The Shaman's Needle: Development, Shamanic Agency, and Intermedicality in Aguaruna Lands, Peru
American Ethnologist November 1, 1998 DOI: 10.1525/ae.1998.25.4.634 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Shamanism |
| Key points | Argues that shamanic curing, often perceived as static by development discourse, actually exhibits dynamic cultural agency. The analysis of an Aguaruna shamanic session reveals practices that challenge static views of ethnomedicine, supporting the concept of intermedicality and the active role of native practitioners in medical development. |
Abstract
In this article I juxtapose and integrate three distinct but interrelated lines of analysis: (1) a critique of “development” with respect to its (misconceptions of ethnomedicines as epistemologically and practically (that is, culturally) static; (2) an explication of how shamanic curing epitomizes such perceived stasis; and (3) an ethnographic analysis of a specific shamanic session (originally presented by Brown [1988]) conducted by an Aguaruna shaman whose discourse and practice, when contextual ized and fully explored, undermine (misconceptions of stasis. The article employs a notion of intermedicality to examine medical development, demonstrating the important social agency executed on the part of native practitioners. I discuss implications for theorizing indigenous culture and the importance of an ethnographic approach , [development, shamanism, ethnomedicine, culture change, medical anthropology, Amazonia]