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Article
The Hero’s Theme of Campbell and the Making of Shaman Among the Three Small Minority Groups in China
Author(s)
LU Fangfang
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DOI:10.17265/2328-2177/2022.04.001
Affiliation(s)
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, China
ABSTRACT
After briefly introducing the making of the three small Altaic language speaking minorities in North China, the Daur, the Evenk, and the Oroqen, who are well known for their shamanic practices both in the past and at present, I compare their shaman-making processes with in mind the Hero’s theme developed by Joseph Campbell in his The Hero With a Thousand Faces. I argue that there is a family resemblance between the Campbell’s processual model of departure—initiation—the ultimate boon and that of transformation into a shaman—knowledge acquisition—problem solving among the three small minorities in North China. While the core of Campbell’s theory centers on the spiritual journey of hero’s self-discovery and receiving supernatural aid, it parallels with the psychedelic path that a shaman must go through at a rite held for the occasion. The hero comes to ego consciousness and sets out on his spiritual journey. This is the basis of Campbell’s theory and is the psychological experience that a shaman has to undergo as well. The psychic unity of the human kind is a common tie that binds the scholarship of the West and the East.
KEYWORDS
the three minorities, shaman, the archetypical images
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