Italian Witchcraft and Shamanism

The Tradition of Segnature, Indigenous and Trans-cultural Shamanic Traditions in Italy

Series: 

Author:
Angela Puca
Shamanism is thriving as an exotic import and a hidden native tradition in Italy today. This ethnographical work uncovers two faces of Italian shamanism. The first is trans-cultural shamans who creatively adapt rituals and beliefs from indigenous cultures worldwide. Second, extensive fieldwork shows how regional folk magic practices of segnatoriand segnatrici constitute a little-known but enduring form of native Italian shamanism. By documenting these parallel worlds, contemporary magic workers appear to be the heirs of ancient local healing traditions. Offering rare insights into vernacular religion, this book vividly portrays shamans' past and present on the Italian peninsula.
Copyright Year:
2024
E-Book (PDF)
Availability:
Published
ISBN:
978-90-04-69418-7
Publication:
02 Apr 2024
Hardback
Availability:
Published
ISBN:
978-90-04-69417-0
Publication:
03 Apr 2024
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Angela Puca, Ph.D. (2021), is an independent Religious Studies scholar and university lecturer. She is bridging the gap between academia and the general public with her social media project Angela’s Symposium, where she educates the public on peer-reviewed scholarship.
Acknowledgements

1 The Starting Point and the Behind the Scenes
 1 The Journey to Investigating Italian Witchcraft and Shamanism

 2 Outline of the Book


2 How to Define Shamanism: Deixis and Discourse Analysis
 1 Defining Shamanism

 2 Can Westerners Be Shamans?

 3 Misinterpretations of Shamanism


3 Contextualising Shamanism in Italy
 1 Contextualising (Trans-cultural) Shamanism in Italy

 2 Relation between Shamanism and the ‘New Age’ Movement

 3 The Interaction between Paganism and Trans-cultural Shamanism


4 Trans-cultural Shamanism
 1 Differences between Trans-cultural and Indigenous Shamanism
 1.1 The Lingering Heredity of Carlos Castaneda


 2 Core Shamanism, as Manifested in Italy
 2.1 The Teachers of the Foundation for Shamanic Studies in Italy: Three Approaches to the Tradition

 2.2 Lorenza Menegoni, Anthropologist and Michael Harner’s Pupil

 2.3 Nello Ceccon, from Engineer to Shaman

 2.4 Sara Tenaglia, Enriching Core Shamanism with Vernacular Healing Traditions

 2.5 Drawing a Portrait of Core Shamanism in Contemporary Italy


 3 Other Forms of Trans-cultural Shamanism
 3.1 Castaneda-Inspired Groups

 3.2 Psychological Shamanisms
 3.2.1 Biotransenergetica (bte)

 3.2.2 Self I-Dentity Through Ho’oponopono

 3.2.3 Shamanistic Paganism


 3.3 Indigenous Reinterpretations (Siberian, Andean, Nordic Shamanism)


 4 Trans-cultural Cosmology and Shamanic Journeying

 5 Are Trans-cultural Traditions Authentic Forms of Shamanism?


5 The Tradition of Segnature: The Indigenous Shamanism of Italy?
 1 The Tradition of Segnature

 2 The Role of Labels in Heterogenous Contemporary Traditions

 3 The Meaning of Segnature

 4 The Generational Gap

 5 Types of Rituals and Initiations

 6 The Survival of Magic. Embedding Illness into Myth

 7 A Re-evaluation of Superstition?

 8 Can an Italian Tradition Be Indigenous?
 8.1 Indigenous Peoples versus Indigenous Religions

 8.2 Conceptualising Indigenous Religions


 9 Is the Tradition of Segnature the Indigenous Shamanism of Italy?


6 Relations and Contrasts with Catholicism
 1 Case Study – Pan-Amazonian Synod and the Rejection of the Pachamama

 2 Catholicism versus the Tradition of Segnature


7 Italian Shamanism and Contemporary Syncretism
 1 The ‘Italian Shamanism’ of Michela Chiarelli
 1.1 Michela, ‘The Last Italian Shaman of a Hereditary Tradition’

 1.2 Italian Shamanism and the Use of Segnature

 1.3 Italian Shamanism and the Role of Magic

 1.4 The Conceptualisation of Syncretism

 1.5 The Teachings of Michela


 2 Maria Capasso on the Indigenous Healing Tradition in Sardinia
 2.1 Types of Healers in Sardinia

 2.2 Maria’s Definition of Shaman and Shamanism

 2.3 Rituals and Belief System

 2.4 Ethics in Maria’s Lineage


 3 Michela’s and Maria’s Shamanisms in Relation to Folk Magic and Trans-cultural Shamanism


8 Conclusion
 1 Review of the Book

 2 Classifying Shamanisms Based on the Italian Case

 3 Research Impact and Further Research


References

Index

Anthropologists, Religious Studies scholars, cultural historians, sociologists, linguists, practitioners of shamanic practices, Folklore scholars, general public, digital ethnographers, Comparative Religion scholars.
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Publisher:
Brill
Language:
English
Pages:
x, 210 pp.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004694187

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