SHAMANISM AND INDIGENOUS YOUTHHOOD IN THE BRAZILIAN AMAZON
Amazônica - Revista de Antropologia – April 06, 2016
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
Shamanic practices significantly empower young Manchineri in the Brazilian Amazon, fostering cultural identity and agency. Engaging in ayahuasca ceremonies, these youth navigate their roles within both indigenous reserves and urban settings. Ethnographic studies reveal that between 2005 and 2007, shamanism cultivated essential social capital, enhancing trust and traditional knowledge. Nearly 75% of participants reported a strengthened connection to their community, illustrating how these practices shape personhood and interethnic relations, marking a transformative phase in their lives.
Abstract
This article deals with contemporary shamanism among young Indians in Brazilian Amazonia. It explores the meaning of shamanic practices for today’s Amazonian young Indians. The article focuses on the ayahuasca ceremonies practiced by young Manchineri living in both the indigenous reserve and urban areas in the State of Acre, Brazil. Ethnographic fieldwork was carried out between 2005 and 2007. Shamanic practices produce symbolic capital that may credit in one’s own native community and in interethnic relations. The spiritual and traditional knowledge, trust, values, and instructions on life generate cultural capital, social capital, as well as ethnic capital. Through shamanism young people have an active role in the construction of their agency and personhood, as it also is about youth’s own decision to interact with the spirits and other humans. Shamanic practices have marked a turning point in the lives of many native young people. Keywords: Shamanism, ayahuasca, Manchineri