"Our human bodies have evolved over hundreds of thousands of years through their relationships to the physical environment." (Wangyal-Rinpoche, 1980)
There is clear evidence that the basic principles of shamanism are pretty much universal phenomenon and studies of shamanic practices over many diverse and disparate cultures show that even with no interaction with one another, the methods and beliefs are the same. In other words, cultures throughout the world access the spirit world and with no physical way of communicating with one another, these indigenous cultures have some how cultivated the shamanistic journeys in surprisingly similar ways. These include:
soul retrieval power animal retrieval extraction spiritual healing psycopomp or the act of escorting dead spirits to other worlds
One would think that non-native cultures would never follow these beliefs. Ironically, many of the beliefs have all ready been incorporated into the modern world including technology, science and medicine. For example, shamanism discovered that the ability of a person who has suffered a state of amnesia or other 'soul splitting' event is the body's way of allowing time to heal from brain trauma induced by accidents or other physical abuses. "There is a doorway within our minds that usually remains hidden and secret until the time of death. The Huichoil word for it is neirika. Neirika is a cosmic portway or interface between so-called ordinary and non-ordinary realities. It is a pathway and at the same time a barrier between worlds." (Halifax, 1991)
Long before modern psychology or medicine, Shamanism discovered that children used amnesia, sleep and even comas to heal from events like mentally traumatic or emotional disturbances such as the loss of their parents or siblings. Just like modern medicine and psychology, shamanic journeys realigned the human's soul. With this type of example, it would seem apparent that the non-native world would benefit from the indigenous right.
The objective was to come back with responses to such questions as if non-native people can and should preserve native peoples' cultural traditions and sacred spaces and in the same sense, should non-native people emulate, or institutionalize into their own cultures, native views? All being said and one, I believe that it is better to allow the natives to continue to do the things in the old way and to incorporate those ways into the modern objectives. but, it has been historically devastating to natives when non-natives have bullied their way into the native lives.
Formerly, when religion was strong and science weak, men mistook magic for medicine; now, when science is strong and religion weak, men mistake medicine for magic." -- Thomas Szasz, the Second Sin (1973) "Science and Scientism"
Works Cited
Bartlett, Stan. Report Card Gives Aboriginal Education Another Failing Grade. In (Ed.), Saskatchewan Sage. (2000).
Corson, David. Tory Policy Failing Aboriginal People. In (Ed.), the Toronto Star. (1999).
Halifax, Joan. Shamanic Voices: A Survey of Visionary Narratives. New York: Penguin Books. (1991)
Marcos, Subcommandante. "Our World is Our Weapon."
Silver, Jim, & Mallett, Kathy. Fast Facts: Aboriginal Education for Winnipeg's Future. Retrieved on May 5, 2005, at http://www.policyalternatives.ca/manitoba/fastfactsjan2303.html.(2003).
Wangyal-Rinpoche, Tenzin. Healing with Form, Energy and Light: The Five Elements in Tibetan Shamanism, Tantra and Dzogchen. New York: Harper & Row. (1980).
Wing, Donna Marie a Comparison of Traditional Folk Healing Concepts with Contemporary Healing Concepts. Journal of Community Health Nursing, 15. (1998).
Shamanism
