Shamanism & tantra: Mongolias unique spiritual life

Mongolian shamanism, called Tengerism, is an ancient spiritual tradition, founded on the deep relationship between humans, nature, and the spirit world. At its heart is reverence for the Tenger, the many “Heavens” or sky-spirits, whose presence governs the cycles of weather, fate, and ecological balance. Among them, Tenger Etseg (Father Heaven) and Gazar Eej (Mother Earth) form the foundational polarity of sky and land.

Life is understood as an ongoing dialogue between these forces, and shaman act as the communicator or bridge between them. Shaman help maintain balance and harmony through specialised rituals that align people with community, land, and spirit.

Shamans, called böö (male) and udgan (female), undertake rigorous initiatory experiences, often marked by dreams, spirit illness, or ancestral calling. They journey between worlds using rhythmic drumming, chanting, and trance, to communicate with ancestral spirits, animal allies, and land guardians. Their role includes healing, divination, soul retrieval, and restoring balance when misfortune disrupts the natural order.

Shamans act as intermediaries between the human world and the spirit world. Their calling often emerges through vivid dreams, trance experiences, or episodes of “initiatory illness". Once a shaman is initiated, they work with a myriad of spirits including ancestors, mountain guardians, animal allies, and sky deities; who guide, protect, and empower ritual practices. The shaman’s costume, decorated with iron mirrors, ribbons, and symbolic animal forms, is a portable cosmos that protects and empowers the shaman while traveling through unseen spirit realms.

A central element of shamanic work in Mongolia is journeying, typically induced through rhythmic drumming, throat singing, chanting, or the shaking of a metal rattle. In trance, the shaman’s consciousness travels to upper, middle, or lower worlds to gather information, restore lost soul fragments, mediate disputes with spirits, or seek healing for individuals and families. Their ritual garments heavy with iron mirrors, antlers, feathers, and layered cloth, symbolise cosmic protection and signal to spirits that the shaman is ready to travel between worlds. The drum, believed to be a living entity (once consecrated), serves as the shaman’s “ride” for these journeys.

Shamanic practices in Mongolia, form a living spiritual system that honours nature spirits, ancestors, and the many “heavens.” Shamanic practices are woven into daily life and local belief systems, and are deeply intertwined with nomadic herding life.

Life events such as births, illness, misfortune, and transitions often prompt shamanic divination or healing sessions to identify spiritual imbalances. Mountains, rivers, and sacred oovoos (stone worship sites) are seen as living presences deserving of ritual offerings.

Before a long journey, herders circle an oovoo three times, offering milk, tea, or vodka to request protection and smooth passage.

Seasonal rites mark the movements of herds and the renewal of the land; these practices honour the reciprocal relationship between people and the spirits that sustain them.

Even in modern Mongolia, after hundreds of years of Buddhist integration, political suppression, and Western world influence, Tengerism remains a deeply embedded cultural and spiritual force, that offers meaning to Mongolian life and continually evolves with the needs of its people. Today, it thrives both in rural communities and among urban practitioners who seek to reconnect with ancestral wisdom and the presence of spirit within the living landscape of the steppe.

Along with shamanism, Tibetan Buddhism (tantra) is also practiced in Mongolia (dominated by 2 major schools - the yellow hats or Gelug lineage and the red hats or ancient Nyingma lineage). Far from being two isolated spiritual systems shamanism and tantra have evolved together in a mutually supportive relationship, as a unique fusion of Tibetan monastic traditions and the older shamanic practices and worldview.

Mongolian shaman performs a ritual journey into the spirit world

Tibetan Buddhism first reached Mongolia around the 4th–6th centuries, however, it established itself during the 16th century with the revealing of their first Dalai lama (Tibetan lama Sonam Gyatso). From then on, Buddhism became a central spiritual, cultural, and political force, shaping Mongolian identity alongside its traditional animistic beliefs. Monasteries spread across the country, as centres of worship and for education in medicine, astrology, & the arts.

Mongolian Buddhism is grounded in Tibetan monastic discipline, tantric ritual, and the worship of many protective deities. Begtzé, the God of war, is a particularly important deity protector. He is the fierce compassion that defends dhamma (Buddha's teachings). Also, Green Tara and White Tara hold deep devotional significance, often invoked for protection, longevity, and compassionate action. Worship of the Taras is evidence of the long-standing Mongolian affinity for the divine feminine and motherly nurturing energies.

By the early 20th century, Mongolia had one of the highest monastic populations in the world, with nearly a third of all its men serving as monks. And despite devastating suppression during the communist era, Buddhism has been undergoing a profound revival since the 1990s. Today, restored monasteries, newly trained lamas and a revival of lay devotion, reflect a vibrant resurgence of Tibetan Buddhist tantra in Mongolia.

Tantric Mongolian monk