Shamanism and Spirit
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Surviving and Thriving in a Hostile Religious Culture Michelle Mitchell Florida International University, [email protected]
Florida International University FIU Digital Commons FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations University Graduate School 11-14-2014 Surviving and Thriving in a Hostile Religious Culture Michelle Mitchell Florida International University, [email protected] DOI: 10.25148/etd.FI14110747 Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd Part of the New Religious Movements Commons Recommended Citation Mitchell, Michelle, "Surviving and Thriving in a Hostile Religious Culture" (2014). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1639. https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/1639 This work is brought to you for free and open access by the University Graduate School at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Miami, Florida SURVIVING AND THRIVING IN A HOSTILE RELIGIOUS CULTURE: CASE STUDY OF A GARDNERIAN WICCAN COMMUNITY A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in RELIGIOUS STUDIES by Michelle Irene Mitchell 2014 To: Interim Dean Michael R. Heithaus College of Arts and Sciences This thesis, written by Michelle Irene Mitchell, and entitled Surviving and Thriving in a Hostile Religious Culture: Case Study of a Gardnerian Wiccan Community, having been approved in respect to style and intellectual content, is referred to you for judgment. We have read this thesis and recommend that it be approved. _______________________________________ Lesley Northup _______________________________________ Dennis Wiedman _______________________________________ Whitney A. Bauman, Major Professor Date of Defense: November 14, 2014 The thesis of Michelle Irene Mitchell is approved. -
The New Age Embraces Shamanism
CHRISTIAN RESEARCH INSTITUTE P.O. Box 8500, Charlotte, NC 28271 Article: DS836 THE NEW AGE EMBRACES SHAMANISM This article first appeared in the Christian Research Journal, volume 25, number 4 (2003) as a companion to the feature article Shamanism: Eden or Evil? by Mark Andrew Ritchie. For further information or to subscribe to the Christian Research Journal go to: http://www.equip.org A few decades ago, “shamanism” was a word known mainly by anthropologists. As the New Age movement grew in the West, however, many others were introduced to and embraced spiritual practices drawn from several primitive cultures such as Native American, various Latin American, Hawaiian, Eskimo, and other indigenous groups. These practices, which emphasized trance and ecstatic states, spirit contact, animal spirits, out-of-body experiences, and nontraditional healing1 were harmonious with the budding New Age beliefs that emphasized the earth, transcendence through drugs, and multileveled realities. Neoshamanism thus was born. Two of the most influential people in the rise of neoshamanism were Carlos Castaneda and Lynn Andrews, who claimed to have been initiated into shamanism by native teachers. Castaneda claimed to have been a student of Yaqui Indian Don Juan Matus, while Lynn Andrews claimed to have studied under women teachers such as Agnes Whistling Elk and Ruby Plenty Chiefs. Castaneda’s many books on shamanism, including his influential and controversial The Teachings of Don Juan published in 1968, as well as Andrews’s many books since 1981, have sold quite well. Castaneda, an anthropology student in 1960 who set out to research the medicinal properties of plants, enlisted the help of shaman-sorcerer Don Juan.2 Thus began Castaneda’s journey into the world of sorcery, where dreams and visions became the prime reality — a spiritual trip that included hallucinogens, which was one of the touchstones of “spiritual awakening” in the 1960s and 1970s. -
African Concepts of Energy and Their Manifestations Through Art
AFRICAN CONCEPTS OF ENERGY AND THEIR MANIFESTATIONS THROUGH ART A thesis submitted to the College of the Arts of Kent State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts by Renée B. Waite August, 2016 Thesis written by Renée B. Waite B.A., Ohio University, 2012 M.A., Kent State University, 2016 Approved by ____________________________________________________ Fred Smith, Ph.D., Advisor ____________________________________________________ Michael Loderstedt, M.F.A., Interim Director, School of Art ____________________________________________________ John R. Crawford-Spinelli, D.Ed., Dean, College of the Arts TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES………………………………………….. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS …………………………………… vi CHAPTERS I. Introduction ………………………………………………… 1 II. Terms and Art ……………………………………………... 4 III. Myths of Origin …………………………………………. 11 IV. Social Structure …………………………………………. 20 V. Divination Arts …………………………………………... 30 VI. Women as Vessels of Energy …………………………… 42 VII. Conclusion ……………………………………….…...... 56 VIII. Images ………………………………………………… 60 IX. Bibliography …………………………………………….. 84 X. Further Reading ………………………………………….. 86 iii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Porogun Quarter, Ijebu-Ode, Nigeria, 1992, Photograph by John Pemberton III http://africa.si.edu/exhibits/cosmos/models.html. ……………………………………… 60 Figure 2: Yoruba Ifa Divination Tapper (Iroke Ifa) Nigeria; Ivory. 12in, Baltimore Museum of Art http://www.artbma.org/. ……………………………………………… 61 Figure 3.; Yoruba Opon Ifa (Divination Tray), Nigerian; carved wood 3/4 x 12 7/8 x 16 in. Smith College Museum of Art, http://www.smith.edu/artmuseum/. ………………….. 62 Figure 4. Ifa Divination Vessel; Female Caryatid (Agere Ifa); Ivory, wood or coconut shell inlay. Nigeria, Guinea Coast The Metropolitan Museum of Art, http://www.metmuseum.org. ……………………… 63 Figure 5. Beaded Crown of a Yoruba King. Nigerian; L.15 (crown), L.15 (fringe) in. -
Contemporary Rites of Passage at a Time When We Need Them the Most by Tara Moreno
Contemporary Rites of Passage At A Time When We Need Them The Most By Tara Moreno There’s no doubt we are living in turbulent times. As human consciousness shifts, it is becoming more and more apparent that we need communities to recognize and honor the growing pains and transitional challenges that we are all experiencing as individuals. How can communities do that? One very important way is by practicing rites of passage, which have been used by ancient and modern cultures around the world to support community members in transition by ritualizing and supporting change. The term rite of passage, as coined in 1929 by anthropologist Arnold van Gennep, describes the universal practice of ceremonializing life’s major events or transitions. In the book The Art of Ritual, authors Renee Beck and Sydney Barbara Metrick remind us that “Human beings have used ritual for centuries as an important buffer to change and as a way of consciously recognizing and supporting a life event rather than denying or indulging in it … the end results of all ritual are increased balance, strength, energy, and comfort.” A more commonly known rites of passage is “initiation”, which often takes the form of a coming of age ceremony in which a community comes together to person as they let go of one stage of development (childhood or adolescence) and embrace the new identity or role of the next stage (adolescence or young adulthood). Globally, there are numerous cultures currently using coming of age ceremonies regularly, exemplified by the Pathways programs for youth in Australia. -
137194NCJRS.Pdf
--~----~------ If you have issues viewing or accessing this file contact us at NCJRS.gov. U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Prisons Federal Prisons VOL.2,NO.4 WINTER 1992 137188- U.S. Department of Justice 137196 National Institute of Justice This document has been reproduced exactly as received from the person or organization originating it. Points of view or opinions stated in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official pOllition or policies of the National Institute of Justice. Permission to reproduce this . rJ material has been granted by Pub11C ])::main/Federa1 Bureau of Prisons/US Dept. of Justice to the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS). Further reproduction outside of the NCJRS system requires permis sion of the........, owner. '. I Winter 1992 37 Santeria in Federal Prisons Understanding a little-known religion Mark S. Hamill One early morning in 1980, two correc tional officers were making a routine inspection of Cellhouse C of the U.S. Penitentiary in Atlanta, when they noticed a peculiar, putrid smell along the corridor. The smell was coming from the cell of one Antonio Garcia Perez, * a Cuban refugee from that year's "Free dom Flotilla" who had been sent to the Atlanta Penitentiary for the crime of murder. The officers were careful; they removed Garcia Perez and his Cuban cell mates from their living area and inspected the cell. The foul smell came from rancid butter stored in a dozen milk cartons under Garcia Perez's bed. A makeshift construction of about 50 empty cereal boxes stood in the corner of the cell, surrounded by cigar butts, coffee, rotten oranges, and rock candy. -
Kabbalah, Magic & the Great Work of Self Transformation
KABBALAH, MAGIC AHD THE GREAT WORK Of SELf-TRAHSfORMATIOH A COMPL€T€ COURS€ LYAM THOMAS CHRISTOPHER Llewellyn Publications Woodbury, Minnesota Contents Acknowledgments Vl1 one Though Only a Few Will Rise 1 two The First Steps 15 three The Secret Lineage 35 four Neophyte 57 five That Darkly Splendid World 89 SIX The Mind Born of Matter 129 seven The Liquid Intelligence 175 eight Fuel for the Fire 227 ntne The Portal 267 ten The Work of the Adept 315 Appendix A: The Consecration ofthe Adeptus Wand 331 Appendix B: Suggested Forms ofExercise 345 Endnotes 353 Works Cited 359 Index 363 Acknowledgments The first challenge to appear before the new student of magic is the overwhehning amount of published material from which he must prepare a road map of self-initiation. Without guidance, this is usually impossible. Therefore, lowe my biggest thanks to Peter and Laura Yorke of Ra Horakhty Temple, who provided my first exposure to self-initiation techniques in the Golden Dawn. Their years of expe rience with the Golden Dawn material yielded a structure of carefully selected ex ercises, which their students still use today to bring about a gradual transformation. WIthout such well-prescribed use of the Golden Dawn's techniques, it would have been difficult to make progress in its grade system. The basic structure of the course in this book is built on a foundation of the Golden Dawn's elemental grade system as my teachers passed it on. In particular, it develops further their choice to use the color correspondences of the Four Worlds, a piece of the original Golden Dawn system that very few occultists have recognized as an ini tiatory tool. -
Self-Denial by Shamans Promotes Perceptions of Religious Credibility
Self-denial by shamans promotes perceptions of religious credibility Manvir Singh* and Joseph Henrich Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 *Corresponding author: [email protected] 3 July 2019 Abstract Religious leaders refrain from sex and food across human societies. Researchers argue that this self-denial promotes perceptions of credibility, invoking such associations in explanations of shamanism and prosocial religion, but few, if any, quantitative data exist testing these claims. Here we show that shamans in a small-scale society observe costly prohibitions and that observers infer three dimensions of credibility – cooperativeness, religious belief, and supernatural power – from shamans’ self-denial. We investigated costly prohibitions on shamanic healers, known as sikerei, among the rainforest horticulturalist Mentawai people of Siberut Island. We found that shamans must observe permanent taboos on various animals, as well as prohibitions on sex and food during initiation and ceremonial healing. Using vignettes, we evaluated Mentawai participants’ inferences about self-denial, testing three mechanisms of religious credibility: cooperative costly signaling, credibility-enhancing displays, and supernatural otherness. We found support for all three mechanisms: Mentawai participants infer self-denying shamans to be (1) cooperative, (2) sincere believers in the religious rules, and (3) dissimilar from normal humans and with greater supernatural powers. These data provide novel, quantitative evidence that self-denial develops to promote perceptions of practitioners’ religious credibility. Introduction Religious self-denial, whether enforced or apparently voluntary, is ubiquitous. The renunciation of sex, valuable food, or social contact has been practiced by Catholic priests, Buddhist and Jain clergy, Taoist monks and nuns, Christian monastic sects, and many other practitioners who devote themselves to communing with the divine (Bell & Sobo, 2001; Gross, 1992). -
Religion and the Return of Magic: Wicca As Esoteric Spirituality
RELIGION AND THE RETURN OF MAGIC: WICCA AS ESOTERIC SPIRITUALITY A thesis submitted for the degree of PhD March 2000 Joanne Elizabeth Pearson, B.A. (Hons.) ProQuest Number: 11003543 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 11003543 Published by ProQuest LLC(2018). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 AUTHOR’S DECLARATION The thesis presented is entirely my own work, and has not been previously presented for the award of a higher degree elsewhere. The views expressed here are those of the author and not of Lancaster University. Joanne Elizabeth Pearson. RELIGION AND THE RETURN OF MAGIC: WICCA AS ESOTERIC SPIRITUALITY CONTENTS DIAGRAMS AND ILLUSTRATIONS viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ix ABSTRACT xi INTRODUCTION: RELIGION AND THE RETURN OF MAGIC 1 CATEGORISING WICCA 1 The Sociology of the Occult 3 The New Age Movement 5 New Religious Movements and ‘Revived’ Religion 6 Nature Religion 8 MAGIC AND RELIGION 9 A Brief Outline of the Debate 9 Religion and the Decline o f Magic? 12 ESOTERICISM 16 Academic Understandings of -
EWP 6537: ENTHEOGENIC SHAMANISM 3 Units Mondays 3 - 6 Pm, Room 307 Mission Building Spring, 2010
EWP 6537: ENTHEOGENIC SHAMANISM 3 Units Mondays 3 - 6 pm, Room 307 Mission building Spring, 2010 Instructor: Susana Bustos, Ph.D. (510) 987-6900 – [email protected] Course Description: This course explores the fundamentals of shamanic and shamanic-oriented traditions whose practices are based on working with sacred visionary plants. While a deeper focus is placed on Amazonian ayahuasca shamanism, an overview of traditions that use peyote, sacred mushrooms, and iboga lays the foundation for a participatory inquiry and discussion of common threads in entheogenic shamanism. A variety of disciplines and approaches to the topic inform the survey of basic themes, such as the functions of visionary plants in shamanic cultures, cosmology, ritual context and the use of music, healing practices, and the integration of experiences. Cultural, philosophical, and psychological questions are addressed throughout the course, for example, shadow aspects of entheogenic shamanic practices, the ontological status of visionary experiences, and the implications of the spread of entheogenic practices into the West. Learning Objectives: After completing this course, students will be able to: 1. Understand the traditional framework that sustains the use of entheogens in shamanic practices. 2. Be familiar with a variety of approaches to explaining the effectiveness of these practices. 3. Critically assess entheogenic practices, particularly within shamanic-oriented contexts. Learning Activities: • Lecture, videos 40% • Discussion, students’ presentations: 45% • Experiential: 15% Level of Instruction: Ph.D. / M.A. Criteria for Evaluation: 1. Mid-term paper (4-6 pages) 20% 2. Final paper (15-20 pages) 40% 3. Class participation and presentations 40% Pre-requisites: None. Grading Options: OP. -
Modern Western Shamanism and Nineteenth-Century Thought Kocku Von Stuckrad
Reenchanting Nature: Modern Western Shamanism and Nineteenth-Century Thought Kocku von Stuckrad In the second half of the twentieth century there emerged in North America and Europe a complex phenomenon on the fringes of anthropology, sci- ence, and the so-called New Age that is often referred to as “neoshaman- ism.” Part of a larger discourse of nature-based spirituality, contemporary western shamanism is deeply rooted in European and North American history of thought. It can be analyzed in the light of a dialectic process of “disenchantment” and “resacralization” of the world. After having scru- tinized neoshamanic concepts of nature, the article discusses paradigmatic examples for the existence of currents that contest disenchantment and fight the tendency within modern western culture to desacralize nature. It is shown that the nineteenth century must be considered the forma- tive phase of contemporary neoshamanic nature discourse. DESACRALIZATION REVISITED IN A RECENT ARTICLE on “modernity,” Gustavo Benavides points to the fact that the increasing separation of sacred and material realms is a characteristic of modernity. Nonindustrial societies, in contrast, are marked Kocku von Stuckrad is a lecturer (Privatdozent) for religious studies at Bremen University, D-28334 Bremen, Germany. An earlier version of this article was presented at the Annual Meeting of the AAR in Boston in 1999. I owe much to the interesting discussions of the “mysticism” group there. In addition, spe- cial thanks go to Don Handelman (Jerusalem), Bron Taylor (Oshkosh, WI), Antoine Faivre (Paris), Roberte N. Hamayon (Paris), Jan N. Bremmer (Groningen), Michael York (Bath), Ulla Johansen (Cologne), Jörg Rüpke (Erfurt), Jonathan Horwitz (Copenhagen), Annette Høst (Copenhagen), and—last but not least—Hans G. -
288 Book Reviews
288 Book Reviews Koichi Shinohara Spells, Images, and Maṇḍalas: Tracing the Evolution of Esoteric Buddhist Rituals. New York: Columbia University Press, 2014. xxii + 324 pages. Hardcover. isbn 978-0-23-116614-0. us$50.00. Koichi Shinohara’s new work, Spells, Images, and Maṇḍalas, is an important work of scholarship that offers new insights into the early development of Indian Esoteric Buddhist rituals, through a careful philological examination of sources in Chinese translation. While his primary research questions concern the nature and trajectory of Buddhist ritual developments in India, Shinohara’s work nevertheless provides important context for the development of Esoteric Buddhist ritual in China. By examining dhāraṇī/mantra recitation, maṇḍala initiation, and deity visualization, Shinohara gives readers insights into prac- tices that were and continue to be prominent in certain forms of Sinitic Buddhism. The central premise of Spells, Images, and Maṇḍalas is that a clear trajectory of development can be traced from the simple recitation of dhāraṇī- incantations described in some Mahāyāna Buddhist scriptures (particularly those that have come to be known as dhāraṇī-sūtra [tuoluoni jing 陀羅尼經]) to the complex rituals of incantation, initiation, and visualization found in “mature” Esoteric Buddhism, exemplified in East Asian traditions by texts such as the Mahāvairocana-sūtra and Vajraśekhara-sūtra. Shinohara demonstrates and describes these developments through the close reading and comparative analysis of Indic texts on Buddhist ritual translated into Chinese, largely between the fourth and eighth centuries ce. In the introduction, Shinohara characterizes these ritual developments by describing three different “ritual scenarios,” each more complex than its prede- cessor, which he has observed across a wide variety of sources. -
Shamanism and the State: a Conflict Theory Perspective
University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers Graduate School 2000 Shamanism and the state: A conflict theory perspective David K. Gross The University of Montana Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Gross, David K., "Shamanism and the state: A conflict theory perspective" (2000). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 5552. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/5552 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Maureen and Mike MANSFIELD LIBRARY Hie University ofMONTANA Permission is granted by the aurhor to reproduce this material in its entirety, provided that this material is used for schoiariv purposes and is properly cited in published works and reports. ** Please check "Yes" or "No" and provide signature * * Yes, I grant permission No, I do not grant permission Author's Signature Pate & —/ T 7 - n o Any copying for commercial purposes or financial gain may be undertaken only with the author's explicit consent. SHAMANISM AND THE STATE: A CONFLICT THEORY PERSPECTIVE By David K. Gross M.A. The University of Montana, 2000 Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements For the degree of Master of Arts The University of Montana 2000 Approved by: Committee Chair Dean of Graduate Sctiodl UMI Number: EP41016 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted.