Shaman, Healer, Witch: Comparing Shamanism with Franconian Folk Magic.
Hans Sebald
Ethnologia Europaea December 31, 1983 DOI: 10.16995/ee.1435 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Shamanism |
| Citations | 7 |
| Key points | Argues that Franconian folk magic, though sharing features with shamanism such as belief in manipulable spirits and psychosomatic effects, differs decisively in its mechanical, private, intermediary character, and is better understood as a dualistic extension of Catholicism than as a form of shamanism. |
Abstract
Ideal-type shamanism is compared with Franconian folk magic. Franconia, a central province of Germany, experiences the end phase of a tradition of dualistic folk magic, including white and black witchcraft. While there are similarities between shamanism and Franconian magic - good or evil spirits amenable to magical manipulation, psychosomatic effects, "justice magic" -, differences prevail. The shaman's ecstasy, idiosyncrasy, public seance, and "possession" by supernatural entities contrast with the healer's or witch's mechanical magic, privacy and secrecy, and intermediariness between humans and supernatural powers. While shamanism is holistic and ambivalent, Franconian magic is dualistic and predictable; it is an extension of Catholicism rather than a form of shamanism.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on shamanism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ayahuasca Shamanism in the Amazon and Beyond | 2014 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Shamanism as the Original Neurotheology | 2004 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Cognitive Neuroscience, Shamanism and the Rock Art of Native California | 1998 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From Culture to Experience: Shamanism in the Pages of the Soviet Anti-Religious Press | 2020 | Historical analysis | |
| Anthropology, Shamanism, and Alternate Ways of Knowing–Being in the World: One Anthropologist's Journey of Discovery and Transformation | 2010 | Reflective essay or personal narrative |