Full Description
The ancient practice of shamanism touches many cultures and spiritual philosophies. This book offers an in-depth look at the beliefs and practices centered on the shaman, a person believed to have powers to heal and communicate with the spirit world. It explores shamanism and its associated myths, artifacts, and legends as a communally endorsed acknowledgment of the supernatural or spirit world that evolved in the Neolithic Period and continues to appeal today. The work is heavily illustrated, featuring more than 90 of the author's drawings of masks, fetishes, carvings and ongon, and 40 rare photographs of shamans, medicine men and women, and healers.
Contents
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Preface
1. Spiritual Exaltation
2. Shamanism and Belief
3. Shamanistic Power and Magic
4. Shamanistic Symbolism
5. Shamanism and Imaginative Representation
6. Shamanic Ritual and Transformation
7. Shamanic Divination and Curing
8. Spirits, Dreams, and Ecstasy
9. Transformation and Shape-Shifting
10. Life, Death, and Sacrifice
11. Transcendental Shamanism
Notes to the Captions
Notes to the Text
Bibliography
About the Photographs
About the Drawings
Index
