificed animals. The notion of Shamanic sacrifice is related to the concept of animal sacrifice. Just as the animal sacrifices its life for the community so does the Shaman – he dedicates his life to the spiritual world for the betterment of the community. The Shaman takes up this dangerous service for the well being of the community. What is the cosmos like that they talk about? The cosmos, according to the Shamanists, is made up of multiple worlds arrayed above, below and around the perceivable world. It is just like a multi-tiered universe. The other worlds are just as filled with power if not more power than the world that can be perceived. The shaman acquires an altered state of consciousness as a means of navigating the other worlds. In order to go into other worlds, he has to free one or more of his souls to leave this conscious visible world, as it is difficult to be talking to someone in a different world if you are here and awake. The Shaman, after all, is someone who has traveled extensively and interacted with the spirits of the other world by building contacts while visiting the other worlds. Shamanism can play just as vital a role in the contemporary society as it did in the days of our earliest ancestors. In Yoga, we can witness a revival as well as a reformation of Shamanism. It can well be viewed as an integration of the Eastern and Western Shamanistic traditions. Here, each individual is a Shaman healing oneself, of course, after receiving training from a Guru. With the healing of the individual, the society gets refined automatically. This meditative Shamanistic practice is nothing but restrain and complete surrender to the divine for the purpose of physical, spiritual and emotional healing. It is all about getting the mind over matter. Its ultimate aim, like that of all other Shamanistic traditions, is holistic and spiritual therapy. The contemporary generation, particularly, the young mass, have surprisingly been influenced by the principles and practices of Yoga. It seems the ailing earth is trying to retrieve its lost soul and in this attempt has subscribed to the prescriptions of Yoga Gurus – the Shamanists of the brave new world. BIBLIOGRAPHY Davidson, H.R. Ellis. Gods and Myths of Northern Europe. New York: Penguin, 1964. Eliade, Mircea. Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy. Translated from the French by Willard R. Trask. (Revised and enlarged from the original French edition, Le Charmanisme et les techniques archaiques de l’extase, 1951). New York: Bollingen Foundation, 1964. Harner, Michael. The Way of the Shaman. San Francisco: Harper, 1990. Huff, R. M. Promoting Health in Multicultural Populations: A Handbook for Practitioners. Thousand Oaks CA: Sage Publications, 1999. Kalweit, Holger. Dreamtime and Inner Space: The World of the Shaman. Translated from the German by Werner Wunsche. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 1988. Wafer, Lionel. (1699) A New Voyage and Description of the Isthmus of America. Ed. L.E. Elliott Joyce. Oxford: The Hakluyt Society, 1934. Read More