Shamanic Healing Ceremony

This is the kind of thing that if you ever have the opportunity, regardless of your belief system you have to participate. It is an amazing thing to be a part of something that has been done the same way for the past thousand years.

Definition:
- Shaman Healer: A Shaman is member of certain tribal societies who acts as a medium between the visible world and an invisible spirit world and who practices magic or sorcery for purposes of healing, divination, and control over natural events. Shamanism involves body, mind and heart.

My Experience: My shamanic experience came about unexpectedly. Recently, while traveling through Ecuador, we had the opportunity to attend a Shamanic Ceremony quite by accident and I felt it would be wonderful to experience the shamanic healing. This is something I have always looked forward to doing whether I was sick or not. I believe that other cultures have alternative techniques that can be of great value to our healing process.

The Shamanic Healing Ceremony was held at an ancient archeological complex, atop the platform of the so-called Temple of the Sun which was erected in an elliptical form to coincide with the movement of the sun. This complex was mostly a ceremonial site, used for worship and astronomy which held great spiritual value.

It took the Shaman Healer quite some time to set things up for the ceremony making sure that he had fire, water and smoke in the center of the platform and positioning certain organic items and tools around him. He then sat quietly for some time in a trancelike state. As we gathered around on the ancient platform and held hands, the Shaman began the ceremony. We had a translator so we could all understand what was happening.

Throughout the ceremony some of the participants decided at different times to sit down and others continued to stand, each of us trying to find our own peaceful space. It was quite a long ceremony with a lot of chanting and rituals, but throughout the whole thing I remained in somewhat of a meditative state. Towards the end the Shaman gave each one of us some tobacco which he had us place in our hands and hold it tightly while we put all our desires and dreams into that tobacco. He then collected it and rolled it into this huge cigar which he lit and began blessing each of us with its smoke.

As the smoke surrounded each of us, the Shaman asked us to put all our thoughts and energy into our desires and dreams and to open ourselves up to those feelings. At the end he acknowledged that there were 2 people that he felt needed extra healing, one was myself and the other a young women in the group and he made an effort to bless the two of us individually and to surround us with the smoke again. For me, it was a very spiritual experience and I felt peace and hope. I feel that if we are open to all spiritual experiences it can be very liberated and healing.

Would I do it again? Most definitely! I recently returned to Ecuador and met with the Shaman Healer again and participated in a second healing ceremony. I would also try applying alternative healing techniques from a variety of cultures. Our society does not have the inside track on how to cure ourselves. I believe being open to all possibilities is essential to the healing process.

I am really excited to share with you a great opportunity, I have recently spoken with Gary and Merri Scott who ran the tour I attended and they have added a Shaman Mingo Tour to their seminar schedule! I had an absolutely incredible experience and I highly recommend this tour to anyone interested in Shaman Healing. What makes this even more exciting is that it is in Ecuador! Don't miss this opportunity to experience a real Shaman Healing Ceremony.

If you enjoyed reading about this experience you might also like to read Oriental Medicine: Electrodermal Testing, Applied kinesiology, Detoxification Therapy, and Homeopathy

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