The shaman is the medicine man or woman, the visionary healer who is the central figure in many tribal cultures -- the repository of the group's rituals, myths, and secret lore. Though these individuals have eluded most Western investigators, noted medical anthropologis Joan Halifax, Ph.D., has here collected the words of the shamans themselves-- some directly from living people, others from hard-to-get primary sources.

These eloquent testimonies include harrowing tales of shamanic initiatory experiences; vivid accounts of visionary journeys; and revealing expressions of the shaman's unique position as the link between the people of his or her tribe with the timeless, inefable cosmos of which each person --and each culture-- is a part. For whether the account is by a Mesoamerican Indian or an African !Kung bushman, whether from Australia, Siberia, or Alaska, there is a remarkable unity to these diverse voices.

Each of the narratives is preceded by a brief introduction with background information on the shaman, and the book begins with a fascinating essay on shamanism by Dr. Halifax, co-author with Stanislav Grof of the Human Encounter With Death.