The Religion of the Shamans

Do religious traditions not related to written texts have a history? The author explores this question using Buryat shamanism as a case study. Disentangling this religious tradition from its presumed ahistorical space, he places the history of Buryat shamanism in the context of sociopolitical events that unfolded in Mongolia and Transbaikalia between the late 16th and the 19th centuries.