Truths and Myths of the Shaman
If you have ever worked with me, whether in-session or in a gathering, you may have noticed that I do not refer to myself as a “shaman.” For over 15 years, I have trained in and practiced what are essentially shamanic healing techniques to help and support humans from birth to old age. I have worked with the spirits of trees, animals as well as the spirits of land. I have worked with numerous lost spirits of humans who have sought help to cross over into the Otherworld. During sessions with clients, I have been contacted by spirits of their kin who have sought connection and communication in a variety of ways. I have also worked with weather spirits to gain understanding of their task of balancing the energies on this planet.
For all intents and purposes, I call myself a shamanic practitioner so that people can understand the angle with which I work. I allow part of my spirit to be driven by rhythmic beats (usually from my drums, bells, and rattles) so that it can travel into the transcendental realms of Otherworld to work with the spirits who reside there. I have known and bonded with these spirits for years. None of the work I perform comes from me, but from them. In fact, I would not want any information or healing to come from me because that’s me getting in the way of the work, and that wouldn’t serve anyone, including myself.
The point is, I am a shamanic practitioner because I practice shamanism. And I’m doing that in a culture that often underestimates this work, misappropriates, misunderstands, or oversimplifies it. Shamanism hails from all over the world from many cultures and continents. And if we reach far back enough, it is in your ancestry too. If you have listened to my podcast, you will also know that my colleague, Bri Andreoni and I are very mindful about cultural appropriation. I find it unethical to take practices that are not of my own culture and use them as my own. The work and ceremonies that I perform come from what my own helping spirits and Ancestors show and advise me to carry out, depending on the need.
Whether you have met me or have read anything I’ve written, it doesn’t take long to figure out that I am passionate about this sacred practice for a myriad of reasons. The most important one is that practicing the advanced techniques I have learned from several teachers and mentors has brought me out of an extremely severe illness that served as a catalyst for several NDE’s. I have been the gracious benefactor of these time-tested techniques. To this day, I find that if I do not shamanize, I feel misaligned or even unwell.
As the severe illness released from my system nine years ago this month, I was asked by these spirits to commit to helping others once I recovered. I feel the duration of my illness endured because I was hesitant (one might even call it “stubborn”) due to the huge responsibility involved with serving others in this way. Thoughts and feelings such as, What right would I have in stepping into something so sacred as a woman in a Caucasian body in this culture? were swirling around in my questioning mind. My coming to acceptance of the commitment being asked of me was a bit of a battle with my helping spirits for a time. Then one day, I finally surrendered to their constant requests for me to step onto the path… and slowly the illness began to shed from me like old skin.
In the 1990’s, I fell in love with teaching multiage classrooms of children from kindergarten through grade 3. I adored my job and I was good at it (and was told so by parents and the kids!). Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that I would be teaching something altogether different than what lived in my own original life plans. In 2021, I fulfilled a huge dream as I completed an 18-month long Shamanic Teacher Training Program, but I have since found that my quest is not over. I realized that I am a constant student to the infinite lessons of the cosmos and the wisdom of my spirit team. The work is ever-evolving and I don’t think I would still be on this path if it were any other way.
Because of this, I feel that using the word “shaman” to label who I am does not encapsulate all of me. Perhaps this is because it has become such a buzzword in the last few years where it seems anyone can call themselves this. Perhaps this is because using the word “shaman” in our culture somehow indicates that one has “arrived” at the top of a hierarchal human-made structure. In our culture, it might be misconstrued that this intermediary of the Spirit World is all-knowing and all-powerful, which is simply not the case. I can’t imagine nor will I be convinced that any human is all-knowing or all-powerful, despite any spiritual advancement. We are in a body for a reason. Or many of them.
I also find that referring to myself as a “shaman” would be insulting to not only to indigenous healers who still live in shamanic cultures now, but for the multitudes of shamans from all over the world from the last 100,000 years who now reside in the Otherworlds. If someone wishes to refer to me as “shaman,” that’s ok. I am honored you think of me in that way… but please understand that these labels don’t matter to me. What matters is whether being in session or a gathering with me feels safe and inspiring. What matters to me is that you feel your own power from and connection to your own spirit team because of our time together.
There is a quote from Ojibwa medicine man Sun Bear which is, “does it grow corn?” Corn was once seen (and still is) as a form of sustenance and survival. The saying “does it grow corn” means that if what you’re doing isn’t making your life and the lives of others around you better, then you might question why you’re doing it. It is a reminder to pay attention to knowledge one provides and actions that endure. We might ask ourselves, “Is what I’m doing, in any phase and level of my life, growing corn?” If it is not contributing to the greater good, then why continue? This concept includes not just myself and other humans, but all beings in regards to future sustainability. Personally, I do not need to be called a “shaman” to feel purposeful and supportive. In the words of John Beckett, a respected author, Pagan and Druid I was honored to speak with recently, "If one refers to oneself as a shaman, then odds are, they are not." I completely concur.
The word “shaman” has many translations from different cultures, but is thought to have come from the Tungus people in Siberia which roughly translates to one who sees in the dark with a strong eye or strong heart. The shaman-to-be is chosen by the spirits to undergo a long process of becoming the Hollow Bone. Usually, the person who is chosen goes through intense trials on the spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical levels - sometimes all at once. One does not wake up one morning and decide to become a shaman. It is historically quite an arduous, painful journey and is not for the faint of heart. If one could understand what that call would actually entail, they would likely not choose the path. It is a series of processes of deaths and rebirths. Often, the neophyte has one or several NDE’s, has endured prolonged, horrific physical pain, or has been taken to the brink of sanity and back again (or all of the above). Sometimes, the shaman-to-be must also confront and battle powerful forces from or in the Otherworlds as part of their becoming. It is important to note here that it is not enough to live through these intense initiations. Once back from the series of challenges, one must then soundly integrate them and then commit to being of service for others. This is another great task in itself, especially in a capitalistic culture such as ours.
In traditional shamanic cultures, the process of a neophyte undergoing a shamanic sickness was recognized by Elders in the community. Rituals were held and support offered to the initiate, relative to the culture in which they belonged. In modern times, a person undergoing a shamanic initiation usually does not have the support system from a community in order to understand what is occurring. They typically are not given guidance by the well-informed wisdom of Elders to pass on the knowledge. Even if one is not a shaman-to-be, the support from a community is essential to overcoming the challenges of life in a sound way.
In our culture, we have a strange concept that a shaman is somehow indestructible and their knowledge absolute. Yet, we can look at history and see how indigenous shamans were tortured and killed for their practices when governments came into power with non-inclusive religious doctrine. We somehow believe that that since they have a foot in this world and the Otherworld that they do not get ill or have challenges in their lives like every other human being. This is just not so. In fact, one might go so far to say that any integral shamanic practitioner might be more susceptible to illness, troubles in life, psychic attacks, curses, among the many “normal” challenges that occur when one lives in a body in this world. In addition, when one has committed to the shamanic path, it is understood that the committed practitioner must undergo an infinite number of shamanic initiations during one’s lifetime which do not truly end.
I believe it’s imperative that we reflect within and ask why we search for the all-knowing gurus in our culture. Often, they are not gurus at all. Some come along even with a pied-piper type of attraction, much like Oz when you draw back the curtain, and we are left trying to make sense of a mere illusion. It is so important to remember our own discernment. We’re living in precarious times, and many of us are waking up to another way of being. Some who have been on the spiritual path are feeling the weight of why they chose to come in a body at this crucial period in time. We are at a crossroads in many respects. In my previous newsletter, I spoke about how we are in Tower Time. The heaviness of this period does not have a sighted end in our lifetime. This is not information just from me, but from several others who have been shown as well.
I believe that part of the reason we are here is to assist each other during times of doubt, challenge, and hardship. It is a reciprocal thing, for all of us are in the experience. For some of us, it only takes a mere reminder from the Spirit World to help us remember where our path is meant to lead. For others, the course is more obstacled. There is no judgement. Life in body is never guaranteed to be an easy experience.
Perhaps it’s time we stop giving our own power away to supposed gurus. Any integral healer or spiritual teacher will always come back the foundational concept of how to help you find the beautiful, shining power that lies dormant within yourself.
