Chapter 8

Shamanism: The "Wounded Healer"

John Alan Cohan

Abstract

Shamanism is a widespread healing discipline, grounded in animism. Healing, divination, rain-making and settling disputes are among the shaman’s duties. Many people rely on shamans for primary health care and spiritual guidance. The mind, body and spirit are treated as a unit by shamans. The shaman will seek to determine the supernatural cause of an illness. This can be anything from the violation of a taboo or some other transgression against the supernatural world, possession by an evil spirit, sorcery practiced by an enemy, or the actions of an offended ancestral ghost.

Total Pages: 95-113 (19)

Purchase Chapter  Book Details

RELATED BOOKS

.Thriving Across the Lifespan and Around the Globe: Day in the Life Visual Research Approach.
.Down Country Lanes, Behind Abandoned Houses.
.Causal Inference and Scientific Paradigms in Epidemiology.
.Humanitarian Crises and International Relations 1959-2013.