Shaman

Overview

Another definition of a shaman can be found in volume one of the Shaman King manga series. According to Manta Oyamada's Mantannian Dictionary,

"a Shaman (noun) - In animalistic religions, a person who communicates with (or possessed by) gods, spirits, and the dead using magic to cure illness, foretell the future, and influence events. Entering a special trance to borrow these spirits' powers, shamans act as medicine men, guides, or mediums, forming links between the physical and spiritual worlds. In ancient times, they were the centers of society, and still are in some cultures today."

Of course, this leads to Manta believing that shaman are nothing more than con men until he met the shaman, Yoh Asakura.

Major Franchises

Shaman King is a major franchise that use the concept of shamans so far.

Note: There are no limits in the amount of detail given to any major franchise example. Please add information that relates to Shaman and their shaman related weaponry or items.

Minor Franchises

None so far.

Final Note: Please add franchises in alphabetical order.

Shaman King (Major)

Shaman King is a major franchise that use Shaman concept and develop a new concept on it. See information below.

Side note: Difference in terminology

Shaman King: Abilities

A shaman can integrate with a spirit into oneself. After integration, the shaman has all of the ghost's abilities, personality, and memories.

Integration is the ability to integrate the spirit into one's body. A shaman gains access to the spirit's ability and personality.

First Integration

Oversoul is the ability to integrate the spirit into a medium such as a sword, skeleton, or any objects a shaman desires. However, to achieve the best abilities of the spirit, a shaman must integrate the spirit into an object the spirit is familiar with. For example, Yoh integrates Amidamaru into a katana and the katana is the most appropriate weapon for a samurai.

Yoh's Oversoul

Flaws of the oversoul ability is that it consumes a lot of energy, furyoku.

Furyoku is the shaman's magic/ or mana that can be measure like energy levels.

Shaman King: Types of Shamans

There are niches in the world that specialized shamans fulfill.

Itako (Spirit Medium [Dub])

Anna Kyoyama is an itako who can summon a ghost even if that ghost has gone into heaven or afterlife by using beads and prayers. Also, an itako can banishes ghost, too. Read volume 3 when Anna faces Ryu who is possessed by Tokagero.

Ascetic

A shaman who predicts the future with the help of ghosts.

An example would be Tamamura Tamao and Asakura Mikihisa. Tamao uses kokkuri board for her divinations.

Doushi or Necromancer

A doushi is a Chinese shaman who uses Jiang-Si or Kyonsi (corpses) as puppets.

Examples: Jun Tao, Tao Yuan, Grandpa Zhen (Tao Yuan's father)

A necromancer is a shaman who can revive the dead by integrating the remains (IE: bones, corpse) as spirit medium.

Example: Faust the VIII,

Types of Ghosts in the Shaman King Franchise

Shamans use ghosts as their partners. They need to know the types and advantages of a ghost. A ghost is another way to gauge a shaman's strength.

There are four types of ghosts in the Shaman King Franchise: Human (Serei), Nature, Animal (Familiars), and Kami.

Note: Shikigami and Familiar are use for the same terms in Shaman King. In the manga, Yohmei's leaf sprites are both called a familiar or a shikigami.Serei is a strange class and can apply to any spirits that age above 500 years except Kami.

Shaman King: Advance Trainings, Abilities, and Shamanic Oracle

Methods to Increase Mana

A shaman's mana does not change if they train their bodies and no matter how much a shaman integrates with their spirit. The only way to increase one's mana is through near death experiences and mastering the Ultra Senji Ryakketsu.

Examples:

Advance Abilities

Other animes