The long way

Excerpt

The Siberian shamans (Figs. 1 and 2) are considered to possess supernatural abilities - they can expect, foretell and predict, turn into other people or animals (more often an eagle), heal miraculously and recover the dead, etc. The main secret of the shaman is its mysterious mystical inheritance - certain mad force which comes when he/she is young from the ancestors (Fig. 3). Sometimes this force has the form of a spirit-patron (Fig. 4), but more commonly it does not have any form. The shamans are not worshiped, but they are respected. Their main job is to cure patients and protect house and people from evil spirits (Fig. 5). It is possible to tell, that the spiritual life of indigenous people of Siberia was expressed in the form of shamanism (Figs. 6 and 7). But it is not a superstitious view of the world and the Universe. It is a reasonable perception based on such universal values as respect for the nature, reverence of life in all its forms, vision of a human being as the highest value. That is why many people tried to help others because in the severe Siberian nature conditions, it was extremely difficult for a person to survive alone. At first there were shamans helping people fight illnesses, and then there were doctors (Fig. 8).

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