Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The animistic religion of certain peoples of northern Asia in which mediation between the visible and spirit worlds is effected by shamans.
  • noun A similar religion or set of beliefs, especially among certain Native American peoples.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A general name applied to the idolatrous religions of a number of barbarous nations, comprehending those of the Finnish race, as the Ostiaks, Samoyeds, and other inhabitants of Siberia as far as the Pacific Ocean.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The type of religion which once prevalied among all the Ural-Altaic peoples (Tungusic, Mongol, and Turkish), and which still survives in various parts of Northern Asia. The Shaman, or wizard priest, deals with good as well as with evil spirits, especially the good spirits of ancestors.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • proper noun a range of traditional beliefs and practices concerned with communication with the spirit world

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun any animistic religion similar to Asian shamanism (especially as practiced by certain Native American tribes)
  • noun an animistic religion of northern Asia having the belief that the mediation between the visible and the spirit worlds is effected by shamans

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

shaman +‎ -ism

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Examples

  • While rituals and paraphernalia may differ somewhat from one place to another, shamanism is one of the earliest forms of religious experience.

    Shamanism and the problem of consciousness 2008

  • While rituals and paraphernalia may differ somewhat from one place to another, shamanism is one of the earliest forms of religious experience.

    Shamanism and the problem of consciousness 2008

  • One characteristic feature of shamanism is the "out-of-body" experience, in which the shaman leaves his or her physical body in the material world while the spiritual body travels to the spirit world in search of transcendental knowledge to bring back to the people.

    Mesoamerican Religions and Multiverses: Part Two 2007

  • One characteristic feature of shamanism is the "out-of-body" experience, in which the shaman leaves his or her physical body in the material world while the spiritual body travels to the spirit world in search of transcendental knowledge to bring back to the people.

    Mesoamerican Religions and Multiverses: Part Two 2007

  • One characteristic feature of shamanism is the "out-of-body" experience, in which the shaman leaves his or her physical body in the material world while the spiritual body travels to the spirit world in search of transcendental knowledge to bring back to the people.

    Mesoamerican Religions and Multiverses: Part Two 2007

  • A vitally important aspect of the practice of shamanism is understanding right relationship with power, and the acts and implements of power, such as sage, ceder, feathers, the drum, ceremony, disincarnate spirits, totem animals and allies.

    Comprehending shamanism in the Huichol world 1997

  • A vitally important aspect of the practice of shamanism is understanding right relationship with power, and the acts and implements of power, such as sage, ceder, feathers, the drum, ceremony, disincarnate spirits, totem animals and allies.

    Comprehending shamanism in the Huichol world 1997

  • A vitally important aspect of the practice of shamanism is understanding right relationship with power, and the acts and implements of power, such as sage, ceder, feathers, the drum, ceremony, disincarnate spirits, totem animals and allies.

    Comprehending shamanism in the Huichol world 1997

  • And the shaman -- I did a whole series on shamanism, which is a-- an interesting phenomenon.

    Phil Borges on endangered cultures Phil Borges 2006

  • And the shaman -- I did a whole series on shamanism, which is a-- an interesting phenomenon.

    Phil Borges on endangered cultures Phil Borges 2006

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