A SHAMAN can be female or male, young or old; they may be from an ancient culture within the darkest forest or from the confines of a city apartment block. Within their communities shaman may function as the doctor, priest, social worker, visionary or mystic. Shaman could be intermediaries or visionaries who crossed the boundaries of reality and moved between worlds. To our Paleolithic ancestors shaman were important members of society, but with the rise of organized religion some believed shaman to be possessed by the devil or mentally ill. Shamanism is not a religion. Shamanism is a spiritual path.

Throughout history shaman assisted their people in calling the animals to ensure a good hunt, and they were instrumental in the survival of their community. The Lascaux caves bear silent witness to the ritual enterprise of the shaman and their followers. Shamans were often instrumental in bringing balance to their community by explaining the occurrence of natural phenomena such as: storms, floods, pestilence, lunar/solar eclipses, illness and the scarcity of animals to hunt. When seals or whales were scarce, the Inuit shaman would be called upon to take a hazardous spiritual journey down into the depths of the Arctic sea to find the goddess Sedna, and only after carefully untangling and combing her long hair would she grant the return of the sea animals.

Shaman could be thought of as visionaries, tapping into energies not readily perceptible to the community as a whole. The visionary act as interpreter or translator, just as the artist interprets and defines . In this exhibition, artists have been asked to go both within them and into the natural environment to create the art of the ‘Urban Shaman.’ Most Shaman follow four basic steps in all that they do: Intention, Purification, Protection and Grounding.

SPIRIT ANIMALS

During the initial phase of becoming a shaman, or while using shamanism as a spiritual practice, an animal will present itself as both guide and helper as one wanders the unseen worlds. Humans and animals have lived together as friend and/or foe for thousands of years. The animal has been immortalized as spiritual representations, mythologized and demonized. Some animals remained our best friends.

TRANCE & ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS

Altered states of consciousness such as trance or ecstatic awareness are deliberately induced by shaman to facilitate their spirit journeys. These can be ritually induced or assisted by the use of plant derived substances called plant helpers. The molecular structure of hallucinogenic plants (peyote) is similar to the natural occurring brain hormone, an endorphin called noradrenalin. Endorphins attach themselves to the receptors on nerve cells, reducing the body’s sensitivity to pain. Endorphins can induce altered states of consciousness, such as euphoria or amnesia. Shamanic states appear to link into the endorphin pathways whether naturally induced through physical endurance, such as dance, or chemically induced through ingesting or smoking Peyote noradrenalin.

When in a trance or ecstatic state, a person has a reduced awareness of their primary environment and may appear to be focused elsewhere. Trance and ecstasy are closely related and are often defined using the same terms. Generally, the term trance is used in medical contexts and ecstasy used in religious contexts.

SHAMAN ATTRIBUTES

Shamans often use a drum in their work. Shaman ride the rhythm of the drum beat into unseen worlds. Recent research has found that a drumbeat frequency of 4-7 cycles/second is the same range as the theta wave EEG associated with our brain wave frequency when it is dreaming, in hypnotic state or in a trance.

A mask is a representative vehicle shaman use to teach or transport their public audiences into their secret realm. The mask is used as a pantomime apparatus to tell the story of a journey the shaman underwent or is undergoing. The mask may expose the inner spiritual nature of the enemy – another human, an animal, an ancestor spirit or a benevolent spirit. By a mask the shaman heals the community by showing the connection between all things.

The staff or wands are used by shaman to focus their powers and concentration. They are also used as status symbols of their position within the community.

Ceremonial robes or lack of clothes help the shaman on his spiritual journey.

The outer robes may form the outward expression from which the shaman launches their spiritual journey. The robes or the body may be decorated with protection symbols or other materials necessary for hazardous journeys into the world of the unknown. Often the rattle or rustle of these decorations opens portals to reveal pathways or calm the very spirits that guarded these pathways.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tom’s Shamanic path began at a very young age. As a child he walked and talked with living and imaginary creatures . At nine years old he had a life threatening experience that set him on his journey of reading energy and seeing in other worlds. At the age of fifteen he entered a catholic monastery. While in undergraduate school he also studied Zen Buddhism. He has an undergraduate degree in social work and a master’s degree theology. Tom is also a Board Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist. He has studied shamanism with some American teachers as well as indigenous shaman in the jungles of Peru , Mexico and Brazil . He is the founder of the International School of Shamanism™, and he teaches shamanism around the world. His home office is located here in Atlanta at: 3104 Mercer University Drive , Suite 210 , Atlanta , Georgia 30341, Phone770-294-7476