The Shamanic Healing Way

"We are all students; we are all teachers"

"I am seeking, I am seeking

in the drum, the water, the sky,

I am seeking, I am seeking

In the Earth, the air, the chaos and the starry sky

In the seas, the fields, the rocks and mountains high

The truth is coming, the Way revealed.."
Carol Edgar 

In an article called "All life is connected - The Shamans Way", Jonathan Horwitz talks about what Shamanism is:  He starts by saying that the word 'shaman' originally comes from the Evinki people and literally means "the one who knows". A Shaman is someone who is able to contact the spirit world and works with it to help both himself and others. "Central to the understanding of Shamanism and especially shamanic healing is the concept of power. Not power as might, but rather power as energy. Traditionally the shaman sees two main reasons for illness. The patient either has something inside which should not be there, an unwanted power/energy intrusion, or is missing something that should be there i.e power loss. As all things have a spirit or a soul from the shaman's point of view, this holds true for illnesses as well. In the case of a power intrusion it is the shaman's job to remove the spirit of the unwanted power." In his shamanic work Jonathan Horwitz has found over the years "that the main cause of illness is separation, both literally and metaphorically, to the degree that the two words could also be considered synonymous. By separation, i mean being cut off from one's surroundings, loved one or even perhaps especially oneself....." He says that "When you are feeling powerful (full of power) it is when you are in contact with the rest of the universe and being filled with that power there is no room for illness. It means that you are listening to spirit/your intuition or trusting. Conversely he says that one of the greatest symptoms of power loss is lack of trust, while fear is another.

Jonathan Horwitz says that "for thousand of years, shamans have known that one of the major causes of illness and other forms of imbalance in our world is 'soul loss', the loss of some part of ourselves. The Shaman asks the spirits- guides, teachers and helpers for help and advice and sometimes to find and bring back home this soul part to reunite it with the physical body. This work is called 'soul retrieval'. The shaman knows that all things created have soul and therefore knows that it is possible to communicate with these other spiritual essences by journeying to them. The shamanic journey is a journey of the soul. " And it one that we can all learn to do for ourselves. Initially perhaps with the help of a shaman and then increasingly on our own.

Kathy Fried is an incredible Shaman who lives and works in London. I worked with her during my art therapy studies and the journeys that i went on in those sessions were incredibly powerful. Kathy is refreshingly down to earth and grounded yet she is also an incredible healer. She has the warmest heart and it was very special to be able to work with her and the spirits in those sessions.

nyarttherapist.com/id3.html describes so perfectly what i do in terms of energy medicine healing that uses shamanic techniques that i will let her speak for me today:

"We all have a luminous energy field/aura which is a subtle energy body that surrounds the human body. It contains information related to our health. Emotional, genetic and karmic history can organize energy and this energy can be apparent in our energy fields. Sometimes the energy can leave dense or heavy imprints in the field which can express as disease in the human body. The healing work that i do can help to release these heavy energies from the past and clear imprints, allowing the body to re-pattern towards health and healing.

Once this energy is released and blocks are removed, the body can begin to bring in more light and move into deeper levels of healing. I generally do not know fully where the energy healing session will go before the session starts i am guided by Spirit through the session to do the work that is needed for that person at that time. Sessions may include removal of energies (extractions), return of essential energies to the body (soul retrievals), healing of ancestral or generational wounds and patterns, or healing of karmic wounds. Heavy energies are energies that do not serve us well and can essentially "clog" the energy field and affect our health and well-being. These heavy energies may have been caused by past traumas or painful experiences and/or may be genetic or karmic in nature. When the heavy energy is released, the body feels lighter and clearer and can perform better. It is similar to a computer with too much unnecessary information. When the unnecessary information is removed or "cleaned up", the computer functions much more efficiently, and as it was intended to function.

An extraction can remove heavy energy or blocks. Sometimes energies can "crystallize" and become embedded in the energetic field and body. This can begin to manifest in the physical, emotional and mental bodies as disease and not feeling well. An extraction can also remove an intrusive energy or entity that is fluid and moves throughout the body.

A soul retrieval helps you to regain an essential part of yourself, or essential energy, which was lost or fled or was splintered off at some point in your life. Many of us have experienced energy loss to some degree throughout our life. Soul retrievals can be powerful pieces of work and can be particularly powerful for those who have gone through traumatic experience.

Some people feel changes and/or shifting in the energy field during a session, however, others may just feel a deep sense of release, relaxation and/or peace. It depends on various factors including the work being done. Sometimes the process facilitates an experience of visual images, colors, or memories which may be related to what is being worked on. Generally speaking, you will most likely feel lighter and/or clearer immediately after a session and will feel a difference in the quality of your health. Other positive shifts may also occur in the period following the session, which may include shifts in your physical, emotional and/or mental health as well. "