At 5:39 PM -0700 6/23/04, Chris Lemens wrote:
> > Are most eventual shamans identified by
>> existing shamans at a young age (while
>> still just spiritists), and so only
>> become practioners of the "shamanic" spirit,
>> or do most become practioners of some other
>> spirit first, decide that they are pulled
>> to the route of a shaman, then try to find
>> out if they have the right stuff,
>> take on the practice of the shamanic
>> cult, etc.
>
>I think that most future shamans come to light during
>each culture's initiation. This can anticipated or
>very, very unexpected. The child that talks to bushes
>at age 4 is probably going to be a shaman (or crazy,
>but what's the difference?). But some seemingly
>normal ones have their other halves awakened by the
>experience of initiation. Most people can only follow
>a single path (use an appropriate metaphor here)
>through initiation; I think that an awakening shaman
>sees too many paths, so inevitably follows the "wrong"
>one; eventually, after seeing many strange and
>terrifying things, this path leads to the Horned Man
>or whoever heads the shamanic practice.
I think it all depends on how you see the ability to see and interact
with spirits. My understanding is that in some social traditions, a
person goes through a trial and becomes endowed with abilities. In
such a case you get trained and go through your trial. If you
succeed you are shaman, if you fail, you are just another tribe
member or (in the case of dangerous trials) dead. In other
traditions, your born with the second sight and such a case shaman
search for apprentices with the necessary abilities.
--
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David P. Summers, SETI Institute
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