Shamanism
OVERVIEW
Shamanism is a religious phenomenon centered on the shaman, a person believed to achieve various powers through trance or ecstatic religious experience. Although shamans’ repertoires vary from one culture to the next, they are typically thought to have the ability to heal the sick, to communicate with the otherworld, and often to escort the souls of the dead to that otherworld. Shamans are genuinely concerned for the world in which we live and seek their best to protect and preserve it.
Unfortunately, there is little consensus among researchers, scholars, or laypersons as to exactly what a shaman is &/or does, and some definitions are somewhat culturally biased.
The following items somewhat define a shaman:
- a part time religious specialist who has unique power acquired through her or his own initiative; such individuals are thought to possess exceptional abilities to deal with supernatural beings and powers.
- part time religious specialists who are thought to have supernatural powers by virtue of birth, training, or inspiration. These powers are used for healing, divining, and telling fortune’s during times of stress, usually in exchange for gifts or fees.
- part-time religious figures who mediate between ordinary people and religious entities. Shaman is a general term encompassing curers ("witch doctors"), mediums, spiritualists, astrologers, palm readers, and other diviners.
Shamanism covers an assortment of beliefs and practices claiming the ability to travel to the pathway between heaven and earth for the purpose of spiritual contacts. A shaman is a healer who moves into an altered state of consciousness to access a hidden reality in the spirit world for purposes of bringing back healing, power, and information. Shamanism is considered to be of the occult. Their methods are similar to other occult practices and beliefs such as channeling and the use of spirits coming in the form of animals (called power animals and shape shifters). It is claimed that the practitioner takes on those shapes himself.
Shamanism, almost universally, is the chosen religion of isolated cultures such as Indian tribes and aboriginal people all over the World. It generally is a practice that involves a practitioner achieving altered states of consciousness which enable him/her to perceive and interact with a spirit world and channel these transcendental energies back into this world. These are the two primary tasks of the shaman: to heal, and to gain information from the spirit world. To do this, the shaman makes friends with the spirits and becomes, essentially, the tribe’s ambassador to the spirit world.
The principal functions of the Siberian shaman are guiding the dead to the afterworld, acting as a medium between the living and the dead, and finding out from the mystical beings what is ailing a patient or what the right medicine is. some religious functionaries give guidance by taking in a spirit, that is, rather than going to the spirits, the spirits come to them. This is the case for much of the shamanism in China and Japan where shamans typically sing songs and go into a trance as a way of being temporarily inhabited or possessed.
The techniques used have withstood the test of time and are amazingly similar around the world, despite geographic and cultural differences among those practicing this mode of healing. Some of the techniques include soul retrieval where the shaman brings back an individual's lost soul parts, and power animal retrieval, where the shaman brings back a spiritual guardian, usually in the form of a power animal to help restore power to an individual. The practice of shamanism has been found in native Australia, New Zealand, Central and Northern Asia, Eastern and Northern Europe, North and South America and Africa.
Shamanic cultures also consistently teach that the most valuable training a shaman receives is not from other people–not even other shamans—but from the spirits themselves. The spirits teach shamans “power songs” and other information they will need to be effective shamans,such as:
- going into a trance state. During the trance the shaman's soul leaves her/his body and ascends to the sky or descends to the underworld in order to communicate with a variety of mystical beings (gods, spirits, demons and ghosts of the dead ).
It is likely as old as the most primitive human societies and should therefore be thought of as the eldest of all human religions. Some say it is the oldest form of healing on the planet, dating back approximately thirty thousand years. It has been found in many indigenous cultures in North and South America, Australia, New Zealand, Central and Northern Asia, Eastern and Northern Europe and Africa.
Of the three monotheistic religions, it is the latest—Islam—in which the shamanic elements are weakest,
CENTRAL ORGANIZATION
There is no central organization to Shamanism. Usually the Shaman, sometimes with the assistance of one or more understudies ,solely practices within his own society. A shaman is held in great esteem by those in his group.
CREATIONIST BELIEF
Creationist beliefs often vary from culture to culture. Generally, the most prominent Shamanistic belief in Creation can be generally stated as follows:
The first earth was lost in the depths of the primal ocean. The earth was under water. Then the Creator created the first bird and ordered it to dive to the bottom of the ocean. It dove, but came back empty twice. Finally, it extracted the earth and brought it back in its beak. From that earth the Creator created the big earth. But that big earth was again sinking into the depth of the primal ocean. Then he put the earth in his palms, took a pinch of clay from it, and created the second earth. He loaded that earth on a back of a turtle.
In North America they generally believe that the earth was flat, there were no hills, no mountains. And the ocean was flat. All animals, all birds, all insects, and all plants were created. All birds, all animals, all insects, and all fish were all happy. And man was created the last. This man was the only one who was not happy. Everyone was content except this man.
They lived for a long time. Many thousands of years passed. Man is still not happy. He curses the heaven and the earth, the sun, and the moon, and the Creator. And then the Creator has sent a thought from the depth of the universe to the first mammoth and the first snake in order to ask what this first man wants.
That first man still had four legs. The giant mammoth, who was holding the sky with his back, and the first snake approached the first man and asked him, “What do you want, you worm, earthly man? Why are you grumbling and whining?" Then, he raised one paw, looked at him and said, "Everything is flat! The earth is flat, the ocean is flat. I’m bored to death! That’s why I’m whining." Then the mammoth started digging the earth with his trunk. Thus the mountains formed. The snake crawled in between them — thus the rivers formed. And no river flows straight, all rivers zigzag like snakes.
Ten more thousand years passed. All the animals, all the birds, all fish, all insects are happy. But man is not happy. He’s cursing the Creator. Then from the depths of the universe, the Creator descended on earth. He convened all earthly creatures to discuss all earthly matters, including the fate of the first man. Back at these wonderful times, the first moose was running as fast as a horse along the Lake Baikal. And all of a sudden a Codfish dives out of the water, "Where are you going, Horned Moose?" Then the Moose stopped and said, "I’m running to the meeting of all living creatures." "You are late!" says Codfish. "I’ve just returned from there. Everything has been decided." Then the Moose stopped and asked, "So what have you decided to do with this man who is always grumbling?" Codfish hit the water with his fin and said, "It’s not good at all. Before, he had four legs, so he could catch some animal and eat it. But they have made him of two legs. His front legs were bent like this, they became hands. His ears do not hear well now, nor can he see or smell well. Not good at all..."
Then the Moose asked, "Well, you've taken everything away from him, what have you given him instead?" Codfish hit the water with his fin and says, "We gave him intelligence. We don’t really know what it is though. The Creator advised this." At this point, the Moose began crying. Back then, the Moose had four eyes, two on the top and two below. The Moose was crying and crying, and cried his two upper eyes away. Now there’s just a little dimple above his eyes. As he was sobbing, the Moose said, "Oh, living creatures. You must know. Now there won’t be peace for a bird in the sky from this man. Not even a swimming fish will have peace from this man. Not even a running animal will have peace from this man."
Among the peoples of northern Asia, the universe is full of heavenly bodies peopled by spiritual beings. The world is disk-shaped—saucer like—and includes several planes of existence. The Earth, or Central World, stands in water held on the back of a colossal creature that may be a turtle, a huge fish, a bull, or a mammoth. The movement of this animal causes earthquakes. The Central World is surrounded by an immense belt that connects it to the Lower World through an umbilicus of sorts; it connects to the Upper World by the Pillar of the World.
The Upper World consists of three or more strata. On the navel of the Earth stands the Cosmic Tree, which reaches up to the dwelling of the upper gods. The Lower World, Central World, and Upper World are all inhabited by spirit-beings. Fire is also personified, as is the Earth itself. Such personifications are represented in idols as well. Humans are thought to have a body, a soul, or even several souls. Among these may be a mirror soul, which can be seen when looking into water, and a shadow soul, which is visible when the sun is shining.
VISION OF GOD
Shaman believe that everywhere in the World there are good and bad spirits that exist. The most benevolent and powerful is the “Great Spirit” whom Shaman generally believe that is GOD.
Shaman generally believe that the Great Spirit supports the world and the weather and all life on earth, it is a spirit so mighty that its utterance to mankind is not through common words, but by storm and snow and rain and the fury of the sea and all forces of nature that men fear.
DENOMINATIONS
Shamans exist in almost all parts of the globe: Asia (northern, central, east, southeast), Tibet, Oceania, North and South America, and central Europe, Nepalese, people, Hungarians, and Swedes. Greek, Malaysia and many African localities, among others. Below is a listing of some and their beliefs:
NATIVE NORTH AMERICANS (Subarctic)
At the core of Native American religious systems lay belief in a primary holy force. For the Sioux it was wakan; for the Algonquin, orenda. Other tribes gave it other names. But shamans throughout the continent agreed that a holy force held all things together. North American Indian life largely revolved around this force. It made nature a source of benevolent influences that on occasion turned severe. Perhaps the key goal of most American Indians was to keep harmony with such holy natural power, to move with its cosmic pulse. Harmony was the way to fertility of both tribe and nature, to success in both gathering & hunting, to a full life. By contrast, disharmony led to disaster: ruined crops, no game or fish, sickness, etc. American Indians
Among many American Indian peoples shamanism constitutes the most important aspect of the religious life. The shaman is characterized by supernatural power acquired as the result of a direct personal experience. Whether this power is obtained spontaneously or after a voluntary vision quest, the future shaman has to undergo certain initiatory trials. In general, shamans in these groups utilize their power in such a way as to affect the whole society. The shaman’s principal function is healing, but important roles may also exist in other magical-religious rites related to communal hunting, secret societies, or mystical movements such as the Ghost Dance.
North and South American shamans, like all their fellows, claim to control the weather, know the future, are able to expose the perpetrators of thefts, and so on. A shaman enjoys considerable prestige and authority as a healer, as the intermediary between humans and the gods or spirits, and, in certain regions, as the guide of souls of the dead to their new abode. They also guarantee that ritual observances are properly conducted, defend the tribe against evil spirits and sorcery, point out places for fruitful hunting and fishing, increase wildlife, and ease childbirth. South American shamans can also fill the role of sorcerer; they can, for example, become animals and drink the blood of their enemies.
It is probable that a certain form of shamanism was diffused on the two American continents with the first waves of immigrants from Asia; later contacts between northern Asia and North America made Asian influence possible well after the penetration of the first immigrants.
NATIVE NORTH AMERICANS (Arctic)
The most general Inuit religious conception was "Sila," described by the Alaskan Inuit shaman Najagneq as a great spirit, supporting the world and the weather and all life on earth, a spirit so mighty that his utterance to mankind is not through common words, but by storm and snow and rain and the fury of the sea; all the forces of nature that men fear.
However, Sila also could express himself gently, by sunlight or calm of the sea. The Inuit shaman mediated between Sila and the nation. According to another Inuit shaman, Igjugarjuk, a shamn sought "true wisdom", which only could be learned.
They had hidden powers to chose the people to whom they would reveal themselves. Such revelations often came in dreams or visions. The Inuit shaman's way to power is through an initiatory ordeal that often has had a death-resurrection motif.
AFRICA
The African religious working definition of shamans (individuals who wield recognized supernatural powers for socially approved ends and have the capacity to enter culturally acknowledged trance states at will) is the diviner, individuals who become filled by a spirit that reads omens, interprets movements of sacred animals, etc., and who can find lost articles, identify thieves, recognize witches, and so on. Common divinatory systems stretch across Africa, from Zaire to South Africa, and students travel long distances to study with famous teachers.
Diviners, like African native doctors, support the forces of good, just as witches and sorcerers are agents of evil. Members of most African ethnic groups ("tribes") believe that witches work at night, are usually but not always female, and inherit or buy from demons a power to inflict harm.
AUSTRALIA
The essential features of aboriginal Australians' religions include:
-a belief in a personal sky being;
-a belief in helpful spirit beings;
-a belief in holy, powerful objects left by the sky being;
-a ritual drama to renew divine creativity;
-a initiation rites for both sexes;
-a sacrifice and prayer;
- a medicine man leader .
Most Aboriginal groups believe in eternal supernatural beings, whom they linked with totemic animals, plants, or natural phenomena (totem = an animal, plant, or other object serving as the emblem of a family or clan).
The principal figure in traditional Australian ritual life has been the medicine man, who derives his healing powers from visionary contacts with supernatural beings (the aboriginal shaman derives his healing powers from his ability to travel to the realm of the super-naturals). Usually he possesses magical items that symbolize these powers.
Since the basic goal of the aboriginal Australian religious systems was to keep harmony with the powers (ancestral totemic spirits or divinities), the primary role of the medicine men was to assist the people in maintaining their ties with the land and to one another. This was done most often through the ritualistic retelling and re-enactment of myths and the preparation of elaborate paintings on the walls of caves and rock overhangs. These paintings symbolized the creative actions of various supernatural beings in the "dream time," the time before people were created.
RELIGIOUS TEXTS
There are no religious text in Shamanism. It is something passed down by oral tradition and practice. It is learned by a student from a teacher through the act of observation and practice. One of the main functions of a Shaman, wherever located, is to learn and to verbally pass down the Shamanistic beliefs.
RELIGIOUS BELIEFS
There are many variations of shamanism throughout the world, but several common beliefs are shared by all forms of shamanism. Common beliefs are generally the following:
- Spirits exist everywhere and they play important roles both in individual lives and in human
society.
- The shaman can communicate with the spirit world.
- Spirits can be benevolent or malevolent.
- The shaman can treat sickness caused by malevolent spirits.
- The shaman can employ trance inducing techniques to incite visionary ecstasy and go
on vision quests.
- The shaman's spirit can leave the body to enter the supernatural world to search
for answers.
- The shaman evokes animal images as spirit guides, omens, and message-bearers.
- The shaman can perform other varied forms of divination, scary, throw
bones/runes, and sometimes foretell of future events.
Shamanic ecstasy is the real “Old Time Religion,” of which modern churches are but pale imitations.! There is no need for faith, it is the ecstatic experience itself that gives one faith in the intrinsic unity and integrity of the universe, in ourselves as integral parts of the whole; that reveals to us the sublime majesty of our universe, and the fluctuant, scintillate, alchemical miracle that is quotidian consciousness.
Any religion that would require faith and gives none; that defends against religious experiences; that promulgates bizarre superstition that humankind is in some way separate, divorced from the rest of creation; that does not heal not the wound between Body and Soul, would ( and has) tear a Shamanistic culture apart.
RELIGIOUS PRACTICES
It is the obligation of the shaman to know all matters that human beings need to know in everyday life but are unable to learn through their own capacities. A shaman foresees events distant in time and space, discovers the place of a lost animal, forecasts prospects for fishing and hunting, and assists in increasing the gain. He is also a healer and one who accompanies the dead to their otherworldly domain. He fulfills all these obligations by communicating directly with the spirits whenever he pleases.
The shaman’s assistance is necessary at the three great life passages: birth, marriage, and death. If a woman has not borne a child, for instance, then, according to the belief of the Nanai (Golds), in the Amur region of northeastern Asia, the shaman ascends to heaven and sends her an embryo soul (omija) from the tree of embryos (omija muoni). Among the Buryat, the shaman performs libations after birth to keep the infant from crying and to help it develop more quickly. Among the Nanai, when death occurs the shaman is necessary to catch the soul of the deceased floating in the universe and to escort it to the Yonder World.
Illness is believed to be caused by the spirits, who must be appeased for a cure to be effected. Among the Khanty of northern Siberia, the shaman decides how many reindeer should be sacrificed to appease the spirit who causes an illness. Alternatively, illness might be caused by soul loss, in which the soul leaves the patient’s body and falls into the hands of spirits who are angry with it and therefore torment it; the shaman liberates the strayed soul. Illness also may be caused by spirits entering into a person’s body; the shaman cures the patient by driving the spirits out.
A shaman wears regalia, some part of which usually imitates an animal—most often a deer, a bird, or a bear. It may include a headdress made of antlers or a band into which feathers of birds have been pierced. The footwear is also symbolic—iron deer hooves, birds’ claws, or bears’ paws. The clothing of the shamans are often decorated with representations of human bones—ribs, arm, and finger bones.
An important device of the shaman is the drum, which always has only one membrane. It is usually oval but sometimes round. The outer side of the membrane, and the inside as well among some peoples, is decorated with drawings; e.g., the mark of the membrane with images of the Upper and Lower Worlds. The handle is usually in the shape of a cross, but sometimes there is only one handle. The drumstick is made of wood or horn, and the beating surface is covered with fur. In some cases the drumstick is decorated with human and animal figures, and rattling rings often hang down from it.
During the trance brought on by the sound of the drum, the spirits move to the shaman—into him or into the drum—or the soul of the shaman travels to the realm of the spirits. In the latter case the shaman makes the journey on the drum as if riding on an animal, the drumstick being his lash.
Sometimes the Shaman makes the journey on a river and the drum is his boat, the drumstick his oar. All this is revealed in the shaman song. Besides the drum, the Buryat shaman sometimes makes the journey with sticks ending in the figure of a horse’s head. The shaman of the Tungus people, who raise reindeer, makes the journey on a stick ending in the figure of a reindeer’s head. Among some people, the shaman wears a metal disk known as a shaman-mirror.
Shamanic symbolism is presented through dramatic enactment and dance. The shaman, garbed in regalia, lifts his voice in song to the spirits. This song is improvised but contains certain obligatory images and similes, dialogue, and refrains. The performance always takes place in the evening. The theatre is a conical tent or a yurt; the stage is the space around the fire where the spirits are invoked. The audience consists of the invited members of the clan, awaiting the spirits in awe. A stage lighter and decorator, the shaman’s assistant, tends the fire so as to throw fantastic shadows onto the wall. All these effects help those present to visualize everything that the recited action of the shaman narrates.
The shaman is simultaneously an actor, dancer, singer, and, indeed, a whole orchestra. This restless figure is a fascinating sight, with his cloak floating in the light of a fire in which anything might be imagined. The ribbons of his regalia flit around him, his round mirror reflects the flames, and his accoutrements jingle. The sound of his drum excites not only the shaman but also his audience. An integral characteristic of this drama is that those who are present are not mere objective spectators but rather faithful believers, and their belief enables the shaman to achieve results, as in healing physical or mental illnesses.
HOLIDAYS
Sabbat {Greek - Sabatu - to rest- in English “Sabaticals”}
The Pagan holidays, called Sabbats, are seasonal celebrations representing birth, death and rebirth. These celebrations are a means to attune the physical human mind, body and spirit with the flow of natures' energy and the essence of the God/Goddess. It is a bonding, a time to recognize the aspects of the season within yourself. "To become one with nature" is a common metaphor for the overall purpose and intent of these holidays.
Most Pagans believe that by joining forces with the natural forces around us, we bring harmony, balance and order to our physical existence. These are necessary aspects of life for positive change and to create an atmosphere for spiritual learning and growth.
There are eight Sabbats observed during the Pagan calendar. All Sabbat ceremonies begin at sundown on the eve of the dates given and continue to sundown. You might want to start carrying a special calendar around with you to mark the moon phases and holidays for the year. Give yourself enough time to go shopping for any supplies you might want to use during your festival rituals.
The Pagan High Festivals
The following is a brief explanation of each of the solar holidays (Sab-bat). There are the eight standard holidays which are usually linked to the sun deity or the God force. Rituals for the standard Sabbats have been designed to honor both aspects of the God/Goddess to represent the balance and harmonious union of the "whole".
The Es-bat festivals on the other hand, honor the Goddess and the moon deity usual yon the full moon.. But as with the Sabbats, both God and Goddess essences can be celebrated during either set of festivals.
The Sabbats:
1. Yule - {The Winter solstice} Dec. 20th to Jan. 1st.
American and Celtic traditions ~ Yuletide (Christmas)
Caledonii tradition ~ Alban Arthan
Pecti-Wita traditions ~ Feill Fionnain
The real "12 Days of Christmas", Yule begins on "Mothers Night" and ends 12 days later on "Yule Night". Typically starting on the 20th or 21st of December to December 31st.Yule is a time when the waxing sun overcomes the waning sun. The Holly King which represents the death aspect of God, is overcome by the Oak King who represents the rebirth of the God. It is the time when an individual concludes the chapter of their life for the year and prepares for the rebirth of the New Year's lessons and opportunities.
Celebrations vary from tradition to tradition, but there are some similarities that most people will probably recognize. Dark red or Bayberry candles are used to decorate the home and ensure wealth and happiness for the coming year. Many a practioner will place the candles as a centerpiece on their dining table and allow it to burn until it extinguishes by itself. A set of candles can also be placed on the mantle and lit at the beginning of the Yule ceremony.
The festival is associated with fire, and the Yule log. The fire is the tool that returns all to its beginnings, "ashes to ashes". And prepares the soul for rebirth, the "rise of the Phoenix from the ashes".
The season is also represented by the colors red (for the fire) and green (for the rebirth) process. The season includes the cutting of the Yule tree, decorating the home with a holy wreath (nature’s red and green bush) and decorating special cookies for celebrating the sweet joys of the year past and the sweetness for the year to come.
Finally the season includes the reindeer stag to represent the horned God, the Pagan God of death and the final chapter of the year.
2. Imbolg February 1st or 2nd
American tradition ~ Candlemas (Mardi Gras)
Caledoni traditions ~ Imbolgc Brigantia
Celtic traditions ~ Imbolg
Mexican Craft ~ Candelaria
Strega traditions ~ Lupercus
Teutonic traditions ~ Disting
Imbolg is the first of the Spring holidays that ring in the festivals for fertility. Imbolg is the celebration of things yet to be born for the New Year. Those things that are hidden under winters last snows. It is a time for preparation. Look over your supplies for the coming year and make a list of what you might need. It is a time to take stock.
For this festival, lavender and white candles are burned to represent the divine (white) rebirth and preparation for ones spirituality (the lavender).
3. Ostara - {Vernal Equinox} Around March 20th
American and Celtic traditions ~ Ostara (Easter)
Caledonii traditions ~ Alban Eiler
This festival celebrates the warrior aspect of the God and the Goddess as the Maiden. It occurs in the middle of March when the length of day is equal to the length of night. It is a time of balance, the official end of winter and beginning of winter. The second of the fertility festivals, Ostara represents the seeding and preparation for the remainder of the year.
The season is celebrated by blessing seeds for future plantings. Eggs are colored and placed on an alter as magical talismans. The "Easter Bunny" and "Easter Baskets" are both variations of this Pagan festival. The Bunny represents abundance of planting yet to come and the baskets are used to gather the new spring flowers, another representation of fertility. After all, blossoms are a culmination of combining masculine pollen with feminine pollen. What a better representation of fertility.
The season is also represented by light green, lemon yellow and pale pink. The beginning colors of maturing plants and flowers. Twisted bread and sweet cakes are prepared and served at dusk to represent the abundance of planting for the new harvest.
4. Bealtaine May 1st or 5th
American traditions ~ Beltane or Beltaine (May Day)
Celtic traditions ~ Bealtaine
Caledonii traditions ~ Bealtinne
Mexican Craft traditions ~ Rudemas
Strega traditions ~ Festival of Tana
Teutonic traditions ~ Walburga
Also known as Mayday, Bealtaine is the last of the 3 spring fertility holidays. While Mayday is traditionally celebrated on May 1st, where Bealtaine is celebrated anywhere between May 1st and May 5th. Symbolized in the May pole.
This holiday represents the time when people, plants and animals prepare for the summer months. The time of love, and union. Specifically the union of the Lord and Lady, or the God/Goddess. It is a time of joining two halves to make a single whole, the 3rd entity. Could this be a sign of the spiritual trinity?
The season is represented by bright blue, lavender, pink, yellow and white. Ribbons around a favorite tree in your yard, or a wreath for your door using flowers for the seasons colors and ribbons to show off their natural beauty is a great addition.
The ceremony for the day can begin at sunrise with freshly picked flowers. Drop a few in a large white bowl to float around a couple white floating candles. Decorate your mantle with greens and pedals. At the end of the day, take the pedals from the ceremonial decorations and place them around the house for protection.
5. Midsummer - {Summer Solstice} Around June 20th
American and Celtic traditions ~ Midsummer festival
Caledonii traditions ~ Alban Hefin
Pecti-Wita traditions ~ Feill-Sheathain
Also known as 'Midsummer Night's Eve', it is the longest day of the year. The Midsummer festival celebrates the kingly aspect of the God. It is a festival of passion and glory, a time to merge and commune with nature, sprites and fairies. In the Celtic traditions it is also a celebration of the Mother Goddess who is seen heavy with child, ready to deliver the fruits of the season so to speak.
Colors of red and maize yellow and gold are excellent decorations representing the Sun God, the masculine aspects of the season. Sunflowers and sunflower seeds are also excellent examples (provided you've planted them in early spring). Or replace the early spring wreath on your door with a new summer decoration of red feathers for r sexuality and yellow feathers for prosperity, intertwined or braided with ivy. Alter candles should be of gold and red.
Money tree plans can be added to your mantle decorations for monetary wealth, (providing you once again have had an early planting season).
6. Lughnasadh August 1 to 2
American traditions ~ Lammas
Celtic tradition ~ Lughnasadh
Strega traditions ~ Corucopia
Teutonic traditions ~ Thingtide
The first of the harvest festivals, Lammas is recognized on August 2nd. The Celtic festival, Lughnasadh, is celebrated on August 7th in honor of the Sun God. It is the beginning of the harvest season and begins when the early plantings are ready to be picked. The spring grains, early fruits and vegetables are picked as part of this ritual.
Bread is baked for this holiday, as well as, a bounty of fruits and garden vegetables, set in an organization of color from white, yellow, red, green, blue and finally black.
7. Mabon - {Autumn Equinox} Around September 23rd
American tradition ~ Autumn Equinox (Thanksgiving)
Caledonii tradition ~ Alban Elfed
Celtic tradition ~ Mabon
Teutonic tradition ~ Winter Finding
Winter Finding spans from the Equinox until Winter Night on October 15, which is the Norse New Year. And the Caledonii recognizes this time as the festival for the Lord of Mysteries.
The 2nd of the harvest festivals, this is the second time of the year to specifically commune with nature. The earlier festival in the Summer Solstice looks toward the summer or warm portions of nature. Where the autumn equinox focuses on the cooler aspects.
The festival is represented by the harvest of corn, along with the other products in your garden that are ready to be harvested. To celebrate Mabon, corn and corn bread were served, along with cider and sweet potatoes (yams). Don't forget to harvest the last of your herbs and other plants that will need to dry for winter use. This festival is represented by brown, orange, gold and red.
8. Samhain - The Pagan New Year
American traditions ~ Samhain - November 1st (Halloween)
Celtic traditions ~ Samhain - November 7th
Scottish/Celts traditions ~ Martinmas or Old Hallowmas - November 11th
Strega traditions ~ Shadowfest
The Pagan New Year represents the complete circle of the seasons and is the last of the three harvest Sabbats. Although the traditions celebrate Samhain on different days, they are the same festival with the same celebration and intent.
It is a festival of thanks and gratitude for the year past. A time to look back at the lessons you learned, the spiritual evolution you traversed and the special unions you made. A time to thank the God/Goddess for the bounty one received and shared.
It is represented by black candles to ward off negativity, gold to recognize the Sun God essence and orange to represent the joining of the higher and lower forces within and without.
On the night of Samhain the veil between the spiritual world and the physical world is at its thinnest. Therefore many will conduct rituals to honor the dead or those they lost during the past year. Many a practioner believe this is the best time to communicate with those they lost or wish to converse with on the other side. Divination is especially heightened on this night, but extra caution for positive forces should also be heeded.
ESBAY FESTIVALS
The other 13 festivals are the lunar “Full Moon” celebrations called “Esbats”, when Witches, Wiccans, Pagans and others gather together in small groups (covens), or act solitary to honor the Goddess and God.
There are 12-13 full moons each year, or one every 28 and a quarter day’s. The moon is symbolic of the Goddess, and is also a powerful source of energy. After the religious aspects of the festival are over, many witches then practice magic, tapping into the large amounts of energy believed to exist at those times.
Moon phases are important in determining the best time to practice magic. The term “Moon Phases” is use to indicate the periods of the moons illuminated light as seen from the earth in its different shapes. The moons cycle is generally split into four quarters, which starts with the New Moon working its way through the First Quarter Moon to the Full Moon (called its waxing phase), then through the Last Quarter Moon and back again to the New Moon (called its waning phase):
HEAVEN AND HELL
“No tree, it is said, can grow to heaven, unless its roots reach down to hell.” Old Shamanic saying
Within the shamanic cosmology, the world is divided into three levels: the upper, lower, and middle worlds. This is often symbolized by a world tree, with the roots, trunk, and branches corresponding to the lower, middle and upper worlds, respectively. This is the trinity of shamanism. Each level contains within it a certain vibrational quality that holds specific wisdom and healing that is accessible to the shaman by entering a non-ordinary or altered state of consciousness. The ability to enter the other reality is frequently achieved through the use of a drum, rattle, dancing, chanting, and medicine plants or mushrooms. The shaman travels through these three worlds to gather information and medicines that are specific for the person they are working with.
The lower world is commonly misperceived as being the place where evil spirits live, darkness pervades, and in general, not a good place. This is mainly due to our cultural conditioning of hell being “down there”, and heaven being “up there.” The lower world is in fact the place where many spirits of nature reside. It is a place where the essence of a plant, mineral, animal, mountain, lake, or any other aspect of nature can be connected and communed with. In this way, the lower world provides information into nature, and the invisible web of interconnections that it contains. It is often a place where ones power animals reside, as well as plant totems. The lower world could also be considered microcosmically to be our unconscious of subconscious self- those parts of our being which are constantly at play but yet we are unaware of.
The middle world is our reality as we know it. It is our day to day lives and residing place of our physical bodies and our normal waking consciousness. The middle world reality is full of trials and tribulations, tests and blessings- yet it is only one third of the tree of life. If we are not rooted in the wisdom of the lower world, our trunk will not be able to carry the nourishment that the branches need to reach full flowering. In order for our middle world reality to be understandable, a firm groundedness in the underworld is necessary- that is, entering a communion with the invisible dynamics of nature, the spiritual essences of the natural world. The middle world would be considered our ego, or conscious self.
The upper world is what some call the “heavens.” There is the home of the star nations, our celestial or spirit guides, the angels and archetypes (12 astrological signs), and the planetary beings.
Microcosmically, the upper world relates to our higher self, or super-consciousness that permeates across all time and space. The upper world is where we turn for spiritual guidance and wisdom that is of a higher vibrational quality than that of lower world wisdom. It is not better, just a different quality. The upper world reveals the depth of our true essential nature that will allow us to enter into the flowering of our purpose. It is our peak, our summit. It is here that we receive the guidance that will take us closer to being in harmony with the unity.
Each world is an absolutely necessary part of our own being and the universe at large. Neither has teachings or healings that are better or worse than the other- they are just different. This is why the analogy of a tree is so useful; you cannot say that the roots are worse than the flowers. Without those roots, the flowers would not be possible, and there must be a stem to connect the two. Each part has its place in the pattern of the whole, and yet, the whole cannot be recognizable by studying the parts. You cannot understand the whole of the tree by looking at the roots, then looking at the trunk, and then the flowers. You must step back and look at that tree as a whole organic being, only then can the depth of its being be experienced.
So it is with our own beings. We must respect and honor all parts of ourselves and not get lost in living in any one of the Worlds exclusively. We must become fluid rivers of consciousness that is able to flow between all worlds and states of consciousness with ease and acceptance, but not forgetting to step back and look at the unity.
SOCIAL ORDER
The extraordinary profession of the shaman naturally distinguished him socially. The belief that he communicates with the spirits gives him authority. Furthermore, the belief that his actions may not only bring benefit but also harm makes him feared. Even a good shaman may do inadvertent harm, and a wicked shaman, who is in contact with the spirits of the Lower World, is very alarming.
In consequence of his profession, generally the shaman cannot go hunting and fishing and cannot participate in productive work; therefore, he must be supported by the community, which considers his professional activity necessary. Some shamans make use of their special position for economic gain.
INITIATION
Shamans are generally born into their role, as is evident in certain marks distinguishing them from ordinary people. For instance, a shaman may be born with more bones in his body—e.g., teeth or fingers—than other people. He does not become a shaman simply by willing it, for it is not the shaman who summons up the spirits but them, the supernatural beings, who choose him. Adolescence typically marks the point when the spirits begin to take an overt role in the shaman’s life, although variations in the age of onset do occur. The spirits may cause the chosen one to fall into hysterics, to faint repeatedly, to have visions, or to have similar symptoms, with these events sometimes persisting for weeks,
Scholars generally agree that the shaman acquires his profession through inheritance, instruction, or an inner calling or vocation, but each of these terms requires some qualification. In this context, “inheritance” means that the soul of a dead shaman, or alternatively the so-called shaman illness, is inherited. “Instruction” here does not usually mean the study of exact knowledge and explicit dogma, for it is believed that the shaman is taught by the spirits. The inner “calling” is in reality not the call of the person but of the spirit who has chosen him and who forces him to accept this vocation.
Young Shaman often have to retreat into a solitary wilderness and live alone in Nature for a time before maturing enough to become a Shaman.
PILGRIMAGES
The practices of pilgrimage, ceremony and healing are essential to the life of a Shaman. Generally, they travel on a pilgrimage to a place of high natural or spiritual power. These places vary from locality to locality.
PURPOSE OF LIFE
In order to truly evolve as a species and to take care of our ailing home planet, we need to wake up, switch on, grow up and work together. The shamanic rituals were generally a coming of age ritual.
How did humans create a modern day rat-race of a world deluged by unending data and information streams; a modern world state of being that has resulted in precipitating our current addiction to busyness? We abandoned our ancient Shamanic practices.
How do we find our meaning, purpose in life? Simple, the take time to slow down and connect back to nature. Use anything from meditation, yoga, sweat-lodges, shamanic rituals and transformational festivals, or other ancient remedies such a pilgrimage to a sacred place.
Ancient Shamanic practice sought to create a balance between Nature and Man. The purpose of life was to find and live within that balance.
CONCLUSION
Shamanism appears to be the ancestor of all major religions of the world. The shaman is the first step toward an archbishop, guru or an ayatollah.
It is generally agreed that shamanism originated among hunting-and-gathering cultures, and that it persisted within some herding and farming societies after the origins of agriculture. It is often found in conjunction with animism, a belief system in which the world is home to a plethora of spirit-beings that may help or hinder human endeavors. Shamanism is often distinguished by special clothing worn by the practitioner.
What unites shamans everywhere is seeking contact with an otherwise hidden world that shapes human destiny. And they tend to focus their powers on things that are important and erratic—illness, the weather, predators, prey. The powers of a shaman is generally: “to inflict disease and death, to cure all disorders, to make known distant and future events; to cause rain, hail, and tempest; to call up the souls of the dead and consult them concerning hidden matters; to put on the form of a tiger; to handle every kind of serpent without danger, etc.”
The shaman represents a crucial step in the emergence of organized religion. He (or she, sometimes) is the link between earliest religion—a fluid amalgam of beliefs about a fluid amalgam of spirits—and what religion came to be: a distinct body of belief and practice, kept in shape by an authoritative institution.
Once there was belief in the supernatural, there was a demand for people who claimed to understand and explain it. Judging by observed hunter-gatherer societies, there was a supply to meet the demand. Though most hunter-gatherer societies have almost no structure in the modern sense of the word—little if any clear-cut political leadership, little division of economic labor—they do have religious experts.
The “shamanic state of consciousness” boosts the mind’s integrative abilities, allowing it to make connections between various ideas on analytical, metaphorical and other levels simultaneously. The value of non-analytical thought to make intuitive leaps that may be impossible through analysis alone has been evidenced at several points in the history of science. One striking example might be Friedrich August Kekulé von Stradonitz, who added a new chapter to every high school chemistry textbook with his discovery of the benzene ring—a structure he discovered only thanks to the inspiration of a dream he had, wherein he encountered the ancient symbol of the snake eating is own tail, the ouroboros.
It would serve modern humans greatly to study their Shamanic origins in order to arrive at a better perspective of their place in modern Society. Theosophy encourages us to do so.
In a final note the author hopes some will find these Study Guides on comparative religion helpful .Again this author make no claim to the originality, authorship or possession of the material contained herein, much of which was written or re-written from material copied and pasted here. The purpose of this series on Comparative Religion was not to create a great work of Art, but to organize existing material into short, easily understood outlines of the various religions of the World into quickly read material which so often is the subject of long and complicated texts.
Scott Ramsey
January23, 2017