The Efficacy of Music in Shamanic Collective Effervescence: An Embodied Cognition Perspective

This paper explores the mechanisms underlying collective effervescence in shamanic rituals from an embodied cognition perspective. Drawing on Durkheim's concept of collective effervescence and Turner's theory of liminality, it analyzes how individual identities become blurred during shamanic rituals, transcending social hierarchies and differences. This blurring facilitates to a transformation and reformation of identity, resulting in a relatively egalitarian and homogeneous “communitas”. Additionally, by incorporating Collins and Marshall's concept of emotional energy, the study examines the generative mechanisms of rituals, emphasizing that ritual practices play a crucial role in transforming knowledge into faith and instilling a sense of belonging in members. This process is not merely achieved through static information transmission, but rather through the activation of a series of socio-psychological mechanisms, such as group integration, identity formation, and symbolic liberation, which dynamically shape participants' beliefs and sense of belonging.Furthermore, the paper introduces Embodied Music Cognition (EMC)theory to investigate how music, as a symbolic form, shapes internal perceptual models through personal psychological dispositions and experiences, thereby creating an embodied interactive communicative process. During this process, individuals undergo an emotional transformation from rationality to ecstasy, which not only signifies a change at the level of individual psychological experience but is also serves as a means of achieving cultural and social coupling.In summary, this research employs a multidisciplinary methodological framework to construct a more comprehensive and multi-dimensional theoretical model to understand the phenomenon of collective effervescence in shamanic rituals and its profound social significance.