Bill Brunton, Ph.D.

Bill Brunton, is a cultural anthropologist whose work has taken him to Hawaii, Korea, southern Siberia along the Amur River, central Siberia (Yakutia-now known as the Sakha Republic), Central Asia (Tuva), Europe, northern China, and Inner Mongolia. He has worked extensively with Native Americans of the Plateau of western North America, principally the Kootenai of western Montana.

His first-hand introduction to shamanic-based, animistic religion was by his friends and teachers among the Nez Perce and Kootenai in the late 1960s, although at that time it was mostly an academic exercise - the object being to describe it on paper. His Native American teachers were patient with his persistent questions and seemed to take a special interest in helping him understand their very sophisticated spiritual world view. Their interest came to be mirrored in his own.

It was not until 1984 that Bill truly appreciated the insider's view that his Native American friends had labored so hard to share with him. It was in that year that he was introduced experientially to Core Shamanism by Michael Harner. The Basic Workshop was quickly followed by others, which over the years led to his being appointed to the teaching faculty of the Foundation by Michael in 1988.

In addition to serving as an FSS Faculty Member, Bill also is an FSS Field Associate for western North America, was the Editor of the FSS Journal Shamanism and is Editor Emeritus of the Shamanism Annual. He is a former professor of anthropology at North Dakota State University in Fargo.

Bill's passion is learning, then teaching others what he has learned.