Toward the Ancient Future
The Beauty of the Primitive July 1, 2007 DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195172317.003.0007
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractIn the United States around the 1970s, the countercultural revolution waned, and many spiritual seekers grew tired of psychedelic and communal lifestyles, turning instead toward natural, individual spirituality. Anthropologist Michael Harner, grounded in the countercultural community, experimented with drugless spiritual techniques from native North American, Siberian, and Sami traditions, using drumming, rattling, chanting, and guided meditation. His workshops gained popularity, and in 1980 he founded the Foundation for Shamanic Studies, the first school of modern shamanism, which organizes and disseminates archaic knowledge worldwide. This chapter discusses neo-shamanism in Europe and North America and Harner's spiritual experiences.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Historical analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Interventions | drumming rattling chanting guided meditation |
| Citations | 2 |
| Key finding | Michael Harner founded the Foundation for Shamanic Studies in 1980, establishing modern shamanism and disseminating archaic knowledge worldwide. |
Abstract
Abstract In the United States at the turn of the 1970s, the countercultural revolution, which turned many Americans on to hallucinogens and alternative lifestyles, was on the decline. Many spiritual seekers felt fatigue from the psychedelic and communal experiences and longed for natural, individually-oriented spirituality. One of these spiritual seekers was Michael Harner, an anthropologist who, while formally remaining an academic, gradually grounded himself in the countercultural community. Harner experimented with drugless spiritual techniques from native North American, Siberian, and Sami traditions, which rely more on drumming, rattling, chanting, and guided meditation. Since his thinking resonated well with the sentiments of many spiritual seekers, his workshops began to enjoy popularity. In 1980, he established the Foundation for Shamanic Studies (FSS), the first school of modern shamanism, which organizes, systematizes, and disseminates archaic knowledge worldwide. Thus, shamanism entered modern Western nature communities. Given Harner's role as one of the first to spearhead the shamanism idiom in modern Western esotericism, this chapter discusses neo-shamanism in Europe and North America as well as Harner's spiritual experiences.