Shamanism is as old as mankind. It is a way of walking, hearing, seeing and being that connects us to the world beneath the world, the spirit that is inside, outside, enmeshed in and parallel to the ordinary world we perceive every day.
We begin a shamanic path by studying the ancient pathways that connect the worlds and teach us to work with spirit. Thanks to Micheal Harner and the Foundation for Shamanic Studies, these old worn paths, overgrown by modern culture, are being steadily cleared. Every day they grow more visible to us and are now fairly easy to follow.
Modern shamanic teachers take people first along the wide and clearly marked paths to teach them to journey. Think of the first few miles of a major trail right after the tail head. It is like a super highway and is populated by people of all types. Further into the forest the trails diverge and become less traveled, more rugged, and more adventuresome. Today’s shamanic teachers have cleared these paths for you into the specific areas of their interest: Celtic Shamanism, Shape Shifting, White Table, Animal Healing, Soul Retrieval, and so many more fascinating arenas.
I have opened paths that are about healing our Animal Partners (dogs, cats, horses etc) using shamanic methods. In my trainings I apply common shamanic techniques to animal clients. But I do so in a way that is unique to the trails I have uncovered. Over the course of 10 years of concentrated journey work and attention I have been taught a way of working shamanically that is very powerful, and is especially beneficial for working with animals and their people. I teach this method through telelclasses with the Animal Spirit Network, and through workshops worldwide and private trainings.
I am not sure exactly what cultural traditions I am following when I do my work. I am not much of a scholar. I am an explorer. I ask the spirits to show me how to achieve big results. I ask them to explain the cosmology of the world to me empirically: through shamanic journey experiences, results in my clients, and parallel experiences in my students. The results are profound for me and for my students. (By the way I enjoy taking workshops and connecting with other shamanic teachers. It is so exciting to learn the paths they have been shown, and to see if and how they overlap with the ones I am following.)
Here are the themes of the shamanic exploration I am embarking on today:
Spirals and the Nexus of Creation: At the center of the spiral is a place of brilliance. The place of creation itself. A client in that spiral can experience a transfiguration that explodes away the old and rebirths in pure divinity. The secret is in the preparation and the ceremony. I have two workshops that explore this : Healing in the Spiral of Time and Sacred Animal Masks. Sacred Animal Masks is offered in Phoenix and Chicago Spring 2008.
The Power of Ecosystems: This started with my desire to communicate with reef life (all the critters, not just whales and dolphins). Communicating with reef life opened up a new revelation for me in the power of using ecosystems as healers for clients and for the earth herself. As a result I see the earth totally differently today than I did even a year ago. I am currently exploring ecosystem work with my advanced private students. I will be birthing it in a week long workshop on private Caribbean sailing boat cruise in 2009. (Yes, we will swim with Dophins!)
Animal Tribes: Domestic Animals are very dependent upon their connection to their spirit tribes. The spirits tribes facilitate the death and dying process. They bring super powerful healing power. They give the animal a point of reference in the world. They hold any soul parts that were not fully committed to the body at birth. The tribal stories are the animal’s mythology, critical to the animal’s self concept. I am forever exploring these tribal connections and teaching about them in my trainings. There is more to this story too (there always is). Our power is a function of our connection to our tribes. Our tribes are our loved ones here on earth, our ancestors, spirit family, power animals and their tribes. We will be connecting to our Power Animal’s tribe in the Mask workshop – see the page links!
Please browse www.spirithealer.com to learn more about me, and www.spiritlearning.com to find out about studying with me.
My trainings are guidances. Your teachers are the spirits. Together we explore paths that are well worn, but over grown, and we rebirth that knowledge for the whole world!
In Spirit and Love – Carla
