Mgr. Helena Dyndová, Ph.D.
Department of Arts and Religious Studies
Místnost č. 225
Courses Taught This Semester
Office Hours
See our office hours web page.
Research Interests
- alternative spirituality
- contemporary shamanism
- ethnographic field research
- theory of complementary and alternative medicine
Curriculum vitae
Helena Dyndová, nee. Exnerová, born 1989
Career History
- since 12/2023: Assistant professor, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Faculty of Arts, Charles University
- 2/2021 – 6/2023: Assistant professor, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Faculty of Arts, University of Pardubice
- 2016 – 2018: Doctoral Studies Teaching Assistant the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Faculty of Arts, Charles University
- 2017: Assistant Research Staff at the Library of Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Faculty of Arts, Charles University
Vzdělání // Education
- 2016 – 2021: Ph.D. in Religious Studies, Faculty of Arts, Charles University, dissertation: Shamanic Healing: Analysis of the Process of Healing and Recovery in Contemporary Czech Shamanism
- 2014 – 2016: M.A. in Judaic Studies – Religious Studies, Hussite Theological Faculty of Charles University, thesis: Charismatic Authority: Methodological Approaches to the Study of New Religious Movements.
- 2011 – 2014: Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies, Faculty of Arts, Charles University, bachelor thesis: Pentecostalism in the Czech Republic
Supported Grants and Other Scholarly Activities
- since 12/2023: Junior Researcher within the project Beyond Security: Role of Conflict in Resilience-Building (CoRe)
- 2023 – 2025: Co-researcher on the GAČR project: Key Cultural Sources, Ideas, and Practices of Western Alternative Spirituality and Medicine
- since 2018: Member of the Editorial Board of Dingir: A Religious Journal on the Contemporary Religious Scene
- since 2018: Member of the Editorial Board of the online project Religious Information Service.
- 2017 – 2019: External Collaborator on the GAČR project: Representation of Indigenous Cultures in the Context of Contemporary Western Alternative Spirituality
- 2017: Investigator of the Student Project “Bears, Foxes, and Jaguars: Religious-Anthropological Analysis of Forms of Contemporary Urban Neo-Shamanism” within the Progres Q14 excellence cluster, Rationality Crisis and Modern Thought
Publications
Monographs
- 2018, Český šamanismus v rozhovorech, Praha: Dingir, 2018 [Czech Shamanism in Interviews]
Articles
- 2024, „Contemporary Shamanism and Alternative Spirituality: Exploring Relationships and Intersections“, Religio: Revue pro religionistiku 32/1, 2024: 47-70
- 2020, „Contemporary Czech Shamanism: A Case Study of Ritual Practice and Healing“, Český lid 2, 2020: 149-166.
- 2019, „The Reflection of Carlos Castaneda and His Work in the Milieu of Contemporary Czech Shamanism“, Central European Journal for Contemporary Religion 2, 2019: 75-90.
- 2017, „Něco končí, něco začíná: rituální perspektiva ke studiu mileniálního očekávání”, Pantheon: religionistický časopis 2, 2017: 3-22 [Something Ends, Something Begins: A Ritual Perspective on Studying Millennial Expectations]
Reviews
- 2022 , „Leon Festinger, Henry Riecken, Stanley Schachter: Když se proroctví nesplní: studie skupiny, která předpověděla konec světa, Praha, Portál 2021, 294 s.“ (review), Sociologický časopis / Czech Sociological Review 58/4, 2022: 464-467 [Leon Festinger, Henry Riecken, Stanley Schachter: When Prophecy Fails]
- 2022, „Stručný, ale zdařilý úvod do studia rituálů: Barry Stephenson, Stručný úvod do teorie rituálu, Praha: ExOriente, 2022“ (review), Dingir 3, 2022: 108 [Short, but Thorough Introduction to Ritual Studies: Barry Stephenson, Ritual: A Very Short Introduction]
- 2020, „Buduj Mindufulness, posílíš kapitalismus“ (review), Dingir 1: 2020 [Build Mindfulness, Strengthen Capitalism]
- 2019, „The Maya Religion“ (review), Central European Journal for Contemporary Religion 1, 2019: 65-67
- 2018, „Ódinn: jednooký bůh pohledem religionistického strukturalismu“ (review), Dingir 2, 2018: 70-71 [Odin: The One-eyed God from the Perspective of Religious Structuralism]
Selected conference presentations
- 2023, „Healing festival: Případová studie o transformaci, uzdravování a duchovním objevování“, Alternativní spiritualita: New Age, (novo)pohanství, (neo)šamanismus, Prague, 19.-20.10.2023 [Healing Festival: A Case Study on Transformation, Healing, and Spiritual Discovery]
- 2023, „Otherworldly Allies in Contemporary Shamanic Healing: The Role of Other-Than-Human Actors in Transforming and Reshaping Self-Understanding”, SIEF2023 16th Congress: Living Uncertainty, Brno, 7-10.6.2023.
- 2022, Dyndová, Helena, „Kolik může stát duchovno?”, „Divákem i hercem na náboženské scéně“ – čtvrtstoletí s Dingirem, Prague, 15. 10. 2022 [How Much Can Spirituality Cost?]
- 2018, „Neošamanský rituál: mezi individualistickou spiritualitou a communitas“, Olomoucká religionistická konference, Olomouc, 4.-5. 10. 2018 [Neo-Shamanic Ritual: Between Individualistic Spirituality and Communitas]
- 2018, „Reflexe Castanedova díla v současném českém šamanismu“, Carlos Castaneda: antropolog, filosof a duchovní vůdce, Prague, 12. 9. 2018 [Reflections on Castaneda’s Work in Contemporary Czech Shamanism]
- 2017, “The significance of shamanic orthopraxis in creating neoshamanic identity”, ISARS Conference 2017: Expanding Boundaries: Ethnicity, Materiality and Spirituality, Hanoj, 1. – 4. 12. 2017.
Teaching
Theses SupervisionA History of Courses Taught