Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy (Bollingen Series, No. 76)

Mircea Eliade's foundational work 'Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy' is a massive 648 page resource work that was first published in '51. Now some fifty-five years later it's still the authoritative reference work on the history, beliefs and practices of shamanic cultures. By the way, just in case you were initially attracted by the subtitle 'Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy' let me warn you, it's not that kind of book. Or if you're looking for some entertaining reading the likes of Carlos Castaneda filled with vivid, exotic first-hand accounts of interaction with the spirits you'll be disappointed. This is a scholarly reference work designed for serious students in sociology, anthropology, psychology and the history of religion. There's nothing exciting here, unless you find knowledge something to get excited about. So if you're serious about the subject of shamanic magical practices and beliefs than this is a must own volume for your library. However when it comes time to read it be sure to have a very large glass of water close at hand. It's as dry and dusty a read as you'll ever find.

I agree whole-heartedly with the many earlier reviewers who have praised this extraordinary book. However, it has given rise to some controversies, and prospective purchasers might as well be aware of them. Given the richness of the volume, I consider them minor, but a chorus of praise invites disappointment. First of all, the original French edition was in 1951 (and was one of the author's post-war works apparently not written in his native Romanian). The revised and updated English translation (the fine work of Willard Trask) first appeared in the Bollingen series in 1964. Princeton University Press issued the Bollingen edition in paperback in 1972, and this appears to be the version currently in print. Hence, it is, obviously, more than a little out of date bibliographically. Some people are troubled by this, but there is no way the book could have been expanded to deal with the explosion of research and publications which followed its appearance (although about two hundred titles, mainly post-1948, were added to the 1964 bibliography and notes). Just be aware that it may not mention something important. [Since this review was originally posted, the MYTHOS edition for which it was written has been replaced by a new Princeton printing (January 2004), with a preface by Wendy Doniger, describing the book's importance and limitations with clarity and considerable authority. (She is the Mircea Eliade Distingiushed Service Professor of the History of Religions at the University of Chicago.)] Also because of the book's age, Eliade still used terms and ideas which were common in European scholarship in the first half of the century, but have been largely abandoned since, and in some cases never made much of an impression on the English-speaking scholarly world. He takes for granted the ancient Babylonian origin of several ideas about the cosmos, some of which the "Pan-Babylonian" school seems to have been reading into ancient texts. This has some importance for his attempts to trace the diffusion and relative ages of certain ideas. He also uses (and doesn't really define) cultural descriptions like "Palaeo-Arctic" which originated in anthropological theories current in the 1920s. This is where the age of the book really is important to keep in mind. Of more importance are some of his working assumptions about the nature of Shamanism. Correctly observing that the word entered western European languages from Russian, which had borrowed it from Siberian tribes, he tends to regard the reindeer-herders of the Eurasian sub-Arctic as the model of "true" shamanism, in relation to which other, similar, phenomena, are to be classed. This is reasonable, but, as he sometimes suggests, the Siberian forms have a complex history of their own, and cannot be taken as primitive. It should also be kept in mind than the assumption that reindeer herding was an early precursor of full domestication has been challenged. If it is a secondary imitation of southern pastora

This book is the ultimate book for understanding the beliefs and practices of Shamanism, written by one of the world's foremost experts on religion and sociology. I cannot stress to you enough how thoroughly Eliade manages to cover the subject. A good portion of the book focuses on the Shamanic traditions of Siberia and Central Asia, the heartlands of Shamanism. Amongst the Mongols, Yakut, Chuckchi, Saami (Lapps) and other people of that region Shamanism was first observed, and is stil practiced today in many regions. Eliade goes into great depth about the beliefs and symbolism, about the clothing and ornamentation, about the meaning of ritual tools and amulets and much more. Everything from the axis mundi to ecstasy and trance states to helper spirits to Shamanic ideas of death and illness is covered in superb detail. But Eliade goes far beyond a simple survey of Shamanic beliefs and practices, almost literally taking you into the world of the Shaman. After reading this book, you will understand the Shamanic mindset and world view far more than you ever thought. And, as I said, Eliade goes far beyond the traditional forms of Shamanism in Siberia and Central Asia. In this encyclopedic work, Eliade explores the Shamanic traditions of the Americas (North and South), Australia, Indonesia, Oceania, Tibet, China and beyond. Even the Shamanic traditions of the ancient Indo-Euorpeans, such as the Greek myth of Orpheus, Persian views of the after world and the Germanic God Odin, are given treatment. This book is very lengthy, well written, extensivily bibliographed and filled with detailed accounts and accurate information on virtually all facets of Shamanism. I cannot recommend this book enough. Even after all these years, "Shamanism" remains perhaps the definitive book on Shamanic beliefs and thought. To truely understand Shamanism and its role in Siberia/Central Asia, you must read this book.

Eliade's book is widely acknowledged to be the definitive work of scholarship on shamanism. It deserves its reputation. Shamanism is mostly comparative anthropology, describing shamanistic systems from all over the world and relating them to what Eliade considers to be the paradigmatic type, namely, Siberian shamanism. The shamanic universals are of considerable interest in themselves, not just as evidence of some ancient pan-cultural Ur-religion (although as such they also make interesting thought-fodder). They include initiation experiences (almost always involving the oneiric dismemberment of the shaman by demons), a history of self-healing (frequently the young shaman must and does cure himself of epilepsy or some other such condition), equipment and regalia used, beliefs about the nature and structure of the spirit world, and the claim by twentieth-century practitioners that a few generations back some catastrophe caused a degeneration in the powers shamans are able to command.The portrait Eliade evokes of the practicing shaman is fascinating, but I have to admit that I read this book as much for insight into the interaction between the human brain and mind as for anthropology. Admittedly dry at times, Shamanism more than repays the effort required to take it in.

As with everything Mircea Eliade wrote, "Shamanism" is a model of a form of scholarship that has all but disappeared in current religious studies. He combines exhaustive thoroughness and faultless analysis, with the sincerest respect for his subject. There is no hint of reductionism, neither of the tiresome and sophomoric urge to subordinate religion to some other discipline (e.g., science or politics). Eliade is as high-minded as he is pains-taking, a very rare combination. Ultimately, I cannot agree with him on his characterization of what shamanic ecstasy is in practice, but no other book influenced me so much in my own work on myth and shamanism, unless it was Eliade's other magisterial landmark work on Yoga.