sandra: indeed, we are seeing an incredible resurgence we … · 2020. 1. 8. · sandra ingerman...

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Nick: Shamanism is proliferating in the West -do you have any thoughts about that?

Sandra: Indeed, we are seeing an incredible resurgenceof people called to practice shamanism, but there issome difference of opinion am ong experienced teachersabout bridging shamanism into the Western World.

In many ways the discussion is somewhatmeaningless, because of the numbers of peoplealready practising today. It’s already happening, there’sno way to turn back at this point. How do you say totens of thousands of people, this isn’t supposed to behappening, and try to stop the process?

I get a little confused by some of the controversy- it’s almost like listening to American Democrat andRepublican parties fight in Congress and the Senate,

while there are millions of starving childrenbeing sold into slavery, women beingabused, wars, and the destruction of

our environment and planet.

There is a need for people to wake upand live a more conscious way of life. While

people debate about Westerners practicingshamanism, it seems like the helping spirits

are finding a wealth of people to work with andthrough, who have no idea there is a controversy.

These people are like ‘innocents’ - in the bestsense of the word. They don’t read any shamanicmagazines or newsletters. I continue to hearaccounts from them of some of the mostextraordinary and profound journeys that I’ve heardin over thirty years of teaching.

The spirits are sharing incredible, life-changinginformation with them, and helping them bringthrough healing methods. For instance there arepeople practising shamanism who are teachers inschools who encourage their students to connectwith the trees and get messages from them, andconnect with the animal world, and learn how to livewith honour and respect for all of life.

There are people who bridge shamanic work intothe world of business, working with the guidance oftheir helping spirits. In business meetings they areraising consciousness about the need to stop

projects that might destroy an entire species ordamage the environment.

People in the medical and psychologicalprofessions are getting information fromtheir helping spirits, so their patientsmight, for example, go throughchemotherapy and not getsuch a

WHENWE FOCUS

ON THESIMPLEWAYS

Sandra Ingermantalks toNicholas Breeze Woodabout the need for simple,grounded, shamanic practice

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HOOP ISSUE 87 2015www.sacredhoop.org

negative impact from thetreatment. They are receivingguidance to inspire their clientshow to improve their state of healthand well-being.

A range of people are learningabout the shamanic ways ofviewing death, and are able to sitwith clients and loved ones as theyare dying and share ways of beinga loving, calm, and peacefulpresence. For example they mightshare; “Yes, if you see yourancestors standing there in theroom, they are here to help you,”instead of running out to getdoctors to administer medicationsto stop the hallucinations.

So people are performingshamanic work in beautiful andinspiring ways, and they’re notaware of any controversy going on.So I have to wonder, if some of usare being left behind...

When you and I starteddiscovering shamanism in theeighties, there wasn’t anyinformation around. We werethe first generation doing it herein the West, so we had to feelour way forward. I think many ofus got a bit politically correct -we were wary of becoming‘wannabes,’ and didn’t want totake on cultural baggage. But atthe same time we wanted to doit authentically, and that was adifficult path to tread.

I understand that. When we firststarted out there was no internet,no emails, or any way tocommunicate with each other, andso we were forced topractise direct

revelation and learn directly throughour helping spirits, we had to findour own ways to incorporate ourwork with others.

And that’s one of the shadowsides that I do see with theresurgence of shamanism today.There is a whole culture that has notbeen brought up in the practice ofdirect revelation, and doesn’t knowhow to enter into a process of self-reflection about how to work withthe personal guidance they receivefrom their helping spirits. When theyget information in their journeys, ortime spent in nature, they turn toothers to interpret their experiences.In doing so they give their poweraway by letting other peopleinterpret symbols and metaphorsshared by their helping spirits.

Shamanism requires takingresponsibility for self-reflection,going out into nature, sitting forweeks, or even months, if needsbe. During my first journey, where Imet with my guardian spirit in 1980, Ireceived a powerful one sentenceanswer. I am still reflecting on all themultiple levels of this answer allthese years later!

I really yearn, as manypractitioners do, for the daysbefore we could network witheach other, the times we wereforced into our own ‘vision quest’process around the work, as youwere.

When I started studying shamanismand practising in San Francisco in1980, there were only a few bookswritten on shamanism. Buteven then there was sucha wealth of

workshops going on, and so manyteachers. There were a lot ofdiscussions and judgments about whoshould be doing what, and comparingthe work people were doing.

But we just had to find our ownway, had to rely on our own helpingspirits and methods that worked, sowe could help clients with thechallenges that people were - and arestill - facing.

Yes, back then no-one hadheard of shamanism, but now ithas become an incredible buzzword. Now everything is

shamanic! For me that’s adifficulty - the word andconcept are getting diluted

because people apply it toeverything.

I live in Santa Fe,New

7

While people debate about practisingshamanism, it seems like the spirits

are finding a wealth of people towork with, who have no idea thereis a controversy. These people arelike ‘innocents’ - in the best sense

of the word... So I have to wonder, ifsome of us are being left behind...



Mexico, and when Iwent to the store oneday I saw a ‘shamanshampoo’. I almost had

a heart attack!What’s happening is, the

practice is being diluted becausemany do not understand what theword ‘shamanism’ means anymore.At the same time I find that theendless discussions - trying todefine what is and isn’t shamanism- can get so extreme. It isn’t reallyhelping to educate people, becausethere’s such an emotional energyof controversy around it all, whichmakes it really hard to hear whatpeople are trying to share.

I think one of the issues now, isthat so many different shamanic waysare being taught, that people start tothink that one way is better thananother. So instead of sinking into justone practice, and becoming it, reallyfocusing on it, people seem to besaying: “If I could just study with onemore teacher, or take one moreworkshop, then I’m going to learn amore powerful healing method.”People are surfing - take a little bitfrom Peru, and take a little bit fromSiberia, a little bit from a Westerner...They are not focusing on one practice,one tradition, one way of working!

Shamanism has an incredibledepth and potential - that’s why it’ssurvived tens of thousands ofyears. But it’s the power of thepractice and working in the invisiblerealms that has the ability to createchange and healing.

If we don’t really delve into the

depth of the practice, make it ourown, really focus on it and becomethe work, then we will no longersee powerful results. Without theresults we know are possible, thepractice of shamanism will start tofade away. We have to dive deepinto the work and experience thetrue magic behind the methods. I agree - and yet to be devil’sadvocate - I’m so aware of whathappened in the later stages ofRome, when there were all themystery schools thriving there.Then a heady moment of gnosisarose, where all the bits andpieces from the different‘mysteries’ got fused togetherand out popped the ChristianChurch - a synthesis, with bitsof the Isis cult and Mithraismand so on. So I wonder if we’rein some form of gnosis point atthe moment, some kind ofmelting pot from whichsomething new will emerge?

Well, yes you can definitely seethat. I have students who contactme and ask, “How do I combineshamanism and reiki, massage, andso on?” We can see where themelting pot of combining differenttraditions is already occurring.

On one level I ask myself thequestion; ‘Does the work continueto evolve out of bridging shamanisminto other systems?’ But then Iwonder if because of that meltingpot, are we losing and diffusing thepower of the work? I can stay up allnight and wrestle with these things’

So shamanism becomes a kindof baby food, all mushed upwith all the texture removed!

Right, exactly. But I’m seeing somereally amazing things happening, soI observe and stay open.

I receive letters from veterans ofboth the Iraq and Vietnam wars whowere introduced to shamanicjourneying through a book, or CD,or workshop, and many of themseem to meet up with helping spiritswho are able to help them learn howto forgive themselves, heal, andmove forward in their lives.

I observe people healing fromillnesses - which doctors would

diagnose as terminal - with the aidof their helping spirits. People arelearning how to live a life filled withhope, and learn through their helpingspirits how to improve their health onboth emotional and physical levels.There are many paradoxes thatwe’re dancing right now.

The helping spirits are touchingpeople in deep ways, by-passing allof the conversation. Due to this theissue becomes a ‘both-and’ wherethe gifts and challenges are bothbeing revealed. So, how do we encouragepeople to go deeper?

Well, what I tell people to do, isfocus on just one practice at a timeJust do it and make it a part ofyour daily life.

I’m still teaching workshops on tohow perform shamanic healingceremonies such as soul retrieval, butmore of my passion right now is tryingto help instill some of the the highercore values that come out of life inshamanic cultures. Teachings such ashow to live a life filled with gratitude,how to love and respect yourself andothers, how to share your strengthswithin your community to add to itsstrength and health. It is time to stopexpecting a hero or heroine to appearto fix all the challenges we’re facing inour world. It’s each person’sresponsibility to work with spiritualpractices so we join together to createpositive change in our communities,for all of life, and the Earth.

I’m more interested and devotedto teaching people daily practices,not just to perform in the morning,but ones we can integrate into dailylife. So that when you’re stuck intraffic, or you’re standing in line atthe bank, or the grocery store,you’re not moving into a place offrustration and anger, but you candrop into being a presence of love,peace, and light. When we do thiswe uplift people with a smile and akind word, and focus our positivewords, thoughts, and daydreams,as well as what we are grateful for,to lead to our desired outcome.

So, instead of looking for morecomplex ceremonies to get involvedin, I really try to inspire people tointegrate simple practices in theirdaily life. Performing complexceremonies can end up being adistraction and might only speak toour mind. When we focus onsimple practices that connect us to


I went to the store oneday and saw a ‘shamanshampoo’. I almosthad a heart attack!What’s happening is,the practice is beingdiluted becausemany do notunderstand whatthe word‘shamanism’means anymore



our heart and soul, we end upcreating healing. We must do ourwork on a daily basis andthroughout the day. Then you startto notice how your life changes,and how you start to uplift thepeople around you.

I use the word ‘simple’ a lot andoften people misinterpret that andthink it means that Sandra is onlyteaching beginners. But I find thatit’s the simple practices thatpersonally kept me alive and havehelped me to live a meaningful life.

I have suffered suicidaldepression for most of my adult life,and it’s really a miracle that I’mhere! I’m 62 years old, and it’s thesimple daily practices that I dowhich have kept me here. I havelearned how to be grateful - nomatter what I’m feeling - even if I’mmaking it up - even if I’m forcing it -just giving thanks for my life. I havelearned how to work with my wordsand my thoughts, being aware ofthe energies I send into thecollective. Through the practice ofshamanism I have learned how touse my words, thoughts, anddaydreams to bless myself andothers. I have learned how to ridethe waves of both the joyful andturbulent times.

In a way those are thefoundations of shamanism,living with compassion andkindness and love for the world,and also being connected to lifeand the spirit of life. Having an

animistic world view is verywholesome, getting connectedwith all our relatives in all thedifferent kingdoms. But as I seeit that is slightly different fromdoing more interventionistshamanic work. I always thinkshamanism is ‘appliedanimism,’ if that makes sense?

Yeah. So you mean bringingthrough some of the power of thehelping spirits to do healing workand intervene?

Yes. I see lots of ‘shamanic’workshops advertised, just likeyou do; and what’s being taughtis really healthy, important,empowering work - but it’s morea form of animism. I think there’ssuch a hunger in our culture formeaningful practical spirituality.

I definitely understand what you’resaying. I love performing healingceremonies, such as bringingpeople together to bring back thesoul of land or removing traumafrom a place.

But that is where my cautioncomes in. In the culture we live init’s really easy for people to seekintervention from the helping spiritsin a very powerful fashion. But alsothere is a tendency to try tomanipulate our environment - albeitfor all the ‘right reasons.’ I try toget people to explore thedifference between intervention

and manipulation. For example, shamanic

weather-changing work can getvery tricky. How do we help peopleevolve into a place of spiritualmaturity to avoid performingweather work from a place of egoand personal desires? How do weencourage them to be aware of abigger picture?

I guess for me, I think I try tohelp people develop the maturityand consciousness needed beforethey ask the helping spirits tointervene. It’s necessary for us togrow and evolve, and that’s part ofthe initiation that we all go through.

One of the things that Iencourage is to become embodied.This is number one. I think part ofwhat creates dissociation and astate of un-groundedness is thatwe have all experienced so muchtrauma in our lives. Also we areflooded by so many images oftrauma through the media, so thatpeople are often drawn to spiritualpractice to escape being in a body- the body is not a comfortableplace, and it doesn’t feel safe.

I know one of the things I teachthat can be controversial in theshamanic community is my beliefthat shamanic journeys are not an‘out of body experience.’

Yes, shamans go into anecstatic state of consciousness,but when they go into the invisiblerealms they engage their sensesfully and see, hear, smell,touch,and taste the invisible spiritualworld that they are in. They use all

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When we focus onsimple practices that

connect us to our heartand soul, we end upcreating healing. We

must do our workon a daily basis andthroughout the day.

Then you start tonotice how your life

changes, and how youstart to uplift the

people around you



their senses while communicatingwith their helping spirits.

In our culture some people tendto view their shamanic journeys likethey are watching TV or a movie.Some lie in bed, seeing somelovely visionary experience, butdon’t actualise the information andguidance received. Of course thereare many people who do drum,sing, and dance when they journey.And I encourage people to deepentheir experience by being moreactive as they journey.

I encourage people to wake uptheir sensory experiences of thisworld, and of the invisible worlds.They need to touch the earth, tosmell fragrances and listen to thesounds of nature in both worlds.

I think the more we can getembodied, the less our spiritual workbecomes ‘fluffy.’ When we’re reallyliving in our bodies, and experiencing

what is actually happening around usit creates the fuel to want to dosomething about it.

If we go around half in and half outof our bodies that’s soul loss. We areexperiencing soul loss on a prettymass level, and many aredisassociated too. When we’redisassociated it’s very easy to ignorewhat is going on around us, and say,“Oh that story on the TV news, or onFacebook was disturbing,” and yet wedon’t do anything about it. The storieswe read and the events we witnessdo touch us on a heart level. But untilwe get truly embodied we might notbecome active in participating inbecoming a positive change-maker.

If you really get in your body,you become more grounded, andyou wake up to your responsibilityto become an active participant increating necessary and positivechanges in the world.

I agree with that completely. Istarted off learning shamanismjourneying in the typical Westernway, headphones and a CD, Thenabout ten years ago I gave allthat up and now I drum formyself sitting up. For me thatmakes it much more physical. It’sno longer a passive experience,and the journey experience is

more vital and richer because Iam more deeply in both realities.

I do the same thing, and I actuallyhave been teaching that.

One of the reasons I keep writingbooks is that I keep exploring howwe can deepen our shamanicexperience and practice. And one ofthe topics that I’ve been writingabout is how to stop being passive inour journeys! Shamans drum, rattle,dance and sing while they journey.But not everybody feels called tothis. For some people the passiveapproach still really works for them.

In my workshops, one of thefirst exercises I do is get people tostand up with a drum or rattle, gooutside, connect with nature, andsing and dance their journeys.

When I see clients, I drum formyself, and I just put the drumdown when I have to do somehands-on work with them. It’s justtoo easy for my ordinary thoughtsto come in if I’m listening to a CD, Istart thinking about my emails, orall the tasks I have to do while Ijourney for myself.

Likewise. And if I’m lookingaround in the spirit world, myphysical body turns and looksaround in this world. It’s likethere’s an intermesh between


People seek intervention fromthe spirits in a powerful fashion,but there’s a tendency to manipulate.For example, shamanic weather-changingwork. How do we help people evolveinto spiritual maturity to avoidperforming weather work froma place of ego and personal desires?



both realities and it’s vivid andextraordinarily real then, muchbetter than anything I everexperienced on my back withheadphones on.

Ok, I’ve got another questionabout the thorny issue ofwhether people in the West canbe shamans or not? The wholething about a shamanicpractitioner and the ‘S’ word.

Well, you know, that’s a questionthat I sit with a lot.

We see tens of thousands ofpeople getting in touch withshamanic practices, and my beliefhas always been it is our birthrightas human beings to engage in thepractice of direct revelation andreceive our own guidance fromhelping spirits

And so I still feel really goodabout teaching people how toaccess their own spiritualinformation through shamanicjourneying, and through connectingwith - and communicating with -nature, and watching for omensand signs that are shown to us tohelp guide our way.

But I’m sure you get the sameemails and letters I do - ‘I would liketo be a shaman, how do I go aboutdoing that?’ I really believe that it isa destiny to be a shaman, and not aprofession that you choose.

I do observe people in myworkshops who are born with agift. I can see it in their eyes. I’vetrained some practitioners whosework is extraordinary, it’s beyondmy wildest imagination, but itwasn’t their choice, it was a giftand part of their destiny.

There are two aspects I see -those who ‘become a shaman’through destiny, and those who‘engage in shamanic practices’ toimprove the quality of their ownhealth and well being, and become amore conscious being on the planet.I separate out these two aspects.

I cannot teach anybody how tobe a shaman, that is for the spirits todo. Once you open up to the worldof spirit, the spirits take you intotheir tutelage. And it’s not always apleasant thing, because there arevery challenging initiations thatcontinue throughout life. The spiritsare not just going to put you through

a hard period for a week, there areconstant initiations to open you up tothe world of spirit and teach you howto be a vessel for the helping spiritsand to work from a place ofcompassion and love.

Yes, for me it’s always been theold thing that it’s the spirits thatdecide who’s going to be ashaman. Whatever we mightwant to do about it. it is not in ourpersonal game plan, so to speak.

Absolutely, I agree with that. I’ve hadthe opportunity to work withthousands of students, and I’veobserved that it is people whosuffered a terrible loss - such as achild dying - or they have healed froma challenging physical or emotionalillness - they are the ones who I seewith a gift for the work. Many ofthese people suffer the kinds oflosses that you can never heal from -transforming them into a woundedhealer. Shamans are often calledwounded healers. Of course having anear death experience is a classicinitiation into becoming a shaman.

It’s almost like the spirits chosethem before they were aware ofshamanism or spiritual practices, andthey went through their loss or crisis,and it was their destiny to be openedup - because of that initiatory lifeexperience - into the work. Just likeyou, I teach people that it’s the spiritsthat choose you and if they do, itwon’t mean that life becomes easyfor you, because you are going toexperience a lot of challenges in orderfor the spirits to sculpt you into theshaman you are going to become.

What I see is that the reallygreat shamanic practitioners areconstantly going through initiations.

I was introduced to the practiceof shamanic journeying by MichaelHarner, and I also did a lot of workwith Oceana FastWolf, who is anApache medicine woman. Both ofthem really instilled in me you don’tcall yourself a shaman. Yourcommunity recognises you as ashaman, but to actually callyourself a shaman is an egoicstatement. That idea became soembedded in me. I never trainedwith anyone who said, “You shouldstand up and call yourself ashaman.” I saw calling yourself ashaman, and bragging about your

power, as being the same thing. But I can see that if you were

initiated and trained in a culturewhere you were taught, ‘this is whoyou are,’ then ‘shaman’ explainsyour identity.

I was trained very much like you,for me the ‘S’ word is a big ‘nono.’ But then again, I got a bit ofgentle finger wagging from aSiberian shaman once who said“Of course you should callyourself a shaman, it’s only likesaying you know how to do first-aid if you come across a trafficaccident!” What an amazingalternative way of looking at it!

I know, that’s beautiful. I love that. Igrew up in the sixties, and I’ve alwaysbeen a rebel. My mother died at theage of ninety-eight, and my husbandwill tell the story that she would sayevery day; “You could never tellSandy what to do - ever! She willalways do what she wants to do!”

I had three near deathexperiences which opened me up toa state of oneness and unconditionallove. As a teenager, growing up inthe sixties, I ingested psychedelicdrugs and had a wealth of numinousexperiences. I then moved to theHaight-Ashbury district of SanFrancisco, to join others in birthing amore loving and conscious way ofbringing life into being.

Then I was introduced to


I really believe that itis a destiny to be ashaman, and nota profession thatyou choose.I cannot teachanybody how tobe a shaman, that isfor the spirits to do



shamanic journeying in 1980, and Iwas taught that the helping spiritswill teach you what you personallyneed to learn to improve your life andto help others. Well, that really fit mypersonality. I realised that, I neverhave to work with a human teacher, Ijust needed to engage deeply in myown practice of direct revelation andwork with my own helping spirits.’And that’s what I’ve done, andthrough that experience and learningI’ve been able to help others.

I think the shadow side ofworking with human teachers, isthey can often take certainprinciples and turn them into rules.And then they plant the seeds offear into students by the desire towant to control their them. We canchoose a broader construct, andask ‘Where does this teachingactually come from?’ and ‘What isthe purpose of this?’ Or we can justsay ‘Well, you’re my teacher, and

I’m going to take all of this in, andbelieve everything that you say.’

As we deepen our ownshamanic practices, we move into aplace of self reflection and need towork with our own helping spirits,rather than say ‘I learned this fromsomebody else, and I have to followeverything I was taught without anyprocess of self reflection.

I have students who worked withan indigenous shaman who taughtthem that one should not share theirjourneys with others. Now, ofcourse, sharing without discretioncan be a form of giving your poweraway, not sitting with the experience,not letting it really sink in.

Yet often, there is a healing thatoccurs in our Western culture thatcomes from sharing our experiencesand having others reflect back to you‘How beautiful and profound yourexperience was’. For we live in aculture where we were taught that if

you go into invisible worlds ‘You’recrazy,’ or ‘You need professional helpand get on medication!’ We weretaught to only acknowledge what weexperience in the tangible realm.

So as I see it, often a teachingthat comes from a specific culturehas a broader underlying principle,which doesn’t always translate intoour modern day culture in the West.

But there are profound guidingprinciples that we can learn fromindigenous cultures and theirshamans - whilst we are living inthe here and now in our Westernculture, which is so different.

It is so important to me that wedo the questing, the visioning, thejourneying, getting directrevelation. I continue believingthere is a way for us to broadenour perspectives and evolve ourwork to be effective practitionersduring the times we live in.

The paradox is, shamanism haschanged over thousands of yearsto meet the needs of the people;and we’re in a different time now.So when we are wondering‘Should I call myself a shaman?’we have to know what ‘being ashaman’ actually means.

Part of the shaman’s role hasalways been holdingceremonial space. I was inconversation with MartinPrechtel one time, and he saidthat he saw his role as ‘givingpeople the authentic taste ofceremony, so that when theycame across it, they wouldknow if it was real or not.’

I think if you learn from atraditional culture, or learn atraditional technique or atraditional world view, then youget that taste of what’s authentic.We need to know the bones ofthe ceremony, so we add ourown flesh to them in a way that’ssuitable for our own culture.

Absolutely, and I think that whenpeople are able to participate in aceremony which has been carrieddown through an ancestral line in aparticular way for thousands ofyears, then the way that the peopleand the shaman at the ceremonyall conduct themselves makes it -

Often people turn to others tointerpret their experiences. In doing

so they give their power away byletting other people interpret the

things shared by their spirits. Shamanism requires taking

responsibility for self-reflection, goingout into nature, sitting for weeks,

or even months, if needs be




in Martin Prechtel’s words -‘authentic.’ The power is thepresence that comes through aceremony like that.

The power that then shinesthrough every cell of one’s being, issomething that inspires us. Butoften we aren’t inspired becausethere’s not the depth. People wholearn ceremonies or rituals, throughchurches, or different religioustraditions, are given ‘step one,’‘step two,’ ‘step three.’... and rules.

So people end up reading frombooks or memorising steps to aceremony taught by other teachersbut there isn’t a cellular depth that’sbeing touched, the bones you spokeof are not really coming through.

When you’re in an authenticceremony, that has been carrieddown through time, it’s not aboutreading notes, it’s about reallyexperiencing what energies arebeing carried through, what healingenergies and dreams can be bridgedfrom the invisible into the visiblerealms. It shows the true power ofshamanism as we spin threads intobeing from the invisible into theworld of form, to weave into being anew beautiful fabric of reality.

Yes, and of course that taps intoanother aspect. An ancientceremony or tradition has anincredibly vibrant spirit of itself,and you’re tapping into that spirit,which helps create an ancestralenergy to what you are doing.I agree. One of the things that I tryto share with people in the West isthat, due to modern psychotherapy,people often focus on what theydidn’t get from their ancestors,because maybe they grew up in adysfunctional family, and they aredealing with the impact of that.

On one level, we all have to dealwith what we didn’t get growing up,and validate the feelings that comefrom feeling wounded as a child.Then we must work our feelingsthrough and heal our past.

But at the same time, what’shappened, because of only delvinginto the wounds from growing up,is we have lost our connection toour ancestral line, in the way thatpeople experience their connectionwith the ancestors in indigenoustraditions. That’s a real loss.

For in the West, we’re generally

cut off from that wealth of tradition,from that line of ancestral gifts andstrengths.

I remember one time - this wasmany, many years ago - I waspresenting at a conference. I wastalking about my ‘Medicine for theEarth’ work, and I was teachingabout the power of words, and howwords can be used to bless, or howwords can be used to destroy. I wassharing how we have to really workto align our words and thoughtsthat lead to our desired outcome,

At the end of my lecture, aNavajo [Diné] Elder came up to me- dressed in her full native dress -and she said to me; “Do you knowwhat our term ‘May you walk inBeauty’ means?”

And I said ‘No.’ I often hear thatterm being used in songs andconversation. She said “It’s a Navajoterm, and it means to make sure thatyou bless everybody with your wordsso that you always bring beauty.”

And then she said to me; “Doyou know why we don’t trustpeople in America?”

I was confused by that question,because for me, there are obviousreasons, but I knew she was diggingdeeper than just the surface.

She said; “Because you do notspeak about your family when youintroduce yourself.”

I asked her what she meant,and she replied, “When you cometo the Navajo nation and we askyou ‘Who are you? What’s yourname?’ we expect you to talkabout your ancestors, and peopledon’t do that in your culture.”

I thought about that, and we satdown together and talked for a verylong time - had a really deepdiscussion. I told her that my familycame over from Russia to escapepersecution and death. I shared thatwhen they came to America theirfocus was on integrating into theU.S. They taught their children howto integrate into America and did notshare where they came from andwho their ancestors were. I knowwhere my Mother’s family comesfrom, but I actually don’t knowwhere my Father’s family comesfrom at all. Nobody in my familyknows where my paternalGrandparents came from in Europe.Her questioning made me think hardabout my own ancestral connection.

The whole topic of ancestry andconnecting with ancestry reallytakes us to another level of

reflection on how deep can we gowith our own shamanic practices.We really need to bring through thewisdom and teachings and strengthand bones of our ancestors.

For traditional people thisconnection remains and is carrieddown in physical community events.I live in Santa Fe, and I can go andsee different traditional dances thatgo on in local Native Americancommunities throughout NewMexico. They rehearse and theypractise their dances, from the littlekids - maybe only five years old -right up to the elders. They practise,practise, practise. But it’s not aboutpractising the steps, it’s abouttapping into the ancestors, andhonouring the ancestors through thepower of the dance. And it’s reallyevident that this is not a show forthe public - not a performance.These are people who are actuallybringing through an ancestraltradition, one that is still being donein a genuine and authentic way. Thepeople present are touched by it.When people are touched, they feeltheir deep ancestral connectionsand it changes their consciousness.

Of course in the West, when wethink about getting in touch withour ancestors, the automaticresponse is to go onto agenealogy website. We get very‘head’ with it. But my shamanicapproach would be to makeofferings to the ancestors. Imight offer honey and milkmixed together. I’d go and makeprayers of gratitude to myancestors for the fact that theycarried me, and I’m here now! Idon’t necessarily need to knowwho they actually were.

Exactly, yes. I do that every day inmy own life. I adored my parents,And I just have such an honour andrespect for my ancestors, and soexpressing gratitude for myancestors is part of the dailypractice that I do every single day.Again, I’m looping back into someof those simple practices that wecan do, which bring through someof the core values of shamanism.We need to be able to honour ourown ancestors, and I also honourthe helping ancestors of the land I

Sandra Ingerman, MA,is an award

winning author often books, including

‘Soul Retrieval: Mendingthe Fragmented Self,’

‘Walking in Light:The Everyday

Empowerment ofShamanic Life.’

She is the presenter ofseven audio programs

produced by SoundsTrue, and she is

the creator of theTransmutation App.

Sandra is a worldrenowned shamanic

teacher and has beenteaching for more than

30 years. Sandra isrecognised for bridging

ancient cross-culturalhealing methods into

our modern cultureaddressingthe needs

of our times.

www.sandraingerman.com

See the review ofSandra’s new book:

‘Walking In Light:The Everyday

Empowerment ofShamanic Life,’ in

this issue ofSacred Hoop

Sacred Hoop wishesto thank Sofy Rosie forher help with this article




sandra: indeed, we are seeing an incredible resurgence we … · 2020. 1. 8. · sandra ingerman...

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