A Shaman's Cure: The Relationship Between Altered States of Consciousness and Shamanic Healing1
Anthropology of Consciousness September 1, 2009 Peer reviewed DOI: 10.1111/j.1556-3537.2009.01016.x
Summary
The study explores how a shaman's altered states of consciousness (ASC) relate to therapeutic changes in patients, emphasizing the importance of patient-healer interactions. It is based on ethnographic data collected in Nepal from 1999 to 2008 and highlights the role of the healer's ASC within the context of a healing ritual and Nepalese shamanic cosmology.
Study at a glance
| Design | qualitative study |
|---|---|
| Population | shamans and their patients in Nepal |
| Key finding | Therapeutic changes in patients depend on interactions between the patient and the shaman's altered states of consciousness. |
Abstract
ABSTRACTThis study, which is based upon ethnographic data collected between 1999 and 2008 in Nepal, examines the connection between the shaman's altered states of consciousness (ASC; i.e., what goes on inside the healer's mind/brain) and therapeutic changes that take place in the patient's mind/body. Unlike other studies that primarily emphasize the shaman's internal psychological state, this article attempts to explain the role of the healer's ASC and elucidate how desired therapeutic changes depend upon patient–healer interactions. This question is explored in the context of a healing ritual highlighting various aspects of the cosmology of Nepalese shamans.