Power songs are
oral prayers spoken from the heart, expressing your true self and personal
power. All shamans have at least one power song to call their helping spirits. It
announces the shaman to the spirits and proclaims, "this is me … please
help me." The song is usually sung near the beginning of any ritual and is
often accompanied by drumming. Singing brings the heartbeat and body into
resonance with the song similar to entrainment with the pulse of the drum. As
the shaman's song invokes the intended spirits, the shaman comes into resonance
with these spirit energies as well.
I recommend
that you find your own power song to invoke your spirit helpers. The lyrics are
usually just a line or two repeated over and over. The words of your song will
have great power if they come from the heart. As ethnographer and author
Gregory Maskarinec puts it, "In the shamanic world, words transform
substance. Any medicinal properties of raw substance are trivial compared with
the power of speech ...."1
To acquire a
power song, begin your day with morning prayers to your helping spirits. Ask
your guides to help you discover your personal power song. Do not eat breakfast
and fast throughout the day. Plan to spend the day alone in an outdoor location
that is preferably quiet and private. A wilderness or wild area away from the
city is preferred.
Do not plan an
itinerary -- be spontaneous. Just stroll quietly through the natural setting
with the awareness that communication with natural elements is possible and be
open to such communication. Nature is communicating with you all the time. Be
aware of your surroundings. Look for synchronicities. They involve an internal
psychological event that corresponds to an external observable event. Some aspect
of a journey, vision, or dream may manifest in your ordinary reality. An
animal, bird, or insect may bring you a message or guidance. When any animal
shows up in an unusual way, or repetitively in a short period of time, it's
critical to pay attention to the message.
As you wander, discover what animal
or bird you feel like. Take on its feelings, embody its spirit, and enjoy its
identity throughout the day. As this is your
first attempt to acquire a power song, you may only find the melody. If so,
subsequent excursions will unveil the words for your melody.
When invoking your spirit
helpers, repeat the song as long as you feel it is needed. I often start
dancing and rattling while I sing my power song and bring my whole body into
the act of calling the spirits. The more feeling or emotional energy you put
into it, the stronger the invocation.
References
1. Gregory G. Maskarinec, Rulings Of The Night: An Ethnography Of Nepalese Shaman Oral Texts, (University of Wisconsin Press, 1995), p 187.
1. Gregory G. Maskarinec, Rulings Of The Night: An Ethnography Of Nepalese Shaman Oral Texts, (University of Wisconsin Press, 1995), p 187.
