Misplaced Pages

#721278

79-478: Due to their oral mythology and distinctive Shamanistic practices , Kham Magar are thought to have originally migrated from Siberia according to shamanic tradition , but some writers have written that they originated in Rukum district . There is no evidence of their migration or origin. Oral histories handed down from generation to generation say that Kham people migrated from icy northern icy Himalayan Region in

158-628: A ritual , and practices divination and healing . The word "shaman" probably originates from the Tungusic Evenki language of North Asia . According to Juha Janhunen, "the word is attested in all of the Tungusic idioms" such as Negidal , Lamut , Udehe / Orochi , Nanai , Ilcha, Orok , Manchu and Ulcha , and "nothing seems to contradict the assumption that the meaning 'shaman' also derives from Proto-Tungusic " and may have roots that extend back in time at least two millennia. The term

237-413: A comprehensive view in their mind which gives them certainty of knowledge . According to this view, the shaman uses (and the audience understands) multiple codes, expressing meanings in many ways: verbally, musically, artistically, and in dance. Meanings may be manifested in objects such as amulets . If the shaman knows the culture of their community well, and acts accordingly, their audience will know

316-413: A different term other than the one translated "shaman" is usually applied to a religious official leading sacrificial rites ("priest"), or to a raconteur ("sage") of traditional lore; there may be more of an overlap in functions (with that of a shaman), however, in the case of an interpreter of omens or of dreams. There are distinct types of shamans who perform more specialized functions. For example, among

395-604: A growing problem that still persists. Food deficits were historically addressed by grain imports bought dearly with distant work at low wages. As some corrupted development brought schools, electricity, motor roads, hospitals and some range of consumer goods to specific surrounding areas, few benefits trickled up into the highlands and contrasts became even more invidious. Development introduced motor transport, which diminished porterage employment. Cultivating hemp and processing it into charas (hashish) lost standing as an income generator after 1976 when international pressure persuaded

474-465: A merchant from Lübeck , published in 1698 his account of a Russian embassy to China; a translation of his book, published the same year, introduced the word shaman to English speakers. Anthropologist and archeologist Silvia Tomaskova argued that by the mid-1600s, many Europeans applied the Arabic term shaitan (meaning "devil") to the non-Christian practices and beliefs of Indigenous peoples beyond

553-479: A shaman (and by extension the earliest undisputed evidence of shamans and shamanic practices) dates back to the early Upper Paleolithic era (c. 30,000 BP) in what is now the Czech Republic. Sanskrit scholar and comparative mythologist Michael Witzel proposes that all of the world's mythologies, and also the concepts and practices of shamans, can be traced to the migrations of two prehistoric populations:

632-448: A shaman is exposed to significant personal risk as shamanic plant materials can be toxic or fatal if misused. Spells are commonly used in an attempt to protect against these dangers, and the use of more dangerous plants is often very highly ritualized. Generally, shamans traverse the axis mundi and enter the "spirit world" by effecting a transition of consciousness, entering into an ecstatic trance, either autohypnotically or through

711-447: A shaman may include either guiding to their proper abode the souls of the dead (which may be guided either one-at-a-time or in a group, depending on the culture), and the curing of ailments. The ailments may be either purely physical afflictions—such as disease, which are claimed to be cured by gifting, flattering, threatening, or wrestling the disease-spirit (sometimes trying all these, sequentially), and which may be completed by displaying

790-559: A single concept. Billy-Ray Belcourt, an author and award-winning scholar from the Driftpile Cree Nation in Canada, argues that using language with the intention of simplifying culture that is diverse, such as Shamanism, as it is prevalent in communities around the world and is made up of many complex components, works to conceal the complexities of the social and political violence that Indigenous communities have experienced at

869-487: A specialist can influence important but uncontrollable outcomes. Citing work on the psychology of magic and superstition , Singh argues that humans search for ways of influencing uncertain events, such as healing illness, controlling rain, or attracting animals. As specialists compete to help their clients control these outcomes, they drive the evolution of psychologically compelling magic, producing traditions adapted to people's cognitive biases. Shamanism, Singh argues,

SECTION 10

#1732773205722

948-403: A spirit can be summoned it must teach the shaman its song. The use of totemic items such as rocks with special powers and an animating spirit is common. Such practices are presumably very ancient. Plato wrote in his Phaedrus that the "first prophecies were the words of an oak", and that those who lived at that time found it rewarding enough to "listen to an oak or a stone, so long as it

1027-408: A supposedly extracted token of the disease-spirit (displaying this, even if "fraudulent", is supposed to impress the disease-spirit that it has been, or is in the process of being, defeated so that it will retreat and stay out of the patient's body), or else mental (including psychosomatic) afflictions—such as persistent terror, which is likewise believed to be cured by similar methods. In most languages

1106-479: A world-view behind them. Analogously to the way grammar arranges words to express meanings and convey a world, also this formed a cognitive map). Shaman's lore is rooted in the folklore of the community, which provides a "mythological mental map." Juha Pentikäinen uses the concept "grammar of mind." Armin Geertz coined and introduced the hermeneutics , or "ethnohermeneutics", interpretation. Hoppál extended

1185-514: Is a cannabis concentrate made from the resin of a live cannabis plant ( Cannabis sativa either Indica subspecies or Sativa subspecies) and is handmade in the Indian subcontinent . The plant grows wild throughout Northern India along the stretch of the Himalayas (its putative origin) and is an important cash crop for the local people. The difference between charas and hashish

1264-411: Is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner ( shaman ) interacting with the spirit world through altered states of consciousness , such as trance . 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. Beliefs and practices categorized as "shamanic" have attracted

1343-546: Is also a large amount of charas that is illegally exported across to Europe . High quality hashish in India comes from cannabis grown in the mountains, or that is smuggled in from Pakistan and Afghanistan. The variety from Himachal Pradesh is considered to be of the highest quality throughout India. It is easily available in Kinnaur , Shimla , Karsog , Kumarsain , Barot , Kullu - Malana , Rampur Bushahr . For this reason,

1422-518: Is known as the "neurotheological theory". According to Winkelman, shamanism develops reliably in human societies because it provides valuable benefits to the practitioner, their group, and individual clients. In particular, the trance states induced by dancing, hallucinogens, and other triggers are hypothesized to have an "integrative" effect on cognition, allowing communication among mental systems that specialize in theory of mind , social intelligence, and natural history. With this cognitive integration,

1501-407: Is no record of pure shamanistic societies (although their existence is not impossible). Norwegian social anthropologist Hakan Rydving has likewise argued for the abandonment of the terms "shaman" and "shamanism" as "scientific illusions." Dulam Bumochir has affirmed the above critiques of "shamanism" as a Western construct created for comparative purposes and, in an extensive article, has documented

1580-445: Is no single agreed-upon definition for the word "shamanism" among anthropologists. Thomas Downson suggests three shared elements of shamanism: practitioners consistently alter consciousness, the community regards altering consciousness as an important ritual practice, and the knowledge about the practice is controlled. The English historian Ronald Hutton noted that by the dawn of the 21st century, there were four separate definitions of

1659-404: Is often used by Indian sadhus for religious purposes. The Naga Sadhus, Aghoris and Tantric Bhairava sects smoke it freely as an integral part of their religious practice. Many smoke it in clay pipes called chillums , using a cotton cloth to cover the smoking end of the chillum and inserting a tightly packed pebble-sized cone of clay as filter under the chunk of charas. Before lighting

SECTION 20

#1732773205722

1738-462: Is that hashish is made from a dead cannabis plant and charas is made from a live one. Charas has been used across the Indian subcontinent for medicinal and religious purposes for thousands of years, and was sold in government shops (along with opium ) during the times of the British India and in independent India until the 1980s when sale and consumption of Cannabis was made illegal in

1817-729: Is the culmination of this cultural evolutionary process—a psychologically appealing method for controlling uncertainty. For example, some shamanic practices exploit our intuitions about humanness: Practitioners use trance and dramatic initiations to seemingly become entities distinct from normal humans and thus more apparently capable of interacting with the invisible forces believed to oversee important outcomes. Influential cognitive and anthropological scientists, such as Pascal Boyer and Nicholas Humphrey , have endorsed Singh's approach, although other researchers have criticized Singh's dismissal of individual- and group-level benefits. Gerardo Reichel-Dolmatoff relates these concepts to developments in

1896-529: The Inuit the angakkuq (shamans) fetch the souls of game from remote places, or soul travel to ask for game from mythological beings like the Sea Woman . The way shamans get sustenance and take part in everyday life varies across cultures. In many Inuit groups, they provide services for the community and get a "due payment", and believe the payment is given to the helping spirits. An account states that

1975-504: The Nanai people , a distinct kind of shaman acts as a psychopomp. Other specialized shamans may be distinguished according to the type of spirits, or realms of the spirit world, with which the shaman most commonly interacts. These roles vary among the Nenets , Enets , and Selkup shamans. The assistant of an Oroqen shaman (called jardalanin , or "second spirit") knows many things about

2054-680: The People's Liberation Army . Bhume Naach ( Bal puja ) is one of the ancient cultural festivals celebrated by the Kham Magar tribes of Rolpa and Rukum. The main celebration takes place during the first week of June. Kham Magars people dance very slowly in the Jholeni and Bhume dances, while Magars dance a fast dance, the Kaura dance . Currently Kham people worship their ancestors through animism and shamanism. Shamanism Shamanism

2133-557: The Shah Dynasty regime in the 1996-2006 Nepalese Civil War and even the multiparty democracy that the Shahs had toyed with. The Rolpa and Rukum districts in the center of the magars homelands became known as the " Maoist heartland " and Kham Magars were prominent as footsoldiers of its guerrilla forces and Deputy Commander during Maoist Civil War like Barshaman Pun Magar and Nanda Bahadur Pun Magar former chief commander who led

2212-496: The Tucano people , a sophisticated system exists for environmental resources management and for avoiding resource depletion through overhunting. This system is conceptualized mythologically and symbolically by the belief that breaking hunting restrictions may cause illness. The shaman is able to "release" game animals, or their souls, from their hidden abodes. The Piaroa people have ecological concerns related to shamanism. Among

2291-701: The United States in 1985 and cultivation and trafficking of charas was prohibited by the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS), 1985 . Charas was also produced in Nepal and sold in government monopoly stores in Kathmandu until the use of cannabis, and consequently charas, was made illegal in Nepal due to international pressure in 1976. Charas remains popular in the subcontinent and

2370-577: The Ural Mountains . She suggests that shaman may have entered the various Tungus dialects as a corruption of this term, and then been told to Christian missionaries , explorers, soldiers and colonial administrators with whom the people had increasing contact for centuries. A female shaman is sometimes called a shamanka , which is not an actual Tungus term but simply shaman plus the Russian suffix -ka (for feminine nouns). There

2449-426: The spiritual world or dimension. Most shamans have dreams or visions that convey certain messages. Shamans may claim to have or have acquired many spirit guides , who they believe guide and direct them in their travels in the spirit world. These spirit guides are always thought to be present within the shaman, although others are said to encounter them only when the shaman is in a trance . The spirit guide energizes

Kham Magar - Misplaced Pages Continue

2528-555: The " Gondwana " type (of circa 65,000 years ago) and the " Laurasian " type (of circa 40,000 years ago). In November 2008, researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem announced the discovery of a 12,000-year-old site in Israel that is perceived as one of the earliest-known shaman burials. The elderly woman had been arranged on her side, with her legs apart and folded inward at the knee. Ten large stones were placed on

2607-482: The 18th-century writings of Tibetan Buddhist monks in Mongolia and later "probably influenced the formation of European discourse on Shamanism". Shamanism is a system of religious practice. Historically, it is often associated with Indigenous and tribal societies , and involves belief that shamans, with a connection to the otherworld , have the power to heal the sick, communicate with spirits, and escort souls of

2686-576: The 19th and 20th centuries. The main export was mercenaries for the British and Indian armies, or whatever other employment opportunities could be found for largely uneducated and unskilled labor. Northern magar also practice transhumance by grazing cattle, sheep and goats in summer pastures in subalpine and alpine pastures to the north, working their way down to winter pastures in the Dang - Deukhuri valleys. Despite unending toil, food shortages have become

2765-805: The Kham Magars by following the Mahabharat Range to the south or the Dhorpatan valley to the north which—by Himalayan standards—offers exceptionally easy east–west passage. The Kham Magar highlands may also have been left as a buffer between the easternmost Baise kingdom , Salyan , and the westernmost Chaubisi kingdom, Pyuthan . For the Hindu Brahmin, the intervening highlands, unsuited for rice cultivation, were hardly worth contesting. Kham people are considered to have existed in this Himalyan belt since 3000 years ago, much longer before

2844-404: The associated beliefs. He or she accompanies the rituals and interprets the behaviors of the shaman. Despite these functions, the jardalanin is not a shaman. For this interpretative assistant, it would be unwelcome to fall into a trance. As the primary teacher of tribal symbolism, the shaman may have a leading role in this ecological management, actively restricting hunting and fishing. Among

2923-797: The assumed derivational relationship is phonologically irregular (note especially the vowel quantities)." Mircea Eliade noted that the Sanskrit word श्रमण , śramaṇa , designating a wandering monastic or holy figure, has spread to many Central Asian languages along with Buddhism and could be the ultimate origin of the word shaman. The word has been reported in Gandhari as ṣamana , in Tocharian A as ṣāmaṃ , in Tocharian B as ṣamāne and in Chinese as 沙門 , shāmén . The term

3002-552: The birth of Buddha as they believed in shamanism , while the Magars are historically mentioned after 1100 ADs by various foreign researchers. Kham civilization is said to have given "Pal" title to many of its inhabitants. As a matter of fact, Pal kings were the early rulers of Nepal during which Kham Magar were given the title of Pals at the end of their names. After unification of Nepal coming Shaha king, official neglect, underdevelopment and poverty essentially continued through

3081-683: The calling of a shaman can be found in the case history of Chuonnasuan , who was one of the last shamans among the Tungus peoples in Northeast China . The wounded healer is an archetype for a shamanic trial and journey. This process is important to young shamans. They undergo a type of sickness that pushes them to the brink of death. This is said to happen for two reasons: Shamans may employ varying materials in spiritual practice in different cultures. Shamans have been conceptualized as those who are able to gain knowledge and power to heal in

3160-450: The chillum they will chant the many names of Shiva in veneration . It is freely available in several places around India especially where there is a strong affluence of tourists. Although charas can be found in several places around India, its manufacturing can be traced only to specific locations in India such as, Parvati Valley , ( Kasol , Rasol, Malana ("Malana cream"), Kashmir as well as several other places in northern India. There

3239-514: The community, including the spirits of the deceased. Shamans believe they can communicate with both living and dead to alleviate unrest, unsettled issues, and to deliver gifts to the spirits. Shamans perform a variety of functions depending upon their respective cultures; healing, leading a sacrifice , preserving traditions by storytelling and songs, fortune-telling , and acting as a psychopomp ("guide of souls"). A single shaman may fulfill several of these functions. The responsibilities of

Kham Magar - Misplaced Pages Continue

3318-503: The dead to the afterlife . The origins of Shamanism stem from indigenous peoples of far northern Europe and Siberia. Despite structural implications of colonialism and imperialism that have limited the ability of Indigenous peoples to practice traditional spiritualities, many communities are undergoing resurgence through self-determination and the reclamation of dynamic traditions. Other groups have been able to avoid some of these structural impediments by virtue of their isolation, such as

3397-693: The east, and the smaller (western) Rapti and Babai river systems that separate the two larger systems south of this point. Since the uppermost tributaries of the Karnali and Gandaki rise beyond the highest Himalaya ranges, trade routes linking India and Tibet developed along these rivers, whereas the high ridges along the Rapti's northern watershed and then the Dhaulagiri massif beyond were rigorous obstacles. Similarly, Hindus fleeing Hindu-Muslim conflicts, Brahmin people, settled around these highlands with

3476-464: The fact that they exist outside of what is defined as shamanism and even play similar roles in nonshamanic cultures, for example chanting in the Abrahamic religions . She argues that these expression are unique to each culture that uses them and that such practices cannot be generalized easily, accurately, or usefully into a global religion of shamanism. Because of this, Kehoe is also highly critical of

3555-410: The following: Shamanism is based on the premise that the visible world is pervaded by invisible forces or spirits which affect the lives of the living. Although the causes of disease lie in the spiritual realm, inspired by malicious spirits, both spiritual and physical methods are used to heal. Commonly, a shaman "enters the body" of the patient to confront the spiritual infirmity and heals by banishing

3634-401: The gifts and payments that a shaman receives are given by his partner spirit. Since it obliges the shaman to use his gift and to work regularly in this capacity, the spirit rewards him with the goods that it receives. These goods, however, are only "welcome addenda". They are not enough to enable a full-time shaman. Shamans live like any other member of the group, as a hunter or housewife. Due to

3713-407: The hands of settlers. Belcourt argues that language used to imply “simplicity” in regards to Indigenous culture, is a tool used to belittle Indigenous cultures, as it views Indigenous communities solely as a result of a history embroiled in violence, that leaves Indigenous communities only capable of simplicity and plainness. Anthropologist Mihály Hoppál  [ de ] also discusses whether

3792-408: The head, pelvis, and arms. Among her unusual grave goods were 50 complete tortoise shells, a human foot, and certain body parts from animals such as a cow tail and eagle wings. Other animal remains came from a boar, leopard, and two martens. "It seems that the woman … was perceived as being in a close relationship with these animal spirits", researchers noted. The grave was one of at least 28 graves at

3871-484: The human soul caused by foreign elements. Shamans operate primarily within the spiritual world, which, they believe, in turn affects the human world. The restoration of balance is said to result in the elimination of the ailment. The anthropologist Alice Kehoe criticizes the term "shaman" in her book Shamans and Religion: An Anthropological Exploration in Critical Thinking . Part of this criticism involves

3950-485: The human world and the spirit worlds. Shamans are said to treat ailments and illnesses by mending the soul. Alleviating traumas affecting the soul or spirit are believed to restore the physical body of the individual to balance and wholeness. Shamans also claim to enter supernatural realms or dimensions to obtain solutions to problems afflicting the community. Shamans claim to visit other worlds or dimensions to bring guidance to misguided souls and to ameliorate illnesses of

4029-490: The hunt; or entertainment ( Inuit throat singing ). Shamans often claim to have been called through dreams or signs. However, some say their powers are inherited. In traditional societies shamanic training varies in length, but generally takes years. Turner and colleagues mention a phenomenon called "shamanistic initiatory crisis", a rite of passage for shamans-to-be, commonly involving physical illness or psychological crisis. The significant role of initiatory illnesses in

SECTION 50

#1732773205722

4108-504: The hypothesis that shamanism is an ancient, unchanged, and surviving religion from the Paleolithic period. The term has been criticized for its perceived colonial roots, and as a tool to perpetuate perceived contemporary linguistic colonialism. By Western scholars, the term "shamanism" is used to refer to a variety of different cultures and practices around the world, which can vary dramatically and may not be accurately represented by

4187-508: The infectious spirit. Many shamans have expert knowledge of medicinal plants native to their area, and an herbal treatment is often prescribed. In many places shamans learn directly from the plants, harnessing their effects and healing properties, after obtaining permission from the indwelling or patron spirits. In the Peruvian Amazon Basin, shamans and curanderos use medicine songs called icaros to evoke spirits. Before

4266-495: 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. The Modern English word shamanism derives from the Russian word шаман , šamán , which itself comes from

4345-435: The local variations and emphasizes that shamanism is not a religion of sacred dogmas , but linked to the everyday life in a practical way. Following similar thoughts, he also conjectures a contemporary paradigm shift. Piers Vitebsky also mentions that, despite really astonishing similarities, there is no unity in shamanism. The various, fragmented shamanistic practices and beliefs coexist with other beliefs everywhere. There

4424-595: The national government to outlaw these recreational drugs and close government stores where those so inclined could freely purchase what was illegal in most of the world. But the Hindu government directly indirectly encouraged the drugs. Despite adversity, the Magar people retained a robust oral history and a sense of past greatness, which created grievances and made them receptive to the Maobadi (Maoist) movement that opposed

4503-541: The nomadic Tuvan (with an estimated population of 3000 people surviving from this tribe). Tuva is one of the most isolated Asiatic tribes in Russia where the art of shamanism has been preserved until today due to its isolated existence, allowing it to be free from the influences of other major religions. There are many variations of shamanism throughout the world, but several common beliefs are shared by all forms of shamanism. Common beliefs identified by Eliade (1972) are

4582-602: The notion of cultural appropriation . This includes criticism of New Age and modern Western forms of shamanism, which, according to Kehoe, misrepresent or dilute Indigenous practices. Kehoe also believes that the term reinforces racist ideas such as the noble savage . Kehoe is highly critical of Mircea Eliade 's work on shamanism as an invention synthesized from various sources unsupported by more direct research. To Kehoe, citing practices such as drumming , trance, chanting , entheogen and hallucinogen use, spirit communication , and healing as definitive of shamanism ignores

4661-498: The popularity of ayahuasca tourism in South America, there are practitioners in areas frequented by backpackers who make a living from leading ceremonies. Furthermore, due to the predominant number of female shamans over males, shamanism was and continues to be an integral part of women’s economic liberation. Shamanism often serves as an economic resource due to the requirement of payment for service. This economic revenue

4740-434: The role of Mongols themselves, particularly "the partnership of scholars and shamans in the reconstruction of shamanism" in post-1990/post-communist Mongolia. This process has also been documented by Swiss anthropologist Judith Hangartner in her landmark study of Darhad shamans in Mongolia. Historian Karena Kollmar-Polenz argues that the social construction and reification of shamanism as a religious "other" actually began with

4819-407: The shaman can better predict the movement of animals, resolve group conflicts, plan migrations, and provide other useful services. The neurotheological theory contrasts with the "by-product" or "subjective" model of shamanism developed by Harvard anthropologist Manvir Singh. According to Singh, shamanism is a cultural technology that adapts to (or hacks) our psychological biases to convince us that

SECTION 60

#1732773205722

4898-415: The shamans, enabling them to enter the spiritual dimension. Shamans claim to heal within the communities and the spiritual dimension by returning lost parts of the human soul from wherever they have gone. Shamans also claim to cleanse excess negative energies, which are said to confuse or pollute the soul. Shamans act as mediators in their cultures. Shamans claim to communicate with the spirits on behalf of

4977-549: The site, located in a cave in lower Galilee and belonging to the Natufian culture , but is said to be unlike any other among the Epipaleolithic Natufians or in the Paleolithic period. A debated etymology of the word "shaman" is "one who knows", implying, among other things, that the shaman is an expert in keeping together the multiple codes of the society, and that to be effective, shamans must maintain

5056-668: The southern part of China , after the Kham civilization got lost and submerged in the icy glaciers in and around 200 AD. Later, the Kham kings ruled from the present Karnali region or ancient Nepal region in the far west. However, after Khas kings from Kumaon and Garhwal continued to attack upon Kham kings in the Humla and Jumla area in and around 400 AD. The Kham kings are reported to have fought against brute and uncivilized Khas aggressors for hundreds of years. But Kham's last king, Khudu,

5135-597: The subcontinent. Charas plays an important and often integral role in the culture and ritual of certain sects of the Hindu religion , especially among the Shaivas — who focus on the Shaivite traditions (in contrast to Vaishnavs who focus on Vaishnavite traditions) —and it is venerated by some as being one of the aspects of Lord Shiva. Despite this long history, charas was made illegal in India under pressure from

5214-427: The term "shamanism" is appropriate. He notes that for many readers, "-ism" implies a particular dogma, like Buddhism, Catholicism or Judaism. He recommends using the term "shamanhood" or "shamanship" (a term used in old Russian and German ethnographic reports at the beginning of the 20th century) for stressing the diversity and the specific features of the discussed cultures. He believes that this places more stress on

5293-456: The term in a very broad sense. The term was used to describe unrelated magicoreligious practices found within the ethnic religions of other parts of Asia, Africa, Australasia and even completely unrelated parts of the Americas, as they believed these practices to be similar to one another. While the term has been incorrectly applied by cultural outsiders to many Indigenous spiritual practices,

5372-421: The term to include not only the interpretation of oral and written texts, but that of "visual texts as well (including motions, gestures and more complex rituals, and ceremonies performed, for instance, by shamans)". Revealing the animistic views in shamanism, but also their relevance to the contemporary world, where ecological problems have validated paradigms of balance and protection. Charas Charas

5451-477: The term which appeared to be in use: According to the Oxford English Dictionary , a shaman ( / ˈ ʃ ɑː m ə n / SHAH -mən , / ˈ ʃ æ m ə n / SHAM -ən or / ˈ ʃ eɪ m ə n / SHAY -mən ) is someone who is regarded as having access to, and influence in, the world of benevolent and malevolent spirits , who typically enters into a trance state during

5530-459: The use of entheogens or ritual performances. The methods employed are diverse, and are often used together. Just like shamanism itself, music and songs related to it in various cultures are diverse. In several instances, songs related to shamanism are intended to imitate natural sounds , via onomatopoeia . Sound mimesis in various cultures may serve other functions not necessarily related to shamanism: practical goals such as luring game in

5609-419: The used symbols and meanings and therefore trust the shamanic worker. There are also semiotic , theoretical approaches to shamanism, and examples of "mutually opposing symbols" in academic studies of Siberian lore, distinguishing a "white" shaman who contacts sky spirits for good aims by day, from a "black" shaman who contacts evil spirits for bad aims by night. (Series of such opposing symbols referred to

5688-527: The ways that modern science (systems theory, ecology, new approaches in anthropology and archeology) treats causality in a less linear fashion. He also suggests a cooperation of modern science and Indigenous lore. Shamanic practices may originate as early as the Paleolithic , predating all organized religions, and certainly as early as the Neolithic period. The earliest known undisputed burial of

5767-639: The word samān from a Tungusic language – possibly from the southwestern dialect of the Evenki spoken by the Sym Evenki peoples, or from the Manchu language . The etymology of the word is sometimes connected to the Tungus root sā- , meaning "to know". However, Finnish ethnolinguist Juha Janhunen questions this connection on linguistic grounds: "The possibility cannot be completely rejected, but neither should it be accepted without reservation since

5846-462: The words “shaman” and “shamanism” do not accurately describe the variety and complexity that is Indigenous spirituality. Each nation and tribe has its own way of life, and uses terms in their own languages. Mircea Eliade writes, "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = 'technique of religious ecstasy '." Shamanism encompasses the premise that shamans are intermediaries or messengers between

5925-576: Was adopted by Russians interacting with the indigenous peoples in Siberia . It is found in the memoirs of the exiled Russian churchman Avvakum . It was brought to Western Europe twenty years later by the Dutch statesman Nicolaes Witsen , who reported his stay and journeys among the Tungusic- and Samoyedic -speaking Indigenous peoples of Siberia in his book Noord en Oost Tataryen (1692). Adam Brand ,

6004-636: Was defeated. He fought fiercely against the Garra army but was deposed. Khas kingdom flourished in the Jumla region after they claimed this region as Khasan. Northern Magars inhabit highlands 3,000–4,000 metres (9,800–13,100 ft) above sea level , some 50 km (31 mi) south of the Dhaulagiri range, forming a triple divide between the Karnali- Bheri system to the west, the Gandaki system to

6083-486: Was introduced to the west after Russian forces conquered the shamanistic Khanate of Kazan in 1552. The term "shamanism" was first applied by Western anthropologists as outside observers of the ancient religion of the Turks and Mongols , as well as those of the neighbouring Tungusic- and Samoyedic -speaking peoples. Upon observing more religious traditions around the world, some Western anthropologists began to also use

6162-468: Was telling the truth". Belief in witchcraft and sorcery, known as brujería in Latin America, exists in many societies. Other societies assert all shamans have the power to both cure and kill. Those with shamanic knowledge usually enjoy great power and prestige in the community, but they may also be regarded suspiciously or fearfully as potentially harmful to others. By engaging in their work,

6241-588: Was vital for female shamans, especially those living during the Chosun Dynasty in Korea (A.D. 1392–1910). In a culture that disapproved of female economic autonomy, the practice of shamanism allowed women to advance themselves financially and independently, in a way that had not been possible for them before. There are two major frameworks among cognitive and evolutionary scientists for explaining shamanism. The first, proposed by anthropologist Michael Winkelman,

#721278