Bōlērākō-cu! / “Speak, I’m Talking to You!” Reconstructing the Self in Tamang Shamanism

Initiation rituals in Tamang shamanism in Nepal help individuals with biopsychological disorders transform their cognitive and embodied self-narratives. Mental and physical suffering causes fragmentation, instability, and inconsistency, creating disconnection from the world and one's own body, with the self as the central locus. By internalizing the preconfigured structure embedded in the ritual, individuals reshape their sense of self to align with the role and expectations of a shaman in their society. This demonstrates how cultural tools reconfigure the self, addressing the psychological and neural basis of ritual beyond its social functions.

Study at a glance

Abstract

The social functions of ritual are well studied in anthropology, but their psychological and neural basis for reconfiguring the individual self remains less explored. This study focuses on the initiation ritual in Tamang shamanism in Nepal, demonstrating how cultural tools help transform the cognitive and embodied self-narratives of individuals experiencing various biopsychological disorders who engage in this ritual. Fragmentation, instability, and inconsistency create a separation between us and the world around us, as well as a disconnection from our own bodies. All of these are consequences of mental and physical suffering, and the central place where they manifests is the self. Through the process of internalizing the preconfigured structure or framework embedded within the initiation ritual in Tamang shamanism, individuals reshape their own sense of self to align with the role and expectations of a shaman within their society.