Hey
Ok personally, I'm not a professional shaman, in fact I haven't got past the stage of body relaxation as of yet. I don't think it is always needed to learn from a ancient culture, but being from the united kingdom, I found a book on Celtic shamanism which helped me to connect more with the areas with which I'm familiar. Of course, I don't know of any celtic shamans, but studying the celts helped me find more of a connection, and likewise, I think will be more useful (at least to me).

regards

essential...no....helpful...i should say so.....it is important to remember our bloodlines and roots as in my opinion it makes it a lot smoother going....as most of the indigenous sami naodi are dead or long since converted to christianity i do what i can to listen to my blood...but were i to have the option i would surely take the oppurtunity to study under a naoidi or a druid..as i am of celtic and sami descent

You can always take a course, send in your money with two box tops of your favorite cereal and POOF, you are a Shaman.

This wasn't a serious question, was it?

Maybe it comes down to one's definition of "Shaman".

Is a Shaman: Someone who "takes the course, sends in the money with two box tops"?? Someone who learns to meditate, visualize, and has intuition and seems to be able to "help people"? Someone who has taken several courses, read many books, and attended many workshops? Someone who has spent 10 years plus with a teacher acknowledged by not only indiginous elders but by "others" as well?

And even if a person has "studied" for a very long time, does that make that person a "Shaman"?

Can anyone "become a Shaman"?

I believe these are the questions that need to be answered way before there can be an answer to this thread's question.

Of course. At this point there is the same amount of anwers as there is people. At my world a shaman do not even exist. Only people, who are doing their living, some good way while others not. As somebody said: shamanism is life, who can say to be a master of it? There is no master, but a person, who can follow life's currents. So, all are fakes for my liking, who say, that they are masters.

That's the attitude you get just before you are ready to be taught.

I can tell you that having spent roughly 10 years with the same teachers, I find that there is a depth of experience that I seem to have received that others who have "bounced around" or gone from teacher to teacher seem to not share. I am finding that knowledge is something that one lives, not just something one intellectually or even emotionally absorbes. So, for me, studying with more traditional teachers, and studying with them for an extended period of time, has been a powerful and life changing series of experiences.

Crowtalker

And I can ALSO tell you that no amount of time or experience or study will make me "Shaman" as I have been taught to understand the concept. That is not my role and I have not been called to it. However I have been given the opportunity and guidance by and through SHAMAN in order to eventually become a "master" at the role(s) which is/are mine.

Crowtalker

i'd love to apprentence with indigenous shamans

Is it essential? ...

Simple answer no. ...

But, I must qualify that answer.

While it is true that pretty much anyone with the will and determination to study and practice can learn 'Shaman Techniques' (... or Core Shaman Traits), this alone does not make a person a shaman. There is a whole lot more going on there than just journeying, healing, and spirit communication. Otherwise any doctor smoking pot and using a Ouija Board would qualify as a Shaman.

Study with a life long, indigenous Shaman will accelerate your learning, improve your understanding, and help you to avoid the hit or miss experimentation of walking the paths alone, or exploring new domains without guidance. But, as a western Anglo, you lack the cultural conditioning to make the process easy. Simply put, you have bad habits that you must first unlearn.

interesting question.....what is a shaman?
labled as one if fits a societal definition of which can be anything from seer clarvoyiant sage maggi buddha christ enlightened braman witch sorcerer healer herbalist medicine woman or man.. spiritualist and on and on and on.......

shamanism is the practice of any of the above or combinations of.... a gnostic of uncommon wisdoms where once it was common ....our perspective of harmonious living with nature through understanding the nature of reality and reality of nature...although the knowing can be used for the greater good for all or used to manipulate trick deceive and cheat others .....unfortunately the establishment is created using shamanic techniques knowledge of the astrology medicine chemistry science psychology etc.. to deliberate mind control psychological warfare deception and deliberate dumbing down of shamanic practices and expanding our minds .....because they know they can't fool the shaman so they marched across the globe crusading inquisition burning destroying genocide all shamanic peoples they could in order to 86 them from the earth and convert and corrupt the survivors to be docile dumbed down 9-5 workers to pay taxes to the mafia whose godfather sits in vatican and godmother sits on throne....the most wicked use of shamanic knowledge of all......i choose to use my wisdom and power for the good ......gosh it get to a rambling at times......sorry heheh it's a full moon and i was to tired and sore from helping someone move i didn't go to the drum circle on the beach tonight so i'm a howling at the computer......i'm going to go outside for a nice breath of fresh air and gaze at the moon.....bbl
here's a ditty
the moon got me giddy
......

one who can take flight .
travel light ......
with power and might
use third eye sight
overcome any fright
understands the language of light
castes off any blight
live their dreams of the night
see from great height
reading between the black and white
gosh the moon tonight
is crystal vision light and bright

long live the shaman in you

The real question is, how do indiginous shamans teach the next generation of indiginous shamans to BE shamans?

They don't sit about saying "Do it this way." They take them on journeys, they may GUIDE them along certainly, but they are providing a safe introduction to Otherworld, where the new shaman can find their own Otherworldly gang, totems and familiars and guides, etc, who will teach them directly. The old shaman is only a facilitator... teaching basic techniques to allow the new shaman access to the Otherworld. That's it.

Therefore, any modern Shaman is learning the same way as the indiginous shamans did/do. We just happen to be slightly handicapped by not necessarily having another human being with a lifetime of experience able to teach us the methods necessary to ACCESS Otherworld, to find our own teachers and guides.

But we are still making the decision to access Otherworld ourselves, and find the teachers who can teach us what we need to know. No different at all. Don't get hung up on all the rest. It's just window dressing to the real work being done.


-Ursa

a lot of us have forgotten our contact with natures spirits the indiginous shamans medicine men have past this on for generations they can rekindle what we once knew

Well, it worked for me.

Interestingly my principal teacher had two apprentices, myself and another. When we finally met and talked, it transpired that our teacher taught us very differently according to our own individual needs and capabilities.

There's a lot of arrogant talk here, with people saying what's right and what's wrong, and what's real.

I know what's right for me. But I'm not saying that there's only one right way that everybody must follow.

I'm reminded of the Dalai Lama's response to a question about Buddhism and whether it is the best path for people. He said he's not telling other people what to do - just that it works for him.

The country where I learned is very small, but each of its shamans has his or her own way of working and teaching. It's individual.

Suits me.

Mac

Namaste to All,

And Greetings from Grand Bahama Island where we are being warmly embraced by the intense heat and humidity of the summer!

In answer to the question, it must surely depend on the student. Some people are fortunate enough to be able to spend time with an indigenous teacher and learn first hand. In my case, since I was a child I always had a propensity for out of body experiences, traveling through time and space and meeting with spirits. Then an incredible Avadhut (or Avatar) entered my dream world and gave me initiation. Since then, I have received all my teachings and initiations in lucid dreams and in the higher astral realms. What's more, my Teacher opened the door for me to meet and learn from Shamans and Enlightened Teacher's from diverse paths and traditions.

It has been the most extraordinary path, filled with wonder, and apart from reading a few books of Carlos Castenada, I have never studied anything 'formally.' Everything has been given through direct transmission. My Teacher, Nityananda, was from the Yogic tradition, yet he has taught Tibetan Shamanic rituals, given initiations from the Sufi traditions as well as teachings from Native and South American traditions. Time, space and text mean nothing to an Avadhut and I am grateful beyond words. OM!