Shamanism: The Timeless Religion

New Yorker contributor Singh (Zoostalgia) brilliantly traces the evolution of shamanism across history. Exploring the practice’s psychological roots, he contends that shamanism answers a deep human need to manage uncertainty through its theatrical rituals, invocation of the supernatural, and elevation of shamans to superhuman status. Countering the notion that shamanism is a vestige of ancient societies, he tracks its development from the Paleolithic era to the first and second centuries, when early members of the Christian church regularly “enter[ed] ecstatic states and perform[ed] healing rituals,” through the 20th century, as it seeped into “seemingly enlightened spaces” by way of charismatic experts like money managers, who use “their models, degrees, personalities, and superhuman work schedules” to persuade clients that they can “control the uncontrollable.” Singh makes especially insightful points about how shamanism has engaged in a somewhat contradictory dance with religion, first influencing it and then threatening to siphon away adherents who crave a rawer spiritual experience. He frames the current spike of interest in trance, spirit possession, psychedelics, and other nontraditional forms of spirituality as a continuation of this search for “spiritual relief” in a society where institutionalized religion has lost appeal. Combining meticulous research and an excellent grasp of psychological and sociocultural theories, Singh paints a panoramic portrait of a little-understood subject. (May)