Description
This article is from the Religion-Shamanism FAQ, by Dean Edwards,
Stef Jones, Jilara, Jane Beckman, Ann Albers with numerous
contributions by others.
18 The Harner Method (self counseling)
There are two keys to doing shamanic work:
1. Achieving an altered state of consciousness
The state of consciousness that allows you to access non-ordinary
reality is one in which the waking mind is distracted or tuned out.
There are many ways to achieve this: repetitious sound or movement,
hypnosis, heat, sensory deprivcation, psychotropic drugs,
maintaining a specific posture, lucid dreaming. The method I (and
most Harner-method advocates) use most frequently is repetitious sound
in the form of a steady drumbeat.
2. Maintaining an intention
Shamanism is really a system of healing or obtaining knowledge,
and it seems to work best when used for that purpose. Journeying
tends to work best if it's undertaken on behalf of another person.
In some cases, however, one can journey on one's own behalf,
especially if one has a specific intention in mind. Journeying just
for the purpose of "poking around in non-ordinary reality" doesn't
seem to work as well for most people.
The best way I have found to maintain an intention is to write down or
otherwise keep in mind a specific question or purpose as you begin your
journey.
Recommended reading
Michael Harner, The Way of the Shaman, 3d Ed., Harper & Row: 1990
Sandra Ingerman, Soul Retrieval: Mending the Fragmented Self,
HarperSanFrancisco, 1991
(See also Shamanic Healing)
Stef Jones (stef@netcom.com)
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new-age, paranormal, spiritual, shaman, kam, consciousness, spirit, visions, dreams, oobe, soul, siberia, native, dreamtime, ecstasy, journeying, otherworld, sacred, axis-mundi
