Shamanism: how were you "chosen"?

[SerpentSun]

Originally Posted by Rozie

@Fremen...regarding the authenticity, that is a factor. I cannot have a teacher who is a real person. Sure, I can compare and contrast and learn bits and pieces from someone. I certainly don't dismiss them, but I am not permitted to follow any path besides my own.

When I learned Astrology, of course I had to study and I did take classes for a bit, but then I was done. Because, I can't have another teacher, just a short course on technique.

I used to read all the time and anything that was interesting but some things were hidden from me. I simply didn't run across obvious things that I should have known about. That was for a reason. I wasn't meant to be influenced by whatever it was.

That is an issue, being influenced by an idea or belief before one is ready to be taught.

Regarding what SerpentSun said about cartoons and video games and fiction and stories, they all have meaning and in my case are integral to my work. This culture is my culture. A shaman works with their culture.

My culture is not about trees and leaves and stones and crystals. It is about TV and video games and toys and generational fads. Someone might think that is 'weird' or 'wrong' but it isn't. It makes sense. The system I use is very sophisticated but what I do might seem absurd to someone else. It is not.

For most of my life I was normal until I got the knock on the door. Prior to that I did stuff. I didn't know why, but I would do what seemed right. I noticed some strange things, but I would shrug it off as 'who knows, and who cares'.....

Everybody has their ways, and no way is better or more correct then another. What matters is results. I get excellent results but I had to work hard to be able to master that. What I do isn't for everybody. My way works with certain people and they might be sent in my direction, but other people need a different kind of help. I don't care either way what someone does but I don't like to be insulted. That happens a bit too often. I don't expect respect but disrespect is not acceptable.

I respect everybody. I think everybody has a special talent. I may not be interested, but I respect them.

I'm always seeking a teacher, but I haven't found one yet.

Perhaps I'm also meant to be self-taught.

I find most of this modern culture to be horrifying, to say the least. I prefer the trees and leaves and stones. But I'm also a product of my environment, and I would probably die without a daily dose of anime and Alice In Chains. That's why I learned to make primitive batteries and hand-crank generators.

Sometimes I wish I was a "normal" person with a "better" life, but then I realize I simply wouldn't be me. Everything I am and all I experience is for a reason. Even the abuse, bullying, disrespect, and persecution. Especially those things. Which there has certainly been a lot of, but hey, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

No pain, no gain.

Little mottos like that keep me alive.

[Rozie]

@Serpentsun...Keep up the good work..

BTW...I do have guides who are snakes. I call them the S brothers. They talk with essy ssssoundsss....Yikes!!. They were deceitful and they would tell me the truth about thingssss. At that point I fell for it and I thought they were helpful, but they were kind of sssinissster.

I don't really talk to my guides much. I like to keep things pretty silent but I am aware of who is around, or what kind of help I am getting for the day.

They aren't really trussstworthy. They are still friends and they have their uses but I am wary when I sense their presence. That would be now.

[SerpentSun]

Originally Posted by Rozie

@Serpentsun...Keep up the good work..

BTW...I do have guides who are snakes. I call them the S brothers. They talk with essy ssssoundsss....Yikes!!. They were deceitful and they would tell me the truth about thingssss. At that point I fell for it and I thought they were helpful, but they were kind of sssinissster.

I don't really talk to my guides much. I like to keep things pretty silent but I am aware of who is around, or what kind of help I am getting for the day.

They aren't really trussstworthy. They are still friends and they have their uses but I am wary when I sense their presence. That would be now.

Thanks....:) Few folks understand the things I do, let alone congratulate me.

Like many before me have said, there are many different spiritual paths in life, none more "special" than the other. Some seem to be ancient (perhaps even primordial) archetypes, such as the shaman or healer. Some I don't really understand just yet, like crystal, indigo, and star children. Are they from like another planet or something? Haha I really don't understand ANY of it.

I do definitely agree that labels can be confining and misleading. Everything is just a spectrum, there are no clear boundaries. Yet at the same time, I'm a very organized person, and labels help to organize information. Honestly, I could just be schizophrenic or something for all I know. But my experiences closely resemble what is labelled "shamanic crisis" or "initiatiatory sickness", and that makes me feel better about life than the label of mental illness does.

And by simply feeling better about life, my life has indeed improved.

Kinda funny how that works.

What kind of snakes do your guides appear as, if you don't mind me asking? Somehow I feel that has symbolic significance. Snakes can indeed be sinister, yet also affectionate in their own way, and they are an ancient race with a very different perception of reality. We really can learn a lot from them.

And they got the cutest little snakey faces!

[Rozie]

The snake is symbolically about the kundalini energy...If you have sudden kundalini crisis type of experience it is brutal.

I did have that type of thing and it was horrifying at the time but I had a lot of help to get through it and keep my sanity.

The way it was explained to me was that I had the symptoms of crazy, but I wasn't, though I could be if I didn't do the work. The work was very demanding. I was very motivated to have a rational mind. I wasn't seeking enlightenment that I recall. It was my time.

We all do things differently but I have the Ess Brothers. They don't make an appearance often but I am aware of that energy today.

My ways are unique. I have many guides and levels.....The Ess brothers are low level guides and I think they show up at times of transformation.

It is kind of like school..You are in grammar school and you work your way up to the top grade where you are the big shot....you graduate and you aren't done, because then you go onto the next school but then you are a little pipsqueak again, on the bottom of the totem pole...the snake is about clearing the energy so the ladder can be climbed, in a sense. They are low, but they serve a purpose. The snake symbolism is about spiritual growth, which isn't easy.

[SaturninePluto]

Originally Posted by Crystal Ambassador

SaturninePluto and SerpentSun, thank you both for sharing your stories. They sound much more intense than my "initiation" :P
It's interesting to hear how different the calling can be for people; some can by an emotional tempering, some things like fires and lightning, others just a clear feeling. It's nice to hear the different experiences.

And yes, SaturninePluto, I've also noticed a lack of shamanism-focused threads. I'd like to make more of them since there seem to be a decent number of practitioners wandering around.

Hi Crystal Ambassador,

Response to this is late due to life stuff, all that jazz, but figured I'd at least let you know I read your quoted message, and respond.

My personal calling (if you would call it that) was a pretty confusing experience. My brother was or claimed to be levitated by the entity in the house. He also saw something there at 8 years old. He is my family and I have no doubt he is being honest with me. So where I stand on the situation is I was communicating or trying to speak with God and got responses, but am not completely certain if the entity in regards to that experience and situation was actually god, and for all I know could have been the presence there trying to scare everyone there. The house was seriously weird.
It affected most everyone in it in different ways. I was able to astral project there. I don't like to randomly astral project. Especially since I have such a hard time actually trying to do it. I don't bother with it much these days. Another brother of mine was able to astral project there too. I spoke with him about it later on after leaving the place and the essential jist of it is we actually both astral projected the same night and saw each other in the same area. He came to me the morning after and was like. Dude I was able to astral project did you go down stairs anytime last night? I told him no unless I was actually sleep walking.. He told me he saw me, I remembered seeing him. I told him I know where you're going with this and yeah I projected as well.

The house had a darker presence. I feel entities have different personalities like us people themselves, there are different levels of characteristics for positive or less positive entities imo. The same being who levitated and scared one of my brothers ( he knew what it looked like, not something that looks harmless..) is probably the same thing that when I almost fell down the stairs, levitated me and let me safely down at the bottom of the stairs one morning. I don't like things that mess with people so. Anyone. Entities shouldn't mess around with things. They need to be told they don't have permission. Irregardless of whether they are percieved as good or bad.

Talking about Shamanism is more helpful than sitting in silence and dealing with a spiritual path that seriously has beliefs in negative spirits. I believe there can be both good and bad spirits, energies out there. I also believe people in general should be able to communicate with other people. Shamanism isn't the only spiritual walk with difficulties at least not to me. Many paths can be difficult, christianity, wicca, budhism. I also feel people have the right to not accept a path or viewpoint they don't feel comfortable with- calling or not.

Talking is helpful, people normally decide for themselves, but there isn't too much harm in trying to talk things through in an attempt for some understanding.

I also believe a Christian, catholic etc can be called to do what they must do.

I don't believe callings are inclined towards one certain path in itself.

A few rambling thoughts. :)

Glad I am feeling better today.

[Crystal Ambassador]

Sorry for the delays, SaturninePluto. Thank you for replying and sharing your initiation. It's interesting to hear you and your brother both had spiritual experiences; it seems to be becoming more common for siblings to exhibit spiritual leanings, rather than just one child. I find a lot of what you say is what I agree with as well, and like that you acknowledge the validity and value of religions. I'm also glad you're feeling better.

[ocean]

Hi everyone,

Thank you Crystal Ambassador for starting this thread! I havent read everything but so many of your experiences resonated with me...

I'm not a "shaman" but I have started working with plant medicines and have stepped into a guide role quite quickly. It felt very natural. My spirtual journey started very much as an explosion that I wasnt prepared for. I didnt have a choice, and there was no going back...

Rozie, I really wanted to comment directly on what you wrote about being self taught. I have had this experience completely. I dip in and out of teachers, but none last a very long time. Not because I think they're bad; but because my intuition tells me what I need to learn from them, and then I have to go my own way. I've basically learned most of what I teach in Yoga through simply practicing it and getting internal teachings on the mat. Same for breathing techniques and energy work. I learn bits interally, do research, get validated, put some pieces together, get taught more internally.

I'm learning about five elements Chinese medicine at the moment, and of course there's a huge body of knowledge that I'm dipping into.. But the instinct to dip in came very much as intuition, and I will also get the intuiition about when to stop researching and just practice it.

Thank you for writing what you did. I don't know my guides personally, but I'm constantly told that there are a considerable number around me. I resist asking them for help most of the time... not sure why! I feel like my relationship is mostly with the Source, and now with the spirits of the plants I work with. They have been some of my biggest teachers, but sometimes they just connect me to the Source directly. Or at least that's always how I interpreted it...

[LiberatedLotus]

Never been confirmed, however, I am sure that I had a shamanic calling. That it's an integral part of my being.

I've always known my purpose in this lifetime to elevate human consciousness. Heal beings on every platform. That every challenge, obstacle, and trauma were to be conquered and then given back to the universe as a source of light.

Almost 5 years ago I had a traumatizing near death experience. I almost choked to death, experienced a walk-in demon entity inhabit my being, and experienced the Dark Night Of The Soul. For next 6 months I was entrenched in the darkness. Absolute hell. I wanted to commit the most gruesome things imaginable. I became this black hole. I was completely consumed. I was completely isolated, the world felt legions away.

After almost killing myself, getting hospitalized, or being incarcerated multiple times. I came to the realization this was not the end, but the beginning. I was meant to overcome this. Through a holistic approach.

I wanted nothing to do with modern / mainstream pharmaceutical drugs. I pondered the option, counseling, etc. I researched relentlessly. It all just started piecing together: the need to heal body, heart, mind, and soul. Started to understand the interconnectedness of these aspects & in relation to the universe. Researched all medicinal herbs, remedies, forms of exercising & yoga, importance of biorythms, of proper hygiene. The importance of purifying the body, heart, mind, and soul.

In that experience I learned how to achieve immortality in the sense of the infinite potential of the body, heart, mind, and soul. I completely transformed my being. It has been my guide in the Universe. It taught me many things about our Divine nature.

[TheGlow]

Originally Posted by Wyaunagh

there seem to be many different definitions of shamanism. I agree that the term 'shaman' is linked to specific cultural experiences, which is one of the reasons I do not apply the term to myself.
My ancestors are for Pre-Saxon Britton. Their experience is not the same as the experience with spirituality on this side of the world. That being said. There are some strong parallels between shamanism and other earth based spiritualities.
The early Brittons were Celts and their spirituality was strongly connected to the earth- both as a physical place and in a spiritual sense through deities and the Fearie realms.
As far as being "called" to ones spirituality, I have had may share of dramatic experiences in my life, but i do not feel that any of them are how I was called. I feel I was called the first time i was contacted by one of my guides. That first interaction, with a being i hadn't even belied could exist before that, is what really changed things for me.

shaman is actually a Russian word for their traditional healers.
It isnt native american if that is what you two are implying by not using it.

Just thought I would mention that

[sentient]

Originally Posted by norseman

It ought to be remembered that shamanic practices were common right across Eurasia south of the glacier line in the last Ice Age. American shamanism came from that line. There are some paths using shamanic practices, the commonest one being the Cunning Folk to commune with the ancestors in UK and Northern Europe. It is a mistake to attach a cultural implication since it was wide-spread to many cultures.
One pointer to shamanic practices in the UK come from excavations of Star Carr in North. Yorks. This was a settlement dated at around 10000 BC BEFORE Britain became an island. It was built on marshy land at the confluence of several rivers. The nature of the land preserved the remains of the settlement. One major find there consisted of 12 deer skull headresses [ below ] In the 19 century, Victorian explorers found the same headresses being used by shaman in Siberia.

Star Carr excavation
http://i282.photobucket.com/albums/k...psidupfdij.png

Hi norseman,
As you already mentioned - the earliest form of ‘Shamanism’ was practiced by the hunter-gathers of the Mammoth Steppe:
https://img00.deviantart.net/92f8/i/...28-dao9kr9.jpg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammoth_steppe

The remains of the 7,000-year-old caveman from the mountains of north-west Spain shows that:

He also shared a common ancestor with people who inhabited the Upper Palaeolithic site of Mal'ta, near Lake Baikal, Siberia, more than 20,000 years ago.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencete...an-traits.html

During the Mesolithic era (prior to the European hunter-gatherers being slowly replaced by new migrant farmers from the Near East and prior to the Indo-European invasions), this early hunter-gatherer population had extended to Doggerland and further inland UK. Hence the similarity of the headdress with Siberians, I assume.
https://naturalishistoria.files.word...ature-2008.jpg


Out of those European Natives – only Saami (and other Finno-Ugric) populations practiced Shamanism till relatively recently, until the witch-hunts, when Shamen were persecuted. I am sure every Saami has a known Shaman on their family tree.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sami_shamanism

The word "shaman" probably originates from the Tungusic Evenki language of North Asia. According to ethnolinguist Juha Janhunen, "the word is attested in all of the Tungusic idioms" such as Negidal, Lamut, Udehe/Orochi, Nanai, Ilcha, Orok, Manchu and Ulcha, and "nothing seems to contradict the assumption that the meaning 'shaman' also derives from Proto-Tungusic" and may have roots that extend back in time at least two millennia.

Saami (& other Finno-Ugric) Shamanic heritage can be related to Siberian influences (shared similarities) –since we are a Native Euro – Native Siberian (to a certain extent) mix populations.


I am writing this history, because I don’t see our deep Ancestral and Cultural Heritage stemming from “New Age”, but it seems nowadays any mention of 'Shamanic cultures' gets automatically regarded by anti-newage-script-warriors as fake, fraudulent, plastic, shame-on native wannabeeism.


Cannot speak for other Shamanic cultures or practices, so the Shamanic calling in my books comes from Awakening to ‘Non-Duality’, which is similar to near-death-experiences.
After all the Axis Mundi – the World Pole as a symbol of the ‘Centre of Centrelessness’ is thus a way to orient the mind-space awareness within the Non-Dual “Oneness” Reality.
Empowerment that follows is a bit culture specific imo.
And not every Shaman was a healer either, but had other tasks to perform also.

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