Shamanism and the Art of Charismatic Otherness with Manvir Singh

<p>The Decoders welcome back cognitive anthropologist Manvir Singh for a continued exploration into the social and cognitive dimensions of shamanism. Building upon their earlier conversation, this episode involves further discussion of the psychological mechanisms and cultural patterns that make shamanic practices a recurring feature across human societies. Drawing from Singh's latest book, <em>Shamanism: The Timeless Religion</em> (2025), the discussion addresses how these ancient practices persist and adapt in modern contexts.</p><p>Taking our standard meandering conversational journey with Manvir, we traverse topics such as whether Jesus and the Buddha were shamans, the parallels between the Siberian tundra and Silicon Valley, the potential emergence of AI-driven shamans within virtual reality environments, and whether dialogos with Hermes counts as a soul flight.</p><p>Something for all the family!</p><p><strong>Links</strong></p><ul><li><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/730339/shamanism-by-manvir-singh/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Shamanism: The Timeless Religion by Manvir Singh (2025)</a></li><li><a href="https://www.proforhobo.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Prof or Hobo website</a></li><li><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-weekend-essay/the-president-who-became-a-prophet" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">New Yorker: The President Who Became a Prophet</a></li><li><a href="https://decoding-the-gurus.captivate.fm/episode/interview-with-manvir-singh-on-gurus-shamans" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Our first interview with Manvir</a></li><li>Buckner, William. 2022. "A Deceptive Curing Practice in Hunter–Gatherer Societies" <em>Humans</em> 2, no. 3: 95-103. <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/humans2030007" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.3390/humans2030007</a></li></ul><br />