Author: Bernstein, Anya

Source: Sibirica, Volume 7, Number 2, Autumn 2008 , pp. 23-46(24)

Publisher: Berghahn Journals

Abstract:

This article looks at the particular ways in which shamanic sacred places are being constructed through tourist performances. Focusing on the guided tours in Olkhon Island conducted by a Buryat shaman, the article maps out the various meanings of this tourist phenomenon in the context of Buryat shamanic revival. It interprets tourist performances as forms of social action and as a paradigmatic example of how contemporary Buryats fashion their ethnic and religious identity, arguing that this form of shamanic tourism results in the greater articulation (rather than the diminution) of cultural heritage. Focusing on the intercultural production of sacred sites as one part of multi-faceted shamanic revitalization process, the article demonstrates that it is through reinvention of shamanism as a "genuine world religion" — which fashions sacred sites as equivalents of "temples" (in this case in tourist discourse)—indigenous activists stake out political ground for reclaiming sacred sites.

Keywords: GLOBALIZATION; HERITAGE; INDIGENEITY; PRODUCTION OF IDENTITY; SACRED LANDSCAPE; SHAMANISM; SIBERIA; TOURISM

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3167/sib.2008.070203

Publication date: 2008-09-01

More about this publication?

• Sibirica is a peer-reviewed interdisciplinary journal covering all aspects of the region and relations to neighboring areas such as Central Asia, China, Japan, Korea, and North America.
  
  The journal is pan-disciplinary and publishes articles, research reports, conference and book reviews on history, politics, economics, geography, cultural studies, anthropology, and environmental studies. It provides a forum for scholars representing a wide variety of disciplines from around the world to present findings and discuss topics of relevance to human activities in the region or directly relevant to Siberian studies.
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