Why Shamanism Is the Ancestor of Depth Psychology
BY NICOLE LAU
Depth psychology—the work of Freud, Jung, and their successors—did not invent the exploration of the unconscious. Shamans have been doing this work for tens of thousands of years. Understanding shamanism as the ancestor of depth psychology reveals that modern therapy is rediscovering ancient wisdom, and that the most cutting-edge psychological techniques are actually the oldest human practices.
The Timeline: Shamanism Came First
The historical sequence is clear:
- 40,000+ years ago: Evidence of shamanic practices (cave paintings, burial sites, artifacts)
- 1900 CE: Freud publishes The Interpretation of Dreams
- 1912 CE: Jung breaks with Freud, develops analytical psychology
- 1950s-present: Depth psychology expands and diversifies
Shamanism predates psychology by millennia. Modern psychology is the newcomer, not shamanism.
The Core Practices: Identical Work
What shamans do and what depth psychologists do is remarkably similar:
| Shamanic Practice | Depth Psychology |
|---|---|
| Soul retrieval | Integrating dissociated parts |
| Power animal work | Activating archetypes |
| Spirit guide dialogue | Active imagination |
| Extraction (removing intrusions) | Releasing complexes |
| Journeying to Lower World | Exploring the unconscious |
| Journeying to Upper World | Accessing the Self/superconscious |
| Dismemberment initiation | Ego death and rebirth |
Same work, different language. Shamans were doing depth psychology before it had a name.
Jung's Explicit Acknowledgment
Carl Jung recognized shamanism as the ancestor of his work:
- He studied shamanic practices extensively
- He acknowledged the collective unconscious was what shamans accessed
- He saw archetypes as what shamans called spirits
- He developed active imagination based on shamanic journeying
- He called the psychotherapist "the modern shaman"
Jung didn't claim to invent these techniques—he rediscovered and systematized what shamans had always known.
Jung's Own Shamanic Crisis
Jung's breakdown and recovery (1913-1917) was essentially a shamanic initiation:
- Psychological crisis and disintegration
- Descent into the unconscious
- Encounters with autonomous figures (Philemon, Salome, etc.)
- Dismemberment and reconstruction of psyche
- Emergence with new understanding and power
- Lifelong work sharing what he learned
This is the classic shamanic initiation pattern. Jung became a shaman through his crisis.
What Shamans Discovered First
Shamans discovered and worked with concepts that psychology later "discovered":
The Unconscious
- Shamanic: The Lower World, the realm of hidden things
- Freudian: The unconscious, repository of repressed content
- Jungian: Personal and collective unconscious
Archetypes
- Shamanic: Spirits, gods, power animals—universal patterns
- Jungian: Archetypes in the collective unconscious
Dissociation and Integration
- Shamanic: Soul loss and soul retrieval
- Modern: Dissociation and reintegration (IFS, EMDR, etc.)
Altered States
- Shamanic: Trance, ecstasy, journeying
- Modern: Hypnosis, EMDR, psychedelic therapy
The Healing Relationship
- Shamanic: Shaman as intermediary between worlds
- Modern: Therapist as facilitator of unconscious integration
Why Psychology Forgot Its Roots
Modern psychology initially rejected shamanism because:
- Colonialism: Indigenous practices dismissed as "primitive"
- Materialism: Only physical reality was considered real
- Rationalism: Altered states seen as pathological, not therapeutic
- Professionalization: Psychology wanted to be "scientific," not "mystical"
But the most effective therapeutic techniques—active imagination, EMDR, IFS, psychedelic therapy—are all rediscovering shamanic methods.
The Return to Shamanic Methods
Contemporary psychology is increasingly incorporating shamanic techniques:
Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy
- Using plant medicines (psilocybin, ayahuasca, MDMA)
- Guided journeys to non-ordinary states
- Integration of unconscious material
- This is shamanic healing with clinical oversight
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
- Bilateral stimulation induces altered state
- Accessing and reprocessing traumatic memories
- Similar to shamanic extraction and soul retrieval
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
- Working with "parts" of the psyche
- Dialoguing with autonomous aspects of self
- Retrieving exiled parts
- This is soul retrieval in modern language
Somatic Experiencing
- Working with body wisdom and instinct
- Releasing trauma stored in the body
- Reconnecting to animal/instinctual self
- This is Lower World work
What Psychology Can Learn From Shamanism
Shamanism offers techniques psychology is still rediscovering:
- Efficiency: Shamanic healing often works faster than talk therapy
- Embodiment: Working through experience, not just talking about it
- Imagery: Using the language the unconscious speaks
- Relationship: With autonomous aspects of psyche (not just analyzing them)
- Ritual: Creating containers for transformation
- Community: Healing in social context, not just individual therapy
The Shaman as the First Psychotherapist
The shaman's role in traditional societies was essentially therapeutic:
- Diagnosing: Identifying the spiritual/psychological cause of illness
- Treating: Through soul retrieval, extraction, power restoration
- Mediating: Between conscious and unconscious, individual and collective
- Guiding: Through life transitions and crises
- Maintaining: Community mental and spiritual health
This is exactly what psychotherapists do, using different language and techniques.
The Wounded Healer
Both shamans and depth psychologists recognize the wounded healer archetype:
- Shamanic initiation: Often begins with illness, crisis, or breakdown
- Psychological training: Requires personal analysis and confronting one's own shadow
- The gift: Your wounds become your medicine; your healing enables others' healing
Jung, Freud, and most effective therapists have been through their own psychological underworld journey.
Practical Application: Integrating Both
To benefit from both shamanism and depth psychology:
- Recognize the continuity: They're the same work with different languages
- Use both: Therapy for analysis, shamanic work for experience
- Find integration: Therapists who understand shamanic principles
- Study both: Read Jung and study shamanic techniques
- Practice both: Talk therapy and journeying complement each other
- Honor the ancestors: Acknowledge shamanism as the original depth psychology
Shamanism is not primitive psychology—it's the original psychology. For tens of thousands of years, shamans have been exploring the unconscious, integrating shadow, working with archetypes, and healing fragmentation. Freud and Jung didn't invent depth psychology—they rediscovered and systematized what shamans had always known. The most cutting-edge therapeutic techniques today—psychedelic therapy, EMDR, IFS—are returns to shamanic wisdom. The circle is completing. Psychology is coming home to its ancestor.
