Understanding Trance Journeys

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 does not 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.

Like the shaman, you will find the spirit world to be a fountain of wisdom and power. It is understood that what takes place in the journey world will follow in ordinary reality. Insights gained there shift thinking and behavior here. Healing which transpires there creates healing here. The most empowering gift shamanic journeying offers each of us is direct revelation that manifests as visions, inner voices or experiences with our own spirit helpers.

To better understand your journeys, I recommend recording your experiences in a journal as soon as you have returned to ordinary reality. Trance experiences, like dreams, tend to fade quickly from conscious awareness. Journaling is a contemplative practice that can help you become more aware of your inner life and feel more connected to your experiences and the world around you. 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. Do not 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. The regular practice of journeying into the spirit world changes you. It broadens your viewpoint, helps you to let go of judgment, encourages you to value yourself more and makes living your life more manageable. It gives you equilibrium. Try a shamanic journey.

The Therapeutic Effects of Shamanic Flute Music

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. Because of its simple and accessible design, virtually anyone can play the flute. A recent study exploring the therapeutic effects of listening to the Native American flute found that flute music decreases anxiety and increases perceptions of interconnectedness in individuals diagnosed with a trauma related disorder. Flute music facilitates perceptual experiences of integration related to trauma, as well as expanded consciousness. The use of music with issues of trauma, as well as facilitating unity consciousness, appears timely. Music can reach where nothing else can and perhaps when nothing else can. Poets, philosophers and musicians have expressed what most people have experienced, that music has the power to deeply touch the heart and the soul, and the capacity to transform and transcend. To learn more, read "The Effects of Sacred Shamanic Flute Music on Trauma and States of Consciousness."

"Twilight Owls" Music Release

Twilight Owls combines trance-inducing drums, flutes and nature sounds in a rousing celebration of shamanic music. Shamanic music is a way to evoke and internalize animal archetypes. An animal archetype represents the spirit and attributes of the entire species of that animal. Shamanism is the endeavor to cultivate ongoing relationships with power animals to gain insight, healing methods, and other vital information that can benefit the community. Owl medicine includes prophecy, wisdom, stealth, silence, intuition, clairvoyance, clairaudience, shapeshifting, and keen vision that can pierce all illusion. Call upon Owl to unmask and see what is truly beneath the surface -- what is hidden or in the shadows. Owl is a messenger of omens who will call out to let all share in its vision.

A shamanic performer uses various instruments to communicate with the spirits. The first instrument you hear on "Twilight Owls" is the Native American Flute, an ancient wind instrument used to announce to the spirits that ceremony is beginning. 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. The next instrument you hear is the drum. 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. Drum and flute merge with Tawny Owl calls and the sounds of nature weaving the musical fabric of the song. Available on iTunes, Amazon and CD Baby.