The modern shaman

In this article, I will distinguish between people who are called modern shamans and those who are traditional. Traditional shamanic cultures cannot also be modern. Nothing here is a value judgment. Words can carry a lot of baggage, and I choose to use terms here that are, hopefully, nonoffensive and well understood.

I use the term modern shaman here, though I do not refer to myself as a shaman. I call myself a shamanic practitioner or teacher. In the teaching tradition I came from, one does not refer to oneself using the term shaman. It can be used or given by others, but many consider it bragging by giving oneself that title. Again, there is no judgment here for people who come from a different tradition. This difference is like the difference between Jewish people celebrating Hannukah and Christians celebrating Christmas. They're just different traditions, and both are great.

What is the modern shaman?

A modern shaman is a person who has gained the abilities of a shaman through the study and practice of traditional shamanism. This person, however, may not live within a shamanic culture or be a hereditary shaman. Most modern shamans practice what is called Core Shamanism (more on that below).

How did modern shamanism come about?

Anthropologists have been studying shamanism for many years. In the 1970s, anthropologist Michael Harner spent time with traditional Amazonian shamans and went through ayahuasca ceremonies. In 1980, Harner published a highly influential book, The Way of the Shaman: a Guide to Power and Healing. A year before that, he had founded the Center for Shamanic Studies, which is now the Foundation for Shamanic Studies.

Michael Harner started teaching what he called Core Shamanism, which is what nearly all modern shamans practice. His students spread his teaching globally. To give you some perspective, Michael Harner is my teacher's teacher's teacher. I guess you might call him my shamanic great-grandparent.

What distinguishes modern shamanism from traditional shamanic practice?

Anyone who practices shamanism has standard methods. The shamanic journey defines shamanic practice everywhere.

All shamans practice within the context of their culture. In shamanic cultures, the shaman is the primary spiritual functionary within a social group. A practitioner may serve as a functionary with modern shamanism, but they're likely many more. For example, I live in a town of 5,000 people. There are seven churches in my town, as well as a religious community.

In every culture, some aspects of spirituality will be different. Each culture has different prayers, rituals, songs, dances, etc. We use the word shaman in English, a loan word, but different cultures have different languages.

So, as far as the practice goes, the journey is the same. Working with helping spirits is the same. Both use altered states of consciousness.

Here are just two of the main differences:

Shamanic selection

Shamanic selection refers to the people who choose shamans and the way they are selected.

Many indigenous cultures select people to undergo shamanic initiation and training based on culturally essential factors. Those factors might be being born with congenital disabilities, hit by lightning, or experiencing a life-threatening illness. The selection might also be hereditary, being passed from parent to child or grandparent to grandchild.

Most traditionally shamanic cultures recognize the shamanic crisis. The shamanic crisis is a life-altering episode related to physical or mental health. The crisis is always traumatic. Healing from the mental and spiritual wounds from trauma is vital to the spiritual makeup of the shaman.

In non-shamanic cultures, people can self-select to become shamans - sort of. While anybody can sign up for courses in shamanic practice, most will not have the desire to continue beyond basic training. Most people who become shamanic practitioners who work on behalf of clients will have gone through a shamanic crisis.

There is no governing body, license, or religious leader in shamanism. Anybody could call themselves a shaman. However, I haven't come across anybody I would consider a charlatan or "plastic shaman" in my years of practice. I think spirit has a way of quickly weeding these folks out.

Use of psychedelic plant medicines

Many indigenous cultures have been using plant medicines for psycho-spiritual purposes for thousands of years. There are healing practices around such substances as ayahuasca, psilocybin, peyote, and fly agaric mushrooms. (yes, technically mushrooms aren’t plants) The use of psychoactive substances for spiritual practice is widespread - from ancient Egypt and Greece to today's Amazon basin.

These powerful psychedelics are sometimes called entheogens. The word entheogen means a substance that creates n experience of god.

While ayahuasca ceremonies have become big business, not without risks and drawbacks, there are still tribes using aya the traditional ways. Most modern practitioners do not use

What does it take to become a modern-day shaman?

Modern shamans are healers, coaches, and advisors. Some may go on to teach.

For me, the path to serving others was quite long. I first came to shamanism to heal from a mental health crisis I now recognize as a shamanic crisis. I got accepted into a year-long apprenticeship. At that point, I had no intention of being a practitioner. But I found II liked working with people.

I went on to complete several more years of training and initiations. I did specialized training in soul retrieval, wound healing, curse unraveling, and other topics. I went on to do a shamanic teacher training program.

Ethically, I think there is a core set of skills and a level of personal development that a person must acquire before hanging up a shingle as a shamanic practitioner. I would treat the training required like a university degree program. It is more intense than that, but the time required is similar.

One thing this does is weed out dabblers. Also, this prevents clients from going to ill-prepared practitioners who don't have some of the many skills required to work one-on-one. I had a lot of fears and insecurities as I went through my training. It's helpful to look back at those times and see that the training prepared me for this work.

I think that some people come to shamanism for the "magic" part of it. I am not a proponent of that and don't think magic is an excellent way to view healing. Some people are motivated by the sense of power they believe the shamanic practice may give them. This viewpoint is all egotism, which initiation will bring to the surface.

To be a good healer, a practitioner works towards becoming a clear channel for spirit to pass through. We refer to this as "becoming the hollow bone."

How to identify and heal from karmic relationships

As a shamanic practitioner, I am always concerned with my cleint’s and students, mental, physical, and spiritual health. Part of that health includes having healthy relationships.

I want to talk to you about unhealthy karmic relationships. I am not immune to his. Not that long ago I ended a karmic relationship with a partner who had turned quite abusive. Healing from the trauma she inflicted took time. But i also realized that i was reenacting abusive episodes from my childhood.

This person entered into my life precisely because she was meant to traumatize me in ways that forced me to heal old wounds. I consider myself a wounded healer, using the healing from my past trauma as medicine.

I do not recommend seeking out karmic relationships as a way to heal yourself, but if you find yourself in a toxic relationship as I did, I hope you can learn something here that helps.

What is a karmic relationship?

A karmic relationship is a kind of relationship that involves a lot of drama and extreme volatility. This is an intense relationship that usually has a lot of passion and a lot of volatility. However painful the relationship might be, there are reasons why people may seek a karmic partner. This type of romantic relationship usually comes to a rapid and dramatic ending.

When two people enter into a karmic relationship, it usually happens very quickly. It may begin with a lot of passion. One or both partners may feel like they are twin flames or a soulmate relationship. Both the power and the drama can be addictive for the couple.

There is usually a karmic lesson for each person to learn. This is the primary purpose of the karmic relationship. The relationship may be very unhealthy, but it might also devolve into a healing crisis that helps the couple become better people.

When they realize they are in this type of relationship, the best thing one can do is to end it. These are not lasting romances. Once a karmic relationship ends, the healing can begin in earnest.

13 common signs of a karmic relationship

There are some tell-tale signs that you may be in a karmic relationship. Some, but not all of these, are red flags.

1. Karmic relationships can seem like love at first sight, and each partner may think the other is their soul mate.

2. Karmic relationships involve a lot of drama and volatility.

3. There are usually numerous red flags during the relationship.

4. The relationship seems like an emotional roller coaster.

5. The relationship is consuming.

6. The relationship usually winds up in codependency.

7. There is usually a power imbalance.

8. The couple feels an instant connection when they first meet.

9. The karmic relationship usually comes to a quick ending.

10. One or both partners becomes intolerant of the other's flaws.

11. One or both partners are reliving or re-enacting old traumas.

12. The relationship may seem great from the outside, but there is a dark side that the couple hides from people they know.

13. Disagreement and miscommunication characterize the communication style of the karmic relationship.

Why do we enter into karmic relationships?

Karmic relationships provide an excellent opportunity for personal growth. The relationship itself might be painful, but there is always a purpose of karmic relationships.

A few reasons why we might enter into a karmic relationship:

1. We have a karmic debt.

2. We want to learn from our past mistakes.

3. We are attracted to someone who has similar karma as us.

4. We need to process unresolved issues from our past

5. We are processing wounds from a previous lifetime

6. We form a karmic bond with another person

7. We have to learn self-love the hard way.

8. We may use the karmic relationship to re-enact and heal from old wounds caused by family members or even a past life.

What are some signs that a karmic relationship is ending?

There are some signs that a karmic relationship is ending.

Some of these signs may include:

1. The couple begins to fight and argue frequently.

2. The couple argues every little thing.

3. The relationship becomes stagnant, and the partners stop getting along.

4. The relationship becomes abusive.

5. The couple's physical attraction is waning.

6. The karmic bond begins to fade, and the two start to fight over silly things.

7. One or both partners feels resentment about the other's dependency.

8. The relationship begins to feel like too much effort.

How does one end the cycle of karmic relationships?

If a person finds themself entering one karmic relationship after another, ending the cycle is the way to have a healthy relationship finally.

There are several ways to end the cycle of karmic relationships.

1. One way is to forgive and forget one's past mistakes.

2. Another way is for each partner to take responsibility for their actions.

3. A third way is through visualization or meditation practice, which can help the partners.

4. One can gain a deeper understanding of their true nature through self-exploration

5. One can try to recognize the unfinished business the karmic relationship was trying to heal and work through that in therapy or with the help of a spiritual advisor.

Ultimately, one wants to heal completely from a karmic relationship. With that healing, one should look to avoid repeating the

Here are a few examples of karmic relationships that you should try to avoid:

1. A parent/child dynamic in a relationship where one partner takes charge of the other as a parent might,

2. Any abusive relationship.

3. Relationships based on guilt or obligation in which one partner feels they can't leave the other person.

Karmic relationships usually create more suffering than happiness. With this in mind, it is best to avoid them altogether.

The karmic relationship may be a reflection of the consciousness of the people involved. Some people are more prone to develop

karmic relationships while

How does one heal from a karmic relationship?

After ending a karmic relationship, it is up to the individual to find the best way to heal.

There are several ways to heal from a karmic relationship.

1. One way is through the use of self-love and forgiveness.

2. Another way is by becoming aware of one's thoughts, words, and actions while in the presence of another person.

3. A third way is through deep spiritual healing practices.

Very often, a karmic relationship is traumatic enough to cause what shaman's call soul loss. When this happens, this might result in dissociation, depression, even physical illness. Someone experiencing these symptoms should seek a shamanic practitioner experienced in soul retrieval. Therapy can help.

Karmic relationships are difficult to heal because the dynamics of karma are often very subtle. It is easy for one to feel that we have no control over a karmic relationship, but the truth is that we all have complete control over our consciousness and how we experience it.

Karmic relationships are not limited to romantic relationships. Karmic connections can also occur in other types of intimate relationships, such as friendships, family members, or coworkers.

In conclusion, the best way to heal from a karmic relationship is to practice forgiveness and self-love. Learn the lessons. Do the deep work that leads to a higher sense of self-worth to avoid beginning a toxic relationship in the future.

How to smudge yourself and your home

Many people practice smudging today. You can find smudge sticks sold practically everywhere, and the practice seems to be growing in popularity.

As a shamanic practitioner, I often smudge myself and the space I’m working in before a ceremony. When teaching in person, I may smudge students in a shamanic cand the space. I might also use smudging to prepare a client before a healing session.

What is smudging?

Smudging is the practice of using sacred smoke, usually from an herb bundle of fragrant wood. This is done as a purification ritual, to commune with certain spirits, or for healing. The bundle used for smudging is often called a smudge stick.

The use of sacred smoke in this way is no different from incense burning in churches and temples. The idea is that the smoke of certain herbs can clear bad vibrations or spirits.

Some herbs used for smudging have antiseptic properties, so there may be health benefits not yet explored by modern medicine.

A NOTE ON SMUDGING AND CULTURAL APPROPRIATION

Some people will claim that smudging by non-Native American people is cultural appropriation. Many Native American tribes indeed practice it. However, the use of burning herbs or using smoke for spiritual purification is widespread globally.

From the sacred incense used by the ancient Egyptians to the burning of rosemary bundles - purification with smoke is done almost everywhere throughout time.

Cultural appropriation would be unethical to harvest white sage, replicating prayers, songs, or ceremonies you don’t have permission to use or affect the dress or style of a culture to which you are not connected.

Why smudge yourself and your home?

People primarily use smudging to clear away negative energy as a form of spiritual purification. Some believe that it can repel unwanted spirits. In my experience, some substances are better for that than others.

The smell of the burning herbs can also help to bring people into a calmer state of mind. The sense of smell is our most primal sense, and it connects to our emotions and memories readily. You would smudge yourself to help rid yourself of unwanted spiritual energy that we all tend to collect

You can smudge almost anything, but many people use smudging to create a peaceful, clear atmosphere. You can smudge in a home, office, car, etc. Use it to clear your home of negative “vibes” when there seems to be a lot of conflict or illness in the home or when things just start going wrong around the house.

What herbs are used for smudging?

People use many different herbs, woods, and resins for smudging, but a few are the most common.

SAGE

Sage is probably the most common herb used in a smudge stick. White sage, in particular, is used by many Native American tribes. Sage is known for its cleansing and purifying properties.

Burning sage has become popular, leading to unethical and unsustainable harvesting of the wild. Many traditional indigenous sage gathering locations have been over-harvested by people looking to sell sage or use it themselves.

Because of this, I will not buy white sage; I use other ingredients in a bundle. Another option, if you have the space, is to grow your sage.

ROSEMARY

Rosemary smudge sticks are my absolute favorite. I love the smell of rosemary, and the smoke is somewhat antiseptic. I also have Scottish heritage, and there is a Scottish folk practice called saining, which uses the smoke of rosemary bundles for purification.

PALO SANTO

Palo Santo is Spanish for “holy wood.” Palo Santo grows in Ecuador, Peru, and other South American countries. The wood, oil, and resin have been used medicinally for many centuries. People often use small sticks of Palo Santo as smudge bundles.

Where sage removes negative energy, palo santo adds positive energy.

Like white sage, there are ethical issues with using Palo Santo. Due to the increase in demand, people are now harvesting Palo Santo trees unsustainably. This overharvesting includes cutting down immature trees and trees seen as sacred by indigenous people.

For this reason, I have stopped purchasing Palo Santo.

CEDAR

there are many varieties of cedar trees growing throughout the world, and many cultures consider cedar sacred. Cedarwood is used for shingles because it doesn’t degrade, and people use it for clothing chests because it repels moths.

Cedarwood is used in several ways spiritually, but using cedar as a smudge bundle is very powerful. In my experience, cedar is much more effective at chasing away unwanted spirits than any other herb. It smells fantastic when added to sacred fires as well.

LAVENDER

You may burn Lavender bundles to purify a person or space; Lavender is used in many cultures to repel negativity. The scent of Lavender is very calming, and some people use lavender oil for stress reduction.

JUNIPER

People have burned juniper to purify temples and even chase away plagues (I can’t attest to its plague chasing ability). Juniper itself has medicinal qualities and is used as smudge smells lovely.

SWEETGRASS

Sweetgrass is another herb sacred to Native American tribes. Native people who use sweetgrass braid it into a kind of cord or short rope. When burned, it gives off a sweet and fragrant smell.

There is a lot of debate and zero agreement about whether using sweetgrass is considered a “closed practice” and this cultural appropriation. I don’t know how to address this other than to say it is a sacred practice. Some indigenous people don’t mind sharing practices, and others do.

So burning sweetgrass is a bit controversial.

MUGWORT

People burn mugwort all over the world for purifying and medicinal purposes. It is the herb used in moxibustion by acupuncturists. Magically, mugwort is used in blessings, often put in charm bags, and grown beside the home for protection.

I have a strong allergic reaction to mugwort smoke. There are a fair number of people who do. So exercise caution if you decide to try smudging with mugwort.

BAY LEAF

A widespread practice among folk magicians and rootworkers is to burn bundles of bay leaves with holy words. In one example I’ve seen, a root doctor wrote “father” on one leaf, “son” on another, and “holy ghost” on a third. He then kept lighting the bundle to make it smoke as he purified a space.

How to smudge yourself

Whether you are smudging yourself, a building, an outdoor space, or others, observe all proper precautions when working with burning material. Don’t burn yourself or your house. Be careful of smoke detectors - I did have the fire department show up once because if some smudging.

At a minimum, you need the smudge stick and a fire source. In some cultures, the burning herb bundle is held in an abalone shell, and the smoke is waved about with a feather. You can just wave a burning bundle around what you want to smudge, but you have to be careful of burning e, embers, and ash.

Begin by setting an intention. You may set an intention that you are cleansing yourself in order to help a healing process. You may hold the intention that you want to smoke away some stress. In shamanism, intention drives the bus.

You can also say a prayer before, during, and after smudging. If it’s culturally appropriate, you may sing as well.

Then you’ll light the bundle. Different material burns very differently, but you always want a burning ember. This usually means lighting the material until it’s on fire, letting it burn a few seconds, and then blow out the flame. You should see a burning ember and smoke. As the ember burns out, you may have to relight the bundle frequently.

Once the smudge stick starts smoking you then want to deliver the smoke around your body. You can pass the bundle around the body, wave the smoke at yourself with a feather. or use your hands to scoop smoke towards you.

It might be helpful to think about washing your aura with the smoke as you would wash your body with soap. Get the smoke all around you, top to bottom, left and right, and back to front.

When you are complete you can extinguish the bundle if it’s still burning. Usually, I will stub or grind mine out gently into the shell or other fireproof container. Again, use prrecaution with burning stuff.

How to smudge your home or office

The instructions for smudging your home, or other building aren’t much different than smudging yourself. The major differences are the intent, and the space you will have to cover.

When I bless a space, I will walk around it in a logical order, usually clockwise starting in the East if possible. There are ritualistic reasons I do it this way, but feel free to do it your own way.

Covering every nook and cranny of even a small house would take a long time. Think about how much cleansing the space needs. Is it necessary to pass smoke into every cupboard and drawer? Probably not. With a house you can quickly change the energetic atmosphere.

Other things to use your smudge stick for

Many people use smudge to clear the energy from crystals, like quartz. Doing this helps clear away energy from certain crystals, especially those that act as energy filters. Smudging crystals with palo santo is very popular.

Many will clear and sanctify ritual tools with smoke. Smudging candles, athames, and other tools used in ritual can be an important practice.

Lots of people smudge divination tools such as tarot cards and pendulums in between uses. This is important if other people handle your tools, like when cutting a tarot deck. Think of it as hitting the reset button.

Other methods of spiritually cleansing yourself and your home that don’t involve smoke.

I know several people who cannot breathe in smoke due to health conditions such as asthma. For them, spiritual cleansing is just as important, but they can’t use a smudge stick. Here are a few options that work just as well.

SELENITE CRYSTALS

Selenite is a crystal form of gypsum and is found, sometimes in massive formations. Selenite is a crystal that you never need to cleanse as it is a cleanser itself. You can place selenite on windowsills to purify the energy coming through them, and you can use selenite wands in banishing rituals.

Selenite will dissolve in water, so keep it dry.

To “smudge” with selenite, you take a selenite crystal - usually a wand - and pass it around several inches from the body. The selenite clears the aura and “tunes” it to a clear and coherent frequency.

SPIRIT WATER

There are many types of spirit water used by different cultures. Holy water is one example. Another in everyday use among many folk magic practitioners is Florida Water. They did not name Florida Water after the American state, but for the floral essences it contains.

There are many recipes for Florida Water online, and a few companies sell commercial versions as cologne. You can rub spirit water on your body, on objects you want to cleanse or add to liquids used for washing your home.

ESSENTIAL OILS

You can use essential oils in place of smudging with smoke. You must use caution with essential oils as many of them are not safe to apply to the skin. Please research and follow all warnings regarding any essential oils that might contact your skin.

Abramelin oil is not an essential oil but is olive oil infused with many holy herbs. It’s ancient as the bible contains a recipe for Abramelin oil.  Ancient people used it for sanctification, purification, and healing. I would use caution as it does have cinnamon in high quantities, which may be an irritant.

Feeling disconnected? How can shamanic healing help?

My clients come to me for many reasons but one of the things I hear most often is, “I feel disconnected.” For many years, before I began to study and practice shamanism, I felt the same way, so I get it. It’s a feeling that’s hard to describe. The best way I can put it is that you feel cut off from your self, the world, even your loved ones.

Often this feeling comes with a flattening of the emotions. I have had clients describe feeling “dead inside.”

So what’s going on here, from a shamanic perspective? Also, is there anything that can help?

As I remind my clients, shamanism is a wonderful tool for addressing the spiritual components of illness or dis-ease. It does not take the place of medical help or psychological counseling.

With that in mind, it bears getting symptoms of any kind checked out by your provider. A shamanic healer can certainly help the healing process. And sometimes there may be no apparent physical or psychological cause a provider can find.

What’s the diagnosis?

In any healing session, I always begin with what’s called a diagnostic journey. This will tell me what work is in my client’s highest interest on that particular day. Many clients come to me asking for specific ceremonies. Sometimes they’re right about what they need, and sometimes they need some preliminary work before that can take place.

This complaint about the feeling of disconnection, more often than not, indicates to me what we call soul loss. Soul loss usually happens as a result of trauma in our lives, although there are a few other causes.

With soul loss, part of the soul breaks away to remain safe from what’s going on. That part can get lost and not come back. If you have ever had a shocking experience where time seemed to slow down, or you felt outside your body, or you felt like things weren’t real - this is what you’re experiencing.

How can shamanic healing help

Since soul loss is something that has occurred throughout human history, shamans all over the world have developed a technique for healing it. That technique is called soul retrieval.

Soul retrieval reunites the parts of the fractured self so that the client can re-integrate them. With re-integration, there can be a much greater sense of connection, joy, and completeness.

Many clients come to me specifically asking for soul retrieval. I still always do a diagnostic journey for them first. It’s quite possible that other work needs to happen for the soul-essence to feel safe enough to return.

I like to think of these soul parts as a fraction of ourselves that is stuck in the time it got lost. If you had soul part lost when you were 8 years old, that part is still 8 years old. It can’t grow and mature on its own, disconnected from the whole.

So we have to make that part feel safe to reintegrate. It might take a few weeks after a session for the part to completely settle in.

Once a part has been returned, however, it can bring significant power back. Imagine if you had lost your sense of smell when you were 12, and then it was suddenly returned. The world would seem richer, food would taste better. A similar thing happens when a soul essence returns.

I’ll never forget a client who, at the end of a session, excitedly told me, “I actually feel joy! I forgot what that was like.”

What About Ayahuasca?

Ayahuasca is a psychedelic drink made by indigenous peoples of the Amazon basin, and now used all over the world. Its active psychedelic component is DMT, an incredibly powerful hallucinogen. Because DMT breaks down in the digestive tract, Aya also includes an MOAI or monoamine oxidase inhibitor. This addition makes it so DMT can be effectively ingested.

Why am I writing about Ayahuasca?

Well, for a couple of reasons. One is that Aya has become incredibly popular recently with people seeking “shamanic” experiences. I also have a number of people coming to this page looking for ayahuasca ceremony in Maine. Most importantly, I have heard and seen some absolute horror stories from people using ayahuasca, and I feel like nobody is mentioning these cautionary tales.

I’m no expert in ayahuasca, I have never done it. I do not lead ayahuasca ceremonies. I know and have met lots of people who have taken it. I know shamanic practitioners who have clients with very bad experiences. So I will speak from second-hand experience, but also from my role as a shamanic teacher.

I will not tell you whether you should or shouldn’t try Aya, but I feel like you should be as informed as possible before you do something that potentially dangerous or life altering.

Each ayahuasca ceremony can last for many hours. During that time, most people purge - with both vomiting and diarrhea. If you are having a “bad trip” there is no antidote. You cannot stop the experience. As someone who has done ayahuasca told me - once you buy the ticket, you’re going for the ride.

Is Ayahuasca Dangerous?

The truth is that some people have died from ayahuasca, and some people have wound up institutionalized at least temporarily from the effects. I would say that it’s dangerous in and of itself. It affects people in relatively unpredictable ways as it works on serotonin and other body chemistry.

There is very little research on the safety of ayahuasca, but there have been some reported deaths and other negative health repercussions. There have been some allergic reactions, interactions with other drugs, effects on undiagnosed health conditions. The potentially fatal risk of serotonin syndrome is something to consider.

People who prepare the brew, may include lots of other plant material, and you may not know how you’re going to react to those.

Caution is definitely in order.

Because ayahuasca became so trendy and profit-making, there are also unscrupulous “shamans” out there. There have been stories of ceremony participants being sexually assaulted.. If you are going to put yourself at the mercy of a practitioner for hours or days, take every precaution and do your research to know who you’re dealing with.

Like most hallucinogens, ayahuasca is not legal in the United States and in many other countries. While I have not hear of anyone getting arrested for participating in a ceremony, iit is something to consider.

From my own spiritual observations of people who have done Aya and other entheogens, they tend to blow you wide open, and not everybody is prepared for tthat. Someone walked into a talk I was giving whose pupils were “off” and etherically, looked like he had very large insects whizzing around his head. He definitely had “hitchhikers.” He was quite ungrounded and a bit dissociated. I talked to him during a break and, as I expected” he had done a lot of ayahuasca and a bunch of other psychedlics.

Will I Have a Spiritual Experience on Ayahuasca

Ayahuasca falls into a group of drugs called “enthogens” which means something that can give you an experience of God. People do have profound spiritual experiences on ayahuasca, and healing can take place. But spiritual doesn’t necessarily mean euphoric or even pleasant. This is something to prepare for.

It’s very common for people to see bugs and snakes and monsters. Sometimes there are auditory and other effects. As with anything, there are no guarantees about what kind of experience you will have - but it will most likely be profound.

Having talked with probably dozens of people who have done different entheogens, including aya, it doesn’t seem to be a shortcut to enlightenment to me. Others certainly might disagree. It seems to be helpful in pulling up some of our shadow - and that could be very useful. It also seems helpful in showing us our connection to everything in the universe, and that can be profound.

I fully support the clinical trials going on now with psychedelics, and many of them look promising for mental health. One mechanism they seem to work on is brain plasticity, allowing the brain to more easily create more desirable pathways. I think this is an area where shamanism and science can play really nicely together.

Do You Recommend Ayahuasca?

I do not make recommendations for or against participating in an ayahuasca ceremony. I believe in body autonomy - that consenting adults can choose for themselves. However, I believe in informed consent - you should know what you’re getting into and the potential risks, I see very few people talking about the risks and drawbacks associated with Aya - and this is worrisome.

When I journey, or teach students to journey, I use rhythm to help generate the altered state - usually by drumming. We do not use chemicals to drive or enhance the experience. When we wish to end the journey, we just come back. Within a few minutes, everybody is back in the room and fully grounded. Personally, I like having that level of control over the experience.

I’m really on the fence about the risk / reward ratio of ayahuasca. Sine I haven’t done it myself, personally I feel the risk isn’t worth the reward. But you choose what’s right for you. Just make sure you are as informed as possible before you choose something potentially lethal.

I believe that almost anybody can safely learn shamanic journeying without the use of psychedelics. Self-healing is a process, and there aren’t to many shortcuts without tradeoffs.

How does a shaman go through initiation?

Initiation is big topic when it comes to shamanism, and there are a lot of misconceptions. Many people want to know if they can just go through an initiation ceremony to become a shaman. A lot of people don’t know what initiation does. I hope to break things down for you so there will be a clearer understanding. I welcome you to contact me with any questions that arise.

Initiation, as the name implies is a beginning. Birth is a type of initiation. I also see death as an initiation. Many life passages can be viewed in a similar way.

Shamans are Initiated By Spirit.

The way that shamans are selected, called, and trained varies in different cultures. There may be years of apprenticeship, mandatory teachings, vision quests, etc. before someone is allowed to serve as a spiritual functionary in a given culture.

Ultimately, a shaman is initiated by spirit itself. This means that the shaman has worked with spiritual forces and has become a clear channel for spirit. We often refer to this as “becoming the hollow bone”

The hollow bone metaphor is a good one. One has to clear out the “junk” in order to become a clear pathway for spirit to act in this world. When I perform a healing ceremony on a client, for example, I am not doing the work. I am stepping out of the way, dropping my ego, and allowing spirit to work through me to do the work. This level of surrender to spirit does not come easily to most people. It did not come easy to me in the beginning.

An Initiation Ceremony Is Not Necessarily an Initiation

A ceremony is a ritualistic event marking something special. A wedding is a ceremony marking a commitment by two people. A ribbon-cutting ceremony may mark the opening of a new business. Ritual, in its case, means a symbolic action. The actual cutting of a ribbon is a ritual symbolizing the opening. Exchanging rings during a wedding is an action symbolizing shared commitment.

In my life, I have participated in a lot of initiatory ceremonies. Going back to childhood, I went through ceremonies in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. There were ceremonies for joining certain organizations.

During my shamanic training, I participated in a two-year initiatory training. There were lots of ceremonies, rituals, and practices. They were all meant to help the participants to become that hollow bone. The ceremonies themselves were intended to create the conditions for spiritual change. It was the spiritual change itself that was the real initiation.

Shamanic Initiation Can Be Dramatic And Unpleasant

During my training, I shared the following analogy with my teacher, who agreed that it was spot on. Initiation, for me, was like putting your life in a snow globe, then putting it in a paint mixer in a hardware store to shake the crap out of it.

Lots of “stuff” happened to me during that time. Lots of things also happened to my peers as well. Relationships ended, started, ended. Jobs changed. There were health crises. During this time, nothing felt like it was on stable ground.

In many shamanic cultures, to practice shamanism, one must have gone through a “shamanic crisis.” This could consist of lots of things, from a near-death experience to being hit by lightning, to a self-induced ordeal. Fortunately, in my classes and mentorships, I don’t recommend my students try to go get hit by lightning.

The dramatic experiences that go with initiation are actually spirit working on the prospective shaman. Going through these ordeals and crises shakes up and reconfigures the spirit. It helps to clear out the junk that has been building up for lifetimes. Think of sifting flour. If you just dump flour into the sifter, some will fall through, but the rest will just stay in the sifter. You have to shake the sifter for the rest of the flour to come through.

Initiation in Modern Shamanism

Though the core practices of shamanism I practice are at least tens of thousands of year old, I might describe my practice as modern shamanism. I live in a modern culture. I do not have the same concerns as our hunter-gatherer ancestors, and I elected to study shamanism.

In many cultures, the title of shaman might be inherited by bloodline. Potential shamans might be chosen due to birth defects, or auspicious events close to their birth. They might be called by spirit by having what we would call a mental health crisis.

This is not say I haven’t been initiated. I went through a lot of crisis. I trained for years. I had to apply and be accepted by my teachers every step of the way. I put in a lot of self work. Shamanism is much more about becoming than it is about doing. If you are initiatiated, it changes everything about you.

What if I Want To Become a Shaman?

First, in my tradition, I never refer to myself as a shaman. This is considered bragging, and bragging is no bueno. Trust me that the spirits will take you down a peg. I use the term shamanic practitioners. If other people refer o me as a shaman, that’s OK, it’s just not a title I use to refer to myself.

But there is also a really important lesson here, You have to approach the spirits with confident humility. Bragging and hubris are indicators that you have work to do. I have a lot of people who approach me with huge egos - “I am ordained by the gods to…etc.” This doesn’t mean they might not be cut out to learn shamanism, but there’s going to be a lot of work to do, and initiation might be very unpleasant. Spirit will take you down to the level where you either learn or walk away from the path.

I believe that you are either called or you are not. It’s like training in martial arts. Maybe one out of every five hundred people who take a first-class lasts long enough to earn a first-degree black belt. Out of the people who make that, maybe one out of five hundred earn a second degree. I won’t get into the schools that water things down and make it fast and easy to earn belts.

Most people who take an intro to shamanism class will go no farther with it. And that’s totally fine. They will learn some great skills that they can use for the rest of their lives. Some may go on to do an apprenticeship, even fewer will continue past that.

The process of self-selection is fine. There is no judgment for people who get a taste of shamanism and decide it’s not for them or feel like they’ve had enough at some point.

If you go through an initiatory crisis, dedicate years to training, and stay very humble and still want to practice shamanism, this may be your path.

The nice thing about modern shamanic practice is that it is easy to begin. From time to time I teach 2-day introduction to shamanism classes. I have even taught online recently. I also offer flexible mentorships for one on one training. Either are easy ways to learn the fundamentals and help decide if the practice is for you.

Note: I plan on offering full apprenticeships starting in 2022 (depending on the pandemic situation).

What are soul retrieval experiences like?

Soul retrieval is one of the main types of ceremonies that shamanic practitioners perform for clients. In fact, it’s probably the most common healing method that I employ with clients.

Some people may have serious questions about experiencing soul retrieval. This is very common if you’ve never experienced this type of healing ceremony before.

What’s it like? Is it frightening or painful? Will it change me? These are valid concerns. The short answer is that I have never performed a soul retrieval in which a client did not have an incredibly positive experience. Let’s look deeper.

What is soul retrieval for?

First, it’s important to understand why a shamanic practitioner’s helping spirits might indicate a soul retrieval ceremony is in order. The reason for soul retrieval is called soul loss, and the main cause of soul loss is trauma - though there are some others like soul-stealing, addictive prolonged drug use, long-term stress.

The symptoms of soul loss are many, but they coincide with symptoms diagnosed by the medical model as PTSD.. One of the biggest indicators is dissociation. Depression, anxiety, hard to diagnose long-term illnesses, can all result from, or made worse by soul loss.

Regardless of symptoms, a shamanic healer will always perform a diagnostic journey to get information from helping spirits about which ceremonies to perform.

What is a soul retrieval ceremony like?

Actual practices will vary from practitioner to practitioner, depending on how they were trained. I will give you what a typical soul-retrieval looks like when I do it.

If you were to see me in person you would get comfortable, sitting or lying down. I would perform a journey, outwardly I close my eyes and play a drum. I then bring back the soul essences and typically blow them into your heart center.

If you were to meet me for remote healing via Zoom, the process is similar, but the essences are delivered long distance.

Both in-person and long-distance ceremonies are equally effective. In the spirit world, time and distance don’t mean the same thing they do in ordinary reality.

What is it like to receive a soul retrieval?

Every person will experience every ceremony a little differently, I will share some of my clients’ experiences so you may have an understanding what it’s like. I do observe strict confidentiality so all of these experiences, while genuine, are anonymized.

• One client experienced an overwhelming feeling of being filled with loving joy to the point where it was “almost too much”. She had an extremely healing ceremony that resolved some physical and emotional symptoms.
  

• Another client who had reported dissociation and “feeling dead inside” reported that he felt joy for the first time after a soul-retrieval ceremony.
  

• The number of clients experienced increased confidence and personal power - being able to step into their true selves.
  

• Other clients had breakthroughs in their own spiritual practice following would retrieval ceremonies.

These are just a few results I have seen with my own clients. My own personal healing journey involved both learning soul retrieval and receiving the ceremony on numerous occasions. I can say with confidence that it has saved my life and helped me to live a more fulfilling life serving others.

I have never known or heard of anyone having a negative experience with soul retrieval.

If you have any questions, I would encourage you to reach out and contact me.

How to Write a Manifestation List for Greater abundance

A manifestation list is a powerful tool for creating the kind of life you like. Working with the law of attraction and other spiritual tools for greater abundance in all areas of your life can be very rewarding. Writing is powerful magic and the act of writing in your own hand focuses your mental, spiritual, and emotional energy.

The method I’ve outlined below combines a few manifestation techniques that all work independently on their own:

• Present-tense phrasing of intentions

• Finding your core motivation

• Future-pacing, remembering from the future

• Tapping into emotional energy

Before you begin, here are a two tips on phrasing the items on your list:

Be specific, but leave the Universe a place to work and provide you what you want.

You can literally manifest anything you want any time you want, but our unconscious mind has certain blocks regarding what is possible. You want to make things easier for yourself. Instead of, “I own a two-story, eight-bedroom, yellow house on Johnson street,” try, “I live in an eight-bedroom house in a place I love.”

This gives your creative divine power some wriggle room.

State your intentions in the present tense

Spiritually speaking, time very loose, and you may feel disconnected when you state things in the future tense. Also, you want to avoid using words like “want” which is another word for lack. Creating the sense that you already have what you intend to manifest is a real key from the law of attraction.

Instead of, “ I will have a red car,” a better choice is, “I have a red car,” or even, “I now allow myself to have a red car.” This locks you into the idea that you are a creator and that everything you desire is yours just by allowing it.

Steps for writing your own manifestation list

Grab paper and pen

1. Make a quick list of everything you’d like to show up in your life. Write everything down in free form, write quickly, and don’t censor.

2. Go back and group the list items into themes - body, mind, spirit - wealth, love, personal development. Whatever makes sense to you.

3. Look through the items in each group and see what themes emerge. For example, let’s say you are like to manifest a new house, you want to live near the ocean, you’d like to start a family. There is a theme here, perhaps, about nesting, finding a place, etc.

4. See if you can narrow your freeform list by thinking about each thing and ranking them, eliminate what seems unimportant to you.

5. Re-write your list in a more organized fashion - perhaps using the grouping from before and make each item clearer. Eliminate any unnecessary words to get to the core of each thing on this list. Make a list on the left-hand side of a sheet of paper and draw two columns to the write.

6. Spend five to ten minutes with each item on your manifestation list, and in the second column, write “so that I______.” For example: In column one, say that I have the phrase “I live in a beautiful house by the ocean,” in column two, I might write “so that I can experience the beauty and fresh air.” Make sure this is something that really speaks to you; this is the answer to the question of why. You may also discover that you want to re-write the original item.

7. Spend a few minutes with each item, and in column three, write, “Now that I have that, I fell _______.” Imagine that it’s in the future and you already live in that house by the ocean, and you are enjoying the beauty and the fresh air. Picture it with all your senses as if you remember it already having happened. Now write down the emotions you feel now that you already have the thing you have manifested.

If you want, you can rewrite your manifestation list, combining all three columns into a flowing list.

“I live in a beautiful house by the ocean where I enjoy the beauty and fresh air, and I feel free, happy, and delighted.

You can spend time daily with your manifestation list, or you can choose one item per day to focus on. Read the magic phrase you’ve written and imagine already having the thing you’re manifesting. Imagine you are remembering receiving it and feel how you would feel when that happens.

Morning Manifestation

In a recent podcast, I discussed why manifesting is an important tool in spiritual development. I fully believe this, and it’s something that many teachings about the law of attraction and abundance don’t express. I want to share a morning manifestation ritual for you to try out on a day to day basis to practice this important spiritual tool.

Here’s a short ritual you can do in just a few minutes every day to help you create the kind of day you want.

This is also a great way to start your day out on a great emotional note.

A Short Morning Manifestation Ritual

1. Upon awakening take a couple of moments to “clear the cobwebs”. Stretch, use the bathroom, grab a drink of water. I suggest doing this before any morning caffeine.

2. Sit comfortably and close your eyes.

3. Imagine that it’s the end of the day now, and you are “remembering” the perfect day you just had. Just pretend that you are remembering everything going the way you want it to do. Review your day ahead in your imagination.

4. Focus on the positive emotions each of these imagined memories brings up for you. Stay with each of them for just a few minutes.

5. Now, when you’ve gotten to the end of your day, focus on the feeling of gratitude for having such a wonderful day.

6. There’s no need to dwell upon this exercise, when you are finished, just go up and go about your day.

As a bonus step, at the actual end of the day, make a note in a journal of anything that happened exactly as you imagined. Know that you are constantly manifesting, and this is a way to “tune” your energy in to get more of what you desire.

Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine

Gender is in everything; Everything has its masculine and feminine principles; Gender manifests on all planes.

-Hermes Trismegistus, The Emerald Tablet

Underneath all that we think we are, is a pure spark of divinity connected to absolutely everything. There is no separation, and all is one. That inner spark is unborn, deathless, cannot suffer injury, or be affected by your life events. Good news - what you are is already whole, complete, and perfect.

That divinity, in order to experience itself, creates an illusion of separation. Matter appears to be separate from spirit. We appear to be separate from each other. Cats chase mice, Red Sox fans hate The Yankees, etc., etc, etc.

Divinity, in order to create, expresses itself through two impulses - the divine masculine, and the divine feminine. Just like with sexual reproduction, these two impulses combine to create the universe and express themselves through it and through every living being.

I want to call out an important point here - that the gender referred to here is not necessarily a political or biological construct - though those reflect the principle. Gender identity is another concept II won’t address here other than to say that every being has both masculine and feminine divine impulses - regardless of gender identity.

Politically, here in the West, we have been living in a patriarchal hierarchy for several thousand years. This extends to religion, politics, and culture. This out-of-balance expression of the masculine is like a giant pyramid scheme. There are always very few people at the top enriching themselves at the expense of those below. There’s always a king, or a guru, or a priest putting themselves between you and divinity.

Patriarchy is not really an expression of the divine masculine, but a perversion of it. It is entirely out of balance.

Divine Masculine

The divine masculine impulse, which Ken Wilber refers to as eros, is the impulse of the individual to grow. Spiritually this is the impulse to practice, to seek knowledge, to supersede where we are at the moment.

While this impulse is individualistic, it wants to lift the individual rather than making the individual seem greater by oppressing the masses. Think of the Buddha who sat under the Bodi tree in meditation until he reached enlightenment.

Shadow Aspect of the Divine Masculine

The out-of-balance, corrupted, or shadow-side of the divine masculine is the power hungry, abusive, or violent. Think of this as the cult leader who abuses their followers, or the inflated ego of those who declare themselves “ascended”. This is not the divine impulse, but a corrupted version of it. It seems power over others at all costs.

Divine Feminine

The divine feminine, which Ken Wilber refers to as agape, is the impulse to gather, nurture, to tend to. On a spiritual level, we find words like Earth-based, community, motherhood. The divine feminine concerns itself with the whole, bringing the many along and nurturing them.

This impulse is egalitarian, it wants to see each individual cared for, but not at the expense of the whole. Think of a human body. If one critical organ fails, it can cause death or, at least, the failure of other organs.

Shadow Aspect of the Divine Feminine

When the shadow aspect of the feminine is at work, there is stagnation. It brings individuals down to the same level as the whole rather than bringing the whole up. “Rocking the boat” is seen as a threat. It shuns new ideas and outsiders.

Balancing Masculine and Feminine

In alchemy, there is a stage in the great work (magnum opus) referred to as the Rebis. This is the unification of spirit and matter into a divine hermaphrodite. This symbolic language is not describing a single person with two sexes but is describing the combination of opposites into a nonduality.

Recognizing nonduality as a worthy spiritual aim, how do we accomplish this realization? One way is by emulating the impulses of both divine masculine and feminine.

Embrace the impulse to develop; this is the masculine impulse. It is important to do your work, whether that’s meditation, study, ritual, shadow work. As an individual, you work to grow spiritually. You look at yourself with brutal honesty and evolve from a place of love - not to be better than anyone else, or to wield power over, but simply to experience more of your own spiritual nature.

Embrace also, the impulse to take care, nurture, gather, and commune. You look to raise everyone up rather than drag everyone down. As you evolve and do your work, you do it for the betterment of the world. You recognize the underlying unity of everything. There truly is no separation.

When “Thrice Great” Hermes said that gender is in everything and on all planes, he meant we express it on physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual levels. The underlying unity of everything means that our divinity can express through both polarities. On a spiritual level, you are neither masculine nor feminine, but both at once and always. You are both a god and a goddess.

Every man and every woman is a star.

- Aleister Crowley, The Book of the Law