FRS 002M
— Sec. 001
— (2 units) — CRN 45508 — W 3:10-5:00pm — 220
Wright
Contemporary Shamanism
Instructor: Jade McCutcheon, Department of Theatre &
Dance, College
of Letters and Science
Description: This course will examine the recorded history of
Shamanism from both Anthropological and Performance viewpoints and consider the
place of this “way of being” in today’s contemporary society.
Shamanism is classified by anthropologists as an archaic
magico-religious phenomenon
in which the shaman is the great master of ecstasy. Shamanism itself
was defined
by the late Mircea Eliade as a technique of ecstasy. Ecstasy comes
from the Latin
root ex statis, to stand outside oneself. Shamans are in contact with
and work creatively with the supernatural forces which aid them in their work.
In all Tungus languages this term (saman/shaman) refers to persons of
both sexes
who have mastered spirits, who at their will can introduce these spirits into
themselves and use their power over the spirits. Shamanism is “a method,
a psychic technique” with origins traced back to the Alpine Paleolithic
period, 30,000 to 50,000 years ago. Contemporary Shamanism
investigates the sites
of interaction with the “spirit world” and “psychic
forces”
in our culture today. From television programs to modern day healing
we will attempt
to understand the contemporary shaman in a Western World.
Format: Dr. Jeanne Achterberg, associate professor
and director
of research in the Department of Rehabilitation Science states in her article
entitled The Shaman: Master healer in the Imaginary Realm:
‘The shaman is plugging into a data bank that can't be known in
the normal,
waking state of consciousness.’
Achterberg also writes that:
‘Medical historian, Gordon Risse (1972) claims that in the
state of consciousness
used in shamanism, mental resources are employed which modern persons either no
longer have access to or are not interested in using.’
This statement will be the key driver to discussions in the seminar. Grading:
There will be an 8-page paper investigating the students’
awareness of how
aspects of “Shamanism” play out in their world today
(50%) and classroom
participation (50%).
Texts:
Doore, Gary (ed.) 1988 Shaman’s Path, Shambhala
Publications, Bostan
MA
Harner, M. 1980 The Way of the Shaman, Bantam Books, Harper & Row.
New York USA
About the
Instructor: