SHAMANS THROUGH TIME

'Shamans Through Time' traces Western civilization’s attempts to understand the ancient knowledge of shamans around the world, from Asia and Australia to Africa and the Americas. Who were these extraordinary people who imitated the sounds of animals in the dark, or ingested hallucinogens, or wore collars filled with stinging ants? This collection of reports and accounts by priests, explorers, adventurers, natural historians, political dissidents and anthropologists expresses the wonder of strangers in new worlds. A five-hundred-year survey of writings on the world’s shamans - the healers, sorcerers, conjurers and tricksters who have fascinated observers for centuries - ''Shamans Through Time'' is a journey through time and space. With essays by such acclaimed thinkers as Claude Lévi-Strauss, Black Elk, Franz Boas and Carlos Castaneda, it provides an extraordinary glimpse into the shamanic practices of cultures around the world.