Shamanism

From a talented young anthropologist and contributor to the New Yorker comes a fascinating investigation into the spiritual practice of shamanismWhat are the origins of shamanism and what is its future? Do shamans believe in their powers? What exactly is trance? What can we learn from indigenous healing practices?In this enlightening book, anthropologist Manvir Singh offers a new explanation for one of the most misunderstood religious traditions. Travelling from Indonesia to the Amazon, living with shamans and observing music, drug use and indigenous curing ceremonies, he journeys into the origins of shamanism. Fundamentally, shamans are specialists who use altered states to engage with unseen realities and provide services like healing and divination. As Singh shows, shamanism's ubiquity stems from its psychological resonance. Its core appeal is transformation- a specialist uses initiations, deprivation and non-ordinary states to seemingly become a different kind of human, one possessed with the superpowers necessary to tame life's uncertainty.Following a fascinating cast of characters, Singh tells a larger story about the ancient and modern expressions of this timeless tradition. He argues that biomedicine can learn from shamanic practices, yet that psychedelic enthusiasts completely misrepresent history. He also shows that shamanic traditions will forever re-emerge - and that by journeying into humanity's oldest spiritual practice, we come to better understand ourselves, our history and our future.

A fascinating compendium of shamanistic behaviour and techniques... Singh writes with a beguiling mixture of erudition and sheer delight in his discoveries. He is also willing to put in the hard yards Spectator
Blending memoir, investigative journalism, and anthropological fieldwork, Shamanism is a deep dive into a religious tradition that is as mysterious as it is timeless Time
An erudite, engaging and deeply personal journey into this ancient, yet ever-evolving, religious practice Weird Walk
Deftly interweaving memoir, journalism, his own anthropological fieldwork, and cutting-edge archaeology, Manvir Singh's Shamanism provides a bracing new look at one of our species' oldest and most characteristically human experiences—reaching into the spiritual realm through the powerful figure of the shaman. Traveling from the Indonesian forest to the wilds of Burning Man, Singh takes us deep into history and the human heart, showing us that this ancient religion is very much present in our lives today -- Charles C. Mann, author of The Wizard and the Prophet
Singh’s Shamanism is a fast-paced, erudite, lyrical adventure through time and space that explores who shamans are, where they come from, what they do, and why we believe—or don’t—in their supposed powers. This wildly enjoyable book will transform how you think about the human mind and the nature of culture -- Daniel Lieberman, author of Exercised
Way back in the Pleistocene, shamanic voyaging may well have ignited the strange kind of consciousness we call our own. We've been constitutionally shamanic since. Singh's splendid, vibrant, fast-paced account shows us what sort of creatures we were, are, and might be. Read it to know your ancestors, yourself and your descendants -- Charles Foster, author of Cry of the Wild
What does the practice of shamanism tell us about how the mind works? Through vivid field encounters and cutting-edge research, Manvir Singh shows that shamanism is a psychological universal, emerging wherever humans gather, from Amazonian healing ceremonies to Wall Street trading floors. Singh is a brilliant young scholar and a gifted writer, and this remarkable book will change how you think about religion, spirituality, consciousness, and human nature -- Paul Bloom, author of Psych: The Story of the Human Mind
Singh’s analysis of the timeless appeal of one of humanity’s most peculiar practices is a gripping read. Shamanism is both a convincing explanation of enigmatic behavior in unfamiliar societies and a seductive gateway to rethinking some of the oddities of life in contemporary globalized cultures -- Richard Wrangham, author of The Goodness Paradox
What a pleasure to read a book so broad and deep, including as it does both a history of shamanism and a provocative vision of how it manifests in our world today. Shifting easily between personal experience and scholarship, Singh weaves an instructive and entertaining story -- Kim Stanley Robinson, author of The Ministry for the Future

Manvir Singh is an assistant professor of anthropology at the University of California, Davis. He is a regular contributor to the New Yorker, and his writings have also appeared in Wired, Vice and the Guardian, as well as leading academic journals such as Science. He has studied psychedelic use in the Colombian Amazon and conducted ethnographic fieldwork with Mentawai communities on Siberut Island, Indonesia.

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