A shaman lady from Mongolia, like shamans of many other aboriginal and indigenous cultures, is highly respected by her people for her ability to interpret dreams.

Shamanic Initiatory Dreams

Shamans are the religious specialists of hunter-gatherer cultures. They are particularly associated with the aboriginal peoples of central Asia and the Americas, and are perhaps most familiar as the “medicine men” of traditional Native American cultures.

In almost every society there are diverse methods for becoming a shaman. A shaman is usually recognized as such after having received two kinds of teaching: rote learning of shamanic techniques, names and functions of the spirits, mythology and genealogy of the clan, a secret language, and so on; and ecstatic learning, particularly information received in dreams and trances. These instructions are given by the spirits and by the older master shamans and are equivalent to an initiation. Thus, dreams are a primary means of acquiring the role of a shaman.

Dreams are usually stereotyped in terms of the shaman’s traditional culture, and the candidate for following a shamanic vocation generally dreams of spirits and ancestors, or hears their voices. Also, in dreams the candidate is sometimes given initiatory regulations and learns which objects will be needed to perform cures. During a shamanic dream initiation, the candidate usually experiences suffering, death, and resurrection, including a symbolic cutting up of the body, such as dismemberment or disembowelment by the ancestral or evil spirits. Sometimes initiatory dreams begin even in childhood. Usually, the premonitory dreams of future shamans are trailed by mortal illnesses if they are not rightly followed.

Among the Maidu of the Northeast one becomes a shaman by dreaming of spirits. Although shamanism is hereditary, the candidate does not receive the final qualification until after seeing the spirits, which are inherited from generation to generation, in a dream. Initiatory dreams of some future shamans include a mystical journey to the “center of the world,” to the seat of the “universal lord” and the “cosmic tree,” from the branches of which the shaman makes the shell of his drum.

The souls of the dead are regarded as a source of shamanic powers among tribes of the North-west—the Paviotso, the Shoshone, the Seed Eaters, the Lillooet, and the Thompson Indians. In northern California this method of bestowing shamanic powers is widespread. The Yurok shamans dream of a dead man, usually a shaman. Among the Sinkyone the power is sometimes received in dreams in which the candidate’s dead relatives appear; the Wintu also become shamans after such dreams, especially if they dream of their own dead children. In the Shasta tribe the first indication of shamanic power follows dreams of a dead mother, father, or ancestor.

Among the Mohave and the Yuma of southern California, power comes from the mythical beings who transmitted it to shamans at the beginning of the world. Transmission takes place in dreams and includes an initiatory scenario. In their dreams the Yuma shamans witness the beginning of the world and experience mythical times. Among the Maricopa initiatory dreams follow a traditional schema: a spirit takes the future shaman’s soul and leads it from mountain to mountain, each time revealing songs and cures. Among the Walapai a journey under the guidance of spirits is an essential characteristic of shamanic dreams.