Shamanism is a collection of archaic mind-altering practices existing worldwide. It is associated with the origins of human civilizations. The war shaman was the leader, the king. In China, the Mandate of Heaven is originally the concept of the war shaman being permitted to enter the Tao and create a kingdom.
The shamanic path contains the original, or native medical traditions and knowledge of humanity. It also gives us the model of the ruler of the people as a warrior- philosopher-king. War, healing and bewitching are the functions of a shaman.
The war shaman is a military archetype that pervades both Eastern and Western cultures. It represents power through conquest. It is also an ancient model for leadership in many cultures.
The healing shaman is the archetype for medicine and curing. It represents power through benefiting others. It is also an ancient model for those who retrieve information from other worlds or realms that can be used for healing. Healing shamans are guided by visions, dreams, and practices that use sacred plants.
The bewitching shaman is the negative magical archetype. It represents power through coercion, deception, and illusion. Bewitching shamans parasitically prey on weaker beings. Bewitching shamans are guided by malevolent deceased ancestors.
To be continued...
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Showing posts with label shamanic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shamanic. Show all posts
Monday, August 16, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Lucid Dreaming: Part 3
Out-of-body experiences are relatively common in shamanic and yogic cultures; in many cases practitioners receive instruction from teachers in dreams, which then translates into the reality of the waking world as well. From a Tibetan perspective, a single transmission of knowledge within a dream can represent a lifetime's achievement. In our own culture, Einstein's thought-experiments represent a direct experiential method of visualization, which has resulted in many aspects of modern science, such as the theory of relativity and quantum physics. It could be assumed that if the greatest scientists of the West used hypnosis, as well as shamanic and yogic methods of subtle body activation, greater discoveries than Einstein’s would be readily available. Similarly, tai chi, which is a direct means of enhancing the body's energy and health, and is practiced by millions of people globally, is said to be based on a dream of its founder, Zhang San Feng.
Fundamentally, the shaman uses an altered state of consciousness to travel outside of the body to affect the physical world. It is important to remember that the shaman does not act for his or her own benefit but for the tribe or the nation. Their journeying, as terrifying and even painful as it can be, is done for the healing of others.
Fundamentally, the shaman uses an altered state of consciousness to travel outside of the body to affect the physical world. It is important to remember that the shaman does not act for his or her own benefit but for the tribe or the nation. Their journeying, as terrifying and even painful as it can be, is done for the healing of others.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Lucid Dreaming: Part 2
Although Nobel prize-winning scientists often describe their creative leap as a fundamental dream-like insight, the fear of mysticism, which pervades science, prevents the true integration of unconscious levels of reality with the physical world. Similarly, science is based upon theoretical or mathematical descriptions of reality, which can be used for technological gain, whereas real meditation or dream practice results in the direct experience of the truth body at the completion stage.
In many shamanic cultures, the waking state is considered to be an illusion and the inner dimensions are considered to be real. These states can be accessed through dreams, or visions using hallucinogenic plants.
Indeed, in many shamanic cultures, a shaman is chosen by the spirits. It is not taken on as a job title or a vocational skill or even a career. Often the future shaman is felled by a mysterious disease and lies in a deep coma-like state for some time, being refashioned and restructured internally. When he or she awakes they have the option to go into deeper training, both with an older shaman and in the dreamworld.
Unfortunately, the majority of modern scientific interpretations have described luminous or visionary phenomenon as symptoms of a malfunctioning brain, schizophrenia or temporal lobe epilepsy. From a shamanic viewpoint, the well-being of both the individual and the tribe is largely determined by skill in dreaming. The Tibetan emphasis on lucid dreaming as a means of understanding the nature of reality is a remarkable example of a shamanic culture that unites yogic and alchemical theories into an organized cultural framework.
In many of these cultures, skill in dreaming results from a greater activation of the original energy of the body, using a variety of techniques, which range from breathing exercises to sensory deprivation. Many of the Himalayan lineages, which result in Nirvana Without Remainder, emphasize using extended periods of darkness to unlock the original energy of the body. Taoism also has the tradition of extended periods of meditation deep within caves. It is believed that by immersing oneself in the extreme yin environment of the dark cave the practitioner is better able to communicate with the world of dreams and visions. The chief characteristic of the dark retreat is that the dreams of the individual become the only reality that the practitioner can observe consciously. Many of the greatest adepts have actually spent years in total darkness; although this is an extreme model, it demonstrates the importance of the integration of the world of dreaming with the conscious mind.
In many shamanic cultures, the waking state is considered to be an illusion and the inner dimensions are considered to be real. These states can be accessed through dreams, or visions using hallucinogenic plants.
Indeed, in many shamanic cultures, a shaman is chosen by the spirits. It is not taken on as a job title or a vocational skill or even a career. Often the future shaman is felled by a mysterious disease and lies in a deep coma-like state for some time, being refashioned and restructured internally. When he or she awakes they have the option to go into deeper training, both with an older shaman and in the dreamworld.
Unfortunately, the majority of modern scientific interpretations have described luminous or visionary phenomenon as symptoms of a malfunctioning brain, schizophrenia or temporal lobe epilepsy. From a shamanic viewpoint, the well-being of both the individual and the tribe is largely determined by skill in dreaming. The Tibetan emphasis on lucid dreaming as a means of understanding the nature of reality is a remarkable example of a shamanic culture that unites yogic and alchemical theories into an organized cultural framework.
In many of these cultures, skill in dreaming results from a greater activation of the original energy of the body, using a variety of techniques, which range from breathing exercises to sensory deprivation. Many of the Himalayan lineages, which result in Nirvana Without Remainder, emphasize using extended periods of darkness to unlock the original energy of the body. Taoism also has the tradition of extended periods of meditation deep within caves. It is believed that by immersing oneself in the extreme yin environment of the dark cave the practitioner is better able to communicate with the world of dreams and visions. The chief characteristic of the dark retreat is that the dreams of the individual become the only reality that the practitioner can observe consciously. Many of the greatest adepts have actually spent years in total darkness; although this is an extreme model, it demonstrates the importance of the integration of the world of dreaming with the conscious mind.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Lucid Dreaming: Part 1
The art of dreaming represents a fundamental difference between the modern scientific understanding of dreams and the hunter-gatherer archaic description of reality. In the latter it is believed that dreams can be consciously controlled and used to enhance the well-being of the practitioner and the tribe. Dreams are an important source of information, which is independent of the sequential time framework of consensus reality. The shamanic belief is that dreams are actually the source of waking consciousness, and that one dream can completely alter the entire life of an individual. Even in the Western experience, many creative and scientific discoveries have originated from the world of dreams.
Reality can be divided into waking, dreaming and sleeping states. The concept of meditation is that these three levels can be permanently unified by the breathing pattern at the deepest level of sleep, which is when the physical body is the most rejuvenated by the pre-birth energy system.
Buddhism has a very strong component of dream work, as in the following description of dream yoga:
The Middle Way view provides the philosophical framework of the contemplative practice of dream yoga. In a nonlucid dream—in which there is no recognition that one is dreaming—all objective phenomena seem to exist by and of themselves. They, like one’s own personal self in a dream, seem to be real. But upon awakening, one recognizes that neither one’s own mind nor any person or situation encountered in the dream had any such independent existence. This is equally true during the waking state, and in the daytime practice of dream yoga one maintains this awareness as constantly as possible. Everything experienced throughout the day—contrary to appearances—arises in relation to one’s perceptions and conceptions. Every person encountered is perceived in relation to one’s own sensory and conceptual faculties. Never does one encounter the radically and absolutely “other,” for apprehension of the other is always dependent upon one’s own subjective perspective. Thus, upon fathoming the emptiness of inherent existence of all waking phenomena, one maintains throughout the day a sense of the dreamlike quality of all events, recognizing the profoundly intersubjective nature of all relationships with other beings and the environment.
- B. Alan Wallace, Contemplative Science
In shamanic cultures, it is believed that dreaming presents an opportunity to avoid misfortune in waking life, if fears and obstacles are successfully confronted and transcended in the dreamworld. Even though many scientists solve significant theoretical problems using dream information, our culture has only just begun to understand and investigate the potential of dream practices, including lucid dreaming, to enhance creative problem solving. Artists and poets and writers are clearly dependent upon dream information from the unconscious, yet very few scientists are using hypnosis or self-suggestion to achieve greater clarity in dreams.
Reality can be divided into waking, dreaming and sleeping states. The concept of meditation is that these three levels can be permanently unified by the breathing pattern at the deepest level of sleep, which is when the physical body is the most rejuvenated by the pre-birth energy system.
Buddhism has a very strong component of dream work, as in the following description of dream yoga:
The Middle Way view provides the philosophical framework of the contemplative practice of dream yoga. In a nonlucid dream—in which there is no recognition that one is dreaming—all objective phenomena seem to exist by and of themselves. They, like one’s own personal self in a dream, seem to be real. But upon awakening, one recognizes that neither one’s own mind nor any person or situation encountered in the dream had any such independent existence. This is equally true during the waking state, and in the daytime practice of dream yoga one maintains this awareness as constantly as possible. Everything experienced throughout the day—contrary to appearances—arises in relation to one’s perceptions and conceptions. Every person encountered is perceived in relation to one’s own sensory and conceptual faculties. Never does one encounter the radically and absolutely “other,” for apprehension of the other is always dependent upon one’s own subjective perspective. Thus, upon fathoming the emptiness of inherent existence of all waking phenomena, one maintains throughout the day a sense of the dreamlike quality of all events, recognizing the profoundly intersubjective nature of all relationships with other beings and the environment.
- B. Alan Wallace, Contemplative Science
In shamanic cultures, it is believed that dreaming presents an opportunity to avoid misfortune in waking life, if fears and obstacles are successfully confronted and transcended in the dreamworld. Even though many scientists solve significant theoretical problems using dream information, our culture has only just begun to understand and investigate the potential of dream practices, including lucid dreaming, to enhance creative problem solving. Artists and poets and writers are clearly dependent upon dream information from the unconscious, yet very few scientists are using hypnosis or self-suggestion to achieve greater clarity in dreams.
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