The Native American Shaman: The Source of Sacred Knowledge

It is very common for people to confuse shamanism with the type of work done by medicine men and medicine women in tribal societies. Whereas, not all medicine people are shamans. In fact, most medicine men and women are not shamans. Many (shamans) fill social roles more like that of priests. To most Native people the shaman is seen as an all-around sacred practitioner, healer, herbalist, doctor, mystic, storyteller, dancer, and singer of songs. Hopefully, the information in this paper will help to eliminate some of the Western misinterpretations about who the shaman really is and the r…