Shamanic Traditions

Sharing profound experiences from his long career as well as his first years growing up on a remote Seminole reservation in the Everglades, renowned herbalist Matthew Wood interweaves practical herbalism and the spiritual potency of Nature to deeply explore the plant teachers, animal medicines, and foundational principles of shamanism as a spiritual path. Wood describes a universal “language of the shamans,” based on direct, sometimes supernatural experiences as well as case studies from his practice.

In The Shamanic Bones of Zen, celebrated author and Buddhist teacher Zenju Earthlyn Manuel undertakes a rich exploration of the connections between contemporary Zen practice and shamanic, or indigenous, spirituality. Drawing on her personal journey with the Black church, with African, Caribbean, and Native American ceremonial practices, and with Nichiren and Zen Buddhism, she builds a compelling case for cultivating the shamanic, or magical, elements in Buddhism - many of which have been marginalized by colonialist and modernist forces in the religion.

Visionaries dream the future into life, and throughout the ages shamans have served this role within their communities. Yet, how does one as an individual open to visions and allow the messages we need to hear to come through? Enter the stage of Shamanic Dreaming for a playful, evocative rendezvous with circle consciousness. In this shamanic guide, visionary Carol Day shows how to access our creative potential to shape a strong vision for ourselves and others, connecting intimately to the world around with the support of seen and unseen realms.

Revealing the practical and intuitive connections between shamanism and alchemy, including not only Western alchemy but also alchemical practices from the East, Endredy recasts the seven stages of the alchemical “Great Work” as a transformative shamanic journey and initiatic experience. He provides step-by-step instructions for 18 shamanic alchemy practices for inner transformation, including vibrational energy work, consciousness-altering techniques, the creation of mirrors of the mind, shamanic viewing, and sacred ceremonies tied to the four elements.

WHILE WE ALL DESIRE happy, inspiring relationships, our reality often looks quite different. Instead of love and support, we encounter toxic personalities in stressful partners, demanding bosses, abusive parents, and others. These relationships tend to spiral from good to bad and back again, leaving us feeling stuck and powerless. In this guide, shaman and naturopath Stefan Limmer explains how we can track the causes of toxic relationships on the soul level, clear and harmonize our energy field, and activate our ancestral power.

Evelyn Rysdyk explains, from the shamanic perspective, how creativity—or creative energy—is a life-giving force that frees the imagination, supports innovation, and awakens unique ways of thinking and feeling that can transform your life. She explores how to use the shamanic technologies of spirit journeying and ceremony alongside experiential shamanic exercises to release creativity-blocking patterns, reprogram the subconscious, engage the “right brain,” boost imagination, overcome anxiety and destructive emotions, and become much more creative in daily life.

In this hands-on guide to working with the sacred energies of the sun, night sun, and moon, curandera Erika Buenaflor details the rites, rituals, and deities for each part of the day and night and explores the sacred tools and techniques used by ancient Mesoamerican shamans for harnessing solar and lunar energies. She explains how the sun is the source of soul energy that heals, animates, strengthens, and revitalizes us on many levels, while night energies are transformative and conducive for connecting with non-ordinary realms.

As Thomas Hatsis reveals, the discovery of the power of psychedelics and entheogens can be traced to the very first prehistoric expressions of human creativity, with a continuing lineage of psychedelic mystery traditions from antiquity through the Renaissance to the Victorian era and beyond. Describing how, when, and why different peoples in the Western world utilized sacred psychedelic plants, Hatsis examines the full range of magical and spiritual practices that include the ingestion of substances to achieve altered states.

Drawing on her more than 20 years’ experience working with present-day Mesoamerican curanderos/as and the ancient shamanic healing traditions of the Mexica and Maya, Erika Buenaflor, MA, JD, provides a step-by-step guide for the curanderismo practice of soul retrieval. She explains how the soul is a form of sacred energy that can escape when someone experiences trauma or is threatened by challenging and stressful situations. Its absence can be responsible for a host of negative conditions including physical ailments, depression, insomnia, and dysfunctional behavior patterns.

Recognized as a master yachak, don Alberto Taxo was a celebrated spiritual elder, shaman, and healer of the pre-Inca Atik (Kichwa) people from the Andes Mountains of Ecuador. He shared ancient Andean shamanic wisdom and practices in the United States for more than 20 years—his personal quest to fulfill the Andean prophecy that the Eagle and the Condor will fly together in the same sky in harmony.