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.