HEINZ, RUTHINGE

Scholar of comparative religion and psychological anthropology and a research associate at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley. Heinz authored the volumeShamans of the 20th Century(1991), offering one of the first detailed accounts ofneo-shamanicpractice alongside that of indigenous shamans, with the intent of demonstrating that shamanism is a vibrant religion thriving in an increasingly globalized world. Heinz characterizes the shaman as amediatorbetween the sacred and profane, and in locating “trance mediums” alongside shamans and others who alter consciousness, Heinz’s approach aligns with that ofIoan Lewisin broadening the termshamanfor application outside thelocus classicusofSiberiaand theArctic. More recently, Heinz has proposed a model of “alternate states of consciousness” (2003), based on a scale from dissociation to mind-expansion, with the determining factor of control over the state indicating ability. As such, Heinz includes shamanisticjourneyingalongside mediumistic andpossessiontrances, and the role of control in her model aligns withMichaelHarner’s definition ofcore shamanism.