Contemporary Czech Shamanism: A Case Study of Ritual Practice and Healing
June 25, 2020 DOI: 10.21104/cl.2020.2.02 via Semantic Scholar
Summary
Shamanism is popular in the Czech Republic despite widespread distrust of organized religion and formal ritual. Based on fieldwork since 2017, the article describes how shamanic practice offers an 'action approach' to human problems, providing an appealing explanation for experiences during rituals. The paper examines shamanic paraphernalia, ritual settings that create safe spaces for spontaneous communitas, and participants' psychotherapeutic and religious interpretations. It also explores how contemporary Czech shamanism fits within modern Western spirituality.
Study at a glance
| Design | qualitative study |
|---|---|
| Population | Czech shamanic communities |
| Key finding | Shamanism's 'action approach' to adversity offers an attractive explanation for experiences during ritual, contributing to its popularity in the Czech Republic despite general distrust of formalized religion. |
Abstract
The article presents an overview of contemporary Czech shamanism based on field research into Czech shamanic communities that the author has been conducting since 2017. Despite the specific Czech distrust of ‘religion’ and ‘formalized ritualization’ in general, shamanism enjoys considerable popularity. Particular attention is paid to the concept of illnesses and shamanic treatment. It is argued that the shamanic ‘action approach’ to human adversity offers a relatively broad and attractive explanation as to what is experienced and performed during shamanic ritual. The second part of the paper is dedicated to shamanic ritual, i.e. the paraphernalia, ritual set and setting that create the space for ritual practice and also a safe-space for spontaneous communitas and the participant’s own understanding of this psychotherapeutic and religious experience. The final part examines the specifics of contemporary Czech shamanism in the pervasive discourse of modern western spirituality.