Description
Book Synopsis...reexamines our notions of the nature of reality by studying the ritual postures of native art assumed by her subjects during trance states.
Trade Review"The book is clearly written for the general reader and includes many descriptions of trance experiences. It may serve as a good introduction to the nature and appeal of the shamanic revival in modern Western cultures." - Theological Book Review " ... a case study in experiential anthropology that offers a unique mix of autobiography, mythology, experiential research, and archaeological data to support a challenging thesis that certain body postures may help induce specific trance states." - Shaman's Drum "This is a spellbinding and exceptionally readable book by an extraordinary woman." - Yoga Journal "And suddenly the understanding of my own vision washed over me like a mighty wave ... For life or for death, I was committed to that mighty realm of which I was shown a brief reminder, the world where all was forever motion and emergence, that realm where the spirits ride the wind." --from the Prologue
Table of ContentsPrologue
I. The Search for the Spirits
One: The Call of the Old People
Two: Getting in Touch with the Spirits: The First Discoveries
Three: The Old Ones Remember
Four: A New Path Opens
Five: The Way of the Spirits
II. The Postures and What They Have to Offer
Six: Going on a Spirit Journey
Seven: The Many Faces of Divination
Eight: The Gift of Healing
Nine: Female Powers of Healing
Ten: Changing Shape-The Shimmering Game
Eleven: Celebrations
Twelve: The Pit of Death and the Psychopomp
Thirteen: Life Everlasting
III. Myths of the Eternal Present
Introduction
The Emergence Story
Coyote Comes Calling
The Man of Cuautla
A Maya Whistle
The Story of Kats and His Bear Wife
The Spirits and the Wounded Tree of Life
In the Land of Centaurs and Mermaids
Conclusion: THe Twlight of the Spirits
Appendix: Some Practical Points
Notes
Bibliography
Index
