Shaman, "One who sees in the dark"
Shamanism is often described as "the first spiritual practice" of humanity, with animism being one of the chief beliefs. It is an ancient healing tradition and a way of life that connects with nature and all of creation. The word shaman probably originates from the Tungus tribe in Siberia. Western anthropologists coined this term and have used it to refer to the spiritual and ceremonial leaders among indigenous cultures worldwide. The word shamanism can be used to describe the ancient spiritual practices of indigenous cultures, as well as some anthropologists also use the term to describe unrelated magico religious practices found within the ethnic religions of other parts of Asia, Africa, Australasia and the Americas.
Another source of the origins of shamanic practice lies in the study of psychotropic plants. The ethnobiologist R.G. Wasson proposed that all major world religions grew from psychotropic experiences, and most shamanic cultures have some form of psychotropic plant associated with them.
Historian and philosopher, Mircea Eliade writes in his book Shamanism, Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism equals 'technique of religious ecstasy'. Shamanism encompasses the premise that shamans are intermediaries or messengers between the human world and the spirit worlds. Shamans are said to treat ailments and illness by mending the soul and spirit. Alleviating traumas affecting the soul/spirit restores the physical body of the individual to balance and wholeness. The shaman also enters supernatural realms or dimensions to obtain solutions to problems afflicting the community. Shamans may visit other worlds/dimensions to bring guidance to misguided souls and to ameliorate illnesses of the human soul caused by foreign elements. The shaman operates primarily within the spiritual world, which in turn affects the human world. The restoration of balance results in the elimination of the ailment."
In many cultures, the shaman also fulfills the role of the psychopomp. This may include not only accompanying the soul of the dead, but also vice versa: to help at birth, to introduce the newborn child's soul to the world.
Shamanic cosmologies are frequently formed from three regions, a middle world corresponding to the everyday world on earth, an upper world related to the sky and celestial realms, and a lower or underworld, which reaches deep down into the earth. These three regions are often connected by a central axis, an opening through which the shaman travels on his or her journey, which may be represented as tree. The tree connects the three regions with the branches touching the sky, while the roots go into the underworld. The axis may also be likened to a pillar, a ladder or a mountain, but all the variations of shamanic cosmologies function like spiritual road maps. When a shaman journeys to spiritual realms, she or he seeks to understand the relationships between different realities and to mediate any breakdown in communications that affect the social group/s.
By Phil Hine
Vol 1-3 is a collection of practical exercises, the aim of which is to enhance awareness of the world around us. The first part of this ebook deals with basic sensory exercises, while the second half deals with trance states, and some of the basic group dynamics
involved in helping other people into them. These works requires that
we learn to extend our perceptions from the ordinary, to see the
extra-ordinary which lies within it. Many of the techniques require
group exploration, since it is impossible to grow in total isolation
from others. The books cover a range of subjects from the shaman’s
tools to discussions of concepts such as ‘Urban Shamanism'
__________________________________________________________
For further reading on Shamanism:
No comments:
Post a Comment