‘What is Shamanism?’ within the Series ‘The Shamanic Quest’ is an opening essay for understanding what shamanism is and which role it plays today in Western society and culture.

The article proceeds empirically by clearly demonstrating in which ways shamanism is different from:

—Animism

—Paganism

—Humanism

—Parapsychology

—Theosophy

—Daoism

—Zen

The purpose of the article was to show that shamanism really is a science, which becomes clear after comparing it with what seems to be similar movements in society. The article prepares a more thorough study of shamanism as a science, which is entitled ‘The Shamanic Method’ and part of the same series.