About book
Looking at the possible causes of our disconnection from our ability to experience authentic relationships and many other everyday issues, and it does this in a frank and honest way. I use some of my own life experiences that I happen to know are the experiences of many others too. These experiences illustrate how easy it is to get seduced into a world of illusion, and more importantly, how easy it is to get the help you need simply by taking responsibility for yourself; acknowledging the sacred in all life, and using some of the many tools we use and have collected over the years. My own experience and journey into Shamanism was, at times, like being on a ‘white knuckle ride’ that sometimes propelled me uncontrollably into the unknown; an amazing journey into the wonderment of mystery.
Demystifying Shamanism to me is like proving to you that a magic trick really is magical after all! For me, the acknowledgement of my own awakening and appreciation of how my so-called ‘fulfilled’, ‘evolved’ and material lifestyle left so many voids. It also left an emptiness in the pit of my stomach that could not be sated… until that is, the day I slowly began to walk the path of a ‘medicine woman’.
Even though I follow a Shamanic lifestyle, I am very aware that there are many spiritual paths that one can pursue today. Most of them require us to take personal responsibility and ‘show up’ as agents of change, especially now in this current collective consciousness of global dis-harmony. Whether one chooses a dogmatic, religious or flexible exploration into the self, that choice and experience is completely yours to make.
For many of us, our first experience of a spiritual path is usually linked to an organised religious faith; maybe Christianity, Catholicism, Muslim, Judaism, etc. Quite often, our first experience derived from adopting our parents’ belief system, or maybe a religion promulgated by our school.As we get older, more often than not this happens in our 40s. Some of us start to question ‘mainstream’ religions and their ethics, if only to satisfy our ability of ‘freedom of choice’ and ‘free will’.
For me, after a great deal of soul searching, the path I chose was a Shamanic one. I found that the ancient teachings I had learnt from the honourable and impeccable Qero tribes had afforded me my own personal key; one that would ‘unlock the door’ so to speak. It would help me do this by not only allowing me travel to ‘other dimensions’ that were light-years away from my present world of illusion, but also by providing me with many answers to help fill those uncomfortable periods of emptiness that I was experiencing.
The answers I was given help to bestow on me a much deeper sense of one-ness and relationship. I feel such deep gratitude and reconnection to the Earth and the people that I share my life with, and with those who come to me for healing. In fact, so much so, that often the sheer wonderment of it all literally wants to ‘burst out of my heart centre’!
‘Living Shamanism’illustrates certain aspects where I wish I could have used these words: ‘Please forgive my human bullishness, arrogance and ignorance’!
In the book, I want to share with you how I had become wrapped up a world which measures its people by how much we succeed, and create an unsustainable and somewhat insurmountable ideal of a life-style. It is a lifestyle that often damages us and others, purely created by a sheer need to ‘make something of ourselves’. I want to show just how fearful, aggressive and violent many have become as a race; so much so that we are now a race that seems impotent and defensive. So often in our lives we combat this by abusing our power; whether that is a power over others or a power that boldly strips another’s beliefs or culture away; perhaps all due to the fact ‘what we do not understand makes us fearful’. It is very much a Catch 22 scenario!
Living Shamanism’ is for any person who wishes to awaken themselves to the possibility of a more harmonious way of living. It will take you on a journey, some of which will be that of discovery accompanied by my own experience. Other parts will be an awakening and awareness to certain levels of our collective human hostility, for example Integrity; Void Fillers; Relationships; the Masculine and Feminine; our limitations of Old Belief Systems and Death, and much more.
I delve into that old adage of our expectations of Love; the many Roles we have adopted for ourselves; our need to be in Control or be Controlling. The book will also delve into the Alchemical Process of Re-inventing the Self through a metamorphic process from seed (birth), germination (life experiences), to the ultimate goal of Illumination (wisdom and intelligence).
Lastly and just as importantly, I want to de-mystify ‘Ceremony’, as this under-used practice is often a missing piece of the jigsaw when attempting to attain an ‘Authentic Relationship’ with ourselves, others and the world that we live in.
Throughout the book I will intersperse stories and exercises to offer you some healing, personal work and ways to help re-programme your power of thought, feelings and emotions. Hopefully, it will go a long way in helping to de-mystify Shamanism for you.
