Shaman Wisdom

In the previous article, The Role of an Authentic Teacher, we introduced some thoughts about the nature of the authentic shamanic teacher, allowing us to share a few insights for those who are looking for a shamanic teacher, as well as those who feel drawn to become shamanic teachers themselvesRead more

In thinking about the shape of ‘what has been' from my perspective as an anthropologist, as well as the various possibilities of ‘what's to come' from my perspective as a modern shamanic practitioner and teacher, several givens come up for consideration.

The Givens

For example: Given the prominence of some form of religion in peoples' lives virtually everywhere, it is obvious that there exists a great psychological need among humans to believe in something greater than ourselves. Read more

Those who have read my books and essays about my encounters with ‘the supernatural’ on the shaman’s path may at times find it difficult to reconcile these accounts with what we have been taught about the world by our parents and friends, teachers and religious authorities. 

Science and Spirituality

In thinking about this, I might add that it is currently impossible for Western science to seriously consider the experiences I have shared with you the reader as real, let alone investigate or even validate them. Read more

In the Fall of 1996, Jill and I were drawn into connection with a Hawaiian elder named Hale Kealohalani Makua. Through his mother’s lineage, this kahuna wisdomkeeper was a seventh generation descendent of King Kamehameha and his third wife Kahaku Ha’a Koi Wahine Pi’o. Through his father, he was a seventh generation descendent of High Chief Keoua Kuahu’ula, the son of High Chief Kalaniopu’u, making Hale Makua’s genealogy exceptional, to say the least. Read more

As many of us know, everything dreams-humans and animals, plants and trees, rocks and mountains, rivers and oceans... even planets and stars and universes dream.
We humans are part of that dreaming, and the dreams that are most familiar to us are those that we have when we are asleep. Most of these are unique to us as individuals-they are idiosyncratic and they usually evaporate quickly upon awakening, leaving us with little or no memory of them. Read more

As an anthropologist who has been investigating the early stages of human evolution in Africa for more than 35 years, I suppose it was inevitable that my curiosity would draw me toward the evolution of human consciousness. Read more

In the Western world, when we hear the word "shaman," most of us tend to conjure up an image of a masked and costumed indigenous tribal person, dancing around a fire in the dark, involved in some sort of mysterious ritual, accompanied by singing and drum beats. But inside that cultural shell of mask, costume and ritual, there is a woman or a man with a set of very real skills. The shaman is the master of the trance experience.Read more