Transreligious Shamanic Practices in Contemporary Metropolitan Japan

This paper discusses a specific set of new shamanic practices recognizable in the Japanese metropolitan context. Three case studies help illustrate the main characteristics of this “new” discourse and lead to a discussion on terminology. To effectively understand and analyze shamanic practices in contemporary Japan, I suggest the use of a new model for the study of shamanism. This could contribute to overcoming prejudicial and polarized views concerning the existence of a “traditional” and thus “authentic” kind of shamanism, on the one hand, and of a “new” and hence “inauthentic” one, on the other.