How to Feed Your Drum

Honoring the Drum

In the shaman's world, all is alive. A drum is regarded as a living organism; not as an object. The drum has a spirit that can be awakened and if called upon, must be "fed." The spirits eat just as we eat. Shamans believe that if the spirits are not fed, the ritual may not go well. Shamans ritually feed their drums. Many use the head of the drum as an altar to offer blue cornmeal or tobacco to the spirit of the instrument.

Cornmeal is good "food" because corn is a sacred gift from the beings that live in the spirit world. The one offering the cornmeal first breathes on the grains so that the spirits know who is offering the gift. Offer the cornmeal to the four directions, and then to the drum itself so the spirit of the drum can eat it. The offering may be placed on the inside or outside of the drumhead. It is swished around the face of the drum for a few moments, and then left as an offering to the spirits of place -- the spirit and consciousness of every living thing in a time and place.

You can offer a pinch of dry tobacco in the same manner. The sacrament, tobacco, is the unifying thread of communication between humans and the spiritual powers. Tobacco feeds the drum and carries our prayers to the Loom of Creation, thereby reweaving the pattern of existence in accordance with those prayers.

Smudge smoke is also one of the foods for spirits. Cedar, sage and sweetgrass can be used for the smudging and feeding of drums. To smudge your drum, light the dried herbs in a fire-resistant receptacle and then blow out the flames. Smudge your drum by passing it through the smoke three times. Conclude the smudging by thanking the spirit of the plant whose body made the offering possible. To learn more, look inside my drum guide, Shamanic Drumming: Calling the Spirits.

The Shamanic Wand

Variety of Wands

Many modern shamanic and esoteric practices include the use of a ritual wand. The wand is an instrument of invocation of spirits and serves primarily to direct spiritual energy. Healing energy can be mentally transmitted through the wand and out into the environment or into a patient's body. Prayer and intention can be broadcast to the spirit world. It may serve as a divination tool, extraction aide, and purifying device.

The wand dates back to prehistoric times. Some of the first depictions of a wand come from Egypt, in the hands of the Pharaohs. The Greek god Hermes is depicted with a caduceus, a winged wand or staff with two snakes coiled around it. In Celtic mythology, the so-called "Triple" or "Triadic" Goddesses are often seen or depicted with wands. Scholars believe that the origin of the wand derives from the shaman's drumstick. And if this hypothesis is correct, why would the drum no longer have been used in conjunction with the wand (beater)?

The most likely answer may lie in the fact that throughout history in different cultures around the world the traditional practice of shamanism has often been outlawed and driven underground. In a recent post, blogger and author David Warner Mathisen presented the argument that the shamanic worldview is an integral part of the shared history of all humanity, but that this worldview has been deliberately stolen and suppressed. The shamanic worldview was perceived as an extremely potent threat -- to the point that possession of a shamanic drum has in almost every case been outlawed, and a policy of confiscation and destruction of drums implemented. Hence, the percussive use of the drum became impracticable in populated areas due to its distinctive sound.

Any authentic shaman would have always found a way to continue his or her practice of the shamanic arts. When Tuvan drums were being confiscated and destroyed during the times of Soviet repression, some shamans used only their rattle beater or orba for rituals. In Tuva (southern Siberia), the orba, with its spoon-shaped head covered with animal fur and metal rings attached for rattling, is in part for practicing divination, purifying sacred space for ritual, and drawing the attention of the spirits. Working in this way, shamans would have been able to covertly continue their practices.

In the shaman's world, all things have spirit and everything is alive. Like the shaman's drum, the drumstick or wand is imbued with spiritual purpose and becomes a living presence. Since the objects are then considered to be alive, they function as spirit helpers and guides to the shaman in their work. To guide you in making your own ritual wand and other sacred implements, I highly recommend the book, A Spirit Walker's Guide to Shamanic Tools by Evelyn C. Rysdyk.

A Shaman's Perspective on Western Civilization

Davi Kopenawa has been dubbed the Dalai Lama of the Rainforest and is considered one of the most influential tribal leaders in Brazil. The Yanomami number about 30,000 and occupy a vast territory stretching across northern Brazil and southern Venezuela. They only made full contact with the west in the 1950s when their lands were overrun by thousands of gold prospectors and loggers. After waves of epidemics and cultural and environmental devastation, one in three of all Yanomami, including Davi's mother, died.

Davi's experience of white people has been dreadful but he is unusual because he trained not just as a shaman but also worked with the Brazilian government as a guide and learned western languages. In the past 25 years, he has traveled widely to represent indigenous peoples in meetings and, having lived in both societies, he has a unique viewpoint of western culture. With the help of an anthropologist, Bruce Albert, who interviewed him over several years, he has written his autobiography The Falling Sky: Words of a Yanomami Shaman. It is not just an insight into what a Yanomami leader really thinks, but a devastating critique of how the west lives, showing the gulf between primordial forest and modern city world views. By way of his autobiography, and other conversations, the Guardian News recently compiled several of Kopenawa's observations. Read More.

Bird Medicine: The Sacred Power of Bird Shamanism

Evan T. Pritchard, author of Bird Medicine: The Sacred Power of Bird Shamanism, is a descendant of the Mi'kmaq people (part of the Algonquin nation) and the founder of The Center for Algonquin Culture. Named Abachbahamedtch (or chipmunk) by Mi'kmaq people, he is an assistant to several Algonquin elders. Since 1990, his work helping Algonquin elders and bringing their message to the media has helped thousands of people gain a better understanding of this great civilization and its teachings.

According to Pritchard, traditional Native Americans have viewed birds as spiritual teachers for at least 10,000 years. Pritchard's scholarly and illuminating book is based on his field interviews with people in the Native community on birds as teachers, guardians, role models, counselors, healers, clowns, peacemakers, and meteorologists. They carry messages and warnings from loved ones and the spirit world, report deaths and injuries, and channel divine intelligence to answer our questions. Some of their "signs" are so subtle that one could discount them as subjective, but others are dramatic enough to strain even a skeptic's definition of coincidence.

Pritchard begins with an exploration of the legends, wisdom, and powers of the birds known as the gatekeepers of the four directions -- Eagle in the North, Hawk in the East, Crow in the South, and Owl in the West. He reveals how the eagle can be a direct messenger of the Creator, why crows gather in "Crow Councils," and how shamans have the ability to travel inside of birds, even after death. Expanding his study to the wisdom and gifts of birds beyond the four gatekeepers, such as hummingbirds, seagulls, and the mythical thunderbird, he provides numerous examples of everyday bird sign interpretations that can be applied in your own encounters with birds as well as ways we can help protect birds and encourage them to communicate with us.

Bird Medicine: The SacredPower of Bird Shamanism by Evan T. Pritchard is a treasure trove of ornithological insight and indigenous wisdom. Filled with stories -- some fables involving only birds and some anecdotal narratives of birds interaction with humans -- the book is also an impassioned plea for humans to become more responsible about protecting bird habitats and breeding grounds. 

The Shaman's Staff

Buryat Shaman Staff

Over the centuries, a shaman's regalia has often included a ritual staff. Different forms of this ritual garb are seen in cultures around the world. From the high steppes of Asia to the deep jungles of the Amazon basin, shamans use staffs as power objects. They are usually made of wood and decorated with special symbols, talismans and carvings which represent the shaman's own power.

For many peoples, the shaman's staff is a representation of the connection between the shamanic realms of Upper, Middle and Lower Worlds and symbolizes the Axis Mundi or World Tree. As a stand-in for the Axis Mundi, the staff functions as an energy conduit between the worlds and holds the spiritual center in ritual.

In many Siberian tribes, the use of the staff precedes the use of the drum and the shaman learns to journey without the benefit of the drum beat. Most Siberian staffs are adorned with jingle cones so that the staff can be used as a type of rattle during journeying. Most shaman staffs are either forked or adorned with animal heads. In Buryat tradition, the most common type of shaman staff has a horse head carved at the top.

In the shaman's world, all is alive. Like the shaman's drum, the staff is imbued with spiritual purpose and becomes a living presence. Since the objects are then considered to be alive, they function as spirit helpers and guides to the shaman in their work. Once imbued with spiritual energy, the staff becomes a catalyst for change and transformation--even capable of working on its own on behalf of the shaman. To guide you in making your own sacred staff, I highly recommend the book, A Spirit Walker's Guide to Shamanic Tools by Evelyn C. Rysdyk.

Finding Your Power Song

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.

Clarifying Your True Calling

Streaming live on the Co-Creator Radio Network on Tuesday, December 23, at 11am Pacific/2pm Eastern on "Why Shamanism Now? A Practical Path to Authenticity," shaman and founder of the Last Mask Center for Shamanic Healing Christina Pratt tells listeners that "follow your bliss" is really not enough to go on when we need to clarify a vision of our true calling and engage that path of mastery day by day. For most, the vision of their "true calling" is wildly unfocused and impractical or it falls woefully short of the individual's true capabilities. However, consistent work with the Visionary in shamanic journeys encourages us to develop our visionary capacities: our perception, or seeing our external patterns; our insight, or internal viewing; and in engaging our imagination which encourages our intuition. Ultimately the Visionary's point is to get us to open our scope of seeing to all of our senses so that our sense of what "my vision" actually means expands to the point where we can actually clarify our true calling, according to Pratt. Prior episodes from "Why Shamanism Now" can be downloaded for free from iTunes.  

The Magic of Shapeshifting

One of the best ways to connect with power animals is through the art of shapeshifting. In the shaman's world, animals are kin, an ancient belief reflected in mythology and in animism -- the belief that non-human entities are spiritual beings. It is a mental world where the seen and the unseen; the material and the spiritual merge. As their helping spirits, the shamans "might use animals, anything that grows," says Osuitok Ipeelee, an esteemed Artic Inuit sculptor. "It was well known that the animals the shamans controlled had the ability to turn into humans. When a shaman was using his magic he had a real change of personality. When the animals entered into him he'd be chanting loudly; if a shaman was turning into a certain animal, he'd make that animal sound. Once he was filled inside, he'd begin to change; his face and his skin followed."¹

Shapeshifting is more than just transforming into an animal as is often depicted in shamanic accounts and tales. It is the ability to shift your energies to adapt to the demands and changes of daily life. We all learn which activities, behaviors, and attitudes support or hinder our survival and growth. It is a natural and instinctual ability that we all share. The minimal development of this talent is the ability to mimic. We often mimic for the purpose of learning something or to blend in with our social or physical environment. It implies changing one's pattern of appearance or behavior, rather than just using what you already have. Actors, for example, are known for their ability to take on the characteristics of another person or thing. 

A shapeshifter is one who manipulates their aura to access a higher or inner power in order to grow and learn. The human aura is the energy field that surrounds the human body in all directions. All shapeshifting occurs on an energy level. If everything is broadcasting its own energy pattern and if you could match and rebroadcast the same pattern, then you would take on the appearance and qualities of the thing you were matching. The only constraining factor is the degree of belief, connection, and energy. To experience this for yourself, try the following simple exercise: 

1. Create sacred space as you would for other spiritual work, dim the lights, and sit comfortably erect in a chair or on the floor.
2. Close your eyes and take a couple of deep breaths.
3. Call upon an animal that you have an affinity with. Visualize and invite this animal spirit to come into your body and consciousness.
4. Meditate with it. Be open to the feelings and sensations of being that animal. It is not uncommon to be and see the animal at the same time.
5. Simply observe whatever happens for a few minutes, and then thank the spirit animal and release it.  

Shapeshifting to any degree will help you develop a kinship with your animal relatives. Learning to shift your consciousness, to align with and adapt your energies to power animals, opens your heart and mind to the wisdom and strength of the animal world. You must empty yourself so that spirit can embody you. "Become like a hollow bone," a Lakota elder once advised me in the sweat lodge.

1. Dorothy H. Eber, "Recording the Spirit World," Natural History Magazine, Sept, 2002, p. 54.

Understanding Shamanic Journeys

The classic shamanic journey is one of the most remarkable visionary methods used by humankind to access inner wisdom and guidance by the teachers within. Shamanic journeying is not an exceptional skill reserved for certain people, but knowing what to do with intuition, how to respond to it, and how to integrate it into day-to-day life is an exceptional skill that can -- and should -- be learned. It is important to release any expectations you may have about what a journey should be like. Too often people reject what they are legitimately experiencing because it doesn't fit their expectations of what should be happening. The key is to trust that what is happening is exactly what is meant to occur at that moment in time.

The most empowering gift shamanic journeying offers each of us is direct revelation, which manifests as visions, inner voices, or experiences with our own spirit helpers. Once you attain a state of ecstatic communion, how do you know you are listening to your spirit guides and not just making it up? For me, direct revelation comes from the heart and begins with my willingness to trust the guidance of my inner voice.

To better understand your journeys, I recommend recording your experiences in a journal as soon as you have returned to ordinary reality. Journeys, like dreams, tend to fade quickly from conscious awareness. Keeping a journal provides a record of your spiritual growth and allows you to reflect upon and better interpret journeys. In some cases, your journey experiences will be clear and easy to understand. At other times, your journey may be dreamlike and full of symbolism. Interpret such journeys as you would any dream. Look for possible associations related to each symbol or image. Don't overanalyze the journey, for its meaning will become clear at the appropriate time.

Not every journey you undertake will necessarily be coherent, vivid or powerful. Still, no matter how esoteric or random the experience may seem, it augments your shamanic skill and knowledge. Seemingly insignificant events in a journey or vision may manifest in a powerful way in your ordinary state of awareness. Be on the lookout for synchronicities, for they confirm that your shamanic work is producing effects beyond the bounds of probability or coincidence.

The more you practice shamanic journeying, the better you will get at it. Nothing may happen on your first journeys. You may not be able to turn off the mind chatter or go anywhere. When this happens, simply try again at a different time. Eventually you will be able to take a rapid inner journey anywhere or anytime the need arises. Try a shamanic journey: http://youtu.be/_bU0g8TiDUw 

What is Shamanic Journeying?

Shamanism represents a universal conceptual framework found among indigenous tribal humans. It includes the belief that the natural world has two aspects: ordinary everyday awareness, formed by our habitual behaviors, patterns of belief, social norms, and cultural conditioning, and a second non-ordinary awareness accessed through altered states, or ecstatic trance, induced by shamanic practices such as repetitive drumming. The act of entering an ecstatic trance state is called the soul flight or shamanic journey, and it allows the journeyer to view life and life's problems from a detached, spiritual perspective, not easily achieved in a state of ordinary consciousness.

Basically, shamanic journeying is a way of communicating with your inner or spirit self and retrieving information. Your inner self is in constant communication with all aspects of your environment, seen and unseen. You need only journey within to find answers to your questions. You should have a question or objective in mind from the start. Shamanic journeying may be undertaken for purposes of divination, for personal healing, to meet one's power animal or spirit guide, or for any number of other reasons. After the journey, you must then interpret the meaning of your trance experience.

Drumming is a simple and effective way to induce ecstatic trance states. When a drum is played at an even tempo of three to four beats per second for at least fifteen minutes, most novices report that they can journey successfully even on their first attempt. Transported by the driving beat of the drum; the shamanic traveler journeys to the inner planes of consciousness.

"Shaman's Drums" Album Release

I am pleased to announce the release of my new album "Shaman's Drums." Shaman's Drums combines trance-inducing drums, native flutes and droning didgeridoos in a rousing celebration of shamanic music. The music on this album is based on a simple trio of shamanic instruments: the drum, the flute and the didgeridoo. Each instrument opens a path of communication between the spiritual and earthly realms. Each instrument helps induce trance states, opening the inner, spiritual ear and eye. Each is related to the soul, which extends far beyond the physical body, connecting us to the symphony of the universe.

The sound of the shaman's drum is very important, for it is a voice with great power and it is a voice that is a gift to us from a greater being. Its steady beat is akin to the primal pulse, the heart, throbbing within all that exists. The shaman uses the drum to create a bridge to the spirit world and summon the healing power of spirit.

Aboriginal tradition equates the low-pitched, rhythmic resonance of the didgeridoo with the voice of the Earth itself. According to an Aboriginal Dreamtime legend, the god of creation Baiame created man and woman, giving them the didgeridoo to sound all other life into form. Didgeridoos produce a range of infrasonics; extremely low frequency sound waves that stimulate a wide array of euphoric trance-like states.

The flute is akin to birds, flight and the breath, which is spirit. Its chirp, warble, and bird-like notes make your heart soar. Its sound represents the voice of the birds, the voice of the wind and the voice of the soul -- those things that are free to move and fly. So taken all together this trio; the flute, drum, and didgeridoo, represents the whole voice of Creation. Preview the entire album on my website.

Native American Flute Therapy

The Native American flute, a traditional ethnic wind instrument developed by indigenous Native American cultures, is an end-blown flute fashioned either from cane, hardwood, or softwood. The instrument evolved from traditional uses in courtship, treatment of the sick, ceremony, signaling, legends, and as work songs. During the late 1960s, the United States saw a roots revival of the flute, with a new wave of flutists and artisans. Today, Native American style flutes are being played and recognized by many different peoples and cultures around the world.

The Native American flute is sometimes used by music therapists and music educators. Because of its simple and accessible design, virtually anyone can play the flute. A recent study exploring physiological responses to playing and listening to the Native American flute found a significant positive effect on heart rate variability and concluded that the instrument merits a more prominent role in music therapy and that a study of the effects of flute playing on clinical conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), hypertension, anxiety, and major depressive disorder, is warranted. Read "An Exploration of Physiological Responses to the Native American Flute."

Creating a Crucible of Transformation

Streaming live on the Co-Creator Radio Network on Tuesday, November 11, at 11am Pacific/2pm Eastern on "Why Shamanism Now? A Practical Path to Authenticity," Christina Pratt explores the elements required to create a crucible of transformation in our hearts and why our vulnerability is our great super power. Pratt notes that straight up, humans hate change…and they really hate transformation, which is change we cannot come back from. But shamanism, with its robust relationship with the Trickster, offers us skills to be clever in the face of fear, to risk the Unknown when faced with the certainty of repeating patterns, and to be vulnerable so that we can engage the wisdom of our courageous hearts. Prior episodes from "Why Shamanism Now" can be downloaded for free from iTunes. 

Evolving Shamanism

Shamanism, or more accurately an evolving form called Neo-Shamanism, has achieved a dramatic modern resurgence. Those who take the time necessary to properly investigate it are finding it to be an enlightening, rewarding and profound practice. Spiritual seekers are finding a sense of community, the healing they need, and an enhanced awareness based in a love for Nature and a connection with Spirit. Neo-Shamanism offers practical pathways or real, everyday life applications to enhanced awareness and vibrant health which can be objectively observed and verified. This is where Shamanism stands head and shoulders above other philosophies.

Thus, what is it about this evolving modern Shamanism that makes it so popular? First of all, Shamanism is not a religion, but rather a pragmatic and results oriented methodology. Shamanism has always been a discipline that delineates, very specifically, how to find what you seek. Everything you do is checked in the external reality, the observable world, to see if your work is bearing fruit. By observing the nature of the difference, or the specific places where no difference is made, Neo-Shamans apply their discipline to see where within themselves they are caught, and fix it. Simple as that. Read more.

Post-Tribal Shamanism

Kenn Day, author of Post-Tribal Shamanism, found shamanism the way most modern shamanic practitioners do--through a need for personal healing. Depression, anxiety, and PTSD in his twenties led him from traditional therapies that brought little success, to a willingness to go a different route. Working as an Art Director for a local ad agency, he never expected that the healing and teachings he learned, he would then bring to others.

While he sees shamanism as a general term describing a spectrum of practices that are rooted deeply in the human condition, Day is careful to give credit where it's due. He describes his approach as post-tribal shamanism, a phrase he created to differentiate between forms of shamanism that were and are still practiced in tribal cultures, and those arising from the post-tribal culture he was raised in. "We can only stand strong when we honor those who come before us," he says, and emphasizes awareness of cultural appropriation as significant to his work. Read more.

Outlaw Drums

Replica of a Saami rune drum, 

confiscated in 1691

In a recent post, blogger and author David Warner Mathisen presented the argument that the shamanic worldview is an integral part of the shared history of all humanity, but that this worldview has been deliberately stolen and suppressed, beginning at a specific time and place in Western Europe and that the suppression spread from there. The shamanic worldview was perceived as an extremely potent threat -- to the point that possession of a shamanic drum has in almost every case been outlawed, and a policy of confiscation and destruction of drums implemented. The sameness of this policy of outlawing drums, whether for ostensibly theological reasons (in literalist-Christian cultures) or political reasons (in officially atheist and communist regimes), and its persistence through several centuries and in many different nations, is astonishing and notable. Read more.

Waitaha Water Gathering

The Waitaha Water Gathering will be held October 15-22, 2014 in Aotearoa, New Zealand. The Waitaha Water Gathering happens every 50 years and has happened for thousands of years, always behind closed doors, this year is the first time in recorded human history that the Water people of Earth are opening up their libraries, and are inviting us, the modern world and other first Nations to bring our wisdom to their Gathering place for they know deeply that this is the time window in which we need to act with peace and understanding – and to join with them in a global water ceremony wherever we are.

Waitaha means "container of water" and the Waitaha say that if the water inside of them is at Peace, they are at Peace – we are all 70-80% water so we are all water containers. If you wish to partake or express your interest in this Gathering and the 2014 International Forum on Water please visit Waitaha Water Gathering.

"Incan Anatomy of the Soul"

Marc Torra is a Spanish/Australian writer who donates the proceeds from all of his books and creations to social and environmental projects, especially projects involving indigenous people. Marc and I have collaborated on a number of projects over the years including a free Android App called "Shaman Box." Marc recently published a new book titled, Incan Anatomy of the Soul. Upon entering the age of materialism, around 5000 years ago, knowledge about the anatomy of the soul became part of various esoteric traditions. It was therefore kept private among a few initiates.

In the Himalayas it was knowledge passed down orally, from master to disciple, and recorded in texts like the Puranas or the Tantras. In ancient Egypt and Sumer, it was transmitted through various mystical schools. With the arrival of Islam, many of these schools became Sufi brotherhoods. In the West, because of the power associated with this knowledge, various secret societies were founded, keeping it only for a few initiates and primarily limited to the small group of their upper echelons.

It was not until the end of the nineteenth century that such information began to transcend the circle of disciples, initiates and followers to become accessible to the remainder of the population. However, this was not the case in the Andes. As this book reveals, the Inca civilization conveyed such knowledge openly. It was communicated in their myths and legends, in their urban planning, ceremonies and festivals, dances, symbols and emblems, and in the language. It was "written" for everyone to "read" because by definition in a culture without formal writing system there cannot be illiterate people. Look inside Incan Anatomy of the Soul.

13 Levels of Shamanic Dreaming

Ruby Modesto grew up on the Martinez reservation in southern California. Her dreams called her to become a pul, or shaman, introducing her to the eagle that became her ally, giving her wings for flight. She did not need the medicine plants used by some shamans among her people, the Cahuilla, because she had her dreams. She learned that there are successive levels of dreaming, and that you achieve increasing clarity and get closer to the really good stuff when you go to level three or beyond. Her uncle was a dream shaman, and he taught her about "setting up dreaming" in order to get to those interesting levels. She explained the practice to anthropologist Guy Mount in their book, Not for Innocent Ears: Spiritual Traditions of a Desert Cahuilla Medicine Woman. Click here to learn more.

Interview with African Shaman, John Lockley

John Lockley

At 18, John Lockley was serving in the South African army as a medic (during the war with Angola in the 1980s) when he had a strong, prophetic dream calling him to train as a Xhosa Sangoma shaman, within the same tribe of Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu. He eventually met Mum Ngwevu, a well-known Xhosa Sangoma medicine woman, in one of the poorest townships in South Africa. She had foreseen his arrival in a dream and began his 10-year apprenticeship, giving him the initiated name Ucingolwendaba, meaning messenger or connector between people and cultures. John trained under difficult conditions in the townships of the Eastern Cape during his apprenticeship. He is unique in being initiated into three timeless traditions: African Shamanism, Yoga and Zen Buddhism, and also holds an honors degree in Clinical Psychology. John speaks to us in this interview about his Way of The Leopard training program and offers much wisdom on a variety of subjects. Listen to the interview.