Shamans, Spirituality, and Cultural Revitalization: Explorations in Siberia and Beyond

by M. Balzer

Overview

Many voices clamor to be heard in debates about whether shamans cure, and whether shamanic spirituality is worth continuing or recovering in the twenty-first century. This book provides newinsights into the fascinating resurgence of shamanism through an exploration of the politicalrepression of religion and its transcendence

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781137005564
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan US
Publication date:	07/15/2012
Series:	Contemporary Anthropology of Religion
Edition description:	2011
Pages:	287
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

MARJORIE BALZERResearch Professor atGeorgetown University, USAand editor ofAnthropology and Archeology of Eurasia.

Table of Contents

Spirits Under Siege Doctors or Deceivers? Sacred Genders Poetics of Sacred Language Through Time and Space Flights of the Sacred: Birds, Trees and Open Body-Mindedness Two Urban Shamans: Unmasking Leadership Social Medicine? Religious Movements in Siberia Sustainable Faith? Multiple generations of healing and spirituality Sacred Trust: Doing Fieldwork in Siberia

Editorial Reviews

"Balzer, one of the first western-trained scholars to undertake ethnographic fieldwork in Siberia, is uniquely positioned to write this book. Here she argues that far from fading away, shamanism is being revitalized in Central and Far Eastern Russia following the dissolution of the former Soviet Union. One of the many strengths of this volume is the elegant way she positions her analysis in both Russian and Euro-American anthropological theories." - Julie Cruikshank, Professor Emerita of Anthropology, University of British Columbia"A remarkably sensitive collection of essays spanning three decades of research. The breadth and depth of shamanic practice from across the north Asian landscape comes into vivid focus." - Bruce Grant, Associate Professor of Anthropology, New York University

From the Publisher