Product Description

First published in 1951, Shamanism soon became the standard work in the study of this mysterious and fascinating phenomenon. Writing as the founder of the modern study of the history of religion, Romanian émigré--scholar Mircea Eliade (1907-1986) surveys the practice of Shamanism over two and a half millennia of human history, moving from the Shamanic traditions of Siberia and Central Asia--where Shamanism was first observed--to North and South America, Indonesia, Tibet, China, and beyond. In this authoritative survey, Eliade illuminates the magico-religious life of societies that give primacy of place to the figure of the Shaman--at once magician and medicine man, healer and miracle-doer, priest, mystic, and poet. Synthesizing the approaches of psychology, sociology, and ethnology, Shamanism will remain for years to come the reference book of choice for those intrigued by this practice.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #169124 in Books
• Published on: 2004-01-19
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 648 pages

Review
Eliade writes of the shamans with that masterly combination of sympathy and detachment. . . . . [His] findings will almost certainly be echoed by great voices of the future.
(New York Times Book Review )

Eliade is the most informative guide to the modern mythologies.
(Frank Kermode New Statesman )

[A] close and detailed yet comparative study of shamanism. . . . [It] has become the standard work on the subject and justifies its claim to be the first book to study the phenomenon over a wide field and in a properly religious context.
(Times Literary Supplement )

Clearly the best work on Shamanism published so far.
(The Review of Religion )

About the Author
Born in Bucharest in 1907, Mircea Eliade was for many years Sewell L. Avery Distinguished Service Professor of the History of Religions at the University of Chicago. He is author of, among other books, "Images and Symbols: Studies in Religious Symbolism, Myth of the Eternal Return", and "Yoga: Immortality and Freedom" (all Princeton). Wendy Doniger is Mircea Eliade Distinguished Service Professor of the History of Religions at the University of Chicago. Her books include "The Bedtrick: Tales of Sex and Masquerade, The Implied Spider", and "Splitting the Difference: Gender and Myth in Ancient Greece and India". Her translations of such texts as "The Rig Veda, The Law of Manu", and the "Kamasutra" have garnered wide praise.

Customer Reviews

A superb and scholarly study
Eliade's wide-ranging study of shamanism is a classic in shamanic literature. This historic and academic thesis is perfectly complemented, in my view, by Ross Heaven's book, The Journey To You, which makes this shamanic perspective accessible and useful in modern life. Eliade shows how shamanism is powerful and useful in all societies, while Heaven makes it a vital practice to the modern urban West.
Eliade's is one of the best books i have read in terms of content, though it can be a long read! But well worth the effort.

PLENTY OF 'WHAT', NOT ENOUGH - SUBJECTIVE I KNOW - 'WHY'
Difficult to comment as I didn't finish it. Was a little, in fact 'a lot', more academic in tone and style than I had anticipated.

The parts I read didn't include any real analysis or criticism, just a very dry summary of what happens. Why this or that practice is followed isn't mentioned which, although of course subjective, gives the more casual reader something.

It appears fairly comprehensive if it were to be required reading academically and that would probably be the only reason I would pick it up. Having said that, I did buy this for non-academic research into these practices and felt like I was getting nothing but a summary of observations.

I stand to be corrected if what I've mentioned is irrelevant to later parts of the text, and be aware of that if you are thinking of buying. However, not only people with an academic interest or need may be here and I guess that that is where my review is mainly directed.