Michael Drake's Blog, page 66

"After the Journey"

by Kelley HarrellMany present the technique of journeying as the feature distinguishing shamanism from other intuitive/psychic arts. It is. But that's not all. I've said from day one of deciding -- and it is a decision -- to be a modern shaman, that anyone can see. We're all seers, all intuitive. Going into trance doesn't make you a shaman, it makes you human. It's not a special skill reserved for certain people. But knowing what to do with intuition, how to respond to it, how to incorporate its wisdom into everyday life is a very special skill, that can -- and should -- be learned, for your own journeys, and especially if you want to work with others. Otherwise, dipping into journeying can make a huge mess, a spiritual crisis bigger than what brought you to learning the technique to start with. Read more.

Butterfly Medicine

The butterfly is an archetypal symbol of transformation, transmutation, and magic in world mythology and religion. Virtually all cultures have marveled at the magical process that transforms an ungraceful caterpillar into a magnificent fluttering butterfly. According to Hindu mythology, Brahma became filled with deep calm while observing a caterpillar’s transformation and was convinced to achieve perfection through rebirth. In Chinathe butterfly was a symbol of conjugal bliss and joy. In the Hopi tradition unmarried girls of the Butterfly Clan wore their hair in the shape of butterfly wings. In many traditions, this most exquisite yet fragile creature was a symbol of the soul. Many cultures around the world believe that butterflies are the spirits of the deceased communing again with the earth. Read more »

RaSani Body Mind Spirit Fair

Come to the RaSani Body Mind Spirit Fair September 28th and 29th in North Albany, ORand see the enchanting clay sculptures of Oregonartist Elisia Drake. Elisia creates nature-inspired Faery Homes for lawn and gardens and Forest Ones, which are unique hand-formed clay and wire figurines clothed with all natural plant materials. Elisia brings out the animated spirit of each Forest One through the expressive qualities of clay and organic matter. Wildcrafting of all plant materials is done sustainably with proper respect. Each Forest One comes with its own name, personality and care instructions. Click here to view the Forest Ones gallery.

Salmon Medicine

The Salmon is an amazing creature that can grow up to four feet in length and weigh over sixty pounds. It has remarkable navigation skills. Salmon finds its way from the sea to the river of its birth and swims upstream overcoming great obstacles to reach its spawning grounds. Salmon are masters of water, which is related to the emotions and change. Salmon teaches us how to overcome obstacles and flow with the shifting waters of change. Salmon symbolizes sustenance, regeneration, continuity, fluidity, purpose, resolve, integrity, and the flow of life. Just as the sound of the drum can be used to call the spirit of the salmon into a ritual, the drum can also be used to draw salmon upriver to spawn in restored spawning grounds. Salmon are drawn to the beat of the drum because it sounds like the slap of the female salmon's tail as she scrapes out a gravel nest. The didgeridoo, like the one heard on my video "Salmon Run," originated in Australia thousands of years ago. According to Aboriginal mythology, the Creator created man and woman and gave them the didgeridoo to sound the animals into form. People of Salmon Medicine will have strong ties to the place of their birth. Merge with the salmon and swim in the river of deep knowledge -- the river of life. Plunge into the uncharted waters of the unknowable -- back to the source.

2013 Autumnal Equinox Drum Circle

Sunday September 22, 2013, 1 to 4 pm at the Silverton Grange, 201 Division St., Silverton, OR 97381. Facilitated by Michael Drake, author of Shamanic Drumming: Calling the Spirits . At the Autumnal Equinox, we begin a new cycle on the Medicine Wheel of Life, entering the West -- the home of autumn, twilight, Bear, introspection, and transformation. As we join our hearts in prayer and sacred drumming, we participate in this season of gathering in, attuning ourselves to the cyclical rhythms of nature. As we celebrate together in ceremony, we enter the cave of the heart, allowing our feminine receptive side to magnetize and reveal our personal truth and life purpose. Gathering in the power of the West, we nurture and empower our personal vision. Bring a drum, a dish, and a donation. Email Michael for more information.

Thunder Medicine

I love the sound of thunder. It is so powerful and primal. It resonates to my very core. Nothing heightens my senses like the voice of the Thunder Beings. Whenever I hear the rumbling thunder I take a moment to acknowledge and thank these divine beings for the work they do and the blessings they bestow upon the Earth. 
Every spring the Thunder Beings arise in the Sky and adorn themselves in cloud, thunder, lightning, wind, and rain. They are the force behind all weather changes and sustain life on Earth. They travel in the clouds and lightning and speak through the thunder. Their medicine and gift is balance, change, and renewal. The Thunder Beings are a force for both dissolution and re-creation. They are nature's way of breaking down the archetypal patterns of an old cycle in preparation for a new cycle. Divergent polar forces pull apart obsolete patterns, allowing new patterns to form. "In all traditions it is Thunder Beings who govern nature and all life; they are the creators. They sustain balanced life, and destroy imbalance, the cause of suffering."1 Read more »

"9 Ways to Be Like a Shaman at Work"

Huichol Yarn PaintingThe Huichols, an indigenous tribe that lives in the mountainous region of central Mexico, are some of the happiest, healthiest, wisest people on earth. Many of them are shamans, and a surprising number of their tribe surpass 100 and work in the fields up until the day they die. Shaman-healer Brant Secunda traveled to Mexico as a young man and was invited to live with the Huichols for 12 years, where he became the adopted grandson of a shaman named Don José Matsuwa, who lived to be 110. There are many lessons he learned from the Huichols, which he now writes about and teaches to others. One of them is how to make small behavioral changes at work that keep us happy, relaxed, motivated, and performing at our best. Click here for nine of them you can apply every day.

Signs of a Shamanic Calling

Many people in today's world are being called by spirit to become shamans. A yearning exists deep within many of us to reconnect to the natural world. It is a call to a life lived in balance with awareness of nature, of spirit, and of self. We live in a culture that has severed itself from nature and spirit. Humans have lost touch with the spirit world and the wisdom of inner knowing. The spirits, however, have not forgotten us. They are calling us to a path of environmental sanity, to rejoining the miraculous cycle of nature.

Spirit calls us to a path of shamanism in many ways. It can be as dramatic as a life threatening illness or as simple as a dream. Some people receive signs of a shamanic calling through their dreams. Shamans frequently journey during their dreams, often flying through the air. Shamans may have recurring dreams in which they meet certain animal or teacher figures that are manifestations of the very spirits who are calling them. Read more »

Tuvan Throat Singing

Throat singing, a guttural style of singing or chanting, is one of the world's oldest forms of music. For those who think the human voice can produce only one note at a time, the resonant harmonies of throat singing are surprising. In throat, or overtone singing, a singer can produce two or more notes simultaneously through specialized vocalization techniques taking advantage of the throat's resonance characteristics. By precise movements of the lips, tongue, jaw, velum, and larynx, throat singers produce unique harmonies using only their bodies. Throat singing is most identified with the Tuvan people of southern Siberia, who use their voices to mimic and interact with the sounds of the natural world -- whistling birds, bubbling streams, or the blowing wind. Throat singing is simply the sounds we all make, or are capable of making, to connect ourselves with nature. Read more.

Chosen by the Spirits

Buryat shamaness Sarangerel wrote Chosen by the Spirits: Following Your Shamanic Calling as a guide for both the beginning shaman and the advanced practitioner. Although raised in the United States, she was drawn to the shamanic tradition, and in 1991 returned to her ancestral homeland in the Tunken region of southern Siberia to study with traditional Buryat shamans. Her first book, Riding Windhorses , provided an introduction to the shamanic world of Siberia. In Chosen by the Spirits , Sarangerel recounts her own journey into shamanic practice and provides the serious student with practical advice and hands-on techniques for recognizing and acknowledging a shamanic calling, welcoming and embodying the spirits, journeying to the spirit world, and healing both people and places. Highly recommended!