People in the Amazon rainforest or maybe even in mountains in Africa have heard of the spiritual practices of Shamanism, but what about you? Shamanism is a spiritual practice that works with the environment and gives you a sense of relevance in your life today.
Before the gods
Shamanism is one of the oldest spiritual practices that exists. It has been around for over 30,000 years and is dated back even longer than that. It was once called animism which is predated to other religions and was believed to be there before any modern religion or god was known.
Some believe that animism was developed because of the relatives that have died in ancient tribes and came to the dreams. The dreams were there to help the people understand the human soul and it developed into different beliefs such as the belief in the moon, stars, storms, and other things.
Shamanism is a set of believes that have changed over time. The tribe healer was the shaman and could communicate with the spirits and give balance to the people.
When balance was restored, the shaman could heal people that were sick and bring nature into balance.
Spirit
In order to restore the balance, the shaman would work with the spirits and would do different things with the universe. They would use all of the materials that the universe gave them.
Sufis were known as the divine and had energy such as psychics, but the shaman was there before the Sufis and knew the spirits. The shamans were able to talk to the spirit world and to have change.
Here are some things the shaman could do:
- Fast
- Breathwork
- Sweat lodges
- Music
- Drumming
- Using plants
- Isolating
All of these rituals changed the energies around them and allowed them to travel beyond the material world.
Three Spirit Worlds
The shaman would be able to enter a different state of mind during their rituals and this would allow them to travel to different dimensions. They would talk to their spirit guides or their spirit animals.
Their spirit guides were those that would teach them and help them on their path. They would give them understanding and balance when they did not understand what was going on in the physical world.
The spirit animals would be there to help the shaman and to protect them. They would reconnect their deep spirit parts and would help to travel with them in the lower, middle, and upper worlds.
Lower World
The lower world was where evil existed. This was a world where the shaman could communicate with nature and talk to things such as the river and the mountains.
When the shaman traveled and meditate through different planes, they could do special things such as swim at the bottom of the ocean or fly through the jungle. The spirit animals helped them in this world.
Middle World
The middle world was where the shaman would begin their journey. They would communicate with the spirits of the moon, animals, and people.
Traveling there was like being in the regular world and would allow the shaman to talk to the deceased who had crossed over. This was not an evil or a good world and was a place where spirits would not be taken seriously. This was the place of the mind and the ego.
Upper World
The upper world was a place that was like a dream. It was different than the world and the earth.
Being in the upper world was a place where you could find your true self and where you would be accompanied by spiritual teachers and guides that would help to bring you knowledge and healing.
This was a place where the animals were like people and the superconscious mind took place.
Shamanic Healing
Shamanic healing is a place of rebirth and a place where sickness and pain could be healed. It was believed that sickness came from three places:
- Fear
- Disharmony
- Soul Loss
Fear is one of the common reasons that people become sick. Based on anger, jealousy, hurt, and insecurity is fear, and this is where most sicknesses come from. There is a connection between mental health and physical health.
When there is disharmony then the balance in your life is changed and this can cause mental and physical sickness. There has to be balanced to be healthy.
Soul loss can be caused by disharmony and can happen when something traumatic happens. This can result in the feelings of being empty and being sick and sad.
Shamanic healing is there to help to heal those that have these kinds of illnesses. This kind of healing is where the shaman reaches out to the spirit world and asks for there to be healing. The shaman can restore balance and heal the body.
Integrate
The goal of the shaman is to bring balance to all the things that he comes across. He wants to see people survive.
It is believed that there is a shamanic spirit in everyone and that everyone is there to bring spiritual healing on their journey. The inner shaman can be found when you learn to meditate and connect to the spirit world. Learn to open up your conscious mind of the shaman consciousness and embrace the idea of healing yourself and others.