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The World of Shamanism: New Views of an Ancient Tradition
 
 
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The World of Shamanism: New Views of an Ancient Tradition [Paperback]

Roger Walsh (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

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Book Description

August 8, 2007
Fascinating, comprehensive, and eminently readable, this guide explores shamanism—the world's most enduring healing and religious tradition—in the light of modern medicine, psychology, neuroscience, consciousness disciplines, and religious studies.

Praise for The World of Shamanism
"As if on cue, just when I am beginning to think that shamanism is the ground from which all religions spring, along comes this book.  I cannot imagine a book that would be more helpful to me in thinking through this important subject."
—Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions

"...Unquestionably the most rounded compact introduction to shamanism, particularly the inner world of shamans, available today. A door-opening book for students of consciousness and spirituality."
—Georg Feuerstein, Ph.D., M.Litt, author of The Yoga Tradition

"A splendidly clear and timely survey of shamanism."
—Jean Achterberg, Ph.D., author of Imagery in Healing

"Quite simply, this book is a major step forward in understanding the vital phenomenon of shamanism. I recommend it highly."
—Charles Tart, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Psychology, University of California at Davis, author of States of Consciousness
 
"...Eminently useful and inspiring. A brilliant integrative work that pushes the frontiers of consciousness in insightful, practical, and powerful ways."
—Angeles Arrien, Ph.D., Cultural Anthropologist, author of The Four-Fold Way and The Second Half of Life

"...Unique in bringing together the full range of anthropological, psychological, and psychiatric literature on this vital subject. It does so with admirable scholarship yet still manages to be sensitive and clear."
—Christie W. Kiefer, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Anthropology, University of California at San Francisco

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Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"As if on cue, just when I am beginning to think that shamanism is the ground from which all religions spring, along comes this book. I cannot imagine a book that would be more helpful to me in thinking through this important subject."
--Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions

"The World of Shamanism is unquestionably the most rounded compact introduction to shamanism, particularly the inner world of shamans, available today. A door-opening book for students of consciousness and spirituality."
--Georg Feuerstein, Ph.D., M.Litt.
Author of The Yoga Tradition

"The World of Shamanism is unique in bringing together the full range of anthropological, psychological, and psychiatric literature on this vital subject. It does so with admirable scholarship yet still manages to be sensitive and clear."
--Christie W. Kiefer, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus of Anthropology, University of California at San Francisco

"The World of Shamanism is eminently useful and inspiring.  A brilliant integrative work that pushes the frontiers of consciousness in insightful, practical, and powerful ways."
-Angeles Arrien, Ph.D.
Cultural Anthropologist and author of The Four-Fold Way and The Second Half of Life

About the Author

Roger Walsh, M. D., Ph.D. (California) is a professor of psychiatry, philosophy, and anthropology, and also adjunct professor of religious studies at the University of California at Irvine. His publications include the books The World of Shamanism and Essential Spirituality: The Seven Central Practices to Awaken Heart and Mind. He is also coeditor of the books Paths Beyond Ego: The Transpersonal Vision and Gifts From a Course in Miracles.


Product Details

  • Paperback: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Llewellyn Publications; 1St Edition edition (August 8, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0738705756
  • ISBN-13: 978-0738705750
  • Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.5 x 0.8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #136,341 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The World of Shamanism is the best book I've read on the topic. A totally updated work that builds on his earlier book ((The Spirit of Shamanism) this book explores shamanism as we find it in the world, in the psyche, and in neo-shamanic practices.

Dr. Walsh has mastered the art of writing in a popular manner rooted in rigorous research. There is no doubt about his sources as he carefully provides them in footnotes for the more curious reader. In his even-handed presentation of multiple perspectives Dr. Walsh models the tolerance for ambiguity he notes as necessary for a mature experience of the mystery of the universe.

Most important, with regard to the subjective aspects of shamanic experience, he models "the principle of causal indifference" which reflects an acceptance (rare in our society) that "subjectively identical experiences can be produced by multiple causes" (p. 196).

This is a must read for mental health professionals whose map of the universe includes the potential of non-ordinary states for healing as well as for the layperson trying to dig their way through all the misinformation on shamanism that has piled up in the "new age" market over the years.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Shamanism Today March 17, 2009
Format:Paperback
Shamanism is a rather loose term used to describe a system of thought used by healers in a wide variety of `primitive' cultures that have their roots in the realm of magic rather than in the realm of science. Many people feel a disconnect with the world as presented to them by science. They feel, at a gut level, that there is something more and in shamanism they hope to find a path that can lead them to that other something.

This is not a book of do-it-yourself instructions for becoming a shaman but a look at the history and practice of shamanism, its many varieties and the ideas that underlying it. Dr. Walsh takes you by the hand and gently leads you through the subject dealing with vision quests, journeys to other worlds, altered states of consciousness, spirit helpers and beliefs. He effortlessly combines anthropology, psychology, and psychiatry with a smattering of New Age thought while grounding his writings in scientific research as much as possible. He carefully documents his sources to produce, if nothing else, a truly awesome bibliography. Yet he writes in a manner that anyone can understand keeping his discussions short, crisp and to the point.

Yet for all of this he manages a fluidity of thought and breath of view that will make many scientists uncomfortable. What comes off as New Age thinking or even crackpot thinking is actually the thinking of a man ahead of his time. For he has the insight, or perhaps the humility, to realize that science is not the only game in town. In shamanism we have an alternate way of looking at the world, one far older than the scientific view. In his discussions of the nature of consciousness, altered states of being and the world as the shaman sees it he does a valuable service to science by pointing to areas of thought that many scientists dismiss to easily.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Excellent and thoughtful book December 21, 2009
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Amid the new age superficiality that is common for this topic, Walsh provides a very accessible yet probing analysis of the long journey of our ancestors.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
shamanic enlightenment, shamanic crises, initiation crises, initiation crisis, master game players, shamanic states, psi scores, healing myth, shamanic training, shamanic experiences, shamanic journey, shamanic practices
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Michael Harner, Master Game, Ken Wilber, Charles Tart, Huston Smith, Abraham Maslow, Stanislav Grof, Joseph Campbell, Stan Grof, Carl Jung, Saint Paul, Richard Noll, William James, The World of Shamanism, Tibetan Buddhism, Arnold Toynbee, Roberte Hamayon, Tibetan Buddhist, The Course, John Perry, Chuang Tzu, Pearl Curran, South America, Michael Winkelman
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
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