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Shamanic Experiences: a Developmental Analysis I Walsh, R Shamanic experiences: A developmental analysis. Jowlof Humanistic I Psvcholo~y. 4l- 3 1-52,2001. SHAMANIC EXPERIENCES: A 32 Shamanic Erpericnces Z 1 DEVELOPMENTAL ANALYSIS ! , .. ... experieneecl isoutlined,and the possible place ofshamanic practitio- ..;.. nem in this scheme is suggested. .,a. '. I - - . ROGER WALSH. M.D.. Ph.D. is professor of psy- ...'.>,. chiatry, philosophy, and anthropology at the Uni- In the history of the collective as in the history of the individual every- versity of California at Inine. His research inter- thin^ depends on the development of consciousness. :.:.... ' . ,,' t . ests include Aeian psychologies and philosophies. Jung(1969, p. 272) . ...I the psychology of meditation and contemplative .,. .. : ,.. practices, and transpersonal psychology His pub- Shamanism is one of humankind's most, venerable traditions :: .',: lications include Paths Beyond Ego: The and includes medical, psychotherapeutic, and religious elements. !;.. .'. T'nspersonol Vision and Essential Spirituality: It has endured for tens of thousands of years, spread around the ' ..? ,. The Seven Central Pmctices: world, and even today remains a vital practice in many cultures. ... ..,., Shamans were the first peoplehown to devise a technologytosys- '.:.:. ', Summary tematically modify and explore consciousness and to use altered ';. .: '. states of consciousness for healing. As such,shamans were the true ,.:' ' The nature of the experiences induced by shamans has long been a pioneers of field ofresearch now known consciousness stud- , ..:. tnpic of considerable controversy. The experiences occurring during the as . ;:I ies. But all this begs a question: "What is a shaman?" ... one of the major shamanic techniques, the shamanic journey, have ,.., . been described in terms of various psychopathologies or as identical ' ?.. ., to the transcendent experiences of Buddhism and yoga. Despite Definition such claims, careful analysia reveals that shamanic journey experi- :. ences are distinct on several phenomenological dimensions. This There are many definitions of shamanism rangingfrom broad to ,,' arlicle uses developmental analysw to maws whether ahamanic narrow (Peters & Price-Williams, 1980,1983).Inbroaddefinitions, .!!, experiences represent experiences at similar or different develop the "only defining attribute is that the specialist enter into a con- . : .:t. mental stages as yogic and Buddhist experiences, and concludes trolled ASC [altered state of consciousness1 on behalfofhis [or her] ., that although there is some overlap, there are also significant differ- communi~(1980, p. 408). In these broad definition8,the term aha- ,; ',' ences. The article Ulen turns to cu'mnt theories about the evolution of human consciousness. Different news of evolution are summa- man refers to any practitioners who enter controlled ASCs, no mat- . ': what type of altered state. Such definitions include, for exam- . rized, the poseible evolution of transpersonal techniques and ter ple, mediums and yogis. ,, . Narrow definitions are more precise a4d,9 would argue, more ,' useful. They specify such things as thei type of altered state, ; AUTHOR'S NOTE: I would like to thank J. P. Tarcher lor permission to use portions prototypical experiences, and the practitioner's goals. One such ; ".: ofTheSpirirofShnmanism as s basis for an updated diaeusrion ofshamanicexperi. definition (Walsh, 1990) states that ences, and the many people who aaaieted in the preparationof this and related arli- .,: . cles. These people include especially Angeles Arrian. Marlena Dobkin de Rias, . Cordon Clobu, Michael Harner, Arthur Haatings.Stan Krlppner, John Lavy,Larry Shamanism can be defined an afamily oftraditionn whose practitio- . Peters, Don Sandner. Huston Smith. Churl- Tart, Frances Vsughan.-Michael nera focua on voluntarily entering altered states of consciousness in .',!.. Winklemen, Tom Greening. the editor of Journal ofHumnnutic Psychoha, and which they experience themnelves, or their spirit(s), traveling to .,' several anonymous reviewera. Bannie L'Allier provided her uaual excellent admln- other realm at will, and intaracting with otherentitiw in order tn -, . istrstivs and muetarial aasistanca. nerve their mmmunity. (p. 11) ... ...,, . Journal cfHumi8tic P~~holop)..Vol.41 No.3. Summar 2W1 31.62 . 0 2W1 Sags Publicationm, Inc. This definition will probably not satisfy everyone. Judging from . the history of the field, probably no definition will. In particular, it . ; ' 31 does not encompass those practitioners who enter altered states .' and experience themselves as inviting "spirits" into them (incorpo- . , 34 Shamanic Experiences Roger Wabh 33 dreams, lucid dreams, near death, and spontaneous out-of-body rating them) but who do not experience themselves traveling to experiences (LaBerge, 1986,1993; Ring, 1984,1993). other realms. Many researchers consider these practitioners to be Not surprisingly, therapists have become interested in incorpo- shamans. However, the narrower, more precise definition will rating shamanic journeys and other shamanic techniques into serve us well for this article. Western psychotherapy (e.g., Gag~n,1998; C. M. Smith, 1997). There have also been preliminary studies suggesting that sha- manic journeying may have beneficial effects on subjective Controversy Over the Nature of Shamanic Experience well-being and on the immune response (Harner & Tyron, 1996). The nature of the experiences induced by shamans has been a Of course the shamanic joumey state is not the only altered topic of enduring conilict and confusion. Early Western research- state used by shamans-othera include those states induced by ers diagnosed shamanic experiences as clearly pathological and fasting, solitude, and psychedelics (Harner, 1973; Walsh, 1990). described them as, for example, epileptic, neurotic, hysteric, idiotic, However, in view of its importance and the misinterpretations it psychotic, and schizophrenic (for reviews and assessments of these has suffered, the shamanic journey is a major and useful focus for claims for pathology, seeFeuers@in, 1991; Kakar, 1982;Noll, 1983; , discussion. Walsh, 1989c, 1989d, 1990). : Phenomenological mapping of the sharnanic joumey state of In recent years, an opposite but equally extreme view of sha- consciousness shows, contraryto many daims,that it is clearly dis- manic states has appeared in the popular literature. Shamans are tinct from schhophrenic, Buddhist, and yogic states (Walsh, 1990). now being advanced as saints, sages, and even "masters of death." It differa from them on several experiential dimensions such as Consider, for example, the claims that the shaman 'experiences awareness of the environment, concentration, control, sense of existential unity-the samadhi of the Hindus or what Western identity, arousal, affect, and imagery. Consequently, these spiritualists and mystics call enlightenment, illumination, unio phenomenological analyses together with other data suggest that mystica" (Kalweit, 1988, p. 236). and that "shamans, yogis and shamanism in general, and the shamanic journey in particular, Buddhists alike are accessing the same state of consciousness" ! cannot simply be dismissed as pathological or equated with other (Doore, 1988, p. 223). In addition, Kalweit (1988, p. 1l)claims that traditions. Shamanic journey experiences are very different the shaman is "a master of death; he actually dies and is actually indeed from, for example, the fragmented hallucinations of acute reborn" (whatever that means). schizophrenia (Noll, 1983),the microscopic investigation of experi- ence of Buddhist insight meditation (Goleman, 1988), or the unwa- vering attention of yogic samadhi (Feuerstein, 1998). The Shan~anicJourney However, the phenomenological mappiiig and comparisons that Acentral experience that has evoked many ofthese claims, both have been done so far have not taken a crucial dimension into positive and negative, about shamanic health is the shamanic account. That dimension is development. Consequently, this arti- journey. The journey is a major defining technique and experience cle makes developmental comparisons of shamanic journey states of shamanism (Eliade, 1964; Walsh, 1989b, 1994). In it, shamans with the states and stages of consciousness elicited in other tradi- enter an ASC, technically a trance state. They then enter controlled tions and then uses these comparisons to explore the evolution of out-of-body experiences in which they experience themselves consciousness. roaming at will through this or other worlds and meeting, battling. or befriending the spiritual inhabitants. Most important, all this is done (at least ideally) to leam or to acquire power, help, and heal- WILBER'S MODEL OF TRANSPERSONAL DEVELOPMENT ing for their people (Harner, 1982). Several types ofpresent day experiences bear some similarities. Studies of child and adult development indicate that certain These include Jung's active imagination, Watkins', (1976)waking stages and capacities tend to develop later than others and to Roger Wahh 36 emerge in a fixed sequence. For example, Piagefa formd-operationd possible to group experiences from different practices and tradi- thinking and Kohlberg's postcoqventional morality appear later in tions into clusters. life than preoperational thought and conventional morality. Along these lines, Wilber has suggested that we may be able to It seems that similar sequehces may occur with the develop- cluster states and stages of transpersonal development according
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