Shamans/Neo-Shamans: Ecstasies, Alternative Archaeologies and Contemporary Pagans

Pagan rituals at Stonehenge. Modern day druids and witches. White Americans who claim to be healers in the Native American spiritual tradition. Are these legitimate manifestations of ancient religious practice, or simply a sham? Shamans and Neo-Shamans turns a critical eye to the shamanistic tradition in both antiquity and the modern world, and assesses the interface between the two. Robert J. Wallis does not denounce neo-Shamanistic practitioners outright. Rather, he produces a well-rounded assessment by drawing attention to important issues such as cultural appropriation, historical precedent, and engagement with archaeological monuments. This experiential anthropology, which rejects the colonialist ethnographer's fear of "going native," will answer the question "What has neo-Shamanism have to do with me?"