Don't Squeeze the Shaman Trivia Quiz

Answer: Shinto

Religious leaders called kannushi (divine master) are spiritual priests in the Japanese practice called Shinto. Kannushi may refer to all clergy, though originally it meant only the highest ranking leader, a holy man able to perform miracles and act as a go-between for the people and the kami (deities).

The kannushi primarily looks after one or more shrines, maintains harmony between humans and deities, and leads worship. Many times the role of kannushi is inherited through the family line, as these priests are allowed to marry.

A kannushi novice, man or woman, studies at an approved university and then is certified by passing an exam. Purity, light, correctness and forthrightness are the four important virtues.

Shinto means roughly "the Way of the Gods". Kami (deities or spirits) are believed to inhabit all things, but how the kami are interpreted or worshipped by a community has variation. There may be one primary god, or many.

The West struggles, via much research and written debate, to understand Shintoism because it lacks the specific doctrines, religious text and a clearly singular God that Westerners use to define religion. There are written traditions on kami back to the 8th-century.

It is the largest spiritual practice in Japan, with the closely related and sometimes simultaneously practised Buddhism a close second.

Answer: Jewish cantor

The hazzan leads a Jewish congregation in musical prayer. The original meaning is likely the Assyrian "hazanu" or overseer.

Their healing role is to lift the spirit, evoke a vision, and give voice to the current needs and feelings of the congregation via song, poetry and chanted prayer. In Orthodox Judaism cantors may be hired only for special occasion.

Some call the hazzan "Shaliach tzibur", meaning "messenger of the community". Since 1948 there have been schools to train and certify the hazzan. Some hazzans become ordained rabbis and thereafter fulfill both roles.

Answer: An ascetic in saffron

Swami, meaning "master or owner of himself" is a respected Hindu ascetic and religious leader, usually initiated into a religious order. Teachers such as gurus or yogis may be called swami. He or she is dedicated to mastering all primal urges and liberating from ignorance through meditation.

Sadhu is a more general term for an ascetic, of varied faiths and types. An ascetic is a holy person who lives in self-denial and abstinence. A sadhu dresses in saffron or orange robes, to represent the "fire of renunciation".

A sadhu strives to live without wealth, greed, ego, anger, lust, or sensory pleasures. He may reside in a monastery, wander by himself, or occupy a hut or cave. Usually others provide for his very basic needs.

Sadhu may be teachers or authors, guiding others, conferring mantras (chanting sounds) to individuals, hoping to show us how to connect with ourselves, to gain mental and spiritual peace, a greater sense of love and deeper understanding of the self. Many visitors call their time with an ascetic "transformational".

Answer: Wicca

In Wicca the High Priestess is the spiritual leader who guides rituals, teaches practices and assists the development and well-being of the coven. She helps members progress in their spiritual paths and teaches them technique and lore.

A High Priestess must undergo training, gain experience, and be called to the role within a community.

Wicca as a modern religion which began in the UK, based on ancient pagan and earth-centered practices. Typically, there is a Goddess and a God, not usually deities but forces, such as Nature.

Wicca is an Old English word generally meaning "witch". Wiccans believe the mind can alter negative things in the world, so they use "white magic" to protect, heal, "do no harm" and vanquish evil.

What a coven does and believes has much variation, except in those covens that stick closely to the "The Craft" or the "British Traditional Wicca" introduced in the 1940s by Britain Gerald Gardner.

Answer: Bishop title

In multiple Christian religions a Bishop and Archbishop are the highest order of ordained ministry, addressed with reverence as "your Grace". Only a Cardinal and the Pope rank higher in the Catholic Church.

A Catholic bishop has many responsibilities, including to advise, mentor and supervise. He is in charge of the spiritual health of the entire congregation, visits the sick and ordains the aspiring. He can serve in judgment, enforce church laws and administers the sacraments.

The word origins are Greek, meaning to look, or watch.

According to 1 Timothy 3 in the bible, a bishop cannot be a drunkard nor a lover of money. He can marry, but only once. He must be gentle, a good manager, and well-respected.

Answer: Tibetan Buddhist reincarnated

the Buddhist Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of the "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism. His Holiness has no formal religious position, but is a symbol of unity, healing and protection, especially of the Tibetans and their culture.

Tenzin Gyatso (born about 1935) is the 14th reincarnated Dalai Lama, living exiled in India due to clashes with the Chinese. According to a Harris poll in 2013 Tenzin was the most popular leader in the world, along with President Obama. Tenzin's wit and keen humor are legend. When he visited the USA in 2024 he was greeted by thousands.

Like the Pope, the Dalai Lama often speaks to a worldwide audience on ethics, compassion and justice, as well as living these out in his own life.

Tenzin has said he wants to reincarnate in a free country, or not at all, but the Chinese government claims the right to select the next incarnation. In 2020 the USA put sanctions on any Chinese officials who interfere with the incarnation search and selection process.

A Buddhist monk seeks enlightenment through non-attachment and contemplation. They do not marry, they take a vow of celibacy, and they shave their hair to eliminate vanity. Discipline, meditation and attaining and sharing wisdom are the main practice.

Buddhist monks will set themselves on fire in a public place as a form of protest by self-sacrifice. While horrifying, this is an ancient Buddhist practice intended to awaken others to the presence of injustice and suffering.

Answer: Muslim leader of prayer

An Imam is a spiritual advisor and often an Islamic law expert, perhaps the head of a mosque. Imam is Arabic for leader.

Commonly this person leads prayers and provides religious guidance, whether at a mosque or at home. This is typically an ordinary, though wise, person, as Islam has no religious authority other than Allah (God). A woman may lead prayer as an Imam, to a women-only community.

Sometimes confused with Imam is emir, because they can be the same person. The Arabic "emir" means "commander" or what the West would call a prince or high ranking military leader. A woman noble is called emira. Many countries recently moved to calling their emir "king" to enhance global understanding.

In the Muslim religion an "emir hadji" (commander of the pilgrimage) leads a spiritual pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

Answer: Bride of Christ

A nun is a woman of a religious order, perhaps Catholic but others too. She dedicates her life to obedient, celibate and sometimes cloistered service to God.

She is first "called" by God to lead a holy spiritual life. She then undergoes much examination in sound mind, body and spirit, actively serves the church and community, and then enters study to take her vows. In her final binding vows she is married with Jesus Christ, literally wearing His ring, becoming a bride of Christ.

Depending on the "order" she may serve in education, social work, healthcare, tending to the poor (which Catholics call a "sister"), or in secluded prayer.

In 1298 Pope Boniface VIII decreed that nuns must be "cloistered" outside the secular world, where they would be unable to tempt men. This was met with much resistance, especially from nuns and monks who were already working together for the public good.

Beginning in the 1960s many women chose to serve God without taking vows or cloistered living. Today nuns may be lawyers, scientists or social workers, active in schools, prisons or politics, wearing neither habit nor robes. The Vatican maintains that in the Catholic Church women are not clergy and cannot be ordained, but nuns continue to serve God and humanity. Mother Teresa, canonized as a Catholic saint in 2016, is among the most famous modern nuns.

Answer: Retrieves souls from spiritual realms

Shamanism is an ancient tradition practised worldwide by a range of indigenous people, and by others in modern times. The word shaman comes from Siberia, the Tungus tribe, meaning spiritual healer, "one who sees in the dark".

The responsibility of the shaman is to go into the realm of the spirits, perform a healing task and return safely. Very often the goal is to retrieve someone's lost soul, and otherwise bring harmony to individuals and the community. The shaman is spiritual leader, doctor, mystic and therapist all in one.

There have been many intense scientific studies of skilled shamans, who, like some yogis, demonstrate measurable, repeatable and unusual abilities. Most were chosen and trained starting in childhood.

George Lucas was inspired by shamans when he created Yoda, Luke Skywalker and the Jedi in "Star Wars".

Answer: Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds

Zoroaster was the ancient founder of Zoroastrianism, the primary religion of the Persian Empire about 550 BCE to 330 BCE. The core principle is Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds. The purpose is to bring happiness into the world.

Its concepts such as heaven and hell, good over evil, a benevolent deity, serving one God, truth over deceit, judgment after death and free will may have influenced many of the religions known today.

There's no proof Zoroaster existed, yet the Greeks, Romans and Christian-Judeo literature each mention him. Zoroaster worshipped the supreme Ahura Mazda (Wise Lord), manifested by fire.

Zoroastrianism is practised today in India, Iran and the USA, while Canada, New Zealand, Germany, Australia and the UK have a smaller number of followers.