I get asked this quite a bit. Who better to answer this question than the Foundation for Shamanic Studies (FSS), where I studied. I offer this information now because remembering such fundamental and powerful ways of perceiving and healing is helpful in these transitional and transformative times.
From the FSS Spring/Winter/Spring 2021 newsletter:
FSS POLESTAR: What is a shaman?
The re-emergence of shamanism in the West has been largely driven by the pioneering work of the late anthropologist Dr. Michael Harner, founder of the Foundation for Shamanic Studies. His lifetime of research, experimentation, and personal exploration led him to develop Core Shamanism, an authentic and powerful form of shamanic practice that is not bound to culturally-specific ceremonies and ritual. Its emphasis is on universal, near-universal, and common features of shamanism, making it the ideal methodology for present-day practitioners to engage in shamanism while respecting the rites and customs of native peoples. Since shamanic knowledge was overwhelmingly lost to Western society centuries ago due to religious oppression, the Foundation’s programs in Core Shamanism are particularly intended to help contemporary people reacquire access to their rightful spiritual heritage…
What is Shamanism?
As shamanism has grown in popularity, confusion about what it is, and specifically who and what a shaman is, has also grown. The term “shaman” is often loosely applied to anyone claiming an affinity for a natural lifestyle or a nature-based spirituality.
Michael Harner, after noting that “definitions are often a contentious matter,” went on to provide the following: “Shamanism is universally characterized by an intentional change in consciousness to engage in purposeful two-way interaction with spirits. Its most distinctive feature, which is not universal, is the out-of-body journey to other worlds.” He pointed out that not all shamans journey or journey in the same way, but “what they do share is disciplined interaction with spirits in non-ordinary reality to help and heal others.” (Cave and Cosmos, pp. 47-48.)
Credit: Narrye Caldwell & Robbie Staufer
FSS Faculty
This Article is continued on the FSS website: animism and shamanism, how one becomes a shaman and more…