“Not to Be Aware Anymore”: Indigenous Sumatran Ideas and Shamanic Experiences of Changed States of Awareness/Consciousness
Anthropology of Consciousness May 1, 2013 DOI: 10.1111/anoc.12001 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Ethnography Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Orang Sakai of Sumatra |
| Topics | Shamanism |
| Key findings | Orang Sakai practitioners recognize altered states of awareness as preconditions for numinous interactions, and the term ASC is critically discussed. |
Abstract
AbstractAnthropologists working on altered states of consciousness (ASC) have suggested that we should do away with psychologizing concepts and use people's own terms for these experiences. With material drawn from the Orang Sakai of Sumatra this paper shows that practitioners who utilizeASCdo recognize the alteration of states of awareness as preconditions for numinous interactions. Also critically discussed is the termASC.