Shamanism
Shamanism is any practice where a person journeys into an unseen world, or spirit world, and returns with unique knowledge. Shamans also sometimes use their powers to influence and manipulate the seen world, such as luring prey into traps, or inflicting harm upon their distant enemies.
Most often in psychedelic communities, shamans will use the transformative powers of psychedelic plant medicines to venture into the unseen spirit world and return with healing magic, or knowledge of the future.
Shamanism is a highly diverse practice and the specifics will vary depending on the culture in which it occurs. It often goes hand-in-hand with animistic belief systems, where every part of our world has an inner life or spirit, and shamans are capable of venturing into the hidden world of interrelationships between these beings.
Bufo Deaths & Fraud Involving Toad “Shamans” Octavio Rettig & Gerry Sandoval
A recent open letter has shed light on a history of abusive and dangerous behaviors by 5-MeO-DMT practitioners Octavio Rettig and Gerry Sandoval. Calling out fake shamans in the entheogenic community will help save lives.
Read MoreWhat Is Shamanic Sound Healing?
Music and sound are powerful medicines. The use of sound for healing has a long and varied history. Long before the discovery of modern medical equipment and drugs, ancient civilizations used different techniques to heal various ailments, and one of those techniques was the use of sound. In ancient Egypt, for example, around 4000 BC,…
Read MoreSex, Sacred Medicine & the Psychedelic Patriarchy
Sexual assault and misconduct among shamans has long plagued the plant medicine shamanism community, resulting in prolonged physical and emotional trauma for ceremony participants, rather than healing. But is it “wrong” for a shaman to sleep with a ceremony participant? When do accepted cultural behaviors transgress into sexual addiction and predation? And is it all…
Read MoreShamanism, Racism & Cultural Appropriation in a Multicultural World
The worldwide expansion of sacred plant medicine ceremonies beyond their cultural boundaries has been coined a “global shamanic revival”. Increasing the numbers of Westerners traveling to the Amazon, Central America, and Africa to participate in tribal ceremonies, initiations, and festivals. This heightened interest in indigenous culture has fueled an indigenous cultural renaissance in the Amazon…
Read MoreThe Challenges of Becoming a Woman Pajé (Shaman)
The indigenous community has long been a male-dominated society. With the title of pajé or shamans only for the males, and the housework and child-bearing for the females. But unlike the world we live in, where we can now vote for the next president and be elected president without much complain from our male counterparts. For…
Read MoreWe Need to Talk About Your Issues with Shamanism, Ayahuasca & Money
We need to talk to you about your money issues around ayahuasca, sacred plant medicines and spirituality… Yes, I said YOUR money issues. Did I trigger something? Ya, I know it’s a controversial topic that gives enough people hulk rage to send me offensive emails, as well as nicely worded emails admonishing me for my…
Read MoreSoul Retrieval Exercises for Shamanic Healing
Have you ever experienced being caught up in a traumatic situation? Do you feel like you were never the same right after the incident? Then you are probably experiencing what is called a soul loss. In the shamanic worldview, soul loss occurs as a result of a traumatic event or stress. In the face of…
Read MoreShamanic Soul Retrieval: What Is It & How Does It Work
Feeling stuck? Or maybe you feel like some part of you is missing? Or that you have not felt fully yourself ever since that tragic experience occurred, that you wish never happened? Try as we might, all of us, at some point in our lives will be hurt by people, circumstances, and other forces that…
Read MoreHow Lucid Dreaming Can Enhance Your Ayahuasca Visions
Anyone who has experienced lucid dreams and plant medicine ceremonies will notice the similarities and differences between the dream state, and shamanic visions. You can have a lot of similar experiences in each state, though those experiences tend to feel much stronger in the visionary state. But the dreamstate and visionary state has key distinctions,…
Read MoreThe Beginner’s Guide to Healing with Peyote
What is Peyote? Lophophora williamsii also known as peyote is a small, flowering, spineless cactus that is native to North America. It grows as far north as Southern Texas in the United States, where it is found specifically, in portions of the Rio Grande Valley, and as far south as San Luis Potosi in Mexico.…
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