I know this post is old, however it is still linked in the beginner topic so I thought I would contribute.
To any who are considering a path in shamanism, I would have to say that the best route in, is rather simply - experience. Many people (including myself in the past) are confused about shamanism and similar roles in indigenous societies. The truth is one can have spirit guides, go on shamanic journeys to the upper and lower worlds, heal the sick etc - all without actually being a shaman. Each shaman tends to take on a specific role, e.g. you might be the healer for your family and friends - or a small village somewhere away from modern civilization. You might watch over the dead, helping keep away angry spirits - leading them to their proper resting place, and helping guide newly dead along so that they do not remain trapped far away from their true home.
If there is something in particular that interests you about shamanism, research that, either through books or direct experience. There is no "correct" path, just learn what you want. Some say that to become a shaman you must first go through extraordinary illness or a terrible near death experience, and while I agree with this - I say there is no harm (and in fact, great benefit) in learning the methods regardless. Shaman is just an official role, the methods can be carried out by anyone, but if you have been chosen as a shaman, it is your life's duty.
If you're unsure of what to begin with, I'd suggest learning about the environment around you. Shamans have a great deal of knowledge about nature, particularly the nature that surrounds their home. Learn what animals live in your area, learn what plants can be eaten if you are out and about - and what plants are poisonous and dangerous. Find any entheogenic plants that are native to your area, procure some, experiment with using sub-experiential doses of them with different routes of administration - find the best and try regular doses. Find game animals, such as deer, and learn what plants they eat in your area - this would be useful should you ever need food, as you would know where to find the deer.
Then there is communicating with the spirits, through journeying. I suggest finding a method that works for you, but in my experience simply trying to "journey" with no external stimulus will result only in your imagination coming to life, no real experience. For a real journey you will need to induce an intense trance. For your first experiences I would recommend accomplishing this without entheogens as it allows you to learn a little about how to remain in control while journeying - without delving in too deep. Fast and meditate daily for long hours, you will soon be able to journey during meditation. If you are looking to dive further still then you can deprive yourself of sleep, just make sure to maintain a healthy lifestyle to allow occasional sleep or food deprivation as this could otherwise take a very serious toll on your health.
Next up is journeying with entheogens, once you have taken several journeys you will begin to understand the upper and lower worlds, their denizens, and how you can interact with them. There are three types of entheogen that can improve a journey: Psychedelics, dissociatives and deliriants - the three hallucinogens. Of the three, deliriants are rather risky, as they can produce life-like hallucinations in front of you, and convince you to do dangerous things - I would avoid them at all costs unless under the protection of an experienced user of such things (who is sober at the time). Natural deliriants include Datura, Nutmeg and high doses of Tobacco. Synthetic deliriants include Diphenhydramine (Benadryl). Dissociatives remove some of the filters of the mind, allowing for direct access to the source, and for easier travel in the lower and upper worlds - but it can be a very strange experience, and unfortunately there are not as many natural dissociatives as there are deliriants or psychedelics. Natural dissociatives include Salvia Divinorum and Amanita Muscaria (Fly Agaric, e.g. the classic red and white toadstool). Synthetic dissociatives include DXM, PCP, Ketamine (Warning: Ketamine has serious physical health risks if taken regularly). Then finally there are psychedelics, these are the original tool of the shaman, and will often procure the best results with the least (if any) risk. The only negative of psychedelics is that at times they can be tough to work with, as each plant has a mind of it's own. Natural psychedelics include Psilocybe Mushrooms (The typical "magic mushrooms"), Ayahuasca (A combination brew of an MAOI-A inhibiting vine and a plant containing DMT), Peyote/San Pedro/etc (Any mescaline containing cactus). Synthetic psychedelics include LSD, the 2C-* series, the DO* series, AMT, DPT, DiPT, etc.
Once you have mastered journeying, you must find out how to tell if someone is sick and needs healing. For some this comes naturally, for others this involves auras, physical symptoms, hypnosis, or any method of the practitioners choice. Once you have found sickness, you can treat it via a journey, in most cases this sickness is caused by damage to - or misplacement of part of their soul, which must be found and returned to their body in proper condition. There are however other things that can cause their illness - in some cases it is simply a physical ailment which can be treated by medicinal herbs or regular medication, in other cases it could be that a spirit is unable to move on and has attached itself to the person in question - in which case the proper action would be to lead it on to it's rightful place so that it no longer bothers the person in question.
Really shamanism is such a broad field that where you go with it and what you believe regarding it is up to you, read up as much as possible, get to know your environment, and if in doubt - find another shaman and learn from them, however I would advise not to seek an "urban shaman", simply because while this makes them no less of a practitioner than you or anyone else - there are a large number of fraudsters, which you are unlikely to find if looking into indigenous societies such as the tribes of the Amazon.
Hope my post helps at least one person. (IMG:
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This post has been edited by Royaltramp: Nov 19 2010, 08:02 AM
The art of the Shaman
Aug 19 2005, 12:07 PM
