Shamanism is described in Shamanism, Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy as a every ancient coherent system of esoteric beliefs and practices that attempt to organize and explain the interrelationship between the cosmos, nature, and man (Eliade, 1972). It has been practiced by many cultures and historically spans thousands of generations, from around the first ring of fire to our days. Yet shamanism is linguistically and locally specific, hence there are multiple rituals and cosmologies. We will focus here on the shaman’s role and functions in traditional indigenous communities of the Americas. The ring of fire was the first awakening of hunter-gatherers to a world beyond their awareness. In the dark of night, the fire lit a circle beyond which was an
