A girl marries a whale, and her story reminds the Siberian Yupik about humans' relationship with the animals who sustain them. A reindeer herder spends the winter in a bear's den, and his story shows the Chukchi how despair can become courage. For centuries, native Chukchi and Yupik elders in Chukot[...]
Outsiders to the culture have long focused on the physical artifacts of shamanism - like the costume and drum - and on ritual healing practices, but far less is known about the images shamans and storytellers use to entertain, heal, and educate. Van Deusen describes the lives of the people of the Am[...]
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[...]