Singing Story, Healing Drum

The history and contemporary transformation of south Siberia is illuminated through this exploration of the "shamanic revival" in the Turkic Republics of Tuva and Khakassia. Based on extensive field-work and including folktales, legends, and shamanic poems that elucidate spiritual traditions as well [...]
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The history and contemporary transformation of south Siberia is illuminated through this exploration of the "shamanic revival" in the Turkic Republics of Tuva and Khakassia. Based on extensive field-work and including folktales, legends, and shamanic poems that elucidate spiritual traditions as well as descriptions of local rituals, "Singing Story, Healing Drum" is at once travel narrative, autobiography, history, and ethnology. Kira Van Deusen weaves together traditional scholarship and a personal account of her travels through Siberia and contacts with scholars, shamans, and storytellers active in reviving traditional culture. Highlighting the importance of oral literature and music, "Singing Story, Healing Drum" guides the reader through the often confusing phenomena of the "shamanic revival," both in Russia and abroad.