SHAMANISM

The practice of Shamanism is nearly as old as human consciousness itself. Arising from a primary impulse towards ecstacy, the shaman seeks communion with all that is, and in the process adopts the role of mediator, counsel and healer to his or her community. Because he seeks union with Nature in all its manifestations, he becomes conversant with the Natural Powers, and by following their guidance he is able to achieve feats denied to ordinary mortals. He is, however, bound to the rules of the Cosmos, and as such, he or she is also entrusted with their safekeeping.

As steward of his environment, he must excel in discipline, and be at all times conscious of his position in the Universe. This privileged status does not come without hardship, and it is axiomatic that the initiate undergo ordeals of purification. These can take the form of vision quests, pilgrimages, or ritualized ordeals. Often, however, the initiate is thrust into his profession by the workings of the spirit world, and can inherit his mantle through spontaneous vision, near-death experiences or a descent into sickness or insanity. Regardless of the manner in which this discovery of the self is effected, the initiate is now on the path towards mastery. Shamanic knowledge the world over recognizes that all of Life is Power, and it is the task of the Shaman to become conversant with the purveyors of such Power. Mastery over these forces is his life-long achievement.

The Three Realms

In order to develop as a practitioner, the initiate must undergo periodic and sustained journeying into the various regions or realms of the World. In classic terms the World is divided into three realms. The initiate descends into the Lower World to seek an encounter with his own Shadow, and in this process becomes familiar not only with his limitations and personal deficiencies, but also with his own mortality, experiencing over and over his own death through painful dismemberment at the hand of the denizens of the Lower World. It is this experience which grants him the authority necessary to attempt an ascent to the Upper World, the world of Light and Vision. Carried by his familiar, (usually, though not always, a spirit being of animal form) the shaman journeys through innumerable realms seeking guidance and wisdom as he travels. As he does, his sensory and perceptual centers undergo a rapid and dramatic transformation, for he is now able to see things denied other mortals. He becomes aware of the infinity of worlds contained within the Universe and of the immensity of the Mystery of Life.

As his ecstatic trance carries him further and further away from the world of ordinary concern, he also hears a new calling. It is the voices of his community, which clamors in suffering and in pain. Moved by the compassion which is now his hallmark, he initiates a return to the Middle World, the world of ordinary concern, where he is now empowered to act as mediator, counsel, and healer.

Cosmic Vision

In order for the Initiate to explore the realms of Existence it is necessary to have a map or a cosmic diagram of the various regions of the world. This knowledge is usually ancestral, and is handed from master to initiate in proscribed, traditional ways. Often the process is arduous, as the master trains the initiate into the subtleties of his trade by constant test and privations, as it is necessary for the initiate to fully comprehend the multi-layered nature of the teachings. Often these are encoded in Myth, and are therefore capable of interpretation at many levels. As the student progresses, his understanding of the deceptively simple story grows. All of shamanic knowledge is holographic in the sense that each part is so designed as to contain the whole. In this respect it attempts to mirror the world, in which all is connected and in which interdependence is fundamental for survival. Simultaneously, the apprentice is also being instructed by teachers from the unseen realms. From these two sources, (the world of ordinary teachers of flesh and blood and those of other realms) the initiate begins to map his own way through the landscape of a new existence he did not even suspect could have existed.

Geomancy and Astrology

In its external form, the cosmic vision of the shaman consists in an understanding of the forces of nature in relation to the four-fold division of the horizon. The geomagnetic forces of the globe are taken as a departure point to create a framework of relationships that enables the practitioner to manipulate the forces to his design. The world is therefore understood as consisting of the following relationships:*

NORTH is conceived as the area of Darkness, and is therefore associated with tectonic forces, Mother Earth, The Body, and with reality as a manifestation in Space and Time.

SOUTH is conceived as the area of Light, and as such is the vehicle for divine illumination, Spirit, Wind, and The Eternal.

EAST is the rising point of the Sun and as such corresponds to the awakened Mind, and to the Force of Fire.

WEST is the setting Sun, and as such it is harbinger of the Moon, as well as the Subconscious and the Emotional aspect of consciousness. Its force is Water.

At the CENTER is the World Tree, the Central Pillar that supports the Heavens and through which the Shaman ascends or descends in his journeys through the Realms. The center is the Void, where physical resistance can be minimized, and achievement made harmonious and balanced. It is often referred to as the Navel of the World, because of its associations with gestation and rebirth. The center is also the vehicle for the Sacred Thunderbolt of Illumination, carried or delivered by the bird ally, often the eagle or the hummingbird. The Center is often associated with the rainbow, and can be embodied in the Drum. Its counterpart is the Forge, where the thunderclap of the mallet shapes the initiate into new forms and potentialities. In many Cultures the first shaman is a smith, giver of measure and fire, and is therefore associated with Saturn, the God that measures the depths of the Universe.

In addition to the four geomagnetic corners, archaic knowledge recognized the transverse axes of the solstices and equinoxes and used those markers for its description of time as an eternal return. These transverse axes were also seen mirrored in the heavens by the Milky Way, the road in the sky through which journeyed the souls of the dead and of the ancestors, traversing in and out of the Middle World through passages at points in the horizon where the constellations met the rising or setting Sun during the Winter and Summer Solstices.

The Shaman therefore conceives of the World as a four-sided multi-dimensional structure, anchored at the "four corners" of the compass by "four pillars" which support the roof or "ridge pole" (also known as the tai chi among the Chinese). The Cosmos is often referred to as a house, or a tent, and spoken of as being "square" or "flat" not to imply a flat plane, but as a reference to the plane of the celestial equator. Archaic cultures also recognized the tilted plane of the ecliptic, the apparent path of the sun through the constellations, and referred to the relationship between the celestial equator and the ecliptic (set at an angle of approximately 23 degrees) as the "separation of the World Parents". The Myth of the "End of the World" so common throughout the world cultures is a reference to the transit of the key constellation of each World Era through changing areas in the sky due to the precession of the equinoxes. This mythology implies a thorough understanding on the part of the ancient astronomer-priests of the existence of the plane of the ecliptic at a very early stage in human history. The axis of rotation of the world around the "nail" star (Polaris in our age) is referred to variously as the "cosmic pillar" or World Mountain, or often as the World Tree or "ladder" which the shaman must climb in his ascent to the Upper World.

It is evident from overwhelming evidence world-wide, that all shamanic cultures excelled at astronomy. In most myths of origin, the first shaman is either a smith who fashions the heavens or the one entrusted with the measurement of the skies. The shaman is therefore fully capable of mapping and travelling throughout the Cosmos, because he has seen in vision and confirmed through his observation of the movement of the stars the multi-dimensional nature of the Cosmos.

The Web of Power

This initial education into the structure and design of the Cosmos, however, must be later abandoned for a surrender to the very same forces the initiate once attempted to control. It is in this dialectic between longing (for union with the Cosmos), desire ( for mastery and service), and surrender that the shaman finds mastery. Once mastery is achieved, the shaman becomes a hollow vessel for the mystical forces of Nature to act through.

The Shaman conceives of Reality as a vast web of interconnections, animated by the Sacred Power of the Divine. All that exists is alive and has spirit, and can therefore partake of the bounty as well as the suffering of the World. The web of power animates the Cosmos. Anybody or anything is capable of exercising this power. It is therefore axiomatic that all things are worthy of respect and care. What we do to others will ultimately affect us through the myriad interconnections which unite us into one single holographic whole.

It is the task of the Shaman to become aware of the Power in the World, for it is this power which is constantly at work, changing and transforming one thing into another. It speaks through its manifold manifestations, and can be encountered everywhere. Experience, therefore is not a burden to the shaman, but a crucible through which to understand the messages of Power. It acts through us and through all that is.

Ecstacy and the Eternal

The ordeals which the shaman endures as his or her vision is awakened are often painful, but the end result is a transformation of the individual from a profane entity into one that is sacred. To maintain this stature is arduous work, as the rules and norms of conduct of society and Cosmos must be faithfully adhered to. Failure to do so creates great danger. The shaman, however, cannot turn back, as his life carries him or her on into deeper and deeper layers of the cosmic vision he is now embodying. It is at this stage that the shaman becomes Healer, and Mythmaker as well.

For the master shaman, Time and Space have been suspended, as all times are subsumed into the Now and all places into the Here. In every detail of his experience, the shaman sees miracles and finds new worlds revealed. It is this ecstatic vision which is his greatest legacy, for it points the way not towards that which is, but toward that which can be. The material gives way to the eternal, the base to the enlightened, and thus meaning is achieved.