Gibson Shamanic in Tibet and Central Asia

Notes on the History of the Shamanic in Tibet and Inner Asia Author(s): Todd Gibson Source: Numen, Vol. 44, Fasc. 1 (Jan., 1997), pp. 39-59 Published by: BRILL Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3270381 . Accessed: 13/06/2013 06:10 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

.

BRILL is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Numen.

http://www.jstor.org

This content downloaded from 147.142.173.200 on Thu, 13 Jun 2013 06:10:57 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

NOTES ON THE HISTORY OF THE SHAMANIC IN TIBET AND INNER ASIA TODD GIBSON

Summary of the shamanhave oftenbeen crippledby dubiousand Historicaltreatments investion thenatureof shamanicreligion.Anthropological untestable assumptions issuesin anydepth.The first gationsin theirturnhaveseldomdealtwithhistorical to pointout theadvantagesand dangersinvolved attempts partof thiscontribution to historicalissues. A broaddefinition in applyingan anthropological perspective whileavoidingsome in intent, of theshamanis proposedwhichis anthropological in method. errors possible the"shamanicsickness"The secondpartof thearticlebeginsby documenting the careersof severaltertons literature-in in the ethnological widelyacknowledged thatthe shamanic Tibetan of Buddhism),illustrating (majorfiguresin thehistory thatare usuallyassociatedwith role was notlimitedto thehealingand divination forthenamesofshamansin modernnonInnerAsianshamans.Buddhistderivations Buddhistculturesare presented;theseargueforan associationbetweenBuddhism of and theshamanicin earlyInnerAsia thatwentdeeperthanthemutualborrowing culturalformscommonly supposedto havetakenplace.

and Presuppositions The Shaman:Definitions Shamanismandtheshamanicremainpopularamongscholars.The of course,is notthesame figureas shamanof modemscholarship, the Tunguzreligiousspecialistto whomthe wordstrictly applies. the defined Tunobserver oftheTunguz, theforemost Shirokogoroff, guz shamansas "personsof bothsexes who have masteredspirits, and use thesespiritsintothemselves, who at theirwillcan introduce theirpowerovertheirspiritsin theirowninterests, particularly helping otherpeople, who sufferfromthe spirits.In such a capacity theymaypossessa complexof specialmethodsfordealingwiththe @ Koninklijke Brill,Leiden (1997)

NUMEN, Vol. 44


40

ToddGibson

is undoubtedly accurate,butis validonlyfor spirits."'Thisdefinition theTunguzicpeoples,and onlyforthemodemperiod.As Reinhard "Thesituation hasremarked, is,inbrief,thatthereis a Tungusicword, associatedwitha Tunguitsultimateoriginand meaninguncertain, its ultimateoriginand originalformuncertain."2 sic phenomenon, or thewordhas In spiteof, perhapsbecauseof,theseuncertainties, increasedin lexicalscope sinceitsintroduction Russianinto through theEuropeanintellectual it seems sphere,to thepointthatat present, distinct setsofconnotations in thetwoscholto havetakenon rather used: thereligious-historical arlyfieldswhereit is mostcommonly and theanthropological. forthepurposesof thepresIt wouldbe tedious(and unnecessary to attempt toenumerate, letaloneevaluate,themany entcontribution) oftheshamanproposedin recentanthropodefinitions contemporary it to say thatthe majorityof thesehave suffice logical literature;3 in commonthethemeof individualcontactwiththeextra-human by This contact a spiritualspecialistin the serviceof his community. to as is distinguished by a statewhichhas been variouslyreferred "ecstacy","ecstaticcontact","trance",and, in morerecentyears, statesof consciousness".It is also usefulto "altered"or "alternate use thewordwithout definmentionthatfewmodemanthropologists ing theirterms. situationobtainsamonghistoriansof religion. A verydifferent on literary sourcesfor These specialists, manyof whomrelyentirely theirwork,are stilloftenrathercarelessin theiruse of the word "shaman",as if it requiredno further explanationor qualification. has bothfed upon and contributed to a seriesof This inexactitude aboutthenatureof the shamanicwhichmightbe forassumptions follows: as mulated 1) "Shamanism"is a wordthatcan be legitiofnonmatelyappliedto,andadequatelyaccountsfor,a widevariety which or not be literatereligiouscomplexes, historically may may it is therefore related.2) Shamanismbeingnon-literate, pre-literate. it is therefore ahistorical, 3) Being pre-literate, existingunchanged fromthedawnof humanexistence(or at leastfromthebeginnings of a givensociety).4) Anyelementofa culture'sreligiouslandscape


HistoryoftheShamanicin Tibetand InnerAsia

41

tradition whichcannotbe accountedforby its prevailing scriptural shamanistic substrate. can be explainedas a "vestige"ofa primordial suchvestigesare oftenconsideredas beingnecesNot surprisingly, to scriptural traditions by specialistsin thelatter. sarilyinferior shouldinviteat leasta glimThusbaldlystated,theseassumptions the nevertheless fact remainsthat, mer of intellectual discomfort; in overtor implied,theyremainextremely influential, particularly To thusdismisstheshaman, ofthevariousAsianreligions.4 treatments oftheanthropological an least at the however, very ignorance betrays thatshamanicpractitionon thewide varietyof functions literature in variations ers play in theirrespective cultures,and theimportant shuts acrossculturalboundaries;it also prematurely thesefunctions historical thedoorsto further inquiry. Thereare,of course,someverygood reasonsthatanthropological studieshavenotbeenmoreutilizedbyreligioushistorians. Although in the field have in the data by anthropologists ethnological gathered by propounded pastservedas a checkto someofthewilderfantasies is of theorists religioushistory, armchair anthropologypredominantly not and has muchconcernedwiththe been a synchronic discipline, to extrapolate toolsforattempting its ofmethodological development literthe of in time. backwards Still, inadequacy usingonly findings in thestudy both canonicaland historical) documents (including ary has notbeenunrecognized. of religioushistory Fortyyearsago, Van to integrate the der Leeuw urgedthatspecialistsin religionattempt andothersinto ofsociologists, psychologists, archaeologists, findings has proposed"multiperthefield,5and,morerecently, Waardenburg of religiousand research investigations" interdisciplinary spective in his opinion,are "eitherto historicalproblems.The alternatives, butclosedcraftman's becomea dignified guild,or simplyto remain a backwardarea withinthewholeof thepresentscholarlyresearch is not a simpleone, however,and is esprocess."6The enterprise to pitfalls.The presentcontribution peciallysubject methodological some of thesedangersand suggestmeans to articulate is an attempt and literaryof avoidingthem,while showingthatanthropological


42

ToddGibson

each otherin thestudyof the historicalapproachescan complement shamanicin InnerAsia. The religiouscultureofTibetis an ideal arenaforan investigation of historicalaspectsof the shamanic,since shamanicpractitioners playinga wide varietyof social roles coexisttherewitha sophisacute literarytradition.Further, ticatedand intellectually foreign in Tibet on the shaman has included both historical and scholarship on Tibetanreligion approaches.The earliestwriters anthropological in termsof bothexternalparadefinedtheshamanicin thatcountry costumesandmasks)andcommon phernalia(drums,boneornaments, the of shaman's and experiences(spiritflight, purported metaphors ofthe"soul") also documented in thenontheguidingor ransoming of Siberia.7While theseworkscorrectly literatetraditions pointed out the close culturalties betweenthe Tibetansand otherpeoples thereligious-historical frameof InnerAsia, theyoftenincorporated of workmentioned above,whichassumedtheincalculableantiquity "shamanism".WhenNorthAsian shamanicthemeswerepresentin a Buddhistcontext,forexample,theywereseen at best as adaptaor degeneration of tionsbutmorecommonlyas an accommodation to popularsensibilities. The superficial a higherreligionto conform andinadequateequatingofa hypothetical "earlyTibetanshamanism" was in most withtheBon religion,no longerintellectually tenable,8 cases partof thisapproach. on so-calledshamanicphenomenain the More recentscholarship AlTibetanculturalspherehas been dominated by anthropologists. of the shamanhave varied,and some have thoughtheirdefinitions and ethnographic to use both material,theyhave literary attempted ofTibetanshamanic comparison generallyavoidedbotha systematic on one hand,9 their Northern Asiatic with counterparts practioners oftheirpossiblehistorical antecedents on the and seriousexploration is often to shamanic more used the other.10 Instead, category highlight certainaspectsof religiouspracticein relationto a specificsocietal be it amongTibetansproperor amongrelatedpeoples framework, suchas theSherpa,Gurung,orTamang."Thistrendperhapsreaches the very its apogee withHolmberg,who raisesquestionsregarding



43

as a religiousphenomenon existenceof "shamanism" separablefrom itsculturalcontext.12 has reasserted theimportance Anotherrecentwork,however, of a in Tibetan of the shamanic Samuel religioushistory; generalconcept betweentwocomplementary trends uses thetermtodrawa distinction His formulation societies.13 Tibetan useful in proves operativein of TibetanBuddhism,and keepingin describingthe development ratherthandogmindthatthecategorieshe proposesare illustrative on the is a of its definite his matic, paradigm improvement majority orientation avoidsthemost predecessors.Samuel's anthropological discussionsof the errorfoundin historical commonmethodological thattheBuddhistic and theshamanicare not shamanby recognizing in categoriesthatshouldbe placed opposition,as the formerterm and thelatter(if culturalstructure, refersto one or another particular itis to haveanyrealmeaningoutsidetheTunguzcontext)to a certain mode of religiousbehaviorthatmightor mightnotbe foundwithin One mightverywell speakof a Buddhist(or sucha givenstructure. Islamic or Taoist) shaman.'4This has been pointedout by anthroto make it pologistsbefore,15butSamuel's is the firstcontribution of Tibetan religioushistory. explicitin thesphere A second and moresubtlemethodological error,foundin both historicaland anthropological works,is to assumethata "shamanic" to approach religiouspracticeimpliesa certainreligiouscontent.This of shamanic is of coursenothingnew; Eliade's definitive summary in a celestial and for that beliefs takes divinity granted phenomena'6 ascentto heavenare at once a humanuniversaland themostancient formof religion. One consequenceof thisoutlookis thatEliade considersas not trulyshamansthosemediumswho operatewithin theculturalidiomof "spiritpossession".In his turn,Samuel seems associatedwithsome to believethatshamanicreligionis necessarily formofthephilosophiaperennis.Atonepoint,"he discussesvarious of as "partialand limitedapproachesto thetruth Buddhistdoctrines hereappearstobe rooted theshamanicvision".Samuel'sformulation in thepositiveevaluationof theshamanas exponentof experiential as opposed to textualreligionthatunderliesmuchof the modern


44

ToddGibson

intheshamanic.Still,hisstatement cannotbe interest anthropological unlessone assumesa particular reconciledwithhis earlierdefinition betweenreligionwhichdependson "altered and fixedrelationship of thosealteredstates.'8 statesof consciousness"and thecontents Even beyondthisissue,thereis a further to pitfallin attempting definitions to shamanichistory.It was noted applyanthropological of the shamancontainan element above thatmostsuch definitions toas "trance", referred statesofconvariously "ecstacy",or"alternate bothin themodemsphere, sciousness".Such termsare problematic and even morein the historical.Firstof all, it shouldbe obvious of "statesof consciousness"to socithatapplyingthephraseology and eties whichmay not have developeda languageof mentation, in shamanic terms of the of or is to spirits deities, our prefer speak own culturalimposition.Recognizingthatsuch an imposition may be necessaryif we are to talkabouttheshamanin anygeneralconto avoid as muchas possibleprojecting text,we muststillattempt of mentational ontothe shamanour own frameworks language,as mostof thecategoriesthathavebeen proposedin thepast are very if notarbitrary,19 and theproblemis onlymademorecomartificial discuss thementality when to of earliercultures.20 attempting plex can be avoidedby usingcriteria whichdo notdepend This difficulty in of theshaman.One definition on suchevaluations thedefinition thatwould do so is as follows: if a personis recognizedby his own societyas beingin directcontactwiththedivineor extrahuman (howeverthatsocietydefinesit) by virtueof concretedemonstrationsof unusualor uniquecapabilities,thenhe or she is a shaman. wouldsimultaneously be morefaithful to theTunguz This definition contextthanEliade's in acceptingthefullrangeof culturalidioms both"poswhichexpresstheshaman'sspecialcapabilities, including session"and "spiritflight".On theotherhand,it wouldstillprovide betweenthe shamanand otherreligious a meansof distinguishing would not be consideredas specialists. Thus, a ritualpractitioner even if the in shamanic practice, purposewereto effectuate engaging unlesstheabila religiouspurposeforthegood of his community, himself(becauseof some ityto do so was vestedin thepractitioner



45

thanin his texts,proceof his abilities)rather tangiblemanifestation of heavenworshipcould evidence dures,or apparatus.Historically, not,pace Eliade, be consideredas ipsofactoevidenceof shamanic ofreligiousspecialistswho"flewto the religion,thoughdescriptions of it. It shouldbe notedthatthis taken as be suggestive sky"might assumesnorprecludesanyhistorical oftheshamanneither definition associationwithInerAsianreligiouscomplexes.The ancientGreek seersand oracleswouldbe consideredshamansunderthisdefinition, on theGreekswouldhave butthequestionof InnerAsian influence to be treatedseparately.21 This definition mightbe consideredoverlybroadby anthropoloin a synchronic the have who field;italso advantageofworking gists, statesof theveryfactor("alternate mightbe feltthatit compromises the contemmuch of for been has that consciousness") responsible it is difficult to suggest in theshaman.Nevertheless, poraryinterest to remain thatallows the historicalinvestigator anotherdefinition discipline,while avoidinga priorijudgegroundedin descriptive and theexistenceandnatureof shamanic mentson archaicmentality has the contactsin theremotepast.22In otherwords,thedefinition to label a religiouspractitioner advantageof allowingan investigator to knowwhich information is not sufficient if there as a shamaneven shamanicidiomor idiomswereoperativein his societyat a given is also able to accommodate historicalmoment.The definition possible shiftsin theshamanicidiomacrosstimewithina givensociety, withspiritsto one of of "interacting" forexample,froma metaphor "spiritpossession."23 BuddhistShamansin InnerAsia 1) The Terton of the Havingsuggestedan approachforhistoricalinvestigation outlined how the definition shamanic,it now remainsto illustrate This cases. in be can above exposition applied specific profitably will beginby relatinga phenomenaassociatedwithshamanicprac-


46

ToddGibson

in modemethnologicalliterature to an ongoingreligioustitioners in Tibet. historicalsituation Amongculturesthatsupportshamanicpractices,the correlation andtheshaman's"calling"is bynowverywelldocbetweenpuberty breakumented.This "calling"is markedby a psycho-physiological intosocietyin theshamanicrole. If downfollowedby reintegration is unsuccessful, theshamaniccandidatemaybecome thereintegration notedoverhalfa century insane.Steinberg ago thata shaman'seleca serious tionis "manifested illness, by usuallyat theonsetof sexual observedthat"Theshamanistic call bematurity";24 Bogorassimilarly at an manifest itself in cases the to earlyage, many during critical gins fromchildhoodto youth."25 Eliade's workis reperiodof transition with data that confirm further these observations.26 ethnological plete Tibetanshamanicpractitioners, of both"spirit Amongpresent-day travel"and "possession"types,Nebeskyclaims,"Mostof thefuture shamansare strickenby the shamanillnessat the age of puberty. The sameappliesto Tibetanmediums,sincemostofthem,as myintimewhenreaching formants claimed,becamepossessedforthefirst ofnineTibetanspiritmedisexualmaturity."27 Berglie'sinvestigations ums of thepawo (dpa'.bo) and Ihapa typesrevealedthat,withone exception,theyhad beguntheircareersbetweentenand sixteen,the medianage beingthirteen.28 thetwelfth medium Blo.bzang'Jigs.med, of the Gnas.chungoraclespirits,had a shamanicillnessthatbegan whenhe becameunableto funcat ten and climaxedat fourteen, tionuntilrecognizedas theoracle.29Lhag.paDon.grub,themedium thecontroversial of severalspiritsincluding Rdo.rjeShugs.Idan,was whilePeter'sTamanginformant became firstpossessedat sixteen,30 a shamanat thirteen.31 This connectionbetweenadolescenceand the shamaniccalling can also be discernedin theTibetanhistoricalliterature.Not only does it providea possiblereasonfortheancientTibetanpracticeof removinga rulerin favorof his son whenthelatterreachedtheage theoriginof ofthirteen,32 but,in certainworksoftheGhostradition, was Bon is ascribedto a boy who,at theage of twelveor thirteen, all their lore.33 a led all overTibetby wandering spirit,and learned



47

to theshamanic,in a Further examplesof a naturalpredisposition can be seen in the of someTibetanterBuddhistcontext, biographies "treasure aremenandwomen, revealers".The tertons ton(gter.ston), the who Rnyingmaand Bon traditions, especiallyassociatedwith to an ongoingrenewalof religionin Tibetthrough have contributed of sacredobjectsand texts(gter.ma).Theseitemsmay therevelation be discoveredin concreteformin sacredsites,butalso maybe "unof treasurerevealerswho are held earthed"fromthe mindstreams or emanationsof the disciplesof Padmasambhava.34 to be rebirths bothwithinTibetand without, The tertonshave been controversial themoreextremeevaluations holdingthattheywereand are merely will showthatmany frauds.A glimpseat theirlifestories,however, else theymayhavebeen,wereshamansaccording of them,whatever A significant numberof them,including to thepresentdefinition.35 all fiveof the so-called"tertonkings",seem to have undergonea sortof "shamanicsickness",mostoftenaroundadolescence. The firstof the "kings",Nyang.ralNyi.ma'Od.zer (1136-1204),began to have visionsat the age of eight. Accordingto the biography, heldhimto be variouschangesandeveryone "hisconductunderwent visionsat insane",36 (1212-1270)experienced Chos.kyiDbang.phyug vulture rode a across the he heavens in one of these huge age thirteen; and metVajrasattva.37 Rdo.rjeGling.pa(1346-1405)similarly began at to the his visionarycareer thirteen, travelling emanationally eight sites of sacred esoteric Buddhism charnel grounds,legendary great in India.38O.ryganPadmaGling.pa(1450-1521)had a sicknessbeseemto havebegunat a relatively forehis visions(which,however, lateage),39as did 'Jam.dbyangs Mkhyen.rtse Dbang.po(1820-1892), at visions whose began age eight.40 had similarexperiences.RatnaGling.pa's tertons Otherprominent visionsbeganat age ten,41and Mchog.gyur Gling.pa'sat thirteen.42 seemsto indicatea typeofeideticimGling.pa'sbiography Gter.bdag whilestilllittlemorethanan infant, agerypresentin his perceptions occurredat age ten.43 whilehis firstvisionof Padmasambhava as regardsthe"shamanicsickofthesebiographies The testimony withtoo neednotbe regarded ness" and relatedvisionary experience


48

ToddGibson

of therevelatory visionof the jaundicedan eye. Whiledescription seems an often in itself the gterma important component acceptance if havingvisionary of a discovery,44 experiencesat a youngage had been fromthe beginningof the phenomenon merelyan ascriptive characteristic and legitimizing of treasurerevealers,one mightexin find it all of the biographies, while in present virtually pect to visionsseemto playno partin thelifestoriesof factsuchyouthful tertonsas theFifthDalai Lama and Mnga'.ris even suchprominent as the storyof Nyang.ral Pan.chen Padma Dbang.rgyal.45 Further, Nyi.ma 'Od.zer mentionedabove indicates,the shamanicsickness ofa future was notalwaysseenas indicative religiousgiant(sincehe heldto be insane).Another was at first examplecan be foundin the figureof Jo.moSman.mo(1248-1283),whose sicknessand visions a tertonby hersociwerealso notinitiallysanctionedas indicating claimsthat,althougha fewhad faithin herwhen ety.Herbiography themajority she beganhercareer(also at thirteen), her, disregarded was she a sman.mo by thinking spirit.46 possessed fromethnological The correlations data arguepowerfully against theidea of thetertons'revelatory experiences beingcompleteinvenof the treasure tion. While the so-called"legitimating strategies" revealersmay indeedbe in some cases self-conscious, even decepat acceptanceamongthepopulationat largeas well as tive,efforts those religiousspecialistswho evaluatetheircredentials,47 among of Tibetanculturalhistory, it is seen againstthebroaderbackground of treasurerevelation is continuouswith clear thatthephenomenon a strongshamanictradition. lead to an inverseconcluThe same correlations might,however, fromotherTibetanshasion: thatshamanictertonsare no different intheframemansexceptthattheyhavechosentoexpressthemselves Buddhisminsteadof (or, moreoften,in workof earlierscriptural in such additionto) thatof Tibetanpopularreligion.The difficulties a conception,however,seem almostinsuperablewhenthe treasure revealeris comparedto another typeofTibetanshaman:themedium who is possessedby the deitieswho are consultedin government Like the tertonsdiscussedabove,thesemediumsmay functioning.



49

to theshamanicas evidencedby theshamanic have a predisposition also like and sickness;48 them,theymayhave to undergostringent The differences teststo gain social validationof theirstatus.49 beThe tertonmay influence tweenthe two,however,are significant. freshreligiousapproaches(withina Budhis societyby synthesizing of the oracle mediums while the communications dhistcontext),5? are oftenenigmaticand requireinterpretation by theclergy,and are to adviceon immediate limitedin content moreover generally practical problems.Whilethetertonoftenactsin waysthatviolateestablishedsocialnorms,51themedium'sshamanicidiom-possessionbya subjecttotheBuddhist hierarchyspiritwhois nonetheless powerful his he own as the vessel ofthedeity. that individuality negate requires The inductionprocedurethatresultsin thepossessionof theoracle whilethe visionsthatcontribute and choreographed, is unchanging to theterton'slegitimation (almayoccurspontaneously apparently in esotericBudthoughit seemsthatmosttertonsundergotraining dhistdisciplines).The questionof whyan individualwitha psytowardstheshamanicbecomesa possessed chologicalpredisposition thana tertonis probablyultimately oracleor shamanichealerrather not withinthe scope of the present unanswerable(and is certainly or familialexpectations such as societal work),thoughfactors may to recognize,however,thatin have theirinfluences.It is important some TibetanBuddhistcirclesthereligiousrole of thepredisposed butmayencompassthe shamanis notlimitedto pragmatic matters, concernswhichlie at theheartof Buddhism. soteriological 2) The HealingShamans The culturalhistoryof anotherTibetanshaman,the previously to thepresent discussion.Thepawo mentioned pawo, is also relevant has beentakenas a typicalexampleofwhatshamansin Tibetbefore the comingof Buddhismmighthave been like; Nebeskycalls the Bon [sic] as it existed of theearliest,unorganized pawo "a remnant before the so-called 'white Bon' ... had developed afterthe examthoughthereis littleor no real ple of Buddhism".52This evaluation,


50

ToddGibson

be acceptedexceptforthe evidenceto backitup, mightnevertheless factthatthe worddpa'.bo is also used in canonicalTibetanBudas a translation oftheSanskritwordvira, dhisttextsof all schools,53 in esoteric which a word Buddhism "hero", mayrefereitherto 1) an or teacher,2) thechiefdeityof accomplishedVajrayanapractitioner theesotericmandalaitself,or 3) one of theninequalitiespossessed by thisdeity,whichare derivedfromIndiandance.54 It mightbe thoughtthatthe two meaningsof pawo in the Tibetancontextshave nothingto do witheach other.55 This,however, is dubious,sinceat leastsomepawos acceptPadmasambhava as the founderof theirorder,56and since manyof themwear as partof theirshamanicapparelthe rigs Inga, a crownwhichis of esoteric The implications of the factthatthepawo Buddhistprovenance.57 and legendary elementsof theregalia,terminology, hisincorporates (whichseems toryof esotericBuddhismintohis frameof reference are The situunclear. to have littleto do withscriptural Buddhism) of the ationcould be explainedby eithera wholesaleappropriation earlier shamanic or in an a shift shamanic tradition, Vajrayanaby semanticshiftof thepawo termon the idiomand a corresponding of BudOwingto thepervasiveness partof Vajrayanapractitioners. can be ruledout,but dhismin Tibetansocieties,neitherpossibility InnerAsianculturesin whichtheword thereare othercontemporary relatedto Buddhism, is historically used forshamanicpractitioners whichnowknowlittleornothing thesearecultures and,significantly, and Karakalpaks, for of thatreligion.ShamansamongtheTurkmen theseare example,are knownas porkhanandparkhonrespectively; the word "Buddha" to related burxan, (as personmeaning certainly in Turkic texts(and and even Buddha early image) age, principle, in Shamanic its meaning modemMongolian).58 practitionretaining ers are called baksiby the Kazakh,and bakshiamongthe Kirghiz and Uzbeks,and thesecan be seen as derivingfrombakshi,a word butused amongInnerAsianBuddhists of probableChineseorigin59 The use ofthesewordsmustbe seenas inas a termfor"teacher".60 oftheseculturalgroups, dicatingthat,at a certainpointin thehistory ifnotexclusively Buddhistshamans,or shamanswerepredominantly


Historyof theShamanicin Tibetand InnerAsia

51

had derived at leastthatthemostessentialof theshaman'sfunctions fromBuddhism. forboththehistory of has important Suchan assertion implications theshamanicandthatofBuddhism.Firstandmostbasically,theparallels in theTurkiclanguagesadd weightto thecase fora derivation oftheTunguzshamanfrom"framana. Secondly,thatseveraldifferent Buddhistwordsare used to referto theshaman(sramana-shaman, vira-dpa'.bo, burxan,and bakshi)indicatesthatBuddhism'seffects cannotbe explainedby positinga singlewave of culturalinfluence, butmustbe seen as a processthatwas repeatedseveraltimes. evidencealso arguesagainsttheidea thattherelaThe linguistic to the prevailingBuddhistideologywas a the shaman of tionship matterof enmityor evenmeretoleration.Had Buddhismnotbeen the concernedwiththe special qualitiesthatdistinguish intimately shaman,it is highlyunlikelythatBuddhisttermswouldhave come intowidespraduse in thiscontext,and thatthesetermswouldhave Buddhismhad disapevenafterall traceof scriptural beenpreserved pearedamongtheTurksand Tunguz.61 thatall shaThese data do not,of course,supportan assumption mansin InnerAsia werea productof Buddhistinfluence.As seen above (note 32), thereis also an apparentconnectionbetweenthe shamanand InnerAsian polity;thisrelationship maywell antedate of it. It might butin anycase seemsindependent Buddhistinfluence as even be speculatedthatthe declineof suchpoliticalinstitutions or thesacralkingshipcreateda religiousvacuum clan organization thatBuddhistshamanshelpedto fill.The factthatBuddhismoffered shamanicqualitieswhichwere less depenmethodsforcultivating andhence,perhapson clanstructure, inherited denton predisposition could onlyhaveaided in itsacceptance. on popular ThatBuddhistshamanslefta lastingculturalinfluence does notimplythattheywerelimited religionin InnerAsia certainly to thehealing norin theiractivities in theiroutlookto thepragmatic, the modemTunguzand Turkicshamans. Fromthe whichtypifies timeoftheKushanEmpire,Buddhismin theregionproduceda civibutinfluenced lizationof itsownthatnotonlyreflected development


ToddGibson

52

in Indiaand China,and theexampleof theTibetantertonhas shown thatthereligioussphereof theshaman(even a shamanwho had to imbalancein his youth)mightwell include overcomepsychological to Buddhistliterature.The absenceof such occupacontributions InnerAsian societiescan tionsamongtheshamansof contemporary the decline in a be Buddhistestablisheasily explainedby supportive of a peopleto anotherreligionin whichthe ment,or theconversion of his shaman'sexpression experiencewas morecloselyconstrained by ideology. 316 46 BroadmoorDrive, Colorado80439-8956,USA Evergreen,

TODDGIBSON

I 1935: 269. Shirokogoroff, 2 Reinhard,1976: 14. The originof theTunguzicwordhas been a matterof A derivation fromtheSanskritSramana(through theTocharian some controversy. samaneor theSogdianSmn)has been acceptedby many,and a strongcase, based data as well as linguistichypothesis, can stillbe made forthis on ethnographic between theory(Eliade: 1964: 495-507; anyseriousdiscussionof therelationship Buddhismand the shamansof Siberiamusttake thisworkinto account). This derivationis not universally accepted;Altaic linguistsespeciallyhave frequently a geneticrelationship thoughthesehavesometimes presupposed soughtalternatives, amongtheAltaiclanguageswhichis becomingincreasingly questionable.Lot-Falck (1977: 9-10) arguesthattherootsam is commonto all Altaiclanguages;it should be noted,however,thatherobjectionto an Indian/Iranian provenanceis based on linguisticcriteria(as is thatof hypothesisratherthanstrictly religious-historical 1973: 26). Kingsley(1944: 195 and note34) citessourcesunavailable Hultkrantz, thesemaybe a reiteration oftheTocharian to me thatargueforan Iranianderivation; above. See also Voigt(1984: 15 and notes9 and Sogdianpossibilitiesmentioned and 10) on theAltaicists. 3 A sampleof themostthoughtful discussionswouldincludethoseof Reinhard (1978), Siikala(1978), andLewis (1984). (1976), Hultkrantz 4 A fairlyrecentsurveyon the cultureand religionof Mongolia(Jagchidand withthe thewholeof non-literate religionin thatcountry Hyer,1979) summarized statement (p. 165) that"Fromancienttimesto thepresent,Shamanismhas shown nothighly buthas remainedveryprimitive andis generally littleor no development, of comparative religion." regardedby students 5 Kitagawa,1987: 22. 6 1978: 55. Waardenburg,



53

7 See Eliade (1964; 430-441),Nebesky-Wojkowitz (1975: 538-53),and Hoffmann(1979: 1-27). 8 See Snellgrove(1987: 388-407). 9 See Berglie(1978) foran exception.Bergliefindssimilarities betweenSiberian and Tibetanhealingshamans(pawo) at everylevelexceptthatof social status.For moreon thepawo,see also Berglie(1980),andNebesky-Wojkowitz (1975: 425-428). 10An exceptionhereis de Sales (1994). 11See Hitchcock(1976), Peters(1982), Mumford (1989), and Holmberg(1989). 12 Holmberg,1989: 142-146. 13Samuel(1993: 8) definesshamanic andtransformareligionas "theregulation use the tionof humanlifeandhumansocietythrough use) of alternate (or purported are heldto comstatesof consciousnessby meansof whichspecialistpractitioners municatewitha mode of realityalternative to, and morefundamental than,the worldof everydayexperience".Clericalreligion,on theotherhand,is text-based, concernedwithpoliticalpower. and historically oriented, philosophically 14 Thereare, of course,competent historicalstudieswhichtreatthe supposed

conflictof Buddhismand "shamanism"in InnerAsia and the Himalaya;see, for however,seem to havebeen based either example,Heissig(1953). Such conflicts, on Buddhistobjectionsto certainreligiouspracticessuch as blood sacrificesand ancestorworship(whichhave no clear connectionwithshamanicreligionby any or else on social and politicalissues thata theoryof definition) anthropological competingreligioussystemsdoes notadequatelyaccountfor. The workcited,as to definetheshaman,butratheruses the well as otherof thissort,does notattempt set of in thesenseof an archaic,preliterate terms"shamanism"and "shamanistic" beliefs. 15Cf. thediscussionsin Aziz (1976: 343-344)and Hultkrantz (1973: 36-37). 16Eliade,1964: 504-507. especiallypp. 17 Samuel,1993: 503. 18 Even in theBuddhistcontexthc is concernedwith,Samuel'sis stillan awk-

wardstatement.While the pointof view thatclaimsthatall verbalformulations is certainly of religiousexperienceare imperfect implicitif not explicitin much thisis logicallyquitea different Buddhistliterature, thingfromassertingthatall is therefore equivalent.AlthoughSamuel(1993: 504) cites a religiousexperience an of such outlook,and it maybe thatsome followersof theTisingleexemplar trendin particular betangzhanstong("otheremptiness") mayhaveheldthatthereis to claimthatall followers whichlies behindreligiousexperience, a positiveexistent formulation and teachersof "shamanicBuddhism"in Tibethadsucha philosophical at the back of theirminds(as Samuel seems to do) is not in the leastjustifiable historically.


ToddGibson

54 19 Hultkrantz

(1978: 41-51) and Rouget(1985: 3-46) have discussedat some involvedin evaluating psychological processesforthepurpose lengththedifficulties theshaman. of defining of mentational 20 Adkins(1970) examinesthehistorical development language amongthe earlyGreeks;his discussionof the termsphrenes,psyche,nous, etc. who persistin considershouldbe requiredreadingforthosereligioushistorians of souls" to be a commonfeatureof "archaic"cultures. ing beliefin a "plurality modern problemsinvolvedin attributing Jaynes(1976) has pointedoutthehistorical to ancienthumanity. of mentation frameworks 21 On this see Kingsley(1994). controversy, 22 The definition wouldabsolutelydisallow,forexample,anypossibility of laat as "shamanistic" Lascaux 1964: in cave the Eliade, (cf. 503), paintings belling be ofPaleolithicsocietythancan presently theabsenceof morecompleteknowledge established.These worksmaywell havebeen rendered by artistswho wouldmeet of theshaman,butsuchan assertionis neitherdemonstrable thepresentdefinition nordisprovable. 23Bourguignon (1976) notesthat"possessiontrance"is a shamanicidiomthatcan suchas class be statistically associated,in moderntimes,withsocial characteristics abovethe100,000mark. andpopulation evolvedpoliticaljurisdictions, stratification, fromsuch a tendency criticized to overgeneralize WhileLewis (1984: 6) has rightly in a historical thereare whichis evenriskier data(an undertaking statistical context), forpositingsuchan association:a shamanwhosereligious reasonablejustifications of the deitythatpossesseshim rather is dependenton the prominence authority less of a threatto an establishedreligiousand thanhis own humanselfis certainly politicalorder.In theTibetancontext,thiswouldargueagainsttheoften-repeated a prioriargument (Peter,1976: 212, 1978: 328; Tewari,1987: 140; Aris,1988: 60) thatthepossessedoracleinstitution predatedBuddhism. Basilov(1992: 16-17)has arguedthatshamanicidiomsamongtheTurkicpeoples to bringshamanicactivityin line withscriptural of InnerAsia reflectan attempt Islam. 24 Citedby Peters(1982: 23). 25 Cited by Hoffmann (1950: 74). 26 Eliade, 1964: especiallypp. 15-32. 27 1975: 550. Nebesky-Wojkowitz, 28 Berglie,1978: 40-41. 29 Avedon,1984: 203-210. 30 Nebesky-Wojkowitz, 1975: 432. For Tibetansourceson the Shungs.ldan see Kapstein(1989: 231 note40). controversy, 31 Peters,1982: 23. 32 For a discussionof shamanicelements in theancientTibetansacralkingship, sacralkingship shamanandtheTtirkic the A between see Gibson(1991). connection



55

has beenperceivedby Waida(1976). Otherscholarshavepositeda "shamanicaristocracy"in earlyInnerAsia; see Heissing(1980: 6 and 114 note2) andVoigt(1984: 16 and note 17) forsources. Johansen(1987) also raisesinteresting questionson betweenInnerAsian polityand shamanicreligion,and it maybe therelationship (1982) placed germaneto notethattheTamangshamanwho was Peters'informant in at his shamanic the Gesar highestpoint cosmology. king legendary of 33 See, forexample,Dpa'.bo Gtsug.lag'Phreng.ba(1962: 8); thesimilarity of theshamaniccallingwas earlierpointedout by theseetiologiesto descriptions Hoffmann (1950: 98). Of course,the notionof thesehistoricalsourcesthatthe in a singlenamelessshamanicpractitioner cannotbe entireBon tradition originated regardedseriously. 34 For a bibliography thisphenomena,see of non-Tibetan treating scholarship emic see an for 103 note 14); (1988) (1993: English-language Thondup Gyatso tradition. the treasure of description 35 The storiesdrawnon hereweretakenfromthehistory by thelate Rnyingma hierarch'Jigs.'bralYe.shesRdo.rje,Bdud,'jomsRinpoche,translated by Dorje and note vol. 69 see 2: his for 977) and Gyatso sources, (1991, 'Jigs.bral, Kapstein; that a the some Since this is modern note 99 work, possibility 5). biographical (1993: must to meetsocietalexpectations materialmayhavebeenalteredoverthecenturies here. affect the seem tomaterially butthiswouldnot be admitted, argument presented 36 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 755. 37 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 762-764. 38 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 789. 39 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 796. Aris(1988: 53-63)discussesPadmaGling.pa'svisionary he proposes butthetypology in termsof a shamanic-"tantric" interface, experiences Buddhism the derived from esoteric shamanic idioms between fordistinguishing he admits is as himself Asiatic culture inadequate, and thosederivedfromNorthern to"expose"PadmaGling.pa crippled byhisattempts (p. 60). His critiqueis moreover and unconsciousembellishhis visionaryexperienceto self-delusion by attributing Such criticisms couldbe levelledequallywell ment(if notwholesalecontrivance). in mankind's Aris'discussionhighlights at everysinglereligiousexperience history. to evaluatetheshaman'smentalprocessesin anotheradvantagein avoidingattempts like anyothershaman,can onlybe judgedas theterm;a shamanicterton, defining the criteria the of within bounds not or acceptedby his ownculture. genuine 40 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 854. 41 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 793. 42 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 841. 43 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 825. 44 Gyatso,1993: 122-123. 45 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 805-808and 821-824.


56

ToddGibson

46 'Jigs.bral, 1991: 771-772. The sman.moseemsto be relatedto themu.sman

mentionedin the Old Tibetandocuments;theywere deitieswho spoke through elderwomen. On thesman.mo,see Nebesky-Wojkowitz (1975: 198-202);forthe mu.sman,see MacDonald (1971: 275, 294). For other,perhapsparallel,cases of shamanicwomenas religiousfiguresin post-Imperial Tibet,see Martin(forthcomming). 47 Gyatso'sfinetreatments of someof thereligiousissuesraisedby thefigureof addressedtheinstitution's theterton(1993, 1994) havenotyetthoroughly historical on changingtrendsin the content evolution.Such a study,includinginformation and a comparisonwiththehistory of theBonpo treasurecycles,could of gter.ma, revealmuchaboutTibetanreligiousand social history. certainly 48 As in thecase of theterton, it is notnecessaryforthepossessedmediumto 1975: 549); theoraclespossessed be a shamanfrombirth(cf. Nebesky-Wojkowitz in at Matho btsan forexample,are chosenby lot the Ladakh, monastery rong by resident and come to theexperiencesthatdefine from the monks, among annually 1985: themas shamansthrough 56; Tewari,1987: 143). religioustraining (Dargyay, 49 On theteststhatlegitimate thestateoracles,see Avedon(1984: 210-212)and (1975: 419-421). Nebesky-Wojkowitz 50 AmongtheRnyingmapa derivedfromtertons'visionary schools,scriptures status to canonical comparable VajrayanamaterialfromIndia. experiencemaygain 51 Thondup,1986: 157. 52 Nebesky-Wojkowitz, 1975: 425. 53 See, forexample,theHevajraTantraPartII, CH.V,In. 3; II, V, 26 (Snellgrove, 1959; 77, 81): Accordingto theeditor,thistantrais knownto have existedin its presentformtowardsthe end of the eighthcentury.See also the indexto the mentions;thistantra,according SamvarodayaTantrain Tsuda (1974) forfrequent "cannot be earlier than the late to theeditor(p. vii) eighthcentury". 54 Snellgrove(1959: 111) liststheseas "passion,heroism, loathsomeness, horror, See also Guenther wonderment, (1984: mirth, tranquility". compassion, frightfulness, 126). 55 KhenpoDpal.ldanShes.rab,learnedscholarof theRnyingmapa school,distinguishedthetwoby sayingthatwhilethepawo oftheVajrayanais so namedbecause thepawo whois a derivedfromunshakeable of his confidence, experience, spiritual vehicleforthespiritsis merelyin "a sortof trance". 56 Berglie,1980: 43. 57 Berglie,1978. of theseshamans,Clauson(1972: 58 See Basilov (1976, 1992) fortheethnology 360) forthe linguisticderivation.Dankoff(1975: 69-70) commentsthatunlike otherTurkicBuddhistterms,burxanwas too closelyassociatedwithBuddhismto of thelaterTurks. See Lessing(1982: intothe Islamicliterature be incorporated 139-140and 1165) fortheMongolianusage.



57

which fortheTurkic words Thederivations inBasilov'slaterarticle (1992: appear andunsupported, andmaybe a translator's 5 note3) areconfused oreditor's error. 59Lot-Falck PaulPelliot, whogivesthemeaning "homme de (1977: 17) citing grandsavoir" 60 A notablehistorical secondin the exampleis KarmaPakshi(1204-1283), dazzledtheTangut andMongol lineofreincarnate lamas,whoallegedly Karmapa courtswithsupernatural feats;see Roerich (1979: 485-487).See Lessing(1982: 70) fortheMongolian usageofbagshi. 61 Thisconcern in an attenuated has beencontinued formevenamongthose areleastvalued.In Moninwhichshamanic Buddhism schoolsofTibetan qualities toEliade(1964:498),theBuddhist clergy encourage emotionally golia,according I hadtheopportunity to becomeshamans. ofconfirming individuals this disturbed tonethatsomesuch withtheMongolscholar ChojeLama;he addedinan ironical whileothers didnot. madeverygoodshamans individuals BIBLIOGRAPHY and Views Adkins,A.W.H.(1970) FromtheManytotheOne: A StudyofPersonality the Ancient Creek Ithaca. in Context Human Nature of Society, of Aris,Michael(1988) HiddenTreasuresand SecrelLives,Delhi. Avedon,John(1984) In ExilefromtheLand ofSnows,New York. Lama as ShaReconsidered:The Reincarnate Aziz, Barbara(1976) "Reincarnation man",SpiritPossessionin theNepal Himalayas,ed. J.HitchcockandR. Jones, Warminster, pp. 343-361. Basilov,V. (1976) "Shamanismin CentralAsia", The Realmof theExtra-human: Agentsand Audiences,ed. A. Bharati,The Hague,pp. 149-157. - - (1992) "IslamicShamanismAmongCentralAsian Peoples",Diogenes 158, pp. 5-18. TibetanStudies Berglie,Per-Arne(1978) "On theQuestionof TibetanShamanism", ed. P. KvaerneandM. Brauen, at theSeminarofYoungTibetologists, Presented Ztirich, pp. 39-51. - - (1980) "MountTargoand Lake Dangra: A Contribution to the Religious Studies in Honor ed. M. Aris Tibetan of Richardson, Tibet", ofHugh Geography 39-43. and AungSan Suu Kyi,Warminster, pp. The Erica (1976) "SpiritPossessionBelief and Social Structure", Bourguignon, Realm of the Extra-human:Ideas and Actions,ed. A. Bharati,The Hague, pp. 17-26. TurkClauson,Edward(1972)AnEtymological Century Dictionary ofPre-thirteenth ish,Oxford. of theTurks", Dankoff,Robert(1975) "Kashgarion theBeliefsand Superstitions Journalof theAmericanOrientalSociety95, pp. 68-80.


ToddGibson

58

ofMathoMonastery Eva (1985) "TheWhiteandRedRong-btsan (Ladakh)" Dargyay, Journalof theTibetSociety5, pp. 55-65. Dpa'.bo Gtsug.lag'Phreng.ba(1962) Mkhas.pa'idga'.ston,vol. Ja,New Delhi,n.p. Eliade,Mircea(1964, firstpublished1951) Shamanism:ArchaicTechniques of Ecstacy, Princeton.

Gibson,Todd (1990) "Frombtsanpoto btsan: the Demonizationof the Tibetan IndianaUniversity. Sacral Kingship",Ph.D. dissertation, and Humanistic Herbert(1984) Matrixof Mystery:Scientific Guenther, Aspectsof Boulder(Colorado). rDzogschenThought, in theTibetanTreasureTradition", Gyatso,Janet(1993) "The Logic ofLegitimation HistoryofReligions33, pp. 97-134. - - (1994) "GuaruChos-dbang'sGter'byungchenmo: An EarlySurveyof the TreasureTraditionand its Strategiesin DiscussingBon Treasure",ProceedAssociation for TibetanStudies ingsof theSixthSeminarof theInternational vol. 275-287. 1, pp. (Fagernes),Oslo, ofShaman(1953) "A MongolianSourcetotheLamaistSuppression Heissig,Walther ism in the17thCentury", 493-536. XLVIII, 1-29; Anthropos pp.

-

-

(1980) The Religions of Mongolia, London.

JohnandRex Jones(eds.) (1976) SpiritPossessionintheNepalHimalaya, Hitchcock, Warminster. Helmut(1950) Quellen zur Geschichteder Tibetischen Hoffmann, Bon-Religion, Wiesbaden. - - (1979, firstprinted1961) TheReligionsof Tibet,Westport (Connecticut). David H. (1989) Orderin Paradox: Myth.Ritual,and ExchangeAmong Holmberg, Nepal's Tamang,Ithaca. of Shamanism", Ake (1973) "A Definition Temenos9, pp. 25-37. Hultkrantz, - (1978) "Ecologicaland Phenomenological ShamanAspectsof Shamanism", ismin Siberia,ed. Dioszegi and Hoppal,Budapest,pp. 27-58. Jagchid,Sechen and Paul Hyer(1979) Mongolia's Cultureand Society,Boulder (Colorado). intheBreakdown Julian(1976) TheOriginofConsciousness oftheBicameral Jaynes, Boston. Mind, Schoolof TibetanBuddhism(transYe-shesRdo-rje(1991) TheNyingma 'Jigs.bral latedby G. Dorje and M. Kapstein),Boston. des Schamanismus", indenReUlla (1987) "ZurGeschichte Johansen, Synkretismus ed. W. HeissigandH.-J.Klimkeit, Wiesbaden,pp. 8-22. ligionenZentralasiens, Gem anditsCleansing:A Late Tibetan Kapstein,Matthew(1989) "The Purificatory PolemicalDiscussionof Apocryphal Texts",HistoryofReligions28, pp. 217244. Kingsley,Peter(1994) "Greeks,Shamans,and Magi", StudiaIranica 23, pp. 187198. HumanExperiKitagawa,Joseph(1987) The HistoryofReligions:Understanding ence,Atlanta,1987.



59

Bloom(1982,first Dictionary, printed1960)Mongolian-English Lessing,Ferdinand ington(Indiana). inEurasia,GOttingen, Lewis,I.M. (1984) "Whatis a Shaman?",Shamanism pp. 3-12. Lot-Falck,Eveline (1977) "A proposdu TermeChamane",EtudesMongoleset Nanterre. Siberiennes, MacDonald(Spanien),Ariane(1971) "Une lecturedes Pelliottib6taine1286, 1287, et l'emploides mythespolitiques 1038, 1047,et 1290. Essai surla formation dans la religionroyalede Sronbcan sgampo", Etudestibitainesddii`es a' la memoirede MarcelleLalou, Paris,pp. 190-391. "The FourChildrenof Pehar". Martin,Daniel (forthcoming), Stan(1989) HimalayanDialogue,Madison(Wisconsin). Mumford, Rene de (1975, firstprinted1956), Oracles and Demons of Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Tibet:The Cultand Iconography Deities,Graz. oftheTibetanProtective "Tibetan The Realmof the and Denmark of Greece Prince Oracles", (1976) Peter, The A. ed. and Extra-human: Bharati, Hague,pp. 211-214. Agents Audiences, - - (1978) "TibetanOraclesin Dharamsala",Proceedingsof theCsoma Korosi ed. L. Ligeti,Budapest,pp. 327-334. MemorialSymposium, in TamangShamanand Psychotheraphy, Peters,Larry(1982) "Trance,Initiation, 9, pp. 21-46. ism",AmericanEthnologist Problem" andSpiritPossession-theDefinition Johan(1976) "Shamanism Reinhard, and R. Jones,New SpiritPossessionin theNepal Himalayas,ed. J.Hitchcock Delhi,pp. 12-21. Rouget,Gilbert,Music and Trance:A Theoryof theRelationsbetweenMusic and Possession,(trans.Brunhilde Biebuyck)Chicago. and DunhuangTexts",TiSales, Annede (1994) "MagarSongs,Naxi Pictograms, the Association Sixth Seminar the betanStudies:Proceedings of International of 682-695. vol. Studies Tibetan Oslo, 2, (Fagernes), pp. for (1993) CivilizedShamans:Buddhismin TibetanSocieties,WashSamuel,Geoffrey ington. S.M. (1935) Psychomental ComplexoftheTungus,London. Shirokogoroff, Siikala,Anna-Leena(1978) TheRiteTechniqueof theSiberianShaman,Helsinki. David, (1959) TheHevajra Tantra:A CriticalStudy(2 vols.),London. Snellgrove, - - (1987) Indo-Tibetan Buddhism(2 vols.),Boston. Elementsin HimalayanBuddhism: Tewari,RameshChandra(1987) "Pre-Buddhist AssociationofBuddhist ofOracles",JournaloftheInternational The Institution Studies10, pp. 135-155. Thondup,Tulku(1986) HiddenTeachingsof Tibet,London. Tokyo. Tsuda,Shinichi(1974) The SamvarodayaTantra:SelectedChapters, The on the Hague. (1978) of Religion, Study Reflections Jacques Waardenburg, Waida, Manabu (1976) "Notes on Sacred Kingshipin CentralAsia, Numen23, pp. 179-190.


Gibson Shamanic in Tibet and Central Asia

Recommend Documents