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.

Is Shamanism the World's Oldest Profession?

A new study published in the journal Behavioral and Brain Sciences suggests shamans acted as the first professional class in human society. Manvir Singh, a graduate student in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University argues in a new paper that shamanism develops as specialists compete to provide magical services to their community. Those services could range from healing disease to exorcising evil spirits to telling fortunes, or even changing the weather. According to Singh, "The theory is that there are important things we really want to have control over -- calling rain, summoning animals, healing illness. All around the world, people believe that these important, uncertain outcomes are influenced by invisible forces -- gods, witches, their ancestors, fairies, and more. But a shaman says, 'I can control that. I can talk to fairies. I can see signs of witches. I can be possessed by a god or speak to them.'" The key to the community's trust that a shaman has those abilities, Singh said, comes from the belief that the shaman is transformed into something more than human, and able to interact with supernatural forces. This helps explain how shamans became the first professional class in human societies. Read more.