Do Shamans Believe in God? Divinity in Shamanic Traditions

To outsiders, shamanism often seems mysterious, even contradictory. It’s an ancient spiritual practice rooted in animism and nature worship, yet it often includes elements—prayers, spirits, rituals—that seem familiar to modern religious traditions. This raises a compelling question: Do shamans or practitioners of shamanism believe in God? The short answer is: it depends on what you mean by "God." Shamanic belief systems rarely mirror the monotheistic model of a single, all-powerful creator, but they do include powerful spiritual beings, cosmic intelligence, and deep reverence for the sacred. This article explores the concept of divinity in shamanism and whether it aligns with the idea of "God" as understood in mainstream religions.

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What Is Shamanism?

Shamanism is not a religion in the organized sense, but a spiritual practice or worldview that predates most major world religions. It is rooted in animism, the belief that all things—people, animals, plants, rocks, rivers, even weather patterns—are alive and interconnected through spirit.

Shamans are spiritual mediators who enter altered states of consciousness—via trance, drumming, fasting, or entheogenic plants—to journey into the spirit world. There, they gain insight, heal illness, retrieve lost souls, or restore harmony between the human and spiritual realms.

Shamanism is experiential rather than dogmatic. It's practiced in diverse forms across indigenous cultures in Siberia, the Amazon, North America, Mongolia, Africa, Southeast Asia, and Oceania. While practices differ, they share common beliefs:

• The world is inhabited by spirits.

• Illness and misfortune have spiritual causes.

• Humans can interact with spiritual realms for healing and guidance.

• Nature is sacred and interconnected.

The Concept of God in Monotheistic Terms

To examine whether shamans "believe in God," we need to clarify what “God” means. In monotheistic traditions like Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, God is:

• Singular and supreme

• All-knowing, all-powerful

• Separate from creation but active in it

• The moral lawgiver and final judge

• Often associated with a written scripture and institutional worship

This conception of God is highly structured and doctrinal. It assumes a creator who stands outside the cosmos and governs it with purpose and direction. So, does shamanism contain anything comparable?

Divine Forces in Shamanism

Most shamanic traditions do not center on a single supreme deity in the way Abrahamic religions do. However, they often acknowledge higher spiritual powers or cosmic forces. These might be seen as gods, spirits, ancestors, or aspects of nature.

1. The Great Spirit or Sky Father

Many Native American tribes refer to Wakan Tanka ("Great Mystery") or the Great Spirit, a sacred force underlying the universe. This is sometimes likened to God, but it's more abstract—less a personified being and more a divine energy or presence that infuses all life.

Similarly, in Mongolian and Siberian shamanism, the Tengri or Sky God is a supreme being associated with the heavens, justice, and balance. Shamans often communicate with lesser spirits, but they show reverence to Tengri as the ultimate cosmic power.

These beliefs suggest a pantheistic or panentheistic worldview—where the divine is present in all things, or where the universe itself is an expression of divine being.

2. Nature Spirits and Deities

In Amazonian shamanism, practitioners work with plant spirits like ayahuasca, considered not just a medicine but a conscious being with intelligence and teachings. Nature is alive, sacred, and filled with spirits—not metaphorically, but literally.

While these spirits are not "God" in the Western sense, they occupy a role similar to deities or angels: powerful, sometimes benevolent, sometimes tricky, and deserving of respect. They can guide or mislead, heal or harm.

Shamans often form personal relationships with these spirits, offering rituals, songs (such as icaros in the Amazon), and sacrifices in exchange for protection or wisdom.

Polytheism, Animism, or Monotheism?

Shamanic cosmologies are often described as polytheistic (many gods) or animistic (everything has spirit), rather than strictly monotheistic. However, it's not always that simple.

• Animism allows for divine presence in all things—trees, animals, stars, ancestors—blurring the lines between creator and creation.

• Some shamanic systems recognize a supreme being who is distant and seldom invoked (sometimes called a “deus otiosus” or “hidden god”), while daily practice revolves around intermediary spirits.

• Others view the cosmos as a web of spiritual forces, not hierarchical but relational and reciprocal.

As anthropologist Mircea Eliade noted in his influential book Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy, many indigenous peoples hold the belief in a "High God" or celestial creator but do not necessarily worship this deity in the way monotheists do. The supreme being is respected but not typically petitioned in everyday ritual.

Spiritual Practice over Belief

In contrast to doctrine-based religions, shamanism is rooted in experience, not creeds. A shaman's understanding of the divine is shaped by direct interaction:

• Spirit journeys

• Dreams and visions

• Communication with ancestors

• Interventions during healing ceremonies

Thus, belief is not abstract or dogmatic. It is experiential, dynamic, and personal. A shaman doesn’t “believe in God” in the way a Christian might recite the Nicene Creed. Instead, the shaman experiences and interacts with sacred forces and spirits firsthand.

In this way, the question "Do shamans believe in God?" may be less relevant than: "How do shamans relate to the sacred?"

Case Studies from Global Shamanic Traditions

A. Siberian Shamanism

Among the Evenki and other Siberian peoples—where the term “shaman” (from šaman) originates—there is belief in a Sky Father and Mother Earth, but ritual practice is focused on spirits of nature and ancestors. The Sky Father is rarely invoked except in special rites.

B. Amazonian Shamanism

In the Amazon, shamans work with plant teachers like ayahuasca, tobacco, or San Pedro cactus. These plants are viewed as divine intelligences. There’s no singular God, but a deep awareness of spiritual order, karma, and the need for harmony with the jungle's spirits.

C. Korean Shamanism (Muism)

Korean shamans, or mudang, act as mediums between gods, ancestors, and the living. While some practitioners may integrate Buddhist or Christian beliefs, traditional Muism recognizes multiple gods, spirits, and ancestral forces, with elaborate rituals to appease or honor them.

Syncretism: Shamanism Meets Monotheism

In many parts of the world, especially where indigenous peoples have been colonized or converted, shamanism has fused with monotheistic religions. This syncretism blends traditional spirit practices with belief in a singular deity.

• In South America, many shamans identify as Christian, even invoking Jesus or the Virgin Mary alongside plant spirits during ceremonies.

• In West Africa, traditional healers may combine Islamic prayer with ancestral rituals.

• In Native American contexts, some tribal members blend belief in the Great Spirit with Christian monotheism.

This blending shows that shamanic practice is flexible, adapting to new religious frameworks while preserving indigenous spiritual knowledge.

Western Neo-Shamanism and the God Concept

In contemporary Western contexts, “shamanism” often refers to a modern spiritual practice influenced by indigenous traditions but adapted to New Age or holistic frameworks.

Modern practitioners may:

• Refer to Source, Spirit, or the Universe as a divine intelligence

• See God as an impersonal creative force rather than a personal deity

• Focus on inner divinity, the belief that God exists within

This approach often merges shamanic techniques (like journeying or soul retrieval) with beliefs from Hinduism, Buddhism, Gnosticism, or Christianity—showing a globalized, eclectic spiritual landscape.

Conclusion: A Different Kind of God

So, do shamans believe in God? Not always in the monotheistic sense. But almost all shamanic traditions affirm the existence of sacred spiritual realities—beings, forces, or intelligences that shape the cosmos and guide human life. Some traditions include a supreme creator; others focus on a network of spirits and ancestors. In nearly all cases, however, there is deep reverence for the sacred, a sense of cosmic order, and a belief in a spiritual world that responds to ritual, intention, and ethical behavior.

Rather than a single all-powerful God, shamanism recognizes a plural and interconnected spiritual ecosystem, where humans, nature, and spirit exist in dynamic relationship. Whether that’s called God, the Great Spirit, or simply Mystery—it remains a profound expression of humanity’s longing to understand the invisible forces that shape our lives.

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Alex Assoune (MS) is a global health and environmental advocate. He founded Panaprium to inspire others with conscious living, ethical, and sustainable fashion. Alex has worked in many countries to address social and environmental issues. He speaks three languages and holds two Master of Science degrees in Engineering from SIGMA and IFPEN schools.