shamanism & religion

why is the shaman so important?

the shaman brings three fundamental things to the group: healing, meaning & divination.

1. shamanism originated prior to the great human diaspora some 80,000 years ago and has been preserved since. shamanistic practices keep coming back countless times in premodern human cultures.

2. early homo sapiens does not differentiate between the material and mental. early homo sapiens was ANIMISTIC in its interpretation of reality. that is, to say, all objects, places and creatures possess a distinct spiritual essence. everything IS CONNECTED! 

3. the shaman is the interface between the spiritual and the material world.

shamanism works both mentally and physically as a source of meaning for the tribe. shamans are the early prophets, providing cohesion through spiritual awareness. 

shamans are the early doctors, early botanists, gathering medicinal knowledge and healing practices by natural selection. the shaman is the group's shrink! they knew the soil medicinal properties (what today is known as fangotherapy, i.e., clay, peat and mud), which are known to help neurological, rheumatological, cardiovascular, gynecological, inflammatory and menstrual cycle disorders.

WE NEED MEANING AND WE GIVE MEANING, but anthropologically speaking, OUR MEANINGS TEND TO CONVERGE!

WHY? one hypothesis proposed by Karl Jung is that culture's archetypes are innate, universal prototypes for concepts to interpret observations of the world.

MEANING is part epistemic, part psychological, part magic (magic in the sense of preternatural). WE INVEST the world with meaning as a way of creating and reshaping our milieu. 

4. shamans's job is to offer redemption. it means forgiveness and hope. why? we need to channel our destructive energy and the shaman and the elders are the right conduit.

5. one last point: the shaman is always in tension with the elders. the two have different interests: elders are conservative, they seek stability. the shaman is a healer/seer.