CONTEMPORARY SHAMANISM IN MONGOLIA & SIBERIA

An afternoon with anthropologist Dr Donatas Bradišauskas, followed by a guided forest immersion.

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Join us for an illuminating conversation with cultural anthropologist and explorer Dr Donatas Bradišauskas, whose decades of ethnographic fieldwork offer a rare perspective on shamanic traditions beyond the narratives commonly encountered in the West.

Together, we’ll explore questions such as:

__How do shamanic traditions differ across Siberia and Mongolia?

__Why is trance not a universal feature of shamanic practice?

__How do contemporary shamans navigate the intersections of spirituality, medicine, psychology, religion, and cultural identity?

Drawing on more than twenty years of research among Indigenous communities across Siberia, the Russian Far East, and Mongolia, Dr Bradišauskas presents shamanism as a living, evolving cultural practice rather than a fixed spiritual system.

Through stories from the field, participants will gain insight into how nomadic cultures understand relationships with spirits, animals, landscapes, and the unseen dimensions of everyday life.

The lecture also offers a thoughtful examination of the very concept of shamanism – its historical origins, colonial interpretations, representations in popular culture, and its ongoing transformation within today’s global imagination.

Dr Donatas Bradišauskas is a Lithuanian cultural anthropologist, Doctor of Social Anthropology, and Professor at the Faculty of Philosophy and the Institute of Asian and Transcultural Studies at Vilnius University.

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PROGRAMME

12:00–14:00
Lecture with Dr Donatas Bradišauskas

14:00–15:00
Guided Forest Immersion in Nemenčinė Forest

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PRACTICAL INFORMATION

This gathering is free of charge and no registration is required.

Simply arrive at Sanctum before 12:00 to allow the experience to begin on time. As with all Sanctum gatherings, shoes are left at the entrance.

For the forest immersion, we recommend comfortable, weather-appropriate clothing and footwear.