(Neo)Shamanic Dialogues
Esther Jean Langdon, Isabel Santana de Rose
Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions April 13, 2012 DOI: 10.1525/nr.2012.15.4.36 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Case study Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Members of a Guarani Indian village on the Atlantic coast of Santa Catarina, Brazil |
| Intervention | ayahuasca |
| Topics | Ayahuasca Shamanism |
| Keywords | Dialogical self Appropriation Politics Ethnography Anthropology Aesthetics Ethnology |
| Citations | 17 |
| Key findings | Contemporary shamanisms emerge from specific political and historical contexts and must be understood as dialogical categories constructed through interactions among diverse actors. |
Abstract
This paper is a reflection on the ritual incorporation of ayahuasca, an Amazonian psychoactive ritual substance, by members of a Guarani Indian village on the Atlantic coast of the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil. Their shamanic leaders have adapted the use of this beverage into their ritual practices and recognize it as part of their culture and tradition. This process of appropriation is a result of the formation of a network that involves various actors, among them the Guarani Indians, members of Sacred Fire of Itzachilatlan, followers of the Brazilian ayahuasca religion Santo Daime, and a health team employed to provide primary attention to Indian communities. Based on this case study, we demonstrate that shamanisms today emerge out of specific political and historic contexts. If the concept of shamanism is useful as an analytical paradigm, it must be thought of as a dialogical category constructed through interaction between actors with diverse origins, discourses, and interests.
Comparable studies
Other case reports and case series on shamanism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brain changes during a shamanic trance: Altered modes of consciousness, hemispheric laterality, and systemic psychobiology A normal subject with extensive training in the Mongolian shamanic tradition | 2017 | Case study | n = 1 |
| The Diaspora of Brazilian Religions | 2013 | Ethnographic case studies | |
| Transformation in Dang-ki Healing: The Embodied Self and Perceived Legitimacy. A male dang-ki, 10 temple assistants, and 9 clients at a shrine in Singapore | 2016 | Case study | n = 20 |
| Kambô: A Shamanic Medicine - Personal Testimonies | 2018 | Case study | |
| Shamanic Healing for Veterans with PTSD: A Case Series. Veterans with PTSD | 2017 | Case series | n = 6 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 6
- The Globalization of Ayahuasca Shamanism and the Erasure of Indigenous Shamanism Anthropology of Consciousness September 1, 2016
- L’ayahuasca et son ombre. L’apprentissage de la possession dans un centre chamanique d’Amazonie péruvienne Journal de la Société des Américanistes 2018
- Um panorama da literatura sobre a internacionalização das religiões ayahuasqueiras brasileiras Ciências Sociais Unisinos October 27, 2017
- De crecer en la selva a practicar la ayahuasca en la ciudad: una exploración de la globalización de la ayahuasca en términos de autenticidad, autoatención y de los retos de dicha globalización para la antropología médica Revista de Antropología Social November 20, 2023
- Fantazie, nebo realita? Dlouhodobé změny v kategorizaci zkušeností u praktikujících neo-šamanů Ceskoslovenska psychologie April 21, 2025
and 1 more in the library