There’s a certain pulse and rhythm to shamanism.
A shaman exists in relationship with others, nature, animals, spirits, time and space; hence, the best way to portray it is through action.
We’ve gathered and answered some of the most frequently asked questions about shamanism and what is a shaman, with the intention of offering a dynamic picture that goes beyond mysticism to the practicality and pragmatism at the core of this practice.
Shaman definition: Where does the word come from?
The word “shaman” originates from the Tungusic language of Siberia, translates to “the one who knows,” and refers to a particular role: that of a ritual specialist who enters altered states of consciousness to connect with the spirit for healing, divination, or guidance.
This word has since expanded globally and has become an “umbrella” term used by scholars and researchers as a comparative category to describe individuals who serve as intermediaries between the physical and spiritual realms, often engaging in ancient, traditional healing rituals.
It’s important to understand that each culture has its own name for the role shamans play in its society, and that the nuance of the spoken language varies across cultures. Some examples of names for shamans are:
- Curandero/curandera is used in Latin America to refer to healers who work with plants, prayers, and spirit allies.
- Onanya is used by the Shipibo tribe for plant medicine healers.
- Pawang is used in Malaysia for trance specialists who work with nature spirits.
- Talto is used in Hungary to refer to a ritual specialist who works with myths, birth signs, and destiny.
- Böö is used in Mongolia for a medium entering possessed states.
A shaman’s spiritual practice transcends organised religion and is closely aligned with animism –the belief that all things possess a spirit and can be communicated with. They are regarded as the keepers of universal wisdom, deeply connected to nature, healing, and sacred spiritual traditions, and their work is to restore balance within individuals, communities, and the world around them.
What is shamanism, and how long has it been around?
In his book The Shaman, Piers Vitebsky defines shamanism as a “chameleonic phenomenon” that appears in different regional traditions, many political and historical scenes, and coexists with the major religions of the world.
We find his perspective strikingly real and believe this very fluidity that shamanism evokes invites innovation. That, in turn, leads to a more symbiotic walk alongside the world’s evolution.
It’s safe to say shamanism has been around for quite some time. Confirmed evidence, such as cave paintings in France, Spain, and Africa depicting trance states and ritualistic elements, places shamanism as far back as 40.000 years ago.
Some archaeological finds could even place it as far back as 60.000 years, back to early Homo sapiens.
Becoming a shaman. Can anyone become one, and what does the initiation look like?
“Shamanism involves both the understanding of the world and the power to act upon it.” – Piers Vitebsky, The Shaman.
Some South American tribes, such as the Siona, Shipibo, Matsigenga, and Kagwahiv, believe everyone is born with shamanic power that grows as they mature. In this part of the world, it is the plants that call one into the path of shamanism—an idea central to the shaman meaning in many Amazonian cultures, where power is understood as relational rather than inherited. Some of the most well-known spirit plants that shamans of this area work with are Ayahuasca, Tobacco or Rapé, San Pedro, and Peyote. After months of specific diets and nights spent chanting, the senior shamans share the plant decocción with the initiates. Although sickness is present, what makes a shaman is the capacity to expand their power, transform into a jaguar, and guide others through this newfound power.
Among the Wayãpi, an Amazonian Indigenous people who primarily inhabit French Guiana and northern Brazil, it is known that one is called to become a shaman by developing a strong allergy to the meat of a specific animal. For that person, that very animal becomes the spirit that bridges the worlds and the main support in their future practice.
Among the tribes of Siberia, there have been cases of people being shamans before they were born. In the book The Shaman, P. Vitebsky references a Siberian shaman known as Diujade, who tells the story of his mother having dreamed during her pregnancy of having married the spirit of smallpox. His childhood bore disease and even what appeared to be death. This has been his initiation, as through these experiences, he has been constantly guided by spirits and thus initiated in shamanism.
The calling of the spirit can manifest in many forms, such as dreams or directly through the family lineage, illustrating one dimension of the shaman meaning—a life devoted to spiritual guidance and service.
While it can be emotionally challenging, it is nowhere near the intense psychological and sometimes physical pain the shamanic initiation involves.
One of the most well-known experiences shamans undergo during initiation is dismemberment: the feeling of spirits and the world itself pulling their flesh and bones apart, then back together in a rebirth.
Not everyone answers the call, and not everyone makes it through the initiation phase. A no to the call could come from people familiarised with a shaman’s lifestyle and especially with the energetic toll he and those surrounding him suffer. Low energy could lead to disease and even death for both the shaman and his family.
The shamanic vision. How do they see the world?
Shamans develop a vision beyond the ordinary; in fact, the power they hold is directly connected to this capacity to see through matter into the spirit world. This ability lies at the core of what is a shaman across many traditions, where seeing is understood not as imagination but as trained perception. According to shamans themselves, the world of spirits is always present in the world of humans, but appears hidden because it expresses the essence of things rather than their superficial appearance.
Through known techniques such as the controlled trance, they can cross over to the spirit world and influence someone’s current situation. The spaces where spirits reside can sometimes be part of this world as we know it, and other times parts of worlds unknown to us.
Relationship with spirits. Where does the power come from, and how can they stay in touch with it?
The power of a shaman comes from spirits and can reside in objects, songs, or actions. This is why they always carry power objects, such as instruments, crystals, rattles, feathers, or leaves. You can find more details about the power objects of shamans in our top 10 shamanic gifts article.
Songs and specific movements play an essential role in a shaman’s practice, as they call in supporting spirits and activate protective forces for themselves.
Here’s an example of a protection spell or ícaro a vegetalista from Peru uses as he enters the spirit world. We will share both the original Spanish version and the English version to preserve the spell’s power in its original language.
“¿De dónde vienes, hijo del jaguar negro?
Nutres a la tierra con la leche de tus senos.
De este modo apareces.
Detrás viene.
El jaguar llamándole.
En medio de la gran selva.
Viene gritando.
Tras él viene.
El jaguar ya domado.
Mi tinguna semejante.
Viene tras él.”
Piers Vitebsky, The Shaman
(Translation)
“Where do you come from, son of the black jaguar?
You feed the earth with the milk of your breasts.
In this way you appear.
Behind comes.
The jaguar calling him.
In the middle of the great jungle.
He comes shouting.
After him comes.
The jaguar already tamed.
My similar spirit.
It comes after him.”
In this case, the Peruvian shaman creates multiple layers of protection with the help of his spirit animal, the jaguar.
Since power isn’t a given, shamans need to work on the evolution of their power constantly, and their loss can lead to sickness, including death.
According to South America’s tradition, they can lose their power if they:
- Get attacked by a more powerful shaman.
- Cross something that is considered sacred.
- Get their energy or field contaminated.
The relationship a shaman has with a supportive spirit can be acquired or trespassed through the lineage he was born into.
The nature of the relationship can be very different:
- In African cultures, spirits come to this world and possess shamans, entrancing them.
- In India, the Sora indigenous people, whose shamans are primarily women, are allowed to marry in another lineage in the real world; however, they must also marry an underground spirit from their own lineage to preserve their power. It isn’t just any spirit they marry, it’s the spirit son of her own aunt.
- In Northern Brazil, the Wayãpi are known to become spirits themselves due to their constant awareness of the hidden world.
Supporting the community. What roles do shamans play in society?
Historical periods, specific cultures, and geography play an important role in how shamans appear. Their capacity to interact with the spirit world allowed them to become:
- Healers. When considering the shaman definition, healing –physical, mental, and spiritual– is central to their practice. Society’s current need for healing often arises from profound disconnection from nature and the innocence of our souls. Shamans employ techniques such as dreamwork, soul retrieval, and rituals involving chanting, drumming, sucking, or blowing to restore balance within individuals and communities.
- Protectors. In times when communities faced spiritual attacks from rival groups, sorcery, or witchcraft, they worked to counter their magic and create protective barriers.
- Guides of the souls. In Siberian and Arctic cultures, shamans play the role of escorting the souls of the dead to the new realm that awaits them all while preventing them from harming the living.
- Wisdom. Shamans hold great knowledge and insight. Understanding the shaman meaning helps to recognise that their role is not only to preserve this wisdom but also to pass it on through apprenticeship, initiations, or dreams.
- Mediators. Their ability to communicate with the spirit world enables them to serve as mediators between humans and non-human beings. To restore balance between the worlds, they can deliver offerings and messages and negotiate with spirits.
You might have noticed some roles overlap with those of mediums, herbalists, clairvoyants, priests, or even sorcerers. The line that differentiates them is clear yet not rigid, and it lies in how spiritual power is accessed and controlled.
Deepening your knowledge. What were some of the most influential voices in the study of shamanism?
The study of shamanism has piqued the interest of psychologists, indigenous scholars, anthropologists, and historians, each contributing to how the shaman definition has been shaped, debated, and refined over time.
Here are some of the most influential voices based on their field of expertise:
Early scholars:
- Edward B. Tylor: one of the founders of anthropology, creator of the “animism” concept.
- James George Frazer: author of The Golden Bough. A landmark in the early study of magic, myth, and religion.
Anthropologists:
- Sergei Shirokogoroff: studied the Tungusic peoples of Siberia and defined shamanism as a system of techniques rather than just a belief system.
- Radcliffe Brown: shifted the perspective on shamanism towards its role in society.
Historians of religion:
- Mircea Eliade: the most influential figure in the study of shamanism and author of Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy.
Psychologists:
- Carl Gustav Jung interpreted shamanic imagery through archetypes and the collective unconscious.
On our journey of understanding “what is a shaman?”, our primary source has been the book The Shaman: Voyages of the Soul – Trance, Ecstasy and Healing from Siberia to the Amazon, written by Piers Vitebsky, a British anthropologist and specialist in Siberian cultures, shamanism, and indigenous religions. His book was published in 1995 and is considered one of the most respected and accessible modern books on shamanism, offering insights into the spiritual, social, and healing dimensions that define the shaman meaning across cultures.
Ayahuasca. What is the role of the shaman in Ayahuasca ceremonies?
South American shamans, from traditions such as Shipibo, Yawanawá, Kamëntsá, and Kichwa, work with the spirits of plant medicines such as Ayahuasca to support the soul’s trance and flight, which in turn provides one of the most profound healing experiences known to humans. For those asking what is a shaman, these traditions offer a clear example: a trained ceremonial guide who mediates between the human and spiritual realms through ritual, song, and plant intelligence.
We have been tremendously blessed to have the opportunity to facilitate a significant number of shamans coming to Europe (Barcelona, Spain), and we have witnessed their importance in working with the plants to heal others.
During an Ayahuasca ceremony, the shaman guides everyone’s journey, ensuring safety and energetic balance. Their responsibilities include:
- Creating a safe space. The shaman prepares the ceremonial space, setting intentions and calling upon spiritual allies to provide protection.
- Chanting ikaros and healing medicine music. These sacred healing songs help navigate the ceremony’s energies and assist participants on their spiritual journey. Most songs are unique to their tribe and were directly taught by the spirits of the plants.
- Energy cleansing. Shamans use techniques such as smudging with sage and other herbs, rattles, and feathers to clear stagnant energy and restore harmony.
- Providing emotional and spiritual support. If a participant encounters a challenging moment, the shaman offers guidance and reassurance to help them navigate their experience. Sometimes the shaman might begin to purge on behalf of the individual.
An Ayahuasca ceremony is a profound and often intense experience. Without an experienced shaman present, the journey can be disorienting or even overwhelming. The shaman’s role is to facilitate the process with wisdom, ensuring that each individual receives the support they need to integrate their experience effectively.
Drinking Ayahuasca without a trained shaman is strongly discouraged. Ayahuasca’s effects can be unpredictable, and the absence of a skilled guide can make the experience challenging or even dangerous. Shamans possess the expertise necessary to hold space for participants, ensuring their safety and helping them navigate the depths of their consciousness with care and intention.
Avalon. A safe and sacred Ayahuasca retreat experience
If you are seeking a holistic, transformative Ayahuasca retreat in Europe, Avalon offers a sacred space for deep healing and personal growth. Our ceremonies are led by experienced shamans from Indigenous traditions of Colombia, Peru, and Brazil. With the support of trained psychologists, coaches, and therapists, we ensure a safe and supportive environment throughout your journey.
We invite you to visit our Avalon Family page to learn more about the people who hold this space with care and integrity. There you will find more profound insight into the facilitators, shamans, and support team who walk alongside you before, during, and after the ceremony.
Step into your transformation with Avalon and experience the power of authentic shamanic healing in a nurturing ceremonial setting. If you feel called and would like clarity or guidance, you are welcome to book a call with our team to ask your questions and connect before taking the next step.
