Sunday, October 20, 2024
What is Shamanic Music?
Sunday, September 22, 2024
Exploring the Shamanic State of Consciousness
Sunday, August 11, 2024
Shamanic Extraction Healing
2. Energy Clearing: Shamans use various methods to clear stagnant or negative energy from the patient's body. This can include the use of feathers, crystals, or other sacred objects.
3. Rituals and Offerings: Rituals play a significant role in shamanic practices. Offerings to spiritual allies and deities are made to seek their assistance in the healing process.
Shamanic extraction is a profound healing practice that transcends the physical and touches the very essence of our being. Its roots in ancient traditions provide a rich tapestry of wisdom and knowledge, offering a holistic approach to healing that addresses the spiritual causes of illness. As interest in holistic and spiritual healing grows, shamanic extraction continues to be a valuable tool for those seeking deep and lasting healing. Through the dedicated work of shamans and the willingness of individuals to embrace this ancient practice, shamanic extraction remains a beacon of hope and transformation in the modern world.
Sunday, August 4, 2024
The Mystical Journey of Shamanic Dance
Sunday, July 14, 2024
"The Shamanic Drum" Audiobook Release
I am excited to announce the release of the audiobook version of my bestselling books The Shamanic Drum: A Guide to Sacred Drumming and Shamanic Drumming: Calling the Spirits. The Shamanic Drum is my definitive guide to shamanic drumming, a form of repetitive rhythmic drumming. Its purpose is to induce ecstatic trance states in order to access innate wisdom and guidance. The essence of shamanism is the experience of direct revelation from within. Shamanism is about remembering, exploring and developing the true self. Shamanic practice heightens the ability of perception and enables you to see into the deeper realms of the self. Once connected with your inner self, you can find help, healing and a continual source of guidance. To practice shamanism is to reconnect with your deepest core values and your highest vision of who you are and why you are here.
Drawing from 30 years of shamanic practice and teaching, I present the first practical guide to applying this ancient healing art to our modern lives. Through a series of simple exercises and lessons, I teach the basic shamanic methods of drumming. The focus is on creating sacred space, journeying, power practice, power animals, drum circles and the therapeutic effects of drumming. There are no prerequisites to learning shamanic drumming. Whether you are an accomplished percussionist or a total beginner, this user-friendly book will help you harness the power of drumming. Listen to a sample of The Shamanic Drum.
In my book Shamanic Drumming: Calling the Spirits, I recount my journey into shamanic practice and explore what someone should do if they feel the call to become a shaman. Many people in today's world are being called by spirit to become shamans. A yearning exists deep within many of us to reconnect to the natural world. It is a call to a life lived in balance with awareness of nature, of spirit, and of self. Following up on my book, The Shamanic Drum, I provide a new series of exercises and lessons that allow for a deeper understanding and utilization of this core shamanic practice. I have written a guide to becoming a shamanic healer that encompasses the power of the drum, of community, and of the accountability inherent in authentic shamanic practice.
This empowering book is a call to build relationships with helping spirits. Spirit helpers are the caretakers in the unseen world who want to support the earth and her inhabitants at this time. They are here to teach us how to gather wisdom from the spiritual realms, the natural world, the past, the present and the future in order to give birth to new ways of being. The shamanic relationship between humans and helping spirits supports our spirit's quest for self-realization. Helping spirits, if engaged regularly and skillfully, offer flexibility, creativity and perseverance in fulfilling our own unique path. The spirits are here to assist us in doing the principal, unique thing we have come here to do in a way that benefits all living things. Listen to a sample of Shamanic Drumming.
Virtual Voice Narration
These audiobooks use Virtual Voice narration. Virtual Voice is a computer-generated speech technology designed explicitly to create Audible audiobooks. Audible is an Amazon-owned company renowned for its vast library of audiobooks. Audible's Virtual Voice is a cutting-edge technology that utilizes advanced artificial intelligence (AI) to generate lifelike voice narrations for audiobooks. Unlike traditional methods that require human narrators, Virtual Voice can create high-quality narrations using synthesized voices. This technology leverages deep learning and natural language processing (NLP) to produce voices that sound remarkably human.
One of the significant advantages of Virtual Voice is the consistency it offers. Human narrators, while talented, can introduce variability in their performances due to factors like mood, health, or fatigue. Virtual Voice eliminates these inconsistencies, ensuring that every chapter of a book is narrated with the same level of quality and energy. I was hesitant to publish any of my books using Virtual Voice, however the quality of the narration is much better than I could have ever imagined it would be.
The Rise of Audiobooks
In the fast-paced digital age, the way we consume content has significantly evolved. Audiobooks, once considered a niche market, have surged in popularity, providing a convenient and engaging way for people to enjoy literature. Audiobooks have grown exponentially over the past decade, thanks in part to the proliferation of smartphones and the increasing popularity of multitasking. People can now listen to books while commuting, exercising, or performing household chores. This convenience has turned audiobooks into a preferred medium for many readers. Audible has been at the forefront of this transformation, offering a vast selection of titles across various genres.
For those who listen to audiobooks, the arrival of Virtual Voice will be seamless to the existing customer experience. Audible users will be able to easily discover and enjoy audiobooks featuring virtual voices, and audiobooks created with Virtual Voice will be clearly marked to avoid any confusion with traditional, human-narrated audiobooks. Customers will be able to listen to samples prior to purchase, just like with any other audiobook, and decide for themselves whether they want to give this new technology a chance. Whether you're a long-time audiobook enthusiast or a newcomer to the format, Virtual Voice promises to enhance your listening experience in ways you never imagined.
Sunday, June 9, 2024
The Role of Sound in Shamanic Practices
1. Inducing Altered States of Consciousness
Rhythmic Drumming and Percussion:
- Repetition and Rhythm: Drumming at specific rhythms (typically 4-7 beats per second) can induce trance states. The repetitive, monotonous sound helps to alter brainwave patterns, promoting a shift from normal waking consciousness to a trance state.
- Instruments: Common percussion instruments include drums, rattles, and clappers. Each produces a distinct sound that can affect the practitioner's state of mind.
Vocalizations:
- Chanting and Singing: Shamans use their voices to produce chants, songs, and mantras. These vocalizations can have a calming, focusing effect, aiding in the trance induction.
- Overtone Singing: Some traditions use overtone or throat singing, which produces multiple pitches simultaneously, creating a complex sound environment conducive to trance.
Ambient Sounds:
- Natural Sounds: Environmental sounds like flowing water, wind, and animal calls are often incorporated into rituals, enhancing the sensory experience and facilitating altered consciousness.
2. Facilitating Communication with the Spirit World
Spiritual Dialogues:
- Invocation and Prayer: Shamans use sound to call upon spirits, deities, or ancestors. These sounds can include specific prayers, chants, or songs that are believed to attract or summon spiritual entities.
- Response Mechanism: Sound can also be a medium through which spirits are believed to respond, with shamans interpreting these auditory phenomena as messages from the spiritual realm.
Ritualistic Soundscapes:
- Ceremonial Spaces: The acoustics of ceremonial spaces (like caves or specially designed ritual chambers) are used to amplify and enrich sound, creating an immersive environment that enhances spiritual communication.
- Echoes and Resonance: Natural acoustics, such as echoes and resonances in caves or built structures, may be interpreted as the voices of spirits or deities responding to the shaman.
3. Healing and Therapeutic Uses
Sound Healing:
- Restorative Frequencies: Certain sounds and rhythms are believed to have healing properties, restoring balance and harmony to the body and mind.
- Instrumental Healing: Instruments like drums, flutes, and singing bowls are used to produce sounds that are thought to facilitate physical and emotional healing.
Diagnostic Sounds:
- Listening to the Body: Some shamanic practices involve listening to the body’s sounds (like heartbeats or breaths) to diagnose illness or imbalance.
- Healing Chants and Songs: Specific chants or songs are used to target different ailments, with the shaman's voice considered a powerful healing tool.
4. Enhancing Rituals and Ceremonies
Ritual Structure:
- Sound Cues: Sound signals different phases of a ritual, marking transitions from one state or activity to another.
- Community Involvement: Collective chanting, singing, or drumming involves the community, reinforcing social bonds and shared spiritual experiences.
Symbolic Sounds:
- Animal Sounds: Mimicking animal sounds or using instruments that produce similar effects can symbolize the presence or assistance of animal spirits.
- Elemental Sounds: Sounds representing natural elements (like thunder drums for storms or rain sticks for water) invoke the power and presence of these elements in rituals.
5. Cultural and Contextual Variations
Regional Practices:
- Cultural Diversity: Different cultures have unique shamanic traditions with specific instruments, vocal techniques, and sound rituals. For example, Siberian shamans might use drum patterns distinct from those used by Amazonian shamans.
- Contextual Adaptations: The use of sound in shamanism can vary depending on the context, such as healing, divination, or community ceremonies.
Technological Integration:
- Modern Adaptations: Contemporary shamans may integrate modern musical instruments and technology, such as electronic soundscapes, to enhance traditional practices.
Conclusion
Sunday, May 26, 2024
The Key Benefits of Drumming
Physical Benefits
1. Cardiovascular Exercise: Drumming is a form of aerobic exercise that can help improve cardiovascular health. The physical activity involved in drumming can increase heart rate and promote better circulation.
2. Improved Coordination: Drumming requires the use of both hands, often in complex patterns, which enhances hand-eye coordination and overall motor skills.
3. Muscle Development: Regular drumming helps in building and toning muscles, particularly in the arms, shoulders, and core.
4. Burning Calories: Drumming can be an effective way to burn calories, similar to other forms of physical exercise.
Mental Benefits
1. Cognitive Enhancement: Learning and playing complex rhythms can improve cognitive functions, including memory, concentration, and problem-solving skills.
2. Stress Reduction: Drumming is known to reduce stress and anxiety. The rhythmic and repetitive nature of drumming can have a meditative effect, promoting relaxation.
3. Mood Enhancement: Playing drums releases endorphins and other feel-good hormones, which can elevate mood and combat depression.
4. Improved Focus: The concentration required to keep a steady rhythm and coordinate different limbs can help improve focus and attention span.
Emotional and Social Benefits
1. Emotional Expression: Drumming provides an outlet for expressing emotions, which can be therapeutic and help in processing feelings.
2. Sense of Achievement: Learning new drumming techniques or mastering a complex rhythm can boost self-esteem and provide a sense of accomplishment.
3. Community and Social Connection: Participating in group drumming sessions or drumming circles fosters a sense of community and belonging. It can also improve social skills and teamwork.
4. Cultural Awareness: Drumming often involves learning about different musical traditions and cultures, which can enhance cultural awareness and appreciation.
Therapeutic Benefits
1. Drum Therapy: Drumming is used in various therapeutic settings to help individuals with mental health issues, PTSD, addiction recovery, and other conditions. It can improve emotional regulation and promote healing.
2. Motor Skills Rehabilitation: Drumming can be part of rehabilitation programs for individuals recovering from strokes or other injuries affecting motor skills.
Educational Benefits
1. Enhanced Learning Abilities: Drumming can aid in the development of language skills, mathematical ability, and spatial-temporal skills, especially in children.
2. Discipline and Patience: Learning to play the drums requires practice, discipline, and patience, which are valuable skills that transfer to other areas of life.
Overall, drumming is not only a fun and engaging activity but also a powerful tool for enhancing physical health, mental well-being, emotional expression, and social connectivity.
Sunday, May 5, 2024
Facilitating a Group Shamanic Journey
Sunday, March 31, 2024
Shamanism and Music
Shamanism and music combined thousands of years ago. By observing nature, shamans perceived that the power of sound could be used to help and heal others. The first drums and musical instruments were put to shamanic use, as were many of the early singing traditions. According to Tuvan musicologist Kira Van Deusen, "In a shaman's world music operates in several ways. It helps the shaman and other participants in a ceremony to locate and enter the inner world, opening the inner, spiritual ear and eye. Musical sound calls helping spirits and transports the shaman on the journey. Both the rhythm and the timbre of musical sound help heal the patient through the effects of specific frequencies and musical styles on the human body."(1)
A shaman uses various ways of making sounds to communicate with the spirits, as well as relate the tone and content of the inner trance experience in real time. Sound is regarded as one of the most effective ways of establishing connections with the spirit realm, since it travels through space, permeates visual and physical barriers, and conveys information from the unseen world. Shamans may chant, clap their hands, imitate the sounds of birds and animals, or play various instruments. Of particular importance are the shaman's drum and song.
Shamanic experience can be expressed in many ways: through writing, art, and film, however it must be created after the fact. The one artistic medium which can be used to immediately express shamanic trance without disrupting the quality of the shamanic experience is music. The shaman's use of sound and rhythm is an audible reflection of their inner environment. This is the traditional method for integrating shamanic experience into both physical space and the cultural group.
1. Kira Van Deusen, Singing Story, Healing Drum: Shamans and Storytellers of Turkic Siberia (McGill-Queen's Press, 2005), p 108.
2. Christina Pratt, An Encyclopedia of Shamanism (The Rosen Publishing Group, 2007), p. 128.
3. Ken Hyder, Shamanism and Music in Siberia: Drum and Space. Tech. 11 Aug. 2008. Web. 28 Feb. 2012.
Sunday, March 17, 2024
Changing the World
Sunday, February 25, 2024
Shamanic Cosmology: The Reality of the Soul
2. Joseph Campbell, The Flight of the Wild Gander.
Sunday, February 4, 2024
Healing with Acoustic Resonance
Sunday, January 7, 2024
Ritual Use of the Shamanic Drum
The shamanic drum, namely the single-headed frame drum, originated in Siberia, together with shamanism itself thousands of years ago. Shamanic drumming is considered one of the oldest methods for healing and accessing inner wisdom. Practiced cross-culturally, this technique is strikingly similar the world over. Shamanic drumming uses a repetitive rhythm that begins slowly and then gradually builds in intensity to a tempo of three to seven beats per second. The ascending tempo will induce light to deep trance states. Shamans use intention and discipline to control the nature, depth and qualities of their trance experiences. They may progress through a range of ecstatic trance states until they reach the level that is necessary for healing to occur.
The act of entering an ecstatic trance state is called the soul flight or shamanic journey. During shamanic flight, the sound of the drum serves as a guidance system, indicating where the shaman is at any moment or where they might need to go. The drumbeat also serves as an anchor, or lifeline, that the shaman follows to return to his or her body and/or exit the trance state when the trance work is complete. When ready to exit the trance state, the practitioner simply slows the tempo of drumming, drawing consciousness back to normal.
The sound of the shamanic drum is very important. A shamanic ritual often begins with heating the drum head over a fire to bring it up to the desired pitch. It is the subtle variations in timbre and ever-changing overtones of the drum that allow the shaman to communicate with the spiritual realm. Part of the shaman's training involves learning to hear and interpret a larger range of frequencies than the normal person can. The shaman listens and finds the right tone, the right sound to which the spirits will respond. Through the many tones, pitches, and harmonics of the drum, the shaman communes with the subtle and normally unseen energies of the spirit world.
Tuvan shamans believe that the spirits of nature create their own sound world, and it is possible for humans to communicate with them through the sound of the drum. According to Tuvan ethnographer and former shaman Mongush Kenin-Lopsan, "We understand the spirits answers mostly from the tangible results of the communication, in terms of benefit or harm. But some people actually hear the spirits singing." Tuvan shamans use the drum to convey to the spirits of a place their greetings, any requests, and thanks. It is a spiritual practice designed to help human beings relate to all of nature. Tuva (southern Siberia) is one of the few places in the world where the shamanic heritage has remained unbroken.
Drumming opens the shaman's inner, spiritual ears and eyes and also calls the helping spirits. As Tuvan musicologist Valentina Suzukei explains, "By changing and listening to the frequencies and overtones of the drum, the shaman is able to send messages to, and receive them from, both the spirit world and the patient. For example, the shaman might use the overtones to send signals to the sky, where they provoke a voice from the cosmos; in turn, the cosmic signals are caught on the drum and reflected to the shaman through the creation of subsequent overtones."
The shamanic drum is a time-tested vehicle for healing and self-expression. A shaman may use the drum to address any number of health issues including trauma, addiction, depression, and chronic pain. Additionally, the shamanic techniques of extraction, soul retrieval, and journeying, can all be performed with the drum. According to Mariko Namba Walter and Eva Jane Neumann Fridman, authors of Shamanism: An Encyclopedia of World Beliefs, Practices, and Culture, "The drum is used in a variety of ways in shamanist rituals; it may serve as (1) a rhythm instrument, (2) a divination table, (3) a "speaker" for communicating with the spirits, (4) a spirit-catcher, (5) a spirit boat, (6) a purifying device, (7) the shaman's mount."
Sunday, November 5, 2023
The Shamanic Horse
1. Kira Van Deusen, "Shamanism and Music in Tuva and Khakassia," Shaman's Drum, No. 47, Winter 1997, p. 24.
2. Kira Van Deusen, Singing Story, Healing Drum: Shamans and Storytellers of Turkic Siberia (McGill-Queen's Press, 2005), p. 124.
3. Van Deusen, Singing Story, Healing Drum, p. 122.