Hi Forest Child,
I am looking for trainings within Europe. Would you please suggest a link or any other info. I know of some shamanic trainers in UK via internet, but have heard no personal word being said about them. I'd appreciate any sharing on this. Thanks in advance!

Love and light!

For a healing with longer scale, one may first set up the place by forming a circle. It is to keep harmful spirits off and work on a spot where to invite healing spirits......

Sorry, I missed this question. I'm afraid I don't know all that many teachers in Europe other than Jonathan Horwitz.

http://www.shamanism.dk/

and Christiana Harle

who are both way up north.

Anyone who loves rituals will find this classic manual very helpful:
"Everyday Initiations: How to Survive Crises Using Rituals"
Here are some direct links to reviews and prices:
The Book Depository [free worldwide delivery]
Amazon UK
Amazon USA

It's a huge book, but if you are looking for a mechanical "this is how to do rituals" book you will be disappointed. The best rituals are spontaneous and inspired i.e are self-creative, co-creative or "divine receiving" via meditation or journeying. What this book does is to show you the scope and fundamentals for feeding the deep, natural appetite that humans have for ritual, and it is full of ideas and inspirations for how we can make more use of them to help us through LIFE'S TRANSITIONS...

A fundamental role that shamans have always played in their communities is to help us honour, process and move on through the many different phases and experiences of our lives. When the natural flow of our spirit has become STUCK because we CAN'T MOVE ON from something that has happened - or has been lost, OR we can't move forward into a NEW PHASE of our life, then we will fall dysfunctional, ill or unhappy.

Rituals and INITIATIONS [into new experiences] are ancient and vital "Psychodramas" for helping us to cope with, and adapt to, the many changing circumstances of our life.

Whenever I begin a healing session with a client I always create Sacred Space, bringing in the Guardians of the 7 Sacred Directions for the highest good of all. Within Sacred Space I invite in any teachers, ancestors, angles, and other guides who serve love and light for myself and my client who feel they are appropriate in helping during the healing. And I end my prayer by thanking Spirit for the opportunity to serve.

Then I simply wait for instructions from the Guardians as to how to proceed during the session. It's always different each session for every client. I work with sound, laying-on-of-hands, crystal layouts, somato-emotional release, etc. And sometimes they just tell me to sit down and simply hold space for them while they work. When that happens I go into a meditative state and simply be.

To work shamanically you need to trust and rely on the spirits to give you instructions and to be in charge of the healing. If you come from your ego you can interfere with the healing and make yourself vulnerable.

Here is how I learned to do an egg cleanse...

Open sacred space (call your spirit helpers)

Cleanse client with egg by briskly scrubbing them with it, moving the egg in a circular counterclockwise direction (to unwind toxic energy). Cleanse them all over from top to bottom, front and back. While doing this call on the Apu Huamalipa (sacred anti-sorcery mountain of the Andes) to cleanse the client... I say, "hampe Huamalipa, cleanse my sister."

When done cleansing, crack the egg open in a bowl of water.

Read the contents, do divination. If divination reading includes further healing work, do it then or later.

Close sacred space. (Thank and dismiss your spirit helpers.)

This egg cleansing can be done alone. Or interspersed into a healing session that involves other healing techniques.

In different healing situations, different rituals are needed...

For example, in soul-loss situations, soul retrieval approaches would be important:
http://www.sunflower-health.com/popups/shamanic.htm

Rain Dance rituals, on the other hand, have been widely used for situations where people have become depressed [dispirited] by life's challenges and stresses - they are not just for praying for rain, but have more general value for blocked or threatening situations:
http://www.stress-counselling.co.uk/int ... manism.htm

Teo, why do you need a "fancy ritual"?
Are you planning on putting on some kind of show?

At times i have used books that outline a certain ritual and struggle with this. i find that if it is done from my heart and with pure intent then it seems way more natural and feels right.

It's necessary to impress your personal shamanic cosmology in the minds of the people you heal. Siberian shamans are masters at that. Also, you must impress the spirits through ceremony to get their blessings. To enter a state of ecstacy is another reason for a so-called show. Read Eliade and you'll get the idea.

Yours in the struggle,
--Teopiltzin

I think you should explore energy work outside the context of ritual. The old ways are dieing with the old earth anyway.