What Is a Shaman?

The shaman is the person who has, in his late childhood, early youth, had an overwhelming psychological experience that turns them totally inward. The whole unconscious has opened up and they've fallen into it. It occurs all the way from Siberia right through the Americas down to Tierra del Fuego. Most of us think of shaman as a magician, but they play a much more important role than simply being a... You know, they play the role that the priesthood plays in our society.