Totems and Other Animal Related Beliefs

[Trick]

Anybody on here know about this topic? My WIP has an ancient religion/magic based on 13 spirit animals and I call them Totems but I can't even tell if that is really the right use of the word. It seems like the info I've found was not written by anyone with this as a heritage and is very muddled and confused as to the details. My research into shamanism has been similarly dissappointing.

Any help is appreciated.

 

[Mara Edgerton]

Per Wiki the term totem comes from the Ojibwe people of North America--but, honestly, the word is so broadly used now that I'd say you have a lot of freedom in defining them in your world. Rightly or wrongly, I think of a totem as a guardian animal spirit of an individual or group, and that general idea isn't limited to any one particular people. To me, the use of animals in coats of arms or even to represent nations seems like it may have arose from the same general idea.

Ditto with Shamanism--it's another broad term. Per wiki (again), the word comes from the Evenk language of North Asia, but people use it to describe all sorts of spiritual practices relating to trances, animating spirits, kinship with the animals and plants around us, etc.

I know this leaves you in that uncomfortable 'am-I-misappropriating-someone's-spiritual-heritage?' bind. A legitimate concern, and I suppose you could always use different words than 'totem' or 'shaman.' On the other hand, those terms are easily recognized and most of us, I'd guess, have at least a basic feel for them, even if some of our ideas are inaccurate in the strictest sense of the words.

 

[Trick]

I know this leaves you in that uncomfortable 'am-I-misappropriating-someone's-spiritual-heritage?' bind. A legitimate concern, and I suppose you could always use different words than 'totem' or 'shaman.' On the other hand, those terms are easily recognized and most of us, I'd guess, have at least a basic feel for them, even if some of our ideas are inaccurate in the strictest sense of the words.

I'm very open to suggestions for other words. I'm sure I could use the terms delicately enough to avoid offence (especially since the totems and possible shamans are in the history of my hero's people and portrayed positively throughout) but I would like to feel that the names I choose fit as neatly as I can manage.

 

[Svrtnsse]

Disregarding such realities as the spiritual heritage of others (the thought didn't actually occur to me until now), I made up my own version of shamanism.

I never actually got around to writing about totems, but then they're also not required in order to practice shamanism. Maybe they're helpful devices - like shambles (Tiffany Aching).

I'll try and sum up shamanism in my WIP briefly enough to get the main point across:
- Almost everything that lives has a soul (exceptions are very small beings such as microbes and bacteria and suchlike).
- Some things that don't live also have souls (really big rocks, vampires).
- It's possible for lesser beings that live together to share a soul (beehives, anthills).
- The total is greater than the sum of the parts.
- An area inhabited by beings with souls will eventually develop its own composite soul (just like the ants contribute to the soul of the anthill, so do humans (and everything else) contribute to the soul of the city).
- The soul is integral to working magic.
- Shamans refer to the composite soul of the land as the Spirit of the Land.
- Through interacting with the Spirit the shaman is able to invoke the power of the composite soul to work great and powerful magic.

Or boiled down to one sentence:
The Spirit of the Land is the collective subconscious of all life in the land - sort of.
The last part "sort of" is important. Shamanism is a rather inexact "science" and is based more on intuition and talent than on process and knowledge.

As far as totems go - in my WIP a shaman would use a totem either to try and manipulate the spirit in some way or to divine some sort of information from the spirit. In both cases the totem would be some kind of object to focus on or through.

More on shamanism in my WIP: Shamanism - Odd Lands Wiki

 

[phillipsauthor]

I studied this topic a bit in college and wrote a paper on shamanism, but that was a while ago. Here's what I remember:

-A totem is (supposedly) a spirit, or emblem of that spirit, who represents a person, family, clan, or other group. Totems are often spoken about with reference to people - so "their clan's totem is the bear," or "that warrior's totem is the snake." (For a fictional representation, think Disney's "Brother Bear.")

-A shaman is (supposedly) a person who chooses (or is chosen) to speak with the spirit world. This is in contrast to a witch, who is controlled by evil spirits but can't help it, and because of this must be destroyed. Shamans often go through long apprenticeships with other older shamans and confirm that they are to be shamans through various nasty rituals. If they survive, which they often don't (food/water deprivation, pain/torture, etc.) then it's obvious to their clan that they've been called to be a shaman. A shamanistic ritual generally includes the invocation of the spirit, then the spirit speaks through the shaman to the supplicant who has asked for its help, and may or may not help the supplicant. Invoking spirits typically involves drums, chanting, smoking/eating/drinking certain herbs, and/or ritual dancing.

In a fantasy world, I would call the 13 spirits either "spirits" or "guardians" or "great ones" or something like that, and reserve the word "totem" for discussing them with regard to the people they represent or protect. Since "shaman" is an anthropological descriptive term, I think you're fine using it as long as it refers to an individual who has a connection to the realm of the spirits and can either use their power, or be a channel for the spirits themselves to use.

If you have access to a university system and you want to learn more, check out their anthropology section. There are a number of ethnographies written about various people groups and their shamans around the world.

Hope that helps! Best wishes with your writing!

 

[Trick]

Thank you for the info! I've decided not to use the term Shaman and to keep Totem to a minimum. Since the culture that believed in the Totems has been effectively crushed by the dominating society, the Totems hang around as a leftover and are used almost like the zodiac and also in curses like, "Thirteen Totems, that's cold!" Of course, the MC resurrects the culture and the magic.

Thanks again!

(Yay, I'm a Lore Master now!)

 

[phillipsauthor]

Sounds fun and interesting! Glad you got things figured out in a way that will make sense for your world.

 

[Jess A]

Hehe I watched Brother Bear last night. A good yarn.

You could also look at words such as medicine woman or man, or 'spirit talker' or something. Kate Forsyth calls the shamans of one of her races 'Firekeeper' - but this is because the shaman also has the ability to create fire, as well as communicate with the spirits. And in that story, the character shape-shifts into her totem physically. I'm not sure if all of the people do - it's been so long since I read it!