Ancient Wisdom for the Modern World

Huichol Yarn Painting

The Huichols, an indigenous tribe that lives in the mountainous region of central Mexico, are some of the happiest, healthiest, wisest people on earth. Many of them are shamans, and a surprising number of their tribe surpass 100 and work in the fields up until the day they die. Shaman-healer Brant Secunda traveled to Mexicoas a young man and was invited to live with the Huichols for 12 years, where he became the adopted grandson of a shaman named Don José Matsuwa, who lived to be 110. There are many lessons he learned from the Huichols, which he now writes about and teaches to others. One of them is how to cultivate a personal bond with nature. In the modern world we often get so caught up in our busy lives that we forget to honor our inherent connection with the natural world. Read more.

The Shamanic Revival

Shamanism has achieved a dramatic modern resurgence. A recent study by one of the foremost scholars on shamanism today reveals that the contemporary world still hungers for transcendent experiences because the shamanic narrative is hard-wired in us all. In his 2010 book, Shamanism: A Biopsychosocial Paradigm of Consciousness and Healing, Michael Winkelman presents the shamanic paradigm within a biopsychosocial framework for explaining successful human evolution through group rituals. According to Winkelman, shamanism is rooted in innate functions of the brain, mind, and consciousness. As Winkelman puts it, "The cross-cultural manifestations of basic experiences related to shamanism (e.g., soul flight, death-and-rebirth, animal identities) illustrates that these practices are not strictly cultural but are structured by underlying, biologically inherent structures. These are neurobiological structures of knowing that provide the universal aspects of the human brain/mind" (n1)

The psychobiological basis of shamanism provided it with functional roles in survival and cultural evolution, producing an evolved psychology that has applications in relatively intractable modern problems such as addictions treatment and in addressing the consequences of psychological trauma, alienation, and disconnectedness. Winkelman elaborates on shamanism as a paradigm of self-empowerment which strengthens individuals' ability to take an active role in their health and well-being. Shamanic practices produce deeper self-awareness by enhancing the use of the entire brain and provide "a vital connection with community and the spiritual dimensions of human health that have been lacking in modern societies." (n2)

Furthermore, recent studies demonstrate that the innate "modules" of rhythm, like percussion or dance, provide a secular approach to accessing a higher power and applying spiritual perspectives. The American Journal of Public Health reviewed drum therapy in its April 2003 edition, concluding that "shamanic drumming directly supports the introduction of spiritual factors found significant in the healing process. Shamanic activities bring people efficiently and directly into immediate encounters with spiritual forces, focusing the client on the whole body and integrating healing at physical and spiritual levels. This process allows them to connect with the power of the universe, to externalize their own knowledge, and to internalize their answers; it also enhances their sense of empowerment and responsibility. These experiences are healing, bringing the restorative powers of nature to clinical settings." (n3)

To learn more, visit my website at ShamanicDrumming.com. This site is part of my effort to create a vibrant international community devoted to shamanic drumming as a vehicle for healing, consciousness expansion, and community building. I invite you to listen to shamanic music, try a shamanic journey, and browse articles to learn more about shamanism and shamanic drumming. Find shamanic circles, drums, books, music, supplies, and practitioners at www.ShamanicDrumming.com/.

References

(n1.) Michael Winkelman, Shamanism: A Biopsychosocial Paradigm of Consciousness and Healing (Praeger; 2 edition 2010), p. 38.

(n2.) Michael Winkelman. Shamanism as Neurotheology and Evolutionary Psychology. Tech. 13 May 2002. Web. 28 Feb. 2012. <http://www.public.asu.edu/~atmxw/absneuro.pdf>.

(n3.) Michael Winkelman, "Complementary Therapy for Addiction: Drumming Out Drugs," American Journal of Public Health; Apr 2003, Vol. 93 Issue 4, p647, 5p. 

The Life Cairn Project

The Life Cairn Fire

Throughout human history, cairns have been built as landmarks to help guide a journey, to memorialize fallen comrades, for spiritual or shamanic practices, or simply to indicate a reverence for the natural world. The Life Cairn is a powerful new version of this tradition established in England by Reverend Peter Owen-Jones and Andreas Kornevall and assisted by Vanessa Vine, to memorialize species rendered extinct by human activity. The mission of The Life Cairn Project is to promote and catalyze the creation of Life Cairns as memorials to species that have become extinct due to human impacts on the environment, and to sound urgent alerts about critically endangered species, cultures and island nations.

A Life Cairn is more than a static memorial; through repeat visits to add stones and express our grief when another species disappears forever, a Life Cairn becomes a crucial touchstone for our sacred interdependence. As board member Diana Lightmoon puts it, "Grieving for the loss of a fellow creature of creation is an act of acknowledging what is happening right now. From this place of acknowledgement, we may be able to find a new way of being in this world with each other and with all species." To learn more about constructing Life Cairns and what you can do about our Earth Community's suffering, visit the Life Cairn Project website. 

2014 Summer Solstice Drum Circle

Sunday June 22, 2014, 1 to 4 pm at the Silverton Grange, 201 Division St., Silverton, OR 97381. Facilitated by Michael Drake, author of Shamanic Drumming Circles Guide. At the Summer Solstice, we begin a new cycle on the Medicine Wheel of Life, entering the South -- the home of summer, midday, youth, joy, trust, growth and Coyote, the Spirit Keeper of the South. As we celebrate in ceremony, we participate in this season of abundant growth, attuning ourselves to the cyclical rhythms of nature. By joining our hearts in prayer and sacred drumming, we create a sacred union with the vital energy of our Mother Earth which reaches its full expression in the South. Nurtured by our Earth Mother's limitless energy, we become limitless co-creators of all that is needed to benefit all beings unto seven generations. Bring a drum, a dish, and a donation. 

Heyoka Coyote

Coyote is a cunning shapeshifter who can adapt to any habitat. While the habitats of most predators are diminishing, Coyote’s territory is expanding. Call upon Coyote for these shapeshifting qualities, but beware, for Coyote is a magician, trickster, and heyoka. The heyoka or sacred clown uses satire, folly and misadventure to awaken people to innovative and better ways of doing things. The mischievous heyoka behaves in ways that are contrary to conventional norms in order to violate peoples’ expectations. In such paradoxical states, people can assimilate new information quickly, without filtering.

Coyote’s lesson is to stop acting out of habit. You must be willing to plow old habits into the soil in order to cultivate new patterns that enhance your natural growth. Innovative change will revitalize your life and precipitate renewed growth and creativity.

Sometimes we unwittingly cut off the voice of our inner truth, or sense of what is correct; relying instead on old, soul-killing patterns of judgment, control, and distrust. Inner truth reflects, like a mirror, the higher, universal truth that exists in every situation. Yet even when our point of view is at its most positional, narrow and self-righteous, higher truth, often in the guise of the trickster, is there to open the way back to balance and wholeness. Click here to listen to the Coyote chant.