"Shamans flourish in holistic cultures. In these cultures, individuals value harmony with their environment, cooperation and cohesiveness above mastery of and control over the environment, and holistic over dualistic thinking. They value the relational context of their lives and find comfort in extended family relationships. Indeed, they place the well-being of their extended family above their own. This kind of understanding of one's place in the universe—as an integral part of all things rather than as a separate entity—lends itself to a healing model of health and mental health. The shamans believe that their role is to provide or restore balance in nature so that everything is in its place. When there is disharmony, there is pain and suffering. Thus, they see themselves as being instrumental in removing an individual's pain and suffering and facilitating wholeness. Healing implies wholeness or a state of equilibrium. For the shaman, good physical and mental health imply not only that the individual is free from suffering, but also that the individual is in a larger state of equilibrium. That is, the individual is in a harmonious relationship with all things—with his biological, social, psychological, physical and cosmic environment. This implies that everything needs to be in balance for the human being to be whole, to be healed. Thus, for the shaman, healing requires much more than attention to the specific pain or suffering."
Journal of Child and Family Studies, Vol. 8, No. 2, 1999, pp. 131-134
Shamans, Healing, and Mental Health
Ashvind N. Singh
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