The museum exhibition contains a doll of a Selkup shaman, which was created in 1985 by a local craftsman, Yuri Mikhailov.
Shamans were especially worshipped by the Selkup people of Siberia. They were kind of mediums between the world of people and the world of spirits, treated the sick, foretold the future and even resolved disputes. One couldn’t become a shaman because he just wanted — this gift was inherited from father to son or from grandfather to grandson. It was determined whether a child received the power of an ancestor by appearance features. For example, by peculiar birthmarks and curls of hair on the back of the head, and also by a high forehead and a keen eye.
The Selkups believed that various oddities occurred in the lives of future shamans. For example, by the age of 20, a special young man could become very ill: he was possessed by restless sleep, hallucinations, and a dejected state. It was believed that in this way spirits forced him to become a shaman. Often these ailments worsened, the patient would faint, rage, and sing. Then the relatives turned to an old experienced shaman. He would shamanize (communicate with spirits), driving away evil forces from the sick person, and also finding out whose patrons were calling the young Selkup to take the shamanic path.
The Selkups were convinced that the summoned person could not refuse the gift. The old shaman handed the apprentice his tambourine with which he began to shamanize. After a while, the new inductee would receive a small drum, the first instrument of his own.
Many men and women took part in making clothes and attributes for the new shaman, but the inductee never made them with his own hands.
Later on, a young shaman became calmer, painful attacks passed away. He stopped shying away from people, and performed rituals openly, even in the presence of strangers. Force of the shaman and his readiness for reception of other attributes were estimated by his singing.
A tambourine was made for the summoned person after the drums, which played the key role in the ceremonies. The tambourine served the shaman not only as a musical instrument but also as an object capable of transporting him into the spirit world. The Selkups believed that the main power of the shaman was in the “wind of the tambourine”, which blew away any misfortune.
Shamans were especially worshipped by the Selkup people of Siberia. They were kind of mediums between the world of people and the world of spirits, treated the sick, foretold the future and even resolved disputes. One couldn’t become a shaman because he just wanted — this gift was inherited from father to son or from grandfather to grandson. It was determined whether a child received the power of an ancestor by appearance features. For example, by peculiar birthmarks and curls of hair on the back of the head, and also by a high forehead and a keen eye.
The Selkups believed that various oddities occurred in the lives of future shamans. For example, by the age of 20, a special young man could become very ill: he was possessed by restless sleep, hallucinations, and a dejected state. It was believed that in this way spirits forced him to become a shaman. Often these ailments worsened, the patient would faint, rage, and sing. Then the relatives turned to an old experienced shaman. He would shamanize (communicate with spirits), driving away evil forces from the sick person, and also finding out whose patrons were calling the young Selkup to take the shamanic path.
The Selkups were convinced that the summoned person could not refuse the gift. The old shaman handed the apprentice his tambourine with which he began to shamanize. After a while, the new inductee would receive a small drum, the first instrument of his own.
Many men and women took part in making clothes and attributes for the new shaman, but the inductee never made them with his own hands.
Later on, a young shaman became calmer, painful attacks passed away. He stopped shying away from people, and performed rituals openly, even in the presence of strangers. Force of the shaman and his readiness for reception of other attributes were estimated by his singing.
A tambourine was made for the summoned person after the drums, which played the key role in the ceremonies. The tambourine served the shaman not only as a musical instrument but also as an object capable of transporting him into the spirit world. The Selkups believed that the main power of the shaman was in the “wind of the tambourine”, which blew away any misfortune.
