SHAMANISM AND INDIGENOUS YOUTHHOOD IN THE BRAZILIAN AMAZON

Shamanic practices, particularly ayahuasca ceremonies, help young Manchineri Indians in the Brazilian Amazon build symbolic, cultural, social, and ethnic capital within their native communities and in interethnic relations. Based on ethnographic fieldwork from 2005 to 2007, the article shows that through shamanism, young people actively construct their agency and personhood, making their own decisions to interact with spirits and other humans. These practices have marked a turning point in the lives of many native young people.

Study at a glance

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