On the Uneasiness of Tourism

Shamanic tourism, where Westerners travel to the Amazon seeking ayahuasca and shamanic experiences, is not a new anomaly but part of shamanism's long history of intercultural exchange. In Iquitos, Peru, this phenomenon reflects Western cultural constructions and imagination about shamanism. While the existence of shamanic tourism is not inherently problematic, it risks further essentializing and marginalizing indigenous cultures and their knowledge by reinforcing stereotypical perceptions.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Abstract This chapter examines the cultural constructions of ayahuasca and shamanism, their manifestations in the Western imagination and experience, and their localized experience in the city of Iquitos, Peru, in the context of the phenomenon of shamanic tourism. The chapter argues that shamanic tourism is not an anomaly but is consistent with the nature of shamanism, which has historically been about intercultural exchange, as shamanic knowledge and experience has been sought cross-culturally. However, although the existence of the phenomenon of shamanic tourism is not problematic per se, the chapter presents some of the problems in how Amazonian shamanism is perceived by Westerners, mainly the dangers of further essentializing and marginalizing indigenous cultures and their knowledge.