Get the look: European shamans

In this blog, we compile three different European shamans. But before we do this, we focus on shamanism in a European context and highlight some pitfalls and opportunities

The word 'shaman' is derived from the Russian word "шаман" (šamán), which in turn comes from the word "samān" from the Tungusic language Evenki. In the colonial era, Western colonists called every native 'pagan' priest they encountered a shaman. As a result, this term has become a catch-all with negative connotations. Furthermore, it is likely that no people called the practitioner of spiritual activities or their priests a shaman. The word shaman was also not used in our pagan traditions and has no proto-Indo-European origin.

Until recently, virtually every European was Christian (practicing or not). Christianity largely determines our laws and social norms. In Europe, there is currently a great search for our original identity (a pagan renaissance).

During this search, we run the risk of projecting our modern worldview and choosing cultures and traditions that we idealize. In doing so, we might unintentionally adopt traditions from native cultures outside of Europe and then appropriate them as European. This is called appropriation.

It is important to prevent this, so as not to offend native peoples and peoples with nature religions, who have often been victims of modern colonialism. 

A shaman is a mediator within an animistic world between the earthly and the spirit world, through altered states of consciousness. There are various characteristics of shamanism, which are not the same worldwide. Below is a general summary. The shaman is described as he/him, but was usually a woman in most Indo-European religions. 

The cosmic regions’s of the sky, earth, and underworld are interconnected with a central axis: the world tree, tree of life or axis mundi. The origin of the world tree, Greco-Roman axis mundi, Norse Yggdrasil, Vedic Ashvattha, Old Persian Gaokerena is a mystery that deserves its own blog. Certainly because the tree of life appears in both non-Indo-European and Indo-European mythologies.

By entering a trance, the soul of the shaman leaves his body without dying. He can then visit the different cosmic regions’s along the tree of life. He does this for various purposes, such as healing, divination, acquiring knowledge, and guiding the souls of the deceased to the underworld. This trance is one of the most important characteristics of the shaman.

The shaman is a magician and healer, but not every magician or medicine man is a shaman. He is a master of fire, with which he can transform from ‘human’ to ‘spirit’. Consider the hallucinogenic herbs found in the grave of the völva of Fyrkat.

His first journeys are often accompanied by the disintegration or tearing apart of his body, and the regrowth of his organs and entrails. In the tradition of the Yakuts from Northern Siberia, the shaman is carried to the tree of life by a giant eagle and, when matured, torn apart, devoured by evil spirits, and rebuilt by the bird, and similar motifs are more common in Northern Asia. The eagle would have been the father of the first shaman, or his teacher.

The themes of mastery over fire, regeneration, and eagles also appear in the myth about the Greek titan Prometheus, who stole the fire of the gods and gave it to humans. As punishment, he was chained in Tartarus, the underworld, where an eagle gnawed at his liver during the day, which grew back at night.

Shamans also have other spiritual helpers, who appear in the form of an animal, such as a bear, wolf, deer, hare, or a bird, including the goose, eagle, owl, and raven, especially among Siberian and Altai shamans.

In the late Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods, from about 15,000 years ago, the hunter-gatherers lived. They were nomadic and later in some areas semi-nomadic. They lived in groups of 10-12 adults, plus children. They mainly obtained their food by hunting, fishing, and foraging. They also cultivated a few crops and had some domestic animals. To live this way, a small group of people needs a lot of land. 

They lived with nature, as part of nature. They had to understand the seasons, the weather, the animals, and the landscape to avoid starving. They probably instinctively understood more about nature than we modern humans do. Due to this connection, their worldview was strongly animistic, assuming that natural objects, phenomena, and even places possess a spiritual essence or consciousness.

Their harsh life had to be as pragmatic as possible, so too their religion. They saw spirituality and magic in nature and in the seasons. Their environment formed the basic for their gods, who played an important role in the changes in nature and the cycle of life and death. Gods who gave life also gave death.

The society was not hierarchical. Everyone was equal, including men and women. Sharing was indispensable. They probably also knew no hierarchy among the gods. The spirits or gods lived together with them. Their goal was to better understand nature and determine the place of humans. The hunter-gatherers also already made offerings to the gods and included grave gifts. 

From 8,000-7,500 BC, the Early European Farmers (EEF) populated Europe, a branch of the Anatolian Neolithic Farmers (ANF). 

One group of farmers moved north from the Danube region. They specialized in cattle farming and the cultivation of emmer wheat, einkorn, and peas on löss soil and migrated from one löss soil area to another. This is nowadays called the Linear Pottery culture or Linear Band Pottery culture, named after the decoration of their pottery.

Another group of farmers spread westward via the Mediterranean to the Balkans, Italy, and the Iberian Peninsula. This is called the Cardial-Impressed Ware culture because they stamped their pottery with cockle shells (cardium edulis).

In the area where the farmers first entered Europe, in the fertile Danube Valley, communities remained established. This is also known as Old Europe. This society developed early urban settlements that were many times larger than any other in the world at that time. It is known for the many ceramic female figurines. This was interpreted as a sign that the Neolithic society was matriarchal, but there is no evidence to confirm this. Because high-quality ceramics were made in Old Europe, where kilns had to be fired to high temperatures, the society first developed the unique skill of smelting copper and working gold.

The hunter-gatherers and the early farmers lived side by side for thousands of years. In Central and Western Europe, the hunter-gatherers merged into the farming communities between 5,000 and 4,500 BC. This is evident in the DNA of the later Neolithic population. In some regionss, such as Scandinavia and the Baltic area, hunter-gatherers held out a bit longer before fully merging into the agricultural societies.

The worldview of the Neolithic farmers differed greatly from that of the hunter-gatherers. Their primary livelihood consisted of crop cultivation and livestock farming. They built ships with which they could sail along the coasts of Europe and constructed enormous monuments like Stonehenge. They developed a hierarchical society and adapted their religion accordingly. 

The ritual calendar of Neolithic life revolved around the harvest; the people of that time worshipped grain-oriented deities, prayed and offered for good harvests, and held festivals in the harvest season.

An aristocracy emerged, which also took the lead in religious expressions. Shamanism likely became increasingly a domain of the elite.

The Stone Age farmers were also animistic and considered nature as the source of their religion. They decorated their temples with snakes, birds, and lions and worshipped the seasonal changes (equinoxes). They made Venus figurines , which possibly continued a tradition from the Paleolithic period. In addition to figurines of a mother goddess, votive figurines with phallic symbols and in the form of animals have been found to a lesser extent.

The Western Steppe Herders (WSH), who spoke the earliest version of the Indo-European language, settled in Europe from around 3,500 BC. They were possibly driven by climate change from the Pontic steppes to Europe and Asia, and had learned the pastoral lifestyle from their western neighbors, the Old Europe of the Chalcolithic period, which we have already encountered above.

This Yamna population was semi-nomadic and moved with their herds from grassland to grassland. They rode horses, knew copper like the Neolithic farmers but were also experimenting with bronze. They cultivated crops, but livestock farming (particularly cattle) was the main source of livelihood. This society was mobile and hierarchical and more violent than that of the Neolithic farmers. After all, everything could be taken from you overnight.

The Proto-Indo-European society was strongly oath-bound. Herders and warriors swore allegiance to larger warriors and were part of war bands that raided cattle from enemy tribes and protected their own livestock. On the vast plains of the steppes, it was vital to be able to trust each other in the event of a cattle raid or accidents. Hospitality was also fundamentally important. 

Their social structure differed significantly from that of the Neolithic farmers. Therefore, their religion was also different. The Western Steppe Herders were strongly dharmic, their nature religion and moral views reflect this.

In dharma, each individual has moral and ethical duties and responsibilities. These are based on universal laws and order that regulate nature and human existence.

Over the centuries, the Western Steppe Herders mixed with the Neolithic farmers, who had already mixed with the hunter-fishers of Europe. Sometimes this was accompanied by violence and mixing with the indigenous population. How both peoples became one in different areas is still a subject of research and debate.

This Indo-European population thus spread throughout Europe, but also to Persia and India. Their culture formed an important basic of the culture of the Celts, Germans, and Vikings, Romans and Greeks, Balto-Slavs, Persians, and Vedic people.

We can derive information about the Indo-European religion in two ways: by reconstructing the Proto-Indo-European language from its daughter languages (comparative and historical linguistics) and by comparing the religions of their descendant peoples.

The social structure of the aforementioned population groups was fundamentally different. However, their religions likely resembled each other strongly and influenced each other. There was no major invasion where one culture exterminated the other. The Neolithic farmers adopted practices from the hunter-gatherers, and the Western steppe herders adopted practices from the Neolithic farmers. All three cultures merged into one another, with the Indo-European culture being the most dominant.

All three made no distinction between the worldly and the spiritual. All three were strongly animistic and expressed this by treating places in nature as sacred and venerating certain animals for their special qualities.

They observed that trees and crops grew from seeds they planted in the ground. Naturally, they therefore buried their deceased family members, believing their souls would regrow. They offered sacrifices and provided grave goods.

They knew when seasons changed, when it was time for nature to change magically. They likely knew the stars and worshipped the moon and the sun.

Since the Paleolithic era, humans have made figurines of women with exaggerated sexual features. This tradition continued into the bronze Age. They worshipped the woman for her fertility and protection. They worshipped the father who gave life to Mother Earth, from whom all life originates. It is likely that the Neolithic farmers and the Steppe herders had a similar creation story.

All three cultures that shaped the basic for Indo-European paganism originally practiced an animistic nature religion, traces of which are visible into modern times. Comparative linguistics also shows that the names of Indo-European gods and goddesses have their origins in an animistic nature religion. 

When we look at (modern) hunter-gatherer tribes around the world, we see that they are almost always shamanistic. 

Indo-European gods, such as the Norse god Odin, who sacrificed himself for knowledge, and the Greek Titan Prometheus, have mythological attributes that can be seen as shamanistic.

Many Indo-European religions have an equivalent of a tree of life.

Priests made predictions, practiced magic, and worshipped the gods through ecstasies in ways that can be seen as shamanistic. 

In this blog, we have made various interpretations of what we see as a European shaman. We have borrowed as little as possible from non-European cultures and looked as much as possible at the visual and textual sources. However, the compositions are not a 100% reconstruction of historical outfits. There is simply insufficient evidence for that. Originally, the clothing of the shaman was an aid for spiritual journeys, and various sources of pagan historical rituals show clear signs of this. We have kept this as a starting point for our shamans.

In this composition, we do not attempt to make a 100% historical reconstruction of a Mesolithic shaman. The Mesolithic or Middle Stone Age lasted in Europe from about 10,000 to 5,000 BC.

We try to bridge what was historically worn with what is currently usable and are inspired by the beautiful shamanistic headdresses from England's Star Carr, around 9,000 BC.

In Star Carr, 21 deer skulls have been found, modified to be used as headgear. These antler headpieces have also been found in other parts of Europe, such as the antler from Biesdorf in Germany.

The cave paintings in a cave near Addaura in Sicily depict a Mesolithic sacrificial ritual. The shamans perform a human sacrifice. They are naked and wear masks, including those in the shape of a bird's head, while they dance. Furthermore, the painting shows how wild animals graze in herds. 

Human sacrifices were probably a pure act of desperation. This was done at times of disaster, in this case, possibly the game had migrated away, and the tribe likely had nothing left to eat.

From this cave painting, we deduce that possibly both men and women could be shamans in the Mesolithic. We see that shamans from Sicily to Great Britain wore ritual masks, and we see that shamans during these rituals, except for their spiritual mask, were sometimes naked. 

From the Venus figurines, one can deduce that in the stone Age, it was the mother goddess who was worshipped. It is possible that it was mainly women who were intermediaries with the divine, but that cannot be said with certainty.

In this composition, we have dressed the model in a fur coat. However, it would be a plausible argument to perform the ritual with bare breasts or entirely naked.

We have chosen a green skirt because it is directly related to the colour of nature. 

If you want to create a more Mesolithic composition, you can also opt for a completely leather skirt because wool or other fabrics were not yet used. 

Over the green skirt, we have placed a fur coat. Both the fur cloak and fur coat emphasize the character that the shaman's clothing is an instrument for the spiritual journey. 

Tacitus described that Germanic priestesses were barefoot during predictions. This sounds logical because the priestess or shaman makes direct contact with the earth (mother earth) this way. 

We have given the shaman two bags. This can be useful for carrying objects or herbs you wish to use during the ritual.

The second shaman is inspired by the Odinistic spear dance ritual, a ceremony where Odin or Wodan was invoked. Images of "Spear Dancers" are common on Germanic artifacts such as buckles and helmets and show dancers with headgear, interpreted as Odin's s ravens Huginn and Muninn. One of the oldest examples of this dance is the sword dancers of Flimlingoje in Denmark, depicted on 3rd-century silver foils. Similar scenes can be found on artifacts such as the Gallehus-horns and the Torslunda plates. On rock carvings from the Norse bronze Age, as those from Järrestad and Kallsängen already depict similar shamanistic rituals.

Tacitus possibly described a Germanic dance tradition with youths among 'swords'. This ritual is linked to Berserkers, Wolf Warriors, and Proto-Indo-European war rituals, and can be seen as a shamanistic ritual, since Odin himself performed such practices in mythology.

The tradition of the horned spear dancer is likely closely connected to the Indo-European ritual of the Kóryos (war bands). The belt emphasizes the bond a member of the Kóryos has with his comrades-in-arms.

In this setup, we based it on a Germanic horned spear dancer. Therefore, we chose the Germanic Thorsberg trousers.

For the footwear, we have chosen Oseberg boots.

The horns represent the ravens of Odin/Wodan. We used a wooden torc for this and attached it to a headband. 

The third shaman we have assembled is an Old Norse völva. These seeresses were part of pre-Christian shamanistic traditions and held an important position in the Viking society.

The völva was known for her ability to predict the future and communicate with the 'spirit world'. Völva's performed rituals, often in a state of trance, and used magical objects such as a staff to enhance their powers. They played a significant role in the pre-Christian religion of the Vikings, where they advised both common people and leaders. After the Christianization of Scandinavia, they gradually fell out of favor. It is possible that the practices of the völva were used by Christianity as an alibi for witch burnings. 

This völva wears an underdress. An underdress was a very important garment in the Middle Ages. Underdresses ensured that the dress became dirty less quickly. Therefore, it needed to be washed less often and retained its colour longer.

Tacitus mentioned that Germanic priestesses always wore white dresses. White stands for virginity and purity. Especially white oxen and horses were sacrificed to the gods or studied to predict the future. In this composition, the völva wears a white dress with embroidery, chosen to reflect her wealth.

Tacitus reported that Germanic priestesses performed their rituals barefoot. This might be true, as the contact the völva makes with the earth represents Mother Earth (Jörð) or Freya. 

The völva wears a luxurious hangerok. The hangerok was fastened to the dress with turtle brooches. The hangerok provides extra warmth and protection to the clothing. But it is mainly a status symbol that could often be richly embroidered. The völva in this composition wears a blue hangerok with decorative embroideries. 

About the hangerok this völva wears turtle brooches. Turtle brooches were an important status symbol for Viking women. The jewelry and items that Viking women wore on their shield brooches were an important part of their wealth.

Often, items such as combs or nail care kits are attached to shield brooches. These items can be luxuriously decorated. The gods (cosmos) stood for beauty and structure. Therefore, you could not approach the gods unwashed or unkempt. It was important to be clean and wear beautiful clothing before participating in the ritual. Ritual washings were common, and Christians derived baptisms and holy water from this. Medieval sources mention that Viking men washed more frequently than average. This practice can still be observed among the Hindi in India.

The magic staff was the most characteristic object of the völva. It is still unclear how völva’s used their staffs. We estimate that they are related to seiđr (magic). This staff symbolizes nature for us, where our Indo-European pagan religion finds its origin and is central. Many graves of völva’s contained steel magic staffs. 

Knives were naturally used primarily as tools. But in the context of the völva, knives can also be used to perform blood sacrifices (blót). Animals were ritually slaughtered, after which their entrails were examined for irregularities or signs with which the völva could make predictions. 

 In the blót boli, liquid offerings were given to the gods. These bowls can be richly decorated. The gods rule over the cosmos, which stands for structure and beauty. Therefore, beautiful things are important. This luxurious blót boli owes its name to the blood of sacrificed animals that was presented in this bowl. But also milk or, more luxurious than an animal sacrifice, mead was offered to the gods with the blót boli. 

The torque has a Proto-Indo-European origin. Torques, oath rings, and armlets represented the taking of an oath. (The Proto-Indo-European society was a strongly oath-bound society). Celtic warriors are often depicted with a torque. Luxurious gold torques have been found, but the principle is the same with a wooden or steel torque. Both the Celts, Vikings, Romans, and Indo-Iranians wore torques.  

The völva carries a Viking pouch at her belt which can be used for storing, for example, medicinal herbs or herbs that helped her to enter a trance and make her spiritual journey. 

Besides the turtle brooches and followers, this völva also has Viking bracelets. Bracelets could be used as currency.