Westerners discontent with their Judeo-Christian heritage have

long sought alternative spiritual traditions. In the 1950s, the Beats dabbled

in Zen. In the 1960s, the hippies flocked to Hindu swamis. In the 1970s,

the Reverend Moon and other cult leaders swayed large followings. In the

1980s, the New Agers embraced Tibetan lamas. In the 1990s, shamanism

came into vogue. Perhaps within a few years, the avant-garde of the United

States will undergo a mass conversion to Islam in order to assimilate this

estranged manifestation of the Other. But at the present time, many North

Americans and Europeans are still seeking enlightenment through explor-

ing shamanism, some traveling to South America to find

the wisdom, and the brews, of other tradit