Tobacco and Shamanism in South America

By Johannes Wilbert

Categories: Politics & Social Sciences, Religion & Spirituality

Anthropologist Johannes Wilbert surveys tobacco use among nearly three hundred native societies of South America, documenting how people chew, lick, snuff, drink and smoke it and take it by enema. He argues that tobacco and shamanism are closely linked, that ritual use aims at acute nicotine intoxication, and that shamanic beliefs about death, rebirth and healing reflect the drug's physiological effects.

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• Tim Ferriss: “But after spending more time in South America and reading books — I'm going to get the title wrong, but it's something like Tobacco and Shamanism in South America. I think it's Johannes Wilbert or Johannes, excellent book, very dense. It's not light reading.”