Siberian Shamanism

January 9, 2021

This post was written by Darby Duncan. Darby was an intern for the Alhambra-U.S. Chamber in Fall of 2020.

When people today hear the word Shamanism, they often think about a practice common in tribal communities of Africa and South America. What they fail to realize is that there are over a million who practice this ancient spiritual belief in Russia. Shamanism first originated in Russia and Siberia approximately 5,000 years ago. In Siberia, as in most of the world, the practice was largely forced out by competing beliefs. An example of this was the violent conflict the shamans had with Tibetan Buddhists for many centuries. This conflict was followed by decades of state repression under the Soviet Union that drove the belief to the edges of society. However, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, a religious revival made its way through Russia. During this wave shamanism achieved a new found popularity, not just in its traditional homeland, but across Russia. To better understand Siberian Shamanism as a practice let's take a look at the traditional cosmology, roles and functions in society, and different aspects of the shamanistic transcendence experience. 

Shamanistic Cosmology:

According to shamanistic traditional cosmology, the universe is divided into three worlds: the upper world, the earth, and the underworld. These worlds are connected by a cosmic axis called the “Golden Pillar” by Buryats (shamans in the Baikal region). This axis is the place of penetration of the individual worlds. The upper worlds are inhabited by Gods, the centre of earth by humans, and the underworld by demons. It is understood that only Shamans (the spiritual and ceremonial leaders) are able to interact and communicate with spirits from each of the worlds on behalf of the community or human world. They are the direct intermediaries and messengers between the human and spirit worlds.  

Role of the spiritual leader:

As aforementioned, the Shaman is the spiritual leader in Shamanism that is able to communicate with spirits and penetrate all of the three worlds. He is in a way a “soothsayer, priest, and a healer at the same time.”  Having this deep knowledge of the spirits and rituals makes him a very respected person in his society. People of the community often turn every question and request over to him because he is believed to hold the power to help in case of illness, crop failure, and the disease of animals. This great power lies by mastering the ecstatic techniques of trances. 

Shaman Seances:

Through techniques such as powerful and repetitive drumming, chanting, and hallucinogens, Shamans are able to work themselves into a trance state, during which they can allow spirits to enter their bodies as well as speak to their descendants. This altered state is known as a seance. Those who have encountered Shamans in this state have recalled seeing them sing, laugh strangely, whisper, scream, and whirl in a circle frantically. Only Shamans are allowed to perform these types of ceremonies and do the bidding of between worlds that is believed to be very dangerous.

Take Away:

Shamanism is an ancient belief system that was an integral part of life to indigenous inhabitants of people in Siberia. Through the years, those who have practiced this religious tradition have suffered persecution. However, in modern day Siberia, there is an uprising of Neo-Shamanism in order to reclaim the traditions that were lost. Through studying the traditional cosmology, how Shamans function in society, and transcendental experiences, we are able to better understand an ancient belief system that is on the rise in our world today.