Lessons of the Inca Shaman: Piercing the Veil

by Deborah Bryon

Deborah Bryon describes her experiences through the first four years of lessons and initiations she received from Inca shamans in Peru. The central teachings the shamans now wish to pass on to Western culture include the interconnectedness of all creatures (ordinary and spiritual) and our connection with Pachamama (Mother Earth).

The book contains Dr. Bryon's personal journey. Her struggles to live in both the ordinary reality of a day job and the non-ordinary reality of a quest for shamanic understanding are described with clarity, insight, and appropriate amounts of self-deprecating humor. Along with her story, she analyzes her quest in the context of Jungian theory and, at the same time, explains how her journey includes aspects beyond the usual boundaries of Jungian thought.

319 pages, Paperback

First published August 28, 2012

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

I discovered this book after hearing Deborah Byron interviewed on the Shrink Rap Radio podcast. Byron courageously shares her personal journey of transformation as a former stock broker turned Jungian analyst, the odyssey that takes her to Peru to train as an Inca shaman. Byron describes her path on the edge of mental illness alongside her husband who is on a similar trajectory of mental imbalance. Byron shares her discovery of shamanic tradition and mystical experience and the painful process of integrating these discoveries back into what she refers to as her "waking life". Byron is deeply vulnerable and sincere as she details the paradox she faces as a traditional westerner trying to integrate the spiritual knowledge she is tapping into, and the deep loneliness and alienation from traditional her culture that this entails. She fears she is going mad, and in some ways she is. Byron shares her insights into somatic perception and Jungian conceptual understandings that have allowed to make sense of her experience, but in many ways the experiences she has had translate incompletely into this cognitive framework. To be fair Byron's work is somewhat strained, her font changes can be confusing and her narrative is somewhat scattered. However I personally enjoyed her introduction to Peruvian shamanism with the simple introductory exercises she gives in this tradition, and I found her sincere self disclosure very powerful. For me this book was valuable given my own personal experience with Inca shamanism and my own spiritual odyssey along the faultlines of consciousness and culture. This book is likely to appeal to a narrow audience, but for those intrigued with shamanism and mystical experience there is reason to check it out.

[Ernest Solar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve always been fascinated by shamans from various cultures. At one point in my life I considered pursuing the chance to study with shamans from Peru. So naturally, I was drawn to Bryon’s book. Being a trained social scientist myself, I appreciate Bryon’s analytical point of view concerning her nonordinary experiences along her journey. I believe Bryon does an excellent job of describing her experiences in Peru and trying to merge her new knowledge of the natural world into her everyday life. What I enjoyed most about the book was the wisdom she learned from the shamans in regards to the natural world and how we (the West) need to learn how to draw on the strength of nature. Personally, parts of the story were hard to follow, either because of the terms used by the shamans (a learning curve thing for me) and/or Bryon’s own disjointed experiences. However, neither of these took away from the message Bryon was sharing. I believe her experiences and her message is important. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to develop a closer relationship with nature and the spirits that reside in the natural realm.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unique book delving into the Body, Mind, and Spirit via the path of the Inca Shamans - with Jung’s path woven in. Another timely read as we transition from a focus on self to collective - no matter the path

[Jamais · Rating 4 out of 5]

The path is always going to be more important than than the journey. Bryon started her journey to become a shaman, and //Lessons of the Inca Shamans// follows that journey. As a Jungian analyst, and therefore into the symbols of the subconscious, she adds some analysis to the process, as well as those that have had the chance to undergo the process themselves, most notably Carlos Castenedas. This is a fascinating study of that can happen on that path.

With all of the new age books on the market looking at the more extreme examples of spiritual experiences, where beings of power have come to fill in something missing from their lives, this is a refreshing breath of wind. The experience is usually painted as some great dramatic experience, but here it is presented here as a series of gradual changes in a relationship between two beings. Besides making it seem more real, it also allows the person to better follow a path to enlightenment and makes for a more compelling look. As Bryon is having to work at her relationship with her husband, who is going through something similar, it helps ground her experiences in reality, making an important link between her and the reader; if she can do this while dealing with the otherworldly, it informs the reader that he can as well.

Although the writing does occasionally get bogged down in analysis, this is a strength of the book, and makes it more interesting. Again, too many writers merely describe the process; Bryon provides an important analysis of what is happening to her, making it much more real. If you are contemplating something similar, this is an excellent introduction to the process, and a must read for those interested in personal enlightenment.

As written by Jamais Jochim for http://sanfranciscobookreview.com/