SHAMANISM - THE KEY TO RELIGION

The article lays out in schematic fashion a composite of socio-intelle ctual processes, arguably evident in respect of all cosmologies, which might appropriately be labelled 'religious'. It does so by applying d eductive reasoning to shamanism, the prevalent religion in societies w hose social structures are simple and in whose cosmologies religious p rocess is conspicuous; here the Canadian Inuit (Eskimo) provide the et hnographic focus. The article assumes that religious process finds its basis in fundamental contradictions concerning the conditions of soci al existence, namely in the antithesis between social structure and co mmunitas. Cosmology is generated as this contradiction is contemplated by, respectively, laypeople and specialists, both with their own inte rests in view. The argument also considers such central cultural and a nalytical issues as the existence of distinctive notions of the human person, and the pertinence for the study of religion of, variously, 's econdary elaborations', systems of classification, and religious edict s; and it joins with Barth in emphasizing the salience of the speciali st in 'cosmology-making'.