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Switch to Forum Live View Should We Use the Term "Shaman"?
4 years ago  ::  Dec 24, 2008 - 3:58PM #1
Whisperingal
Whisperingal
Posts: 25,009
A discussion about this has come up on the Shamanism board--is the term "shaman/shamanism" appropriate to use?

Is it "insulting" to some Peoples as sometimes claimed?

What are your ideas on this?
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4 years ago  ::  Dec 26, 2008 - 3:30PM #2
kraventhearcher
kraventhearcher
Posts: 170
I think that you have to be cautious and understand that your vernacular may need to change so that you can make yourself understood to others the way you want to be understood.
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4 years ago  ::  Dec 27, 2008 - 7:42PM #3
Shihulud
Shihulud
Posts: 1,360
Don't you just love labels? As far as shamanism goes, it seems like so many different people have different understandings of what it means. I think that you should use whatever term you feel best describes your spiritual practice and relationship with God, or whatever high power you may or may not believe in.
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4 years ago  ::  Jan 20, 2009 - 12:05AM #4
LupaLuna
LupaLuna
Posts: 30
On an extremely simplistic level I think the terms "Shaman/Shamaness" are fine as they distiguishe the practitioners from a "Medicine Woman/Man" which I feel is very much a Native American shamanistic healer who is in their own ballpark theologically, but for folks trying to get in touch with similar traditions from Europe, Asia or Africa that pre-date known or current religions it is a great descriptive term.
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4 years ago  ::  Jan 20, 2009 - 12:17AM #5
Feinics
Feinics
Posts: 2,539
Maybe i'm ignorant here but i have never heard the term Shaman applied to any European tradition. To which would you apply the term?  They would seem quite different from say the native american traditions...as I say im totally ignorant on the subject..just a curious cat :)
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4 years ago  ::  Jan 20, 2009 - 1:01AM #6
gorm-sionnach
gorm-sionnach
Posts: 1,662
Might want to start with the wiki, as there are numerous... issues/ definitions of Shamanism.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamanism

Though I'm sure many people will also be willing to give you definitions as well.
Truth in our hearts, Strength in our arms, Fulfillment in our tongues.
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4 years ago  ::  Jan 20, 2009 - 7:43PM #7
LupaLuna
LupaLuna
Posts: 30
[QUOTE=Feinics;1030651]Maybe i'm ignorant here but i have never heard the term Shaman applied to any European tradition. To which would you apply the term?  They would seem quite different from say the native american traditions...as I say im totally ignorant on the subject..just a curious cat :)[/QUOTE]

Well,

Lithuanian, Lappish, Slavic, Pre-Christian Romany (Gypsies), Celts, Gauls and Picts to name a few. Shaman is use in Historical academia today to refer to  people who would be healer-priest/priestess in Pre-Christian Europe. As many of these cultures had heavy oral traditions before their unification through Christianity the names, ritual practices and in some cases whole histories were lost.
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4 years ago  ::  Jan 20, 2009 - 8:16PM #8
Feinics
Feinics
Posts: 2,539
Interesting. I'v never heard it used to describe those peoples before. Maybe we just don't here...thanks :)
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4 years ago  ::  Jan 22, 2009 - 9:42PM #9
gorm-sionnach
gorm-sionnach
Posts: 1,662

LupaLuna wrote:

Well,

Lithuanian, Lappish, Slavic, Pre-Christian Romany (Gypsies), Celts, Gauls and Picts to name a few. Shaman is use in Historical academia today to refer to  people who would be healer-priest/priestess in Pre-Christian Europe. As many of these cultures had heavy oral traditions before their unification through Christianity the names, ritual practices and in some cases whole histories were lost.



Not Historians as much as Anthropologists... Historians tend to use the cultural/ regional/ historic terms and not cross cultural terminology. Celtic scholars, for the most part would not use the term Shaman to describe the learned/ spiritual/ priestly caste for the Celtic tribes, when Druid, Druidecht, Draoiocht is readily available.

As I understand the term Shaman(ism) was originally used to describe the priestly caste of Mongolian tribes?

Truth in our hearts, Strength in our arms, Fulfillment in our tongues.
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4 years ago  ::  Jan 22, 2009 - 9:42PM #10
gorm-sionnach
gorm-sionnach
Posts: 1,662

LupaLuna wrote:

Well,

Lithuanian, Lappish, Slavic, Pre-Christian Romany (Gypsies), Celts, Gauls and Picts to name a few. Shaman is use in Historical academia today to refer to  people who would be healer-priest/priestess in Pre-Christian Europe. As many of these cultures had heavy oral traditions before their unification through Christianity the names, ritual practices and in some cases whole histories were lost.



Not Historians as much as Anthropologists... Historians tend to use the cultural/ regional/ historic terms and not cross cultural terminology. Celtic scholars, for the most part would not use the term Shaman to describe the learned/ spiritual/ priestly caste for the Celtic tribes, when Druid, Druidecht, Draoiocht is readily available.

As I understand the term Shaman(ism) was originally used to describe the priestly caste of Mongolian tribes?

Truth in our hearts, Strength in our arms, Fulfillment in our tongues.
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