{"schema_version":"bf_book_companion_v1","release_id":"20260418T162306Z","book":{"amazon_purchase_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/0593537548?tag=bookfrontier-20","asin":"0593537548","authors":["Manvir Singh"],"book_id":"9780593537541","canonical_url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/shamanism-0593537548","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780593537541.jpg?v=20260418T162306Z%3A2026-04-19T10%3A16%3A55Z","description":"From a brilliant, young, Harvard-trained anthropologist and contributor to The New Yorker comes a fascinating investigation into the spiritual practice of shamanism, from its beginnings to the present moment, for readers disaffected with organized religion who seek a more personal approach to spirituality. What are the origins of shamanism, and what is its future? Do shamans believe in their powers? What exactly is trance? What can we learn from indigenous healing practices? Traveling from Indonesia to the Colombian Amazon, living with shamans and observing music, drug use, and indigenous curing ceremonies, anthropologist Manvir Singh journeys into one of the most mysterious religious traditions. Fundamentally, shamans are specialists who use altered states to engage with unseen realms and provide services like healing and divination. As Singh shows, shamanism’s appeal stems from its psychological resonance. Its essence is spiritual transformation: a specialist uses initiations, deprivation, and non-ordinary states to seemingly become a different kind of human, one possessed of powers to cure, prophesy, and otherwise tame life’s uncertainties. Following a fascinating cast of characters, Singh reveals the complexities and vicissitudes of a timeless, always relevant, and ubiquitous phenomenon. He argues that biomedicine can learn from shamanic practices and that psychedelic enthusiasts completely misrepresent history. He also shows that shamanic traditions will forever re-emerge – and that by contemplating humanity’s oldest spiritual practice, we come to better understand ourselves, our history, and our future.","forthcoming":false,"isbn13":"9780593537541","publication_date":"20250520","publisher":"Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group","slug":"shamanism","subtitle":"The Timeless Religion","title":"Shamanism"},"discovery":{"categories":{"all":[{"bisac_code":"OCC036030","confidence_band":"high","label":"Shamanism","score":0.852,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"REL032010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Hindu History","score":0.7611,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"REL032020","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Hindu Rituals & Practice","score":0.7587,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"hint":[{"bisac_code":"OCC036030","confidence_band":"high","label":"Shamanism","score":0.852,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"REL032010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Hindu History","score":0.7611,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"REL032020","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Hindu Rituals & Practice","score":0.7587,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"publisher":[{"bisac_code":"OCC036030","confidence_band":"high","label":"Shamanism","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"REL017000","confidence_band":"high","label":"Comparative Religion","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"REL033000","confidence_band":"high","label":"History of Religion","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"}]},"genres":[{"label":"Shamanism","score":0.852,"slug":"shamanism"},{"label":"Hindu History","score":0.7611,"slug":"hindu-history"},{"label":"Hindu Rituals & Practice","score":0.7587,"slug":"hindu-rituals-practice"}],"reader_fit":["Good for readers who enjoy Shamanism","Good for readers who enjoy Shamanism and Hindu History.","Strong fit for readers who prefer grounded, real-world context."],"related_lists":[],"series":null,"similar_books":[{"authors":["Andrew Harvey"],"book_id":"9781570624490","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781570624490.jpg?v=20260418T162306Z%3A2026-04-19T10%3A16%3A55Z","score":11.322,"title":"Teachings of the Hindu Mystics","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781570624490"},{"authors":["Vanamali"],"book_id":"9781620552483","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781620552483.jpg?v=20260418T162306Z%3A2026-04-19T10%3A16%3A55Z","score":11.2859,"title":"Shiva","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781620552483"},{"authors":["Wendy Doniger","Amy Landon","Tantor Audio","& 0 more"],"book_id":"9780143116691","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780143116691.jpg?v=20260418T162306Z%3A2026-04-19T10%3A16%3A55Z","score":11.2615,"title":"The Hindus","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780143116691"},{"authors":["Gopi Krishna","Gene Kieffer","James Hillman","& 0 more"],"book_id":"9781645473442","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781645473442.jpg?v=20260418T162306Z%3A2026-04-19T10%3A16%3A55Z","score":11.2615,"title":"Kundalini","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781645473442"},{"authors":["Amrutur V. 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