Making Shamanism Accessible to Westerners

Harner clearly has as a priority the goal of making shamanism accessible to Westerners. Many of his sources are individuals who also have that goal, including Castaneda and Eliade. Even if these sources choose to employ shamanism for different purposes than Harner does, these sources also strive to dispel the mysteries that shroud shamanism. Harner clearly believes in the benefits of shamanism for all people. Throughout the book, he builds the case for using shamanic techniques in Western cultures.

Showing similarities among the various worldwide shamanic practices is one way in which Harner supports his case. This logical appeal to Western scientific processes of discerning truth by comparing multiple occurring incidences is presented in an attempt to show that shamanism and Western thought are compatible.

Another method Harner uses to make shamanism acceptable and accessible to those who are in Western philosophical traditions is...