Shamanism refers to the traditional healing and religious practices of Northern Asia (Siberia) and Mongolia. By extension, the concept of shamanism has been extended in common language to a range of traditional beliefs and practices that involve the ability to diagnose, cure, and sometimes cause human suffering by traversing the axis mundi and forming a special relationship with, or gaining control over, spirits. Shamans have been credited with the ability to control the weather, divination, the interpretation of dreams, astral projection, and traveling to upper and lower worlds. Shamanistic traditions have exist ...

Including:

• Shamanism - Etymology
• Shamanism - History
• Shamanism - Asia
• Shamanism - Americas
• Shamanism - Aspects of the practice
• Shamanism - Initiation and learning
• Shamanism - Shamanic illness
• Shamanism - Practice and method
• Shamanism - Shamanic technology
• Shamanism - Gender and sexuality
• Shamanism - Shamanism and New Age

Read more here: » Shamanism: Encyclopedia - Shamanism

Shamanism: A shaman is one who helps people in their dealings with the other worlds. These other worlds are the realms above, beyond, and deep with the experiences of our lives. These are the realms of the spiritual, psychic vision and pure, natural Earth energies. In shamanism these worlds were traditionally represented as the upper world of the sky, or spirit levels, and the lower worlds of Earth and Nature.

(See also: Shamanism, Magic, Shamanism, Paganism, Wicca)

Refers to the activities of the shaman when he or she is engaging in the religious or healing practices of shamanism.

(See also: shamanizing, Magic, Shamanism, Pagan Dictionary)

Core Shamanism or Neoshamanism is a system of shamanic beliefs and practices from all over the world. Synthesized by Michael Harner, PhD, core shamanism does not hold a fixed belief system, but instead focuses on the practice of trance travel and may on an individual basis integrate indigenous shamanism, the teachings of Carlos Castaneda and other spiritualities. Specific practices include the use of rapid drumming [about 220 beats per minute] to attain the Shamanic State of Consciousness, communication with power animal ...

Read more here: » Core Shamanism: Encyclopedia - Core Shamanism

There are a number of shamanistic practices that are developed in Korea, where the role of a shaman is most frequently taken by women. They have deep roots and have inter-influenced Buddhism and Taoism. This meeting is mediated by a shaman. In contemporary Korean, a shaman is known as a mudang. Even though belief in Korean shamanism is not as widespread as it once was, the practices are kept alive. In the past such shamanistic rites have included as agricultural rites, such as prayers for abundant harvest. With a shift a ...

Including:

• Korean Shamanism - Gut
• Korean Shamanism - Naerim-gut
• Korean Shamanism - Dodang-gut
• Korean Shamanism - Ssitgim-gut
• Korean Shamanism - Regional Shaman Rites

Read more here: » Korean Shamanism: Encyclopedia - Korean Shamanism

Shaman

A medicine man/woman or witch doctor.

(See also: Shaman, New Age, Body mind and Soul)

A religious or healing practitioner who practices shamanism.

(See also: shaman, Magic, Shamanism, Pagan Dictionary)

The characteristics of someone who is using the techniques of shamanism or the qualities of beliefs or techniques that make them part of shamanism. This term is also used to refer to techniques and practices that are "shamanistic," meaning that they are like shamanism or adapted from it, but the person using them isn't actually a shaman.

(See also: shamanic, Magic, Shamanism, Pagan Dictionary)

shaman

1.    Spiritual guide and healer in primitive society (Siberian).

2.    A person who enters an altered state of consciousness at will to contact and utilize an ordinary hidden reality in order to acquire knowledge, power and to help other persons; having at least one and usually more spirits in their personal service

(See also: Shaman, Body Mind and Soul)

A deeply rooted traditional system for healing and solving personal and community problems, in which a religious or healing practitioner contacts the spirits for wisdom and advice, usually through going into a trance or other altered state consciousness.

(See also: shamanism, Magic, Shamanism, Pagan Dictionary)

Shaman/Shamanism

Derived from the Siberian Tungus word 'saman' meaning person who has been possessed by, and mastered the spirits. Shamanism is possibly the oldest world religion, originating in Siberia over 8,000 years ago.

It is reputedly a path to higher knowledge which is gained through the experience of rituals, ceremonies, prayer and meditation, in addition to the undergoing of initiation trials and tests. These rites of passage enable the shaman to carry out ancient healing practices.

(See also: Shamanism, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Shaman:

A witchdoctor or medicine man/woman who communicates with spirits while in trance and who has the power of healing. May also show other paranormal abilities.

(See also: Shaman, Psychic, Psychic Dictionary, Parapsychology, Parapsychology Dictionary)

SHAMAN: among tribal peoples, a magician, medium, or healer who owes his powers to mystical communion with the spirit world. Characteristically, a shaman goes into auto-hypnotic trances, during which he contacts spirits.

Shamans are found among the Siberians, Eskimos, Native American tribes, in S.E. Asia, and in Oceania. There is also now a development of shamanic healers and practitioners in North America. (See Spiritual/Shamanic Healing.)

(See also: Shaman, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

Shaman: A medicine man/woman or witch doctor.

(See also: Shaman, Alternative Health, Body Mind and Soul)

SHAMAN

among tribal peoples, a magician, medium, or healer who owes his powers to mystical communion with the spirit world. Characteristically, a shaman goes into auto-hypnotic trances, during which he contacts spirits. Shamans are found among the Siberians, Eskimos, Native American tribes, in S.E. Asia, and in Oceania. There is also now a development of shamanic healers and practitioners in North America. (See Spiritual/Shamanic Healing.)

(See also: SHAMAN, Alternative Health, Healing, Body Mind and Soul)

Shaman

(Siberian Tungus language) A medicine man/woman or witch doctor. While a medicine man will tend to the sick, working with herbs, barks and the like, the shaman works more on the psychological level. He will go down on "a journey" for the benefit of the one who is ill; he will direct sacrifices, he will seek out new knowledge, and he will accompany the spirits of the dead on their journey to the afterlife.

The Eskimos, Maoris, Polynesians, Mongolians and the American Indians are some of the peoples that believe in the abilities of shamans.

(See also: Shaman, New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

SHAMANISM: The practice of shamans, usually ritualistic or magickal in nature, sometimes religious.

(See also: SHAMANISM, Paganism, Pagan, Pagan Dictionary)

shamanism (shamanic): From the Sanskrit shramana, "ascetic," akin to shram, meaning "to exert."

Generally refers to any religion based on the belief that good or evil spirits can be influenced by priests, or shamans, who serve as intermediaries between man and divine forces. Descriptive of many of the world's tribal, indigenous faiths. See also: folk-shamanic, pagan, paganism, shamanism, incantation, mysticism, Shaktism.)

Shamanism

The religion of many of the ancient lessdeveloped civilizations of the world. Some societies today are shamanistic. Shamanism is characterised by the ability of the Shaman to communicate with the spirit world to provide healing, guidance or wisdom. The shaman's soul is sometimes believed to leave the body during a trance at which time the shaman will speak with beings from the other worlds or assume animal forms.

(See also: Shamanism, New Age Spirituality, Body Mind and Soul)

SHAMAN:

1) a practitioner of SHAMANISM. Person who has obtained knowledge of the subtler aspects of the World by periods of alternate states of consciousness. Native Americans are quite adamant that only an 'Indian' can truly practice such with any real knowledge & others are just fakes & game players, who 'practice' at the expense of respect & truth of what Shamanism is really about.

2) A title given to either a male or female initiate of a religious priesthood usually associated with native American, African, Asian or Australian traditions. Pagan rather than Wiccan.

3) Comes from the extinct Ural-Altaic language called Tungus. They are the priests and medicine men of old tribal societies worldwide. Shamans or Shamankas, the feminine form, practiced in every known culture, and many are still active today. In many vernaculars the native word for shaman roughly translates into "walker between the worlds." In Celtic terms, Shamanic traditions are thought to relate to the stellar, or heavenly, planetary deities, as opposed to the deities of the earth and her functions.

(See also: SHAMAN, Witchcraft, Wicca, Paganism, Pagan Dictionary)