The Shamanic Horse

The drum, often called the shaman's horse, provides the shamanic practitioner a relatively easy means of controlled transcendence. Researchers have found that if a drum beat frequency of around three to four beats per second is sustained for at least 15 minutes, it will induce significant trance states in most people, even on their first attempt. The drum becomes the practitioner's mount, and the drumstick becomes a riding crop. Riding the rhythm of the drum at the speed of sound, the practitioner journeys to the inner planes of consciousness and back.
 

Through the sound of the drum, which is customarily made of wood from the World Tree (axis mundi), the practitioner is transported to the cosmic axis (spinal column) within and conveyed from plane to plane. As noted Tuvan Siberian ethnomusicologist Valentina Suzukei explains: "There is a bridge on these sound waves so you can go from one world to another. In the sound world, a tunnel opens through which we can pass, or the shaman's spirits come to us. When you stop playing the drum, the bridge disappears."(1)
 

The shamanic horse, namely the single-headed frame drum, originated in Siberia, along with shamanism itself thousands of years ago. Shamanic drumming is considered one of the oldest methods for healing and accessing inner wisdom. Practiced in diverse cultures around the planet, this drum method is strikingly similar the world over. Shamanic drumming uses a repetitive rhythm that begins slowly and then gradually builds in intensity to a tempo of three to seven beats per second. The ascending tempo will induce light to deep trance states. Practitioners may progress through a series of trance states until they reach the level that is necessary for healing to occur.
 

Basically, shamanic drumming is a technique of accessing and directing archetypal or transpersonal powers for healing and manifesting what is needed to benefit the community. It is a simple and effortless way to still the incessant chatter of the mind, thereby inducing a shamanic trance state. Shamanic drumming carries awareness into the transcendent realm of the collective unconscious, the infinite creative matrix of all that we are, have been and will ever be. It is an inward spiritual journey of ecstasy in which one interacts with the inner world, thereby influencing the outer world.
 

During shamanic flight, the sound of the drum serves as a guidance system indicating where the journeyer is at any moment or where they might need to go. The drumbeat also serves as an anchor or lifeline that the traveler follows to return to their body when the trance work is complete. One of the paradoxes of rhythm is that it has both the capacity to move your awareness out of your body into realms beyond time and space, and to ground you firmly in the present moment. It allows you to maintain a portion of ordinary awareness while experiencing nonordinary awareness. This allows recall or recollection of the visionary experience. When ready to exit the trance state, the practitioner simply slows the tempo of drumming, drawing consciousness back to normal. Shamanic drumming continues to offer today what it has offered for millennia -- a simple and effective technique of ecstasy.
 

Although sounding simple and redundant, the unique connection between the drum and the practitioner gives this drumming great power, richness and depth. According to Valentina Suzukei, "shamanic drumming is not monotonous at all. Constant changes in timbre and volume keep them interesting...If you don’t listen for timbre, but only for pitch and rhythm the music is boring, monotonous. But the player's every smallest change of mood is reflected in timbre."(2)
 

It is the subtle variations in timbre and ever-changing overtones of the drum that allow the shamanic practitioner to communicate with the spiritual realm. Drumming opens one's inner, spiritual ears and eyes and also calls the helping spirits. By changing and listening to the tones, pitches and harmonics of the drum, the practitioner is able to send messages to and receive them from the spirit world.
 

The Shaman's Steed
 

The role of the horse in Siberian shamanism is predominately that of an animal that transports a shaman in his journeys, especially his journeys to the World Tree. In the shamanic traditions of East, Central and North Asia, winged horses symbolize the shaman's soul or the shaman's steed carrying the rider to Heaven. Among the Yakut people of Siberia, the drum was symbolically called kulan-at or "wild horse." The drum was the very heart of the shaman's steed. The Buryat, a Mongolic ethnic group native to southeastern Siberia, make their drums out of horse skins. The Buryat see the stars as a herd of horses tethered to the World Tree, which is represented by the pole star.
 

Throughout Mongolia, the drum is called Omisi Murin, which translates as Spirit Horse. The repetitive, rhythmic cadence of shamanic drumming is evocative of a horse on a journey. Mongolian and Siberian shamans describe it as the blissful, transcendent state that one mounts and rides from plane to plane. As Siberian shaman Tania Kobezhikova puts it, "My drum can connect me to the earth or carry me like a flying horse."(3) We can ride Spirit Horse on journeys through the inner realms of consciousness. As a form of transport for the body and the soul, Spirit Horse will let you ride him and will take you where you want to go. Do you need to get somewhere physical or spiritual? Spirit Horse will assist you and serve as your guardian spirit, giving safety in your physical and metaphysical journeys.

1. Kira Van Deusen, "Shamanism and Music in Tuva and Khakassia," Shaman's Drum, No. 47, Winter 1997, p. 24.
2. Kira Van Deusen, Singing Story, Healing Drum: Shamans and Storytellers of Turkic Siberia (McGill-Queen's Press, 2005), p. 124.
3. Van Deusen, Singing Story, Healing Drum, p. 122.

The Many Lives of Mongolian Shamanism

The following is excerpted from Sky Shamans of Mongolia: Meetings with Remarkable Healers by Kevin Turner.
 

For thousands of years, Mongolia has been a nexus of Eurasian shamanisms that competed, mixed, and meshed across our planet's largest continent. Shamanism appears to have emerged with the very dawn of human consciousness, but archeologists can probably speak with confidence about only the past 30,000 to 70,000 years.
 

Archeological discoveries in Eurasia alone indicate that the practice of shamanism reaches back at least to 35,000 BCE, easily making shamanism the oldest spiritual practice known to mankind. Modern religious faiths such as Buddhism and Christianity are toddlers in comparison, and psychology is a mere newborn.
 

The word shaman originated from the Tungusic tribal language groups (from areas to the north and east of Mongolia), which are related to Mongolic languages. These are both part of the broader Altaic language group, which includes Turkic, Manchurian, and scores of other Inner Asian and Siberian languages, and may include Korean and Japanese at the easternmost reach. The modern term "shaman" has now been adopted by many as a catch-all word to describe those who by spiritual means seek direct access to information and healing power not ordinarily available.
 

The nomadic northern Siberian shamanic traditions tend to retain the highly individualistic aspects of shamanism; by contrast, a most interesting facet of Mongolian and Inner Asian shamanism is the amalgamation of the shamans' direct experiences of other realities with a religious belief system known as Tengerism (Heaven or Sky God-ism). Tengerism originated in Sumeria, one of humanity's earliest civilizations, and probably derived from the early experiences of the shamans, prophets, and mystics of pre-Mesopotamian eras.
 

The modern Mongolian term Tenger (or Tengri), meaning both "sky realms" and "sky spirits," almost certainly derives from the Sumerian word Dingir, also meaning both "sky realm(s)" and "deity(-ies)." The concept of divinity in Sumerian was closely associated with the heavens, evident from the shared cuneiform sign for both heaven and sky, and from the fact that its earliest form is a star shape. The name of every deity in Sumerian is prefixed by a star symbol. 

 

Mircea Eliade proposed that Tengrism may be the closest thing we have found to a reconstructed proto-Indo-European religion. It is also evident that Tengrism's three-layered worldview is nearly identical to the tripartite world found in many kinds of shamanism, as well as the Vedic triloka ("three realms") world structure.
 

In Mongolian, one who travels the realms of the Tengers is called a Tengeri--"sky-dweller; sky-walker." I like to think that Luke Skywalker, the young warrior-shaman Jedi knight of the fictional Star Wars films, may have inherited his name from this tradition. Interestingly, the BBC reports that in censuses taken in 2001 regarding spiritual beliefs, hundreds of thousands of people selected "Jediism" as their faith of choice--such is the power of shamanism even in our modern myths and legends.
 

The earliest authenticated records of Mongolian shamanism go back to the beginnings of the Hunnu Dynasty, 209-93 CE (also known as the Xiongnu in Chinese records). Mongolian legend tells us that, during this time, a nine-year-old Hunnu boy united with a she-wolf, engendering the modern-day Mongolian people. The headdress of a shaman (circa 300–100 BCE) was found in one of the graves of Noin-Ula (Mongolian: Noyon uulyn bulsh) in northern Mongolia, and is strikingly similar to the Mongol Darkhad headdress of today. The fabric's colors, weaving methods, and embroidery are also similar to those found in fabric produced by Scythians in the Greek colonies on the Black Sea coast, leading scholars to draw links between these ancient cultures. (Scythian tribal areas were just west of Mongolian territories.)
 

According to historian and researcher Otgony Purev, shamans played an important role in diplomatic efforts and treaties with neighboring nations. The Hunnu emperors even constructed permanent shamanic shrines, and encouraged individual shamans to synthesize their diverse practices into a national religion. "Shamanist religion" then became part of the organizational basis of governmental and military activity.
 

Shamanism became the main source of education and ideology for the earliest pre-Mongol states. This continued for nearly 400 years, and ties to education remain influential in the Mongolian shamanic revival even today. With the disintegration of the Hunnu Dynasty, institutionalized shamanism returned to its more natural, individualistic and autonomous forms across a series of disparate Inner Asian kingdoms that spanned a millennium.

Meeting My Shamanic Teacher

An excerpt from my memoir, Riding Spirit Horse: A Journey into Shamanism.
 

In November of 1988, my wife and I sold our home in Bend, Oregon and moved to Sedona, Arizona. I was on a spiritual quest, and my wife was a reluctant companion. At that time, Sedona was becoming known as a spiritual mecca, attracting pilgrims from around the world. I was one of those pilgrims. My artistic wife found work in one of Sedona's well known art galleries, and I found work as a bartender at a Sedona racquet club. Art and tennis funded our spiritual quests.
 

After several relatively uneventful months in Sedona, I finally had a profound shamanic experience. I attended my first shamanic drumming circle a few blocks from our apartment. I had picked up an event flyer in a neighborhood metaphysical bookstore which read:

 

"Shamanic Drumming Circle. Jade Grigori is a traditional shaman of Mongolian ancestry. In keeping with his intent to make accessible to all peoples, regardless of blood line, the knowledge and practice of 'The Ways' of Shamanism, he is calling forth a drum circle. Those of the community seeking to join together with others of like heart-beat in learning and experiencing the empowerment and filling of the light-body through shamanic drum ways, are invited to participate. Tuesday Nights, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m."
 

When I arrived at the host's house, I joined about 15 people sitting casually in a circle around the perimeter of the living room floor. Some people had drums and others did not. Most of the furniture had been removed to accommodate a large gathering. Two of the participants were percussionists who were giving a performance at a local venue after the drum circle. They brought a wide assortment of frame and ethnic drums. They passed instruments around the circle so that each person had a drum if they chose to play. I received a rawhide frame drum and beater as it came round the circle to me. I had never played a frame drum before. It was a very eclectic mix of people and rhythm instruments. I came to know a few of these participants very well in the months to come.
 

After our host introduced Jade, the elder shaman entered the room and sat down in our circle. His long hair was braided in a ponytail and he wore a deerskin jacket and a red headband. He carried a double-sided frame drum and a large medicine bundle. Jade laid down his drum and opened the leather bundle, removing feathers and ritual objects. He then lit a charcoal disc in an incense burner. In the darkened room, I could see blue sparks dance off of the charcoal as the sacred fire came to life. Jade sprinkled herbs on the burning charcoal and began smudging his sacred objects with three eagle feathers, fanning the smoke outward into the entire space. Smudging is the burning of herbs or incense for cleansing, purification and protection of sacred space.
 

Double-headed drums
 

Jade explained that a double-headed drum is preferred by some shamans for it constitutes a microcosm of the Universe, unites the masculine and feminine principles, and produces sounds with a tremendous dynamic range. The higher-pitched (red) head of the drum tends to affect higher levels of consciousness. Typically, shamans associate this drumhead with the sky, Upper World and masculine energy. It is linked to the mythic Spirit Eagle who perches atop the World Tree. Eagle Brother will carry the shaman's prayers to the Upper World, or the shaman may transform into Spirit Eagle and soar into the celestial realm. The shaman and the eagle are both intercessors between the celestial and human realms.
 

The opposite or lower-pitched (black) head of the drum affects deeper levels of consciousness. It is commonly associated with the Lower World, feminine energy and the archetypal Horse of mythology. The repetitive, droning rhythm of shamanic drumming is suggestive of a horse on a journey. Throughout Mongolia, shamans describe it as the exalted, buoyant state that one mounts and rides from plane to plane. Mongolian shamans ride omisi murin, their name for Spirit Horse, into the Lower World on healing journeys or direct Spirit Horse to carry the power and healing to the intended destination.
 

The rim of the drum is associated with the Middle World and the World Tree. The frame of the shaman's drum is invariably made of wood derived from a sacred tree associated with the Tree of Life or World Tree. Like the World Tree, which links the upper and lower realms of existence, the rim links the two sides of the drum--the yin and the yang. A double-headed drum integrates the feminine and masculine aspects of the Universe within itself. It restores the balance of these two opposite yet complementary energies.
 

Three-round shamanic drum journey
 

After smudging, Jade instructed us in the ritual use of the sacrament tobacco, the unifying thread of communication between humans and the spiritual powers. He showed us how to empower our drums by offering tobacco smoke or a pinch of tobacco. Offering grandfather tobacco carries our prayers to the "Loom of Creation," causing the "Tapestry of Creation" to reweave itself in accordance with those prayers.
 

Next, Jade taught us the drum beats for invoking Eagle Brother and Spirit Horse.(1) He instructed us to play the rhythms in unison so that the drumming creates a mesmerizing effect to induce trance. He cautioned us to avoid jam or free form drumming, which produces a cacophony of competing beats. The goal is to produce a sound that is unifying and consciousness-shifting. Sound waves carry the specific intention or desired outcome of the ceremony. Together the drummers create the necessary rhythmic container that channels the energy generated by the ritual performance toward the intended objective.
 

After learning the two rhythms, Jade set a group intention and then led us in a three-round shamanic drum journey. During the first round, we drummed the eagle-beat on the celestial (higher-pitched) head of our drums and soared on the wings of Eagle Brother into the Upper World. In the second round, we drummed the horse-beat on the Lower World (lower-pitched) head of our drums and rode Spirit Horse on a journey into the Lower World. In the third round, we switched back to the celestial side of our drums and again drummed the eagle-beat, offering prayers of thanks and gratitude to Eagle Brother and Spirit Horse for their help and assistance. Finally, Jade signaled the end of our journey and the drum circle with four strong beats.
 

I was transformed by the power of that drum circle--it was a defining moment in my life. There was something magical about our group journey experience. Ecstatic trance seemed to be more powerful and transcendent in a group setting. The vibrant energy was unifying, expansive and palpable. I could feel the spirits in the room. Shamanic drumming shook the Earth beneath me, split me wide open and lifted my spirit skyward. The ecstatic rhythms resonated to my very core. From that point on, I was hooked on drumming!
 

The next day, I went back to the store where I had picked up the drum circle flyer and purchased an octagonal double-sided frame drum. I returned week after week to Jade's shamanic drumming circles to learn the myths, healing rhythms and drum ways of an ancient shamanic lineage. Jade encouraged us to drum as often as possible in between our weekly gatherings. I would hike almost daily into one of the many red sandstone canyons around Sedona to drum. I gradually built up stamina while learning how to play the drum and ride its rhythm at the same time. Drumming inspired and empowered me in a way I had never felt before. Through drumming, I found a meaningful way to express my inner self without words. More importantly, I discovered my true calling--shamanic drumming.
 

1. You can listen to the Eagle Chant (eagle-beat) and Horse Chant (horse-beat) at: <http://www.archive.org/details/SacredSongsAndChants/>. You can find the lyrics at: <https://archive.org/details/SacredSongsChantsLyrics>.

The Modern Shamanic Sound of Namgar

"Nayan Navaa" is the superb new album from Namgar, a band that plays modern sounds rooted in traditional music from the Republic of Buryatia in southern Siberia. The Moscow-based band led by renowned female Buryatia vocalist Namgar Lhasaranova features Buryat, Russian, Tuvan and Norwegian musicians. Together, the band presents a unique multi-ethnic musical mix that includes shamanic vocals, throat singing, galloping rhythms, rock, jazz, and mesmerizing soundscapes.
 

The melodic music Namgar creates was passed down to Lhasaranova from her grandparents and father, who sang to her as a child. The inventive arrangements are new, but the stories told in the songs are as old as the indigenous Buryats themselves, with tales and myths of ancient Mongol fighters, champions, horses and famous battles. The lyrics are based on traditional Buryat and Mongolian songs, reflecting Buryat nomadic culture. Topics include hunter, wedding, family, and yokhor round dance songs, as well as songs about horses, ancestors and shamanic rituals.
 

The group uses various traditional instruments from Buryatia and nearby regions such as the yataga (a 13-stringed zither), the chanza (a three-stringed lute), the khomus (jaw harp) and the morin khuur (a two-stringed bowed instrument), along with modern instruments like electric bass and drums to craft its unique sound. Lhasaranova has a beautiful, impressive voice. Her power, energy and amazing vocal range go beyond words and language, taking her listener on a journey to Siberia and the world of the Buryats, people whose roots reach back to Ghengis Khan and the Mongolian Empire.

Riding Windhorse

Mongolian shamanism is concerned with personal power and bringing good fortune into one’s life. Personal psychic power is called hii (wind), or hiimori (windhorse). According to Mongolian shamanism, windhorse, or hiimori, can be increased through smudging, drumming, and other forms of shamanic practice in order to accomplish significant aims. Shamans raise their windhorse, and then ride on that life energy. This force resides in the chest; it is the fundamental energy of the heart, or basic goodness. If you live a life in balance, doing good for others, your windhorse will be strong. Windhorse is often portrayed as a winged horse and is an allegory for the human soul. You can ride on the energy of your soul. 
 

The concept of windhorse is also found in Tibetan Buddhism and has essentially the same meaning. Lung-ta, which translates as windhorse, is the name given to a particular kind of prayer flag seen flying on mountain tops, on high passes, along rivers, across bridges, on people’s homes and around holy sites. The flags normally have a horse in the middle and one of the majestic mythical animals in each of the four corners, the snow lion, garuda (golden-winged bird), dragon and tiger, which represent heavenly qualities. When the wind catches the flags, the prayers printed on them are carried on the breeze and distributed for the benefit of all living things. The purpose of Lung-ta prayer flags is to entreat the Windhorse to intercede on our behalf, by petitioning Buddhist deities and protectors, to give us good fortune and to remove obstacles from our way. The Windhorse carries prayers to the heavens and bring blessings back from the heavens. 
 

To the Tibetans, the horse represents a very sacred animal and symbolizes well-being or good fortune. The horse is thought to be a spiritual communicator, messenger and carrier. The horse represents stamina, endurance, beauty, elegance and freedom and will bring these things to you. Where it was tamed and especially where used not only as a steed but also as a draft animal, the horse symbolizes force that can be controlled to benefit society. The horse symbolizes energy, and the energetic pursuit of the objectives of Buddha’s teachings. The horse will assist you in staying free of troubles and avoiding pitfalls and danger. Horses are known to have great speed, thus creating a quickening within the mind and soul. This allows one to evolve spiritually and mentally at a much faster or quickened rate. The Windhorse will assist in setting the mind free so that it may soar. You can then ride on the energy of your life.

"Ze" Film Depicts Shamanism in Modern Mongolia

In 2014, Mongolian filmmaker Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir went to see a shaman named Uranbold. Although going to shamans was not a new experience for her, meeting Uranbold shocked her, because a young man of twenty-one in jeans and T-shirt appeared from underneath the shamanic robes and headdress after the ritual.
 

According to Purev-Ochir, "a shaman must balance double lives. He must listen to and guide people who come with problems ranging from infidelity to bankruptcy. He must play the role of psychiatrist, financial adviser, doctor and many more. He must comfort the dying and those they leave behind. And that is just his life outside of school, friendship, and romance."
 

With Uranbold in mind, Purev-Ochir began to form the backstory for "Ze," her feature-length directorial debut. The film tells the story of the budding relationship between a teenage shaman and a young woman, set in the impoverished yurt district of the Mongolian capital, Ulaanbaatar. "Ze" is an exploration of the contradictions of modern-day Mongolia, a country where growing class divisions spurred on by what Purev-Ochir describes as "unfettered capitalism" are thrust against the traditions and beliefs of an older way of life. Caught between those contradictions is the emotionally charged relationship between 16-year-old Marla and the shaman, Ze, a bittersweet love made all the more complicated by the pressures of life on the rough-and-tumble fringes of Ulaanbaatar.
 

"Ze" is a portrait of the hard-scrabble realities of what it means to be a young, urban Mongolian today. Purev-Ochir wanted to tell a story about the bipolar experience of growing up in contemporary Mongolia, where Mongolians lead precarious existences due to ongoing economic instability and underdeveloped social infrastructure. Within this context, shamans play an important role in providing comfort and guidance. Yet they are people, too, living and breathing within the same restraints and freedoms as any other Mongolian.

Awakening the Shamanic Drum

When you make or acquire a new drum for shamanic work, it needs to be ritually awakened so that it can be used more effectively. The ritual that I present here is a form of embodiment trance and should not be undertaken without helping spirits for protection from malevolent spirits that may cause you harm. As Mongolian shaman Sarangerel Odigon points out, "Opening yourself up in order to allow your shamanic spirits to work through you is not dangerous if you do so with the specific intention of embodying them and no other spirits besides them. Your helper spirits will bar the way to any foreign spirits that may try to enter your body."

Embodiment trance is a core shamanic practice. It is essential for the safe practice of many methods of shamanic healing. By embodying a helping spirit, the practitioner is protected from the ill effects of removing spiritual intrusions from a patient during extraction healings. Through embodiment trance, the spirits are able to make their thoughts known or empower the practitioner to do the work at hand.

To prepare for this ritual, it is useful to smudge the drum and dedicate it to your work. Create sacred space and ask each of the six powers or directions to bless your drum. Thank the animal spirit for giving its hide for your drumhead. Thank the trees for your drum's wooden rim and ask that the drum's hoop be connected to the World Tree, which enables all trees to sing your prayers while drumming. If your drum has synthetic parts, thank the organisms that provided the essence for the chemicals that the substance is made of.

Once you have invoked the spirits you normally work with, be sure to call upon the spirit of the drum and ask it to come to you and become your spirit helper. Convey your intention and willingness to allow it to enter your body and merge with your being. Visualize yourself as a clean hollow bone or tube, ready to be filled with hope, possibilities and power.

Now begin to gently play a heartbeat rhythm on your drum. Focus your attention on the sound of the drum, thereby stilling the chatter in your mind. Allow the drum to empty you. Become one with the drum. Remember that drumming opens portals to the spirit world, draws spirit in, and opens you up to receive it.

Imagine the energy of your drum's spirit entering your hollow bone and filling you with power and possibility. You may feel it, see it, sense it or simply imagine it. Allow the spirit of the drum to merge with you so that your playing comes under its control. When embodying spirits, they will essentially dictate the rhythm, tempo, volume and timbre until you reach something that is appropriate for them. Just relax, release all expectation and follow the urges the spirits give you. The amount of time spent drumming before the spirits actually enter the body varies from practitioner to practitioner and even from session to session.

Once the spirits come in, they will empower you to continue drumming, sometimes for hours. As Tuvan shaman Sailyk-ool Kanchyyp-ool describes it, "I am not myself. But, I am being maneuvered by the spirits. They tell me. 'Beat hard, beat fast, beat a long beat.' And they also tell me when to stop." While the spirits are in your body, they will protect you from any harm. Even if you do something dangerous, such as walking through fire, they will not allow any harm to come to you.

As the drum journey evolves, you will become more ecstatic and spirit will perhaps create new rhythms or inspire you to sing. You are now shifting into a higher state of consciousness and developing a new shamanic skill. At the higher levels, a healer becomes adept at detaching all sense of self, fully present in the moment, as a hollow bone or living conduit for healing energy to move through. At some point in your journey, you will sense that all of your helping spirits and power animals are traveling with you. They are at your side, helping you become a living conduit for the spirit of the drum.

When it feels appropriate, gradually slow the tempo of your drumming to a regular heartbeat rhythm to draw your consciousness back into your body. Do not rush the transformation. Visualize yourself fully grounded in your body, and then slowly open your eyes.

Merging with the spirit of your drum is an important breakthrough in becoming a shamanic practitioner. This is a truly sacred time to hold with reverence, for the spirits have brought the blessing of greater power to you for the benefit of the community. Your shamanic initiation has truly begun!

Mongolia's Ten Sacred Mountains

Mongolia is unique in that it has ten sacred mountains protected by Presidential Decree. Paying homage to sacred mountains has been integral to shamanic practice in Mongolia, and the country has some of the oldest, official, continuously protected sites in the world, dating back to the 13th century. Mongolia's commitment to the veneration and protection of sacred natural sites is both a spiritual and practical custom that weaves together religious traditions, cultural practices and political legitimacy. The rituals and practices involved with revering these sacred places -- and the environmental stewardship that results -- intersects with longstanding political tradition and leadership of the state. No other country in the world can claim this history. Mongolia's political respect for and deference to the sacred landscape connects the sacred with the profane, equating spiritual well-being with the health of the people and the interests of the nation. In turn, these policies have become central to ecological conservation today. While other countries search for ways to incorporate environmentalism into their national conversation and impress upon their citizens the need for ecological awareness and conservation, Mongolia's approach to conservation as both a spiritual and practical matter is compelling. As Mongolian shaman Buyanbadrakh says, "The traditional ways of worshiping and protecting sacred places are the best way to care for nature." Read more.

Summer Solstice Rituals in Mongolia

On the summer solstice last week, Mongolia's Shamans gathered to practice traditions and rituals that are thousands of years old. In the post-communist era shamanism is undergoing a dramatic revival in Mongolia. Harshly suppressed during Mongolia's long Soviet rule, shamanism is suddenly widely sought to fill the spiritual void of a newly democratic society. From storefronts in Ulan Bator, the nation's capital, to homes in rural Mongolia, shamanism has become a growth industry. The key to its viability seems to be the flexibility inherent in shamanism, where knowledge gained through ritual engagement with spirits in the landscape, rather than a strict cosmological doctrine, is seen as the core of shamanism. Getty images has published a photo essay of the rituals.

Journey into Mongolian Shamanism

Mongolian Shaman

Mongolian shamanism, more broadly called the Mongolian folk religion, or occasionally Tengerism, refers to the animistic and shamanic system of belief that has been practiced in Mongolia and its surrounding areas (including Buryatia and Inner Mongolia) at least since the age of recorded history. For thousands of years, Mongolia has been a nexus of Eurasian shamanisms that competed, mixed, and meshed across our planet's largest continent. In the post-communist era shamanism is undergoing a dramatic revival in Mongolia. Harshly suppressed during Mongolia's long Soviet rule, shamanism is suddenly widely sought to fill the spiritual void of a newly democratic society. From storefronts in Ulan Bator, the nation's capital, to homes in rural Mongolia, shamanism has become a growth industry. The key to its viability seems to be the flexibility inherent in shamanism, where knowledge gained through ritual engagement with spirits in the landscape, rather than a strict cosmological doctrine, is seen as the core of shamanism. Mongolian shamanism evokes a rich and barely-tapped store of astrological, environmental, and geographic cultural knowledge. Read more.

The Reindeer Riders

Dukha Shaman

Some of the world's greatest secrets and mysteries can be found beyond the boundaries of human civilization. With globalization encroaching more and more on those that try and maintain their unique ways of life, it's incredible to observe those that persevere. This is what makes the Dukha people of the Mongolian outback so fascinating. The nomadic tribe has lived in remote forests in northwestern Mongolia for centuries. During that time, they have developed a distinctive relationship with wild animals that is quite amazing. Through their own brand of animal husbandry, the Dukha people have learned to use reindeer as a means of transportation over the treacherous terrain they call home. They ride them into the deep snowy forests to hunt for food and collect antlers they can sell to nearby villages for basic supplies. Photographer Hamid Sardar-Afkhami recently documented them in a series of stunning photographs.

The Revival of Mongolian Shamanism

In the book -- "Tragic Spirits," MIT anthropologist Manduhai Buyandelger chronicles how the revival of shamanism has shaped Mongolia in the last two decades. From storefronts in Ulan Bator, the nation's capital, to homes in rural Mongolia, shamanism has become a growth industry. The return of shamanism, she asserts, represents more than the straightforward return of a once-banned religion to Mongolia. And it is more than just a convenient method for people to earn a little income by working as shamans. Rather, she says, shamanism became more popular precisely because, in a poor country recovering from Soviet domination -- where Mongolia's occupiers had wiped away its records and the physical traces of its past -- shamanic practices have offered some Mongolians a way to reinvent their own history. Shamans offer clients the opportunity to meet with the spirits of their distant ancestors and hear "fragmented stories about their lives in the past."

"Not Quite Shamans"

In Not Quite Shamans, Morten Axel Pedersen explores how shamanism serves to fill the spiritual void left by the collapse of socialism in Mongolia. Pedersen conducted his ethnographic fieldwork in Northern Mongolia's remote Shishged Valley among Darhads, who are famous for having the most "authentic" shamans. When Pedersen arrived to conduct his research in the late 1990s, however, he found a paradox: the homeland of shamanism, where shamans persevered even through the harshest persecution during socialism, was now barren. Instead of shamans, the place was full of böö shig or böörhuu individuals (shaman-like or sort-of-a-shaman-but-not-quite). These are almost exclusively young men who ought to be shamans but are unable to become them because of lack of accessible "authentic" teachers and insufficient resources to obtain shamanic paraphernalia that are necessary for appeasing and controlling the spirits -- the traits of trained shamans. 

Unable to learn how to subdue the spirits and so choose when to become possessed and when not, these young men remained permanently stuck as what Pedersen calls "not-quite-shamans." Pedersen illustrates how the daily lives of Darhads are affected by these "not-quite-shamans," whose undirected energies erupted in unpredictable, frightening bouts of violence and drunkenness. His main argument is that the lack of shamans does not make the Darhad life any less shamanic. Quite the contrary, without shamans, shamanism thrives and seeps through every pore of the moral, cultural, and natural lives in Shishged. Pedersen details how, for many Darhads, the postsocialist state itself has become shamanic in nature. 

"For scholars of shamanism, Pedersen, by demonstrating that it is not always the shamans who carry the practice to the new generations but the entire community, reveals some nuances behind shamanic resiliency around the world…" 

 - Review by Manduhai Buyandelger in American Anthropologist, Volume 115, Issue 1. 

Mongolian Shamans: Masters of Ecstasy

In the post-communist era shamanism is undergoing a dramatic revival in Mongolia. Harshly suppressed during Mongolia's long Soviet rule, shamanism is suddenly widely sought to fill the spiritual void of a newly democratic society. Mongolian shamanism evokes a rich and barely-tapped store of astrological, environmental, and geographic cultural knowledge. In partnership with National Geographic Magazine, Carolyn Drake has published a photographic essay exploring the shamanic resurgence.

Mongolian Shamanic Drumming Video

Lauren Knapp is an American videographer/photo journalist living in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. In partnership with the Vanishing Cultures Project, she is working on a video/photo project about music, urbanization and youth culture in this city of once-nomads. She recently produced a video profiling a female shaman named Enkhtoya.  Enkhtoya is considered to be one of the most powerful shamans in Mongolia and graciously allowed Lauren to film an entire ceremony. View the shamanic performance on Vimeo.

Shamanic Revival in Mongolia

While traditional shamanism continues to decline around the world, it is currently undergoing a revival in Mongolia. In a bewildering urban landscape where long traditions of nomadic lifestyles are things of the past, the ancient beliefs of Tengrism (modern term for a Central Asian religion characterized by features of shamanism, animism, totemism, polytheism and ancestor worship) serve to fill a spiritual void. A new generation of Mongolians has been chosen by the spirits to serve as Shamans. Photographer Hwee Young How has published a photographic essay exploring the shamanic resurgence. 

Erecting a Prayer Tree for World Peace

by Sarangerel Odigon

The barisaa, prayer tree, is an important site of worship in Siberian/Mongolian shamanism. This ritual brings peace and reduces violence in whatever place it is performed in. It needs to be done in as many places as possible, especially in places that were sites of deaths from war or violence. It also calls the nature spirits to bring inspiration, calm peoples' hearts, and create thoughts of peace and love.

Humans possess three souls, the suld, suns, and ami. The suld embodies the unique personality of the present life and becomes a nature spirit after death. The suld of a person who has died can be beneficial or harmful depending on the circumstances of death. The suld souls of those who have been killed or died very young are often hostile and cause disease, mental confusion, despair, and thoughts of violence. The reason for this is because of a desire for vengeance on those who are able to have long and successful lives with prosperity, happiness, and children. This is due to ignorance on their part of the fact that they can still provide a constructive contribution to human society even as spirits.

The 20th century was one of the bloodiest and most violent periods in human history. Even now as wars burn throughout the world and society becomes more chaotic a certain despair and frustration has entered peoples' hearts. The reason why this continues is because so many people from all parts of the world have died violently and prematurely and their suld souls are ranging about the places where they had been during their lives, especially battlefields, sites of massacres, and violent inner city areas. They implant desire for revenge, violent thoughts, mental confusion, despair, and illness in those places and thereby the violence and misery has continued. This ritual cleanses these spirits of these evil and violent thoughts and turns them toward bringing good to the places where they are. This is why this ritual needs to be done in as many places as possible in order to calm the spiritual chaos that this evil century has created.

The most important thing needed for this ritual is a young tree, the type of tree is not important, but it should be healthy and not in any immediate danger of being cut down. If at a later time the tree must be cut a young tree should be planted nearby and the ribbons and other shamanic decorations transferred to the new tree.

Things needed:

White cloth ribbons, about a foot long (at least 10 or 2 for each participant, which ever is more)

Sage

Juniper (dried fronds or sticks)

Spring water

Salt

Sand

Rice

Milk

Tea

Vodka (optional)

Incense with burner

Bread

Cookies

Money (coins are fine)

Small table

Wooden spoon or bundle of small twigs, about 6 inches long

A small table should be set next to the tree. On the table there should be an incense burner and incense should be kept lit constantly during the ceremony. The ribbons should be placed in a neat pile. The salt, sand, rice, bread, and cookies should be on plates. The spring water, milk, tea, and vodka should be in bowls.

To start one of the participants should smudge the tree with sage. The participants will then form a circle around the tree; each one will take at least two of the ribbons and tie them to the branches of the tree. While tying the ribbons each person should meditate on bringing peace to the world, to their community, and to their personal life. Then the shaman who will preside in the ritual will take the juniper and light it, then walk around the tree three times, fanning the smoke outward to the spirits. Here is a sample prayer for this part of the ceremony:

Nature spirits of this place

Suld souls of those who have departed

Be cleansed of your anger

Be cleansed of vengeful thoughts

Be filled with light

Be filled with love and peace

(The participants may drum during this part of the ceremony if they want.) The shaman will then take the spring water, and after calling his or her spirits for power, breathe into the water three times. The shaman will then take the spoon or twig whisk and circle the tree three times, throwing the water outward to the spirits. After the third time the remaining water should be put back on the table. The shaman will then circle the tree three times throwing salt to the spirits in the same manner, then circle three times throwing the sand, and then three more times throwing the rice. The salt, sand, and rice should be depleted by the third time around. This is the act of performing ariulga, cleansing, of the nature spirits of the community where this ritual is done.

The shaman will then make a second prayer; it should be something like this:

Nature spirits of this place

Suld souls of those who have departed

Having forgiven what has happened in the past

Be aware that you can do good for all living things

You can bring goodness to all human beings

Inspire people with vision for the future

Bring calm and confidence to their minds

Fill their hearts with thoughts of peace and love

Hurai! Hurai! Hurai!

Hurai! Hurai! Hurai!

Hurai! Hurai! Hurai!

(the word hurai should be accompanied by the clockwise movement of the right arm in front of the body)

The shaman will then drum (the others may drum too) and all participants in the ritual will slowly circle the tree three times. The shaman will then take the milk and circle the tree once, throwing milk to the spirits, then circle once more throwing the tea, and then once more, throwing the vodka. Then each of the participants will take a piece of bread or a cookie and crumble it into pieces and scatter the pieces at the base of the tree. The shaman will then pour half of the milk on the ground by the base of the tree and then throw half to the sky. The same should be done with the tea and vodka. Then each of the participants should leave a few coins at the base of the tree. These are gifts to the nature spirits and the spirit of the tree. Other gifts may include tobacco or milk products such as dabs of butter or crumbles of cheese. Milk products also honor Mother Earth.

Now that the ceremony is concluded each of the participants should take a sip from the spring water. It has become arshaan, energized water, and it has power to cleanse the spirit. Any remaining water may be drunk by the shaman or may be poured next to the tree.

The tree has now become a barisaa, a shamanist shrine to the nature spirits. It should be regularly honored with small gifts of food and liquids. People may also tie additional ribbons to ask the spirits for assistance, protection, or granting of wishes as well as leave money. Of course animals and other people may later take the food and money, but the act of giving creates buyanhishig (positive energy created by good deeds) and increases a person's windhorse (personal spiritual power). The ritual for the calming of the spirits will have a permanent effect and will benefit all people in the community where it is done, not only the participants.

Sarangerel Odigon was an American of Mongolian descent. As an adult she returned to live in the place of her ancestors and studied Mongolian shamanism for many years. She was the author of two books on Tengerism (Mongolian shamanism): Riding Windhorses: A Journey into the Heart of Mongolian Shamanism and Chosen by the Spirits: Following Your Shamanic Calling. She traveled across the globe passing on the teachings of her people to all who wanted to learn them. Sadly, in 2006 she passed into spirit.