Shamanism, history, and the state
Nicholas Thomas, C. Humphrey
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Edited scholarly volume of case studies |
|---|---|
| Topics | Shamanism |
| Key findings | Argues that shamanism is not static or stable but always changing in response to political dynamics and historical processes. Through case studies, the contributors contend that shamanism is a multifarious, continuously changing dialogue or interaction with specific local contexts, including institutions such as the state, and that the existing literature has neglected its political and historical significance in favor of curing and trance. |
Abstract
The literature on shamanism and related topics is extensive, but has in general been biased toward curing and trance; the political and historical significance of shamanic activities has been largely neglected. The contributors to" Shamanism, History, and the State"--distinguished anthropologists and historians from England, Australia, and France--show that shamanism is not static and stable, but always changing as a result of political dynamics and historical processes.Contributors are Tamsyn Barton, Sysan Bayly, Mary Beard, Maurice Bloch, Peter Gow, Roberte N. Hamayon, Stephen Hugh-Jones, Caroline Humphrey, and Nicholas Thomas."The importance of this collection lies in the painstaking, many-sided ways in which it shows 'shamanism' to be a multifarious and continuously changing 'dialogue' or interaction with specific, local contexts. . . . Thus, rather than tackling the issue in principle, this collection tries to demonstrate through 'case studies' just how different 'shamanism' becomes if seen through a lens sensitive to history and the influence of institutions, such as the state, which seem far removed from it. I think the demonstrations add up to an impressive force." --Michael Taussig"This new, ably edited volume provides . . . chapters that are rich in historic detail and that provide insights into general cultural processes and social interactions." --"Historian"Nicholas Thomas is Queen Elizabeth II Research Fellow, Department of Prehistory and Anthropology, Australian National University, Canberra. He is the author of "Out of Time: History and Evolution in Anthropological Discourse. "Caroline Humphrey, author of "Karl Marx Collective: Economy, Society and Religion in a Siberian Collective Farm, " is Fellow of King's College and Lecturer in Social Anthropology, University of Cambridge.
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 |
| (Neo)Shamanic Dialogues Members of a Guarani Indian village on the Atlantic coast of Santa Catarina, Brazil | 2012 | Case study | |
| Kambô: A Shamanic Medicine - Personal Testimonies | 2018 | Case study |
Citations in the library
Cited by 27
- The Globalization of Ayahuasca Shamanism and the Erasure of Indigenous Shamanism Anthropology of Consciousness September 1, 2016
- Dealing with uncertainty: Shamans, marginal capitalism, and the remaking of history in postsocialist Mongolia American Ethnologist February 1, 2007
- Examining changes in personality following shamanic ceremonial use of ayahuasca. Scientific Reports March 23, 2021
- Substances, relationships and the omnipresence of the body: an overview of Ashéninka ethnomedicine (Western Amazonia) Journal of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine November 10, 2006
- Relational Processes in Ayahuasca Groups of Palestinians and Israelis. Frontiers in Pharmacology 2021
and 22 more in the library