Shaman - who is this? Origin and meaning of the word

Who is a shaman? "This is the one who runs around with a tambourine and mumbles something under his nose," many will answer. And they will not be quite right, because such an interpretation is far from complete and does not reveal the true meaning.

Shamanism as an ancient art appeared even in the Paleolithic times and was spread throughout the whole planet. People talked with spirits and mastered the relationship between man and nature. And surprisingly, shamans around the world came to a single understanding of the world, although they never communicated with each other.

Modern man can open the veil of secrecy and learn ancient traditions and practices. If, of course, he is ready to face his roots and the spiritual reality of being. Let's try to figure out, the shaman is who in fact and what he does.

Who are shamans?

First of all, these are people who have certain knowledge. The shaman, entering into a state of trance, passes into the other world. It is from there that information and experience come to him, which are then used for the benefit of mankind. Such a person can be called a guide to the afterlife or mediator between worlds.

How else do people with secret knowledge call themselves? Folk healer, scientist, priest, guardian of the ancients, sorcerer, magician, mystic. All these names boil down to the fact that a shaman is someone who owns natural methods to maintain or obtain well-being, good health for himself or others.

All this knowledge the guardian of the ancients draws from the help spirits, who most often appear in the form of mystical animals. Their shaman meets in a different reality - the lower world. On the average live people live. The upper world is inhabited by divine entities that possess superconsciousness. All these realities are connected by a world tree. Through the lower world pass its roots, and in the upper ends the high crown. Such is the shamanic understanding of being.

The meaning of the word "shaman"

If you look at the explanatory dictionaries, you can see that they give several interpretations to this word.

According to one definition, a shaman is a person who, in the opinion of others, has a special magical power. That is, he is a sorcerer, or in another way a magician.

Another definition says that the shaman is a person who comes into contact with supernatural forces through kamlaniya. This is a special ritual ecstasy, achieved through special techniques. This will be discussed a little later.

There is one more meaning, according to which the shaman acts as a provider of religious, ethnic and medical services. He does this in a state of consciousness similar to ecstasy. It is believed that supernatural forces participate in healing.

The origin of the word "shaman"

The term "shaman" is distributed throughout the world. Although the languages of different peoples are radically different from one another, the pronunciation of this word is generally consonant. If you think about what a shaman is, you need to understand this term by composition.

One version of the origin is related to the Tungus-Manchu language. At the head of the word is the root of "sa", which means "to know." Also there is a binding - the suffix "man". And it turns out that the shaman (saman) is a person who loves knowledge. For comparison, you can give another example, not associated with the healing practice. "Asiman" is a "lover of women". Also at the root "sa" one can find derivatives with similar values. For example, "savoon" is "knowledge", and "sadei" is "know".

According to another version, the term comes from the Sanskrit "shraman", which literally translates as "spiritual ascetic", "wandering hermit". This word penetrated into Asia along with the Buddhist current, and then, together with the Even language, spread among the Russian and Western populations.

Each people calls shamans in their own way. Even in one locality there may be different names. There are also whole classifications, according to which shamans are divided into categories and perform various functions.

What do shamans do?

What are the functions of the shaman? In fact, the work of the healer-conductor is not in simple dances with a tambourine, as many believe. Shamans, entering into a trance, determine the illness and treat it, take away misfortunes and misfortunes from fellow tribesmen, search for missing things and even people.

During astral travel, the guardians of the ancients are in contact with other realities. Therefore, they can communicate with the dead, accompany abandoned people to the ancestral world, conduct conspiracy rituals that protect against evil spirits. By connecting with phantoms, shamans are able not only to communicate with them, but also to control them.

It is believed that the astral projections and travels to the celestial and underworld worlds make it possible to predict the future. Therefore, you can turn to the shaman for help in making a prediction of a particular situation. Interpretation of dreams is also the end of folk healers.

Shamans are inextricably linked with nature, and therefore can control the weather and natural phenomena. This ability is often used to provide a rich harvest or a successful hunt.

Apparently, the guardian of the ancients only has good intentions. But the shaman-sorcerer uses the connection with other worlds for selfish purposes, in order to make money or cause harm to someone.

Characteristic features of the shaman

• Has special knowledge and magical qualities.
• He is a guru, a spiritual guide.
• He is able to enter the state of trance, using for this purpose special dances, meditations and rituals.
• Is able to release the soul from the body, create an astral projection and visit other worlds.

• He understands the division of spirits into evil and good, he knows how to control them. If necessary, the shaman cooperates with phantoms for the well-being of the community.
• He has healing powers.
• He resorts to the help of broadcasters - the souls of animals.
• In rituals uses a very important attribute - a drum or a tambourine.

How to become shamans?

A shaman is a gifted person. And it does not matter if he wanted to receive it or not. In ancient society, only the gods and spirits chose a traditional healer, marking it with a supernatural mark. More often than not, it was a distinctive sign on the body. This rule extended even to those to whom the abilities were inherited.

Initiation into shamans is conducted by an experienced guardian of the ancients. During it, the elect gets very sick, he has a headache, vomiting, hallucinations. This phenomenon is commonly called a "shamanic disease". The ailment passes only when a person takes his way and gives himself to the spirits.

The future shaman is most often a little boy. When it was recognized, a special education began. We did not grow it like ordinary guys. Since early childhood, they have been taught to spend a lot of time on contact with nature and animals, use herbs, make a shamanic instrument and contact spirits.

Signs of chosenness

In ancient times, people understood that a person was chosen for a shaman mission, according to several signs:

• About the child it was possible to say that he was "born in a shirt".
• Has a rich imagination.
• He has a special love for nature and animals.
• Always distinguished by taciturnity, sullenness and thoughtfulness.
• A person sees unusual dreams about other worlds, sacred birds or animals.
• In life there was a strange case (contact with the wing of a mysterious bird, wound from a lightning or a stone falling straight from the sky, and so on).

Does the shaman matter to the present?

In ancient times, communication with animals and nature was an everyday part of everyday life. But the modern man this skill was lost and forgotten. People have ceased to see this as a necessity.

And only in recent years, humanity has come to understand the value of how important it is to return to the spiritual roots of life. Scientists began to seriously consider the existence of soul and life in other worlds.

Our ancestors had knowledge about this and even traveled themselves to other realities. The modern shaman is destined to store and transmit ancient rituals, practices and traditions necessary for the call of ancestral spirits.

Can I become a shaman?

In antiquity, only a supernatural mark said that man is a shaman. The stories of modernity prove the opposite. Today, almost anyone can learn the shaman's way. So, what are the conditions for this?

• In the family were already shamans, healers or healers.
• The transference of a serious illness, in which a person's life hung in the balance, can be an impetus for the discovery of abilities.
• If the child has the ability to foresee future events, then it can be fully trained to communicate with spirits.
• An experienced practicing shaman can help in revealing the potential.
• If you make contact with the spirit of nature, he can help get shamanic abilities.

To understand the secret knowledge, usually people isolate themselves from society, become hermits. They go to the forest or mountains for weeks, months and even years to be alone with themselves and with their thoughts. It helps to understand if you do not have the premises or you really are a shaman. Legends tell us that it's quite difficult and very dangerous to become an intermediary between the worlds at will. After all, the mind of an inexperienced person can be possessed by evil spirits under the guise of allies.

Shaman practices

All rituals and rituals are performed in a state of trance. To go into it, spells, special dances, chanting, amulets and even hallucinogenic plants are necessarily used. Also in shamanic practice, such an attribute as a drum or a tambourine, which is usually trimmed with animal bones and bells, is very important.

Different rituals use their own tools. For example, rituals, bones, didgeridoo or wargan are needed to perform the rites of carrying and storing phantoms or souls. And for the definition of a totemic animal that preserves the genus, special music creates special instruments.

The keeper of the ancients is in harmony with the surrounding reality and draws natural forces from nature. You can meet another type, which differs radically in its actions. He is a shaman-magician. He, on the contrary, uses his own skills - sorcery to change the world.

Kamlanie

These are whole ritual receptions, which are performed to establish contact with spirits. Sometimes they themselves get into a person to pass information through it. The ceremony can take several hours, and can last up to several days. An untrained observer can scare the ritual, because he is accompanied by a disconnection of consciousness and convulsions. When the goal is achieved, the shaman's soul returns to the earth, and he opens his eyes as if nothing had happened.

Before hanging out, you need to put on a suit, apply make-up and prepare the right tools. Often convoke fellow tribesmen and build a fire, around which all sit down. The shaman delivers a speech and performs a sacrifice. Only after this begins kamlanie - entry into the trance, blows in tambourine, dancing and singing.

The rhythm of the dance is set by the objects placed on the shaman's clothing. At the same time, gradually the noise grows, and the beats in the tambourine and singing become louder. Then his fellow tribesmen with a special mixture of mushrooms and herbs fumigates the blazing shaman. It is necessary for immersion of all present in a hallucinogenic trance. Then you can conduct a rite, which is needed to achieve the goal: medical, trade, religious, etc. At the end of the ritual, the shaman always thanks the spirits.

Legends of famous shamans

Sat Soyzul during the rituals slaughtered a knife in his chest and froze in place. You could have thought he was dead. But at the end of the ranting, Sat opened his eyes and quietly pulled out the dagger.

Another shaman, Daigak Kaigal, to convince everyone of his abilities, asked to shoot him in the heart during the ritual. You could see the blood, but in fact neither bullets nor a knife wounded him.

Shamans are continuously associated with nature and spirits. And today almost everyone can plunge into this mysterious world.