#Shaman @ irc.undernet.org
Shamanism is a religion, a religious philosophy, a stage in a developing culture, a misnamed religion, and a few other things to boot. There is also a lot of confusion between Animism, Shamanism, and
Totemism. Though often found together, they are not the same thing. Though the male form is used throughout this work there were/are women who were also called to shamanic Ways as both a leader and a
healer.
The first step in any spiritual evolution is Animism; the recognition of the spirit in the Self, and from there to the recognition of the spirits in other beings. While many philosophers take the idea
into other realms, this simple definition will do now. There have been near deaths and post deaths going on from the beginning of time. Shamanism is the recognition of people who have the had that experience
and returned changed . More, this person comes back with a contact of sorts that has come with him back to this side of the Veil (the Bridge Between Life and Death). Called the Shamanic Death, this
is often voluntary, such as through ceremony or tradition. Other times it is through accidental injury to the brain, or perhaps through a high temperature. This Shamanic Death is the single requirement
to be a Shaman.
The Journey through Shamanic Death is a real death. The person who takes this journey passes through many dangers to health and sanity. Often the journey drives the candidate mad or brain injured, and
sometimes they do not come back from the other side of the Veil at all. The person who has made this journey to Death and returned is called a Shaman. The contact he brought back with him can be in the form of an animal spirit, a spirit guide, a voice, or a number of other things. Most often the Shaman's job is to keep his people, his tribe, in contact with the creature they survive with; a nomadic tradition that that would date through many thousands of years. The Sammi of Northern Europe, for example, have held to their traditions through the exposure of the european cultures. They take what they need or can use, such as snowmobiles and electricity, but leave the materialistic items behind. The caribou, there called reindeer, they follow are half tame half wild and their destination often ends in an unexpected place. This is when the Shaman performs his job in leading his people to the place the caribou ended their movement. Because they deal directly with the spiritual world Shamans are most often called to help with the healing and to ease the crossing of the veil, death, for those in suffering. This is done through herbs, wraps, and other methods, and is one of the most important jobs of the shaman to pass on to the candidates who study to be a shaman. There are times when nomadic cultures "settle down" but retain their Shamanic traditions. The Tungus of Siberia is such a culture, and, in fact, were the the culture first studied by the anthropoligists and sociologists of Russia who brought the word "shaman" itself as well as the culture to the scientific world's attention. Most often, though, when the culture has progressed from hunter gatherer to an agrarian stage a shamanic culture will progress to the next step (called, simply enough, the post-Shamanic stage). They no longer need the daily contact with the Powers That Be.
The needs of the farmers were more long term; when to harvest, when to plant, when to move the herd. Gradually the shaman and his influence disappeared and someone who could recognize the signs of
nature with out the death before hand. These people became known as Priests. The priest stage is another multi mellenia period of transition. If there is a stage beyond the Priest Stage then I would
call it the Big Church stage. Most of the churches are members of a large organization, the Roman Catholic Church, for example, or Buddhism, or other large groups. But that is for another day.
Index.