On Neo-Shamanism

In the twentieth century, the work of Eliade and Lévi-Strauss on shamanism led to the emergence of a first theory considering the therapeutic benefits of shamanic practice, thereby contrasting with antecedent theories in anthropology that defined shamanism as a mental illness or as a farce. According to Lévi-Strauss, the “efficiency of symbols” in shamanic practices structures a mythology and a set of actions that are beneficial to one’s psyche. In Eliade’s work, Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy, the ecstatic journey and trance became the heart of the shamanic experience. His approach defines the shamanic experience as the expression par excellence of these “masters of chaos”. Inspired by his work, many authors did not hesitate to reinterpret the phenomenon of ecstasy and trance in order to propose a whole set of modi operandi in order to democratize states of ecstasy. And Eliade himself was a nostalgic at heart who wished to restore a relationship with mythical times, wherein the experience of the Sacred was more accessible².  <a href="https://medium.com/theological-and-religious-archetypes/neoshamanism-28afec913ba2">Learn More</a>