Here are my working definitions of some of the words and language used during courses. Note that you could find other definitions, but try to stick to the ones given while on these courses.
Be careful with definitions, use them to help with the work, but don’t be limited by them. Some words we use are impossible to define properly and it is better to ‘feel’ them rather than analyse them.
A person of great skill and proficiency.
A process of transformation.
An marked area where sacred items can be placed.
Images, themes or figures from the ‘collective unconscious’.
This is a latin phrase and we use it in reference to a kind of “gateway” to other worlds.
A sacred activity with particular aims and intentions.
A person’s belief or understanding about how the World or Universe works.
Of the sacred. A ‘higher’ power.
The conscious part of a person. It uses logic, reasoning and rationality to create an image of the self and of the world.
Beings of the realm of the elements, earth, air, water and fire.
The visible or tangible form of a divine or spiritual quality or characteristic.
When a physical being or apparently “inanimate” object becomes imbued by divine/ spiritual power.
A call to spirits with the intention of affecting something outside of one’s self.
A “resident” spirit of place.
The power of a witness is very strong. An impeccable witness observes without judgement.
A call to spirits with the intention to affect one’s self.
At a threshold or in a state of ‘in-between’.
A place in Non-ordinary reality where spirits dwell. Most often, the spirits here present themselves in animal form.
A place in both Ordinary and Non-ordinary reality. Corporeal life (physical beings) dwell here. Some spirits also dwell here.
A reality outside of what we are usually familiar with.
Mysterious. Of a divine nature.
Hidden, secret, concealed.
The reality that we are familiar with.
A situation where two truths seem to be contradictory or in oppositions to each other. Two apparent opposites exist together and both are true.
A journey with the intention of gaining some spiritual benefit.
When a spirit that does not generally belong to a person has become attached to them.
A culturally specific term describing a spirit in animal form that chooses to work with a shamanic practitioner.
An object that has been awakened, empowered and fed. Often the intention is that the object helps the practitioner with healing work or to connect with Spirit.
Means literally ‘conductor of souls’. A person, being or force that aids movement of spirits.
Originally from Greek, meaning ‘soul’. These days ‘psyche’ is mainly used as though it means ‘mind’, but for our work we should try to bring the term back to its original spirit.
An action or actions of devotion dedicated to a particular intention.
That which is connected to a higher force and should not be violated. An essential job for the shaman is to understand, respect and honour the Sacred. How we treat the Sacred can be a good indicator about how we are progressing in our own soul-development.
A person who has been recognized as working with spirits for the purposes of healing. The word originated in Siberia and the Tungus language, meaning something like ‘one who knows’, and is applied to both women and men.
An altered state of consciousness necessary for a shamanic practitioner to connect with their spirit allies.
The Soul is not definable, but there may be some working models that can be helpful. For example, a person’s own truth; their essence; their own piece of the great mystery; The ‘true self’. The Soul is said by many cultures to be eternal.
Self-governance by an individual person.
The word ‘Spirit’ is undefinable, but we can use a working model – The animating force and universal consciousness. Practitioners tend to ‘feel’ Spirit and the analytical mind cannot truly grasp it.
A transcended spirit that is willing to offer help, support, guidance and teaching to the shamanic practitioner.
An action or practice that is forbidden or highly restricted. For our work here, there is particular interest in what are personal taboos rather than social or cultural taboos.
A though that manifests into form. This may be in the form of an energetic or behavioural pattern, or even a physical object or entity.
A place in Non-ordinary reality where spirits dwell. Most often, the spirits here present themselves in humanoid form.