What Is Shamanism?: Insights Into Spiritual Practice & Psychedelics

Part of the charm of folklore lies in its mystique; we’ve all heard tales of ancient religions and cultural practices lost to time that purport to connect people to something greater than what we can typically observe with our five physical senses.

Here’s the thing: Mystical isn’t synonymous with “made up.” For thousands of years, cultures all over the world have used shamanism and its practices to find solace, explore the human condition, seek healing, communicate with the more-than-human, and catalyze spiritual breakthroughs.

Today, shamanistic tenets have their fingerprints everywhere - in mental health, medicine, and, yes, psychedelics as well. We’re drawing a throughline from the origins of shamanism to the modern day.

What Is Shamanism?

Shamanism is one of the world’s oldest spiritual practices. The word shaman, from the Manchu-Tungus šaman (which means “one who sees in the dark”) is believed to be derived from East Asian tribes, though the exact origins are disputed by scholars. The first instance of shaman being used in English was around the year 1700, when German merchant Adam Brand recounted his experiences in China.

Korean shaman in hanbok holds drum and rattle amid deer, dragon spirits, pines, rainbow for psychedelic therapy ritual at Beckley Retreats, evoking ancestral psilocybin healing visions.

Shamanism is rooted in animism - an ancient, transcultural worldview shared by Indigenous cultures worldwide that views humans as part of an interconnected web of life that unites the visible material world and the invisible spirit world). The chief tenets of shamanism are the awareness that spirit permeates all creation, attunement to the spirit world, and the deep interconnectedness shared by all beings. Through ritual practices (and with the assistance of certain psychedelics), the shaman acts as a spiritual conduit to influence, inspire, and heal.

Historical Significance

Shamanism arose in ancient cultures and hunter-gatherer communities before being adopted by Western culture. According to anthropological research, shamanic leaders used their spiritual attunement, social leverage, and effective healing techniques to achieve cultural prominence, rather than martial strength.

However, shamanism as a cultural structure was not entirely peaceful or rosy. Scholars have described how ancient shamans “attained positions of influence through their charisma and knowledgeability, social unification, healing competence, and use of supernatural powers to cause harm.”

Shaman with antlers dances drum around campfire as tribe gathers in tents amid mountains, illustrating ancient psychedelic therapy rituals akin to Beckley Retreats' psilocybin ceremonies.

Shamanic rituals - think drumming, chanting, dancing, and other “synchronic activities” - were also commonly integrated into foraging cultures as a means of maintaining social cohesion during long stretches in the wilderness.

Crucially, shamanism as a practice is believed to have arisen as a “cultural adaptation of hunting and gathering societies to the biological potential for altered states of consciousness.” Ancient hunter-gatherers likely encountered and consumed natural psychoactives, like psilocybin-containing mushrooms. Shamanism became the framework through which ancient cultures interpreted the effects of and used psychedelics.

In the first known artistic depiction of a shamanic leader conducting a ritual, Dutch explorer Nicolaes Witsen described the shaman as a “priest of the Devil,” even going as far as to draw the shaman with clawed feet and other demonic features.

Modern Shamanism

Contemporary shamanism has, as with many cultural renaissances, forked into multiple separate ideologies - and there’s plenty of squabbling as to the legitimacy of each. According to writings from the Foundation for Shamanic Studies, modern shamanic practice falls into one of two main camps:

Literal interpreters of ancient Shamanic practice, who attempt to follow its historical tenets to the letter
“Core” or “Neo-shamanists,” who appropriate portions of traditional shamanism that align with modern cultural contexts, focusing on the synergy between the past and present

It is the latter that influences many psychedelic therapy practices today. Group-based activity, immersion in nature, consumption of psychoactive substances, and detachment of one’s consciousness from one's physical form all form part of shamanism.

Shamanism & Psychedelics: The Bridge

Psychedelics are a catalyst behind shamanism and spiritual illumination. While not strictly essential to all shamanic practices, psychedelics were and remain integral to the proliferation of shamanism in a small number of cultures globally.

Shaman with rattle and brew leads psychedelic therapy circle at Beckley Retreats; woman meditates lotus amid lotus, eye mandalas by lake, mountains for psilocybin spiritual awakening.

Today, there’s a clear and clinically verified link between shamanism and psychedelic therapy - researchers have observed how shamans “manipulate the extrapharmacological effects” of psychedelics to access dormant regions of the brain.

How Psychedelic Therapies Use Shamanism for Deep Healing

Scientists and scholars have begun to recognize something obvious to the psychedelic and alternative medicine communities: “Psychedelic treatments can adopt the shamanic biogenetic paradigm” to optimize the therapeutic effect.

Beckley Retreats psychedelic therapy montage: therapist aids eyemasked client on bed with tea; couples connect; man journals by mountains, lake—emphasizing psilocybin guided sessions, integration.

The three pillars of effective psychedelic therapy are

Set: Your mindset and intention going into the therapy
Setting: The physical and social environment you’re in
Integration: Post-session processing and adoption of lessons from the experience

Here’s how each element of psychedelic therapy has ties to shamanism.

Set

Studies tell us that shamanistic rituals often utilized primitive “pre-screens” like sexual abstinence, fasting, or dream journaling to help participants mentally prepare before ingesting a psychoactive substance.

Modern psychedelic retreats employ similar screenings, but with more concern for and heed paid to medical history and informed consent. Prior to joining a psychedelic retreat or entering into clinical psychedelic-assisted therapy, you’ll complete rigorous medical background checks.

Pre-session questionnaires and interviews are common practice as well, to ensure you understand the journey you’re about to embark on, and to help the therapist or sitter understand your unique needs.

Setting

Ancient shamanistic rituals were carefully curated. Shamans used their environment to inform the spectacle - totems, effigies, natural ornaments, and sacred idols were all part of the show. Modern psychedelic retreats borrow these ideas, but with greater emphasis on safety and serenity. Contrary to some shamanistic rituals of old, psychedelic rituals are not meant to intimidate, frighten, or spark superstition.

Today, group retreats are held in secluded settings, steeped deep in nature, and under the supervision of qualified professionals who know how to physically steward participants as they wade through new states of consciousness.

Integration

Psychedelics were used in shamanism to provide spiritual enlightenment. While some may scoff at the concept if examined through a modern-day lens, the idea is backed by legitimate cognitive science. “Psychoactives … emphasize the connection with the divine,” some researchers have said. “This is the result of the substance’s potential to deconstruct the individual’s relational set, allowing for a loss of ego … and intense imaginative experiences.”

Put plainly, psychedelic experiences, whether in a clinic or around a campfire a thousand years ago, generate a tremendous amount of “raw material.” Shamans were the interpreters of these feelings in ancient times. Today, psychedelic integration techniques help modern users make sense of the ineffable.

Integration refers to everything that comes after a psychedelic experience. Instead of gleaning wisdom from the shaman, users today use guided talk therapy, journaling, deep reflection, and other integration practices to convert their experiences into practical, tangible change. When followed, this “afterglow”, which can last several weeks, has been shown to create long-lasting changes in perspective and improve mental health as well.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the beliefs of shamanism?

Shamanism is a spiritual practice rooted in animism - the idea that nature is imbued with a divine, spiritual quality. Shamans act as conduits, using mysticism and psychedelics to position as cultural leaders, healers, and prophets.

What’s the difference between a shaman and a priest?

Culturally, there’s overlap between a shaman and priest. Both position themselves as benefactors of spiritual enlightenment; the distinctions arise from the unique anthropological conditions in which the roles developed.

Shamanism has historically been viewed as primitive for its reverence of holistic medicine and nature. This contrasts with Western priesthood, where priests embody the will of a religious deity and act as envoys of its ideology.

How do people practice shamanism today?

Today, people still practice shamanism in a literal sense, attempting to hold onto ancient traditions as much as possible. More popularly, core shamanism or neo-shamanism practitioners attempt to blend its teachings in a modern world context.

Can shamanism help with depression?

Potentially. Shamanistic beliefs form the basis of many contemporary mental health treatments - from group therapy to meditation. Shamanism is not a mental health intervention on its own, but its teachings do inform how depression and other mental health ailments are treated today.

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