Main content

Spiritual Seekers

Eddy Elsey was struggling with his mental health and looking for spiritual connection. He found it in shamanism. What is it that draws people to spiritual, not religious practices?

Eddy Elsey, an estate agent in London, was struggling with his mental health and looking for support. Like 37% of people, according to the last census in England and Wales, traditional religion wasn’t a place he turned to. But, as he tells Giles Fraser, he did find a spiritual connection through shamanism, which has helped him.

When people say they are "spiritual but not religious", what do they mean and what do they believe?

A group of people who make use of spiritual ideologies describe their practices, from sound healing to astrology. What are oracle cards and how do you carry out a shamanic divination?

Giles meets Celestial Tree, an astrologist, Jo Moore a yoga teacher and reiki practitioner and Linda Woodhead, Professor of Moral and Social Theology at Kings College, London, who has researched the growth of spiritualities. What draws people towards them?

Producer: Rebecca Maxted
Assistant Producer: Ruth Purser
Editor: Jonathan Hallewell

Available now

28 minutes

Last on

Sun 12 May 2024 06:05

Broadcasts

  • Tue 7 May 2024 15:30
  • Sun 12 May 2024 06:05

Six things you might not know about chanting

Here are six things we learned from Beyond Belief’s exploration of the power of chanting.

Podcast