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The Australian Journal of Anthropology

ISSN 1035-8811

2 papers in the library · 23 citations · publishing 2015-2026

Papers

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To become a medium: Relatedness and apprenticeship in Australian spiritualism

The Australian Journal of Anthropology September 6, 2026

Within the modern Spiritualist movement, mediums are central figures who work to connect physical and spirit worlds. By attempting to provide evidence of the survival of the human spirit after physical death, conveying caring messages from the spirit world, and giving hope to recipients, mediums pursue a spiritual mission. In this paper, I consider two models of mediumship: Wilson's argument...

‘Whatever you want to believe’: kaleidoscopic individualism and ayahuasca healing in Australia

The Australian Journal of Anthropology July 14, 2015 Alex K. Gearin 23 citations

Over the last fifteen years the use of the indigenous Amazonian psychoactive beverage ayahuasca has been reimagined in alternative healing circles of Western countries. This paper explores the practice of ayahuasca neoshamanism in Australia and examines ways in which acts of vomiting and ecstatic trance‐visions involve heightened affective states and moral projects of healing. Aspects of...