Recommended Reading
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Recommended Reading Materials related to Shamanic Practice and Healing
There are many books available on shamanism. Many of them are not that helpful for people new to shamanism or wanting to learn how to practice it. Some are personal accounts of shamanic experience, which are fascinating, but won't let you know how to do it yourself. Other books are academic discussions about shamanism which are often confusing if you haven't already experienced it.
Below I've listed the best books I know of related to shamanic practice. My criteria are clarity, easy-to-read, includes exercises you can do on your own, and encourages the reader to find their own unique way to do shamanic practice.
If you know a great book or resource related to contemporary shamanism, write a review and submit it to info@soulrestore.com. If suitable, we'll post it on the site. Let others benefit from your reading!
Enjoy!
 Introductory and How-to Books on Shamanic Practice
Urban Shaman by Serge Kahili King, 1990, Fireside. This is my favorite shamanic book. Lots of different kinds of exercises based on Hawaiian shamanism (Huna) and a warm inviting flavour.
Secrets of Shamanism by Jose and Lena Stevens, 1988, Avon Books. A simple, inexpensive book with lots of good warm-up exercises to prepare you for shamanic practice as well as a variety of shamanic exercises.
Shamanism as a Spiritual Guide for Daily Life, by Tom Cowan, 1996, Crossing Press. I have not yet read this basic book on shamanic practice but many of my clients have said that it is good--simple and easy to follow. Tom has also trained with Michael Harner in core shamanism.
The Way of the Shaman by Michael Harner. Recently a new edition has come out of this classic that many say started the neo-shamanic movement in North America. Sometimes he's prescriptive with set formulas of how to do things, I think because he wants to be cautious and not have people venture off into realms beyond them. Not many exercises, but if you are an avid reader this one is worthwhile.
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Books on Power Animals
Medicine Cards by Jamie Sams and David Carson, 1988, Bear and Co. The book that goes with these divinatory cards has lovely interpretations of the qualities and significance of many power animals native to North America. I suggest you take these as information, remembering that the best way to know your power animals' qualities are to observe them in nature and commune with them in non-ordinary reality.
Animal-Speak: The Spiritual and Magical Powers of Creatures Great and Small by Ted Andrews, 1996, Llewellyn. Comprehensive descriptions of the significance of power animals from around the world, including cross-cultural interpretations. Ted also includes material on working with power animals.
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Books related to Shamanic Healing
Soul Retrieval, Welcome Home, and A Fall to Grace are Sandra Ingerman's books about shamanic healing. Soul Retrieval describes this healing practice with stories of actual healings. Welcome Home has exercises one can do to integrate any kind of major healing work. A Fall to Grace is a novel about shamanic healing. Sandra is a modern day pioneer of soul retrieval healing. Her tone is loving and warm, and these are easy and enjoyable books to read.
Anatomy of the Spirit: The Seven Stages of Power and Healing by Caroline Myss, 1996, Harmony Books (now also available in paperback). Caroline is a medical intuitive and this book is an explanation of the significance of the chakra energy system within the body, integrated with Christian and Jewish symbology. Caroline has also written other books, including Why People Don't Heal, and has many audio-tapes which my clients have found helpful. Caroline's work is helpful in integrating shamanic healing, particularly extraction healing--understanding and shifting behaviour patterns that affect how energy flows through our bodies.
Hands of Light: A Guide to Healing Through the Human Energy Field by Barbara Ann Brennan, 1987, Bantam Books. A very comprehensive book on energy fields in the human body. For those who are serious about understanding this topic, this is a must-have book. Can help to deepen understandings of how spiritual intrusions affect our health.
Body, Self, and Soul: Sustaining Integration by Jack Lee Rosenberg, Marjorie Rand, Diane Asay, 1985, Humanics Ltd. A description of Integrated Body Psychotherapy (IBP), an approach that works with body, mind and spirit. Great models about personal boundaries and patterns. Meant for therapists, it's somewhat technical. IBP is one of many therapies which is incorporating working with emotions, memories, and patterns stored in the body. I've found it personally valuable in conjunction with shamanic healing.
The Dance of Anger: A Woman's Guide to Changing the Patterns of Intimate Relationships by Harriet Goldhor Lerner, 1985, Harper and Row. Harriet has also written the Dance of Intimacy. I find that she has the most practical, accessible, helpful approach to these challenges that I've found. Especially helpful to me has been her gentle suggestions to take baby steps--one change at a time. Anything she writes is good. Helpful in changing your life after shamanic healing.
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General Books related to Shamanism
Compass of the Heart: Embodying Medicine Wheel Teachings by Loren Cruden, 1996, Destiny Books. Loren has a similar approach to me and I love her genuineness, clarity, and articulation. She writes that this book is for those living a life of sacred alignment who want to open to further possibilities. She says her more basic book The Spirit of Place (1995) may be more appropriate for beginners.
Sacred Path Cards: The Discovery of Self through Native Teachings by Jamie Sams, 1990, Harper SanFrancisco. A set of divinatory cards with an accompanying book. This is an inspiring, gentle way to learn a variety of North and South American native teachings.
Mutant Message Down Under and Message from Forever by Marlo Morgan. In the first book, an American public health nurse writes about her months long walkabout with Australian Aborigines who live by the old ways. She says they want her to share their message of how to live properly in harmony with "mutants" (white people), so mutant culture will stop setting the whole planet out of balance. The second book is a fictional story containing more messages. These are simple, lyrical, rich messages that memorably get across fundamental shamanic principles. There has been some controversy about the authenticity of her walkabout story, but this should not take away from the message.
Buffalo Woman Comes Singing by Brooke Medicine Eagle, 1991, Ballantine. Brooke has an eclectic, international past, and synthesizes all her knowledge into this book. Exercises and insights into different rituals, particularly from a woman's perspective. Great stuff about menstruation.
Shakti Woman: Feeling our Fire, Healing our World-The New Female Shamanism by Vicki Noble, 1991, Harper San Francisco. Vicki developed the Motherpeace tarot cards. In this book, she brings body focus, astrology, art, sexuality, parenting, and feminism into shamanism. It's rich and dense.
The Eagles' Quest: A Physicist Finds Scientific Truth at the Heart of the Shamanic World, by Fred Alan Wolf, 1991, Touchstone. Fred's personal account of trying to make scientific sense of shamanism and how it works to heal and empower. For those with a scientific bent, or a desire to explain shamanism in western rational terms, this would be interesting. It's not at all dry, but rather funny and intimate. Fred has written a number of other books including The Dreaming Universe: A Mind-Expanding Journey into the Realm Where Psyche and Physics Meet.
Rumi poetry translated by Coleman Barks. Rumi was a 13th century Turkish Sufi mystic and teacher whose poetry is ecstatic and exquisite. He was a respected and respectable teacher and gradually shed the trappings over his life to be an unfettered mystic. A helper followed him around for years and recorded his spontaneuous utterances which have been preserved and passed down. "To discover Rumi is to see in one life how yearning can be met so completely that the walls of the local self dissolve into a continuously living intoxication of the spirit. The world is illumined with unquenchable cadenzas of meaning; the mouth is split with poetry and music; the body is danced to a dance that moves without restriction through mortal and immortal worlds." (Jean Houston)
Rumi called that ineffable beauty which he loved in and outside himself, what some might call God, his "beloved." Much of his poetry sounds like love poems to his beloved, which is that force. And he came first to recognize that force of love in his feelings towards his friend Shamsoddin or Shams, so much of the poetry is addressed to him. Shams disappeared, and Rumi later discovered he had been murdered, so references to that show up too. But Rumi addresses everything in his poetry.
Coleman Barks is from the Southern US and generally agreed to be the premier translator of Rumi poetry. He is a huge, burly bear of a man with a full beard and a warm, rich, lazy Southern accent. Listening to him is a treat. He has many books and audio-tapes.
Shaman's Drum magazine. 290 N. Main St. #5, PO Box 97, Ashland, OR, USA, 97521. Tel.: (541) 552-0839. If you are serious about continuing your learning about shamanism, this magazine is worthwhile. Thorough accounts of current and recent indigenous shamanic practices from around the world. They are now starting to print more accounts of contemporary shamanic practice too. You can find it at many health food stores or subscribe.
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Books for Working with Children
Spinning Inward: Using Guided Imagery with Children for Learning, Creativity, and Relaxation by Maureen Murdock, 1987, Shambhala. Lots of fun shamanic journey suggestions--good for adults too.
Keepers of the Animals: Native Stories and Wildlife Activities for Children by Michael J. Caduto and Vine Deloria, Jr., 1991, Fifth House Publishers, Saskatoon, SK.
A complete guidebook for working with children. Includes stories and then discussion questions, activities, and suggestions for extending the experiences.
Sharing Nature with Children: The Classic Parents' and Teachers' Nature Awareness Guide by Joseph Cornell, 1979, Dawn Publications. The name says it all.
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Archetype and Heroic Journey Books
Carl Jung developed his own school of psychoanalysis that is a modern version of shamanism. He had his clients use active imagination, a kind of shamanic journey, and dream analysis, to understand and heal their deeper self. He also had clients examine the character qualities, or archetypes, that operated within.
An archetype is one of the great characters that are in the myths and stories around the world. Jung said these archetypes live within each of us too. We all share these as part of the collective unconscious of the human species. How we express these archetypes is unique to each of us though. Many people consider that shamanic power animals and spirit guides are archetypal figures.
Below I list books that describe different models of archetypes.
The Heroic Journey model was developed by mythologist Joseph Campbell as the basic story for most of the great myths in every culture. It is a wonderful model for how to face life's challenges. Some contemporary writers, listed below, have used the model as a helpful framework to guide people in growing to meet their life challenges. As contemporary shamanic practice is largely about going to mythical realms for guidance and power to face challenges, I consider heroic journey work a related form to contemporary shamanism.
Awakening the Heroes Within: 12 Archetypes to Help Us Find Ourselves and Transform our World by Carol Pearson, 1991, Harper Collins. This has been one of the richest, most powerful, and helpful books I have ever owned. This book offers explanations, encouragements to see how others have gone through difficult struggles before us, and practical advice on how to find the growth within these. Carol is an English and Women's Studies professor and brings literature of all kinds into her work as well as the model of the heroic journey. She also has extensively studied Jungian Psychology and has the most accessible explanations of it that I've come across. She has a model I use extensively of how to integrate soul and non-ordinary concerns into ordinary life.
Carol is a great person--I've trained with her and she has told me this book is the reason she was put on the planet.
The Four-Fold Way: Walking the Paths of the Warrior, Teacher, Healer and Visionary by Angeles Arrien. 1993, Harper San Francisco. Anything by Angeles is worthwhile. She is a storyteller and cultural anthropologist who leads workshops on many topics. She has many spell-binding audio-tapes and CDs as well as books. This book has quotes, exercises, and models for how to live by shamanic principles.
Goddesses in Everywoman: A New Psychology of Women by Jean Shinoda Bolen, 1984, Harper Colophon. About feminine archetypes, including those which embody strong outer world characteristics in a feminine way. Jean believes that women's power in the outer world does not just come from our masculine side as Jung posited. Bolen has also written Gods in Everyman.
The Heroine's Journey by Maureen Murdock, 1990, Shambhala. Maureen wrote this book after an unsatisfactory conversation with mythologist Joseph Campbell in which she asked about why most heroes in the myths are men and what about women taking the heroic leap in to the unknown. He said that women don't have to journey--they are already where men want to be. She thought that was wrong and pondered, had her back go out, and while laying resting had a vision of the alternative model she presents in this book. This model works for women, and some men, who have been strongly masculine-identified and wanted to build a career of some kind, succeed as men do, and than found it was not enough. It also is rich with myths and stories of goddesses from around the world.
Women Who Run with the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, 1995, Ballantine. This is Clarissa's life's work--a rich, beautifully written, but dense book chock full of myths, stories, deep insights, and rituals and exercises you can do.
The Path of the Everyday Hero: Drawing on the Power of Myth to Meet Life's Most Important Challenges by Lorna Catford and Michael Ray, 1991, Tarcher. A heartfelt workbook that uses a rich array of familiar myths and fairy tales to help us explore how to face life's challenges. Very practical.
The Search for the Beloved: Journeys in Mythology and Sacred Psychology by Jean Houston, 1987, Tarcher. Jean Houston has been a pioneer and explorer of the parapsychology of inner realms. All of her books are rich. In her later career she has moved into relating psychology to mythology. This book is my favorite, especially her chapter on Sacred Wounds and how our wounds make us holy. She has the best method for working through betrayal that I've come across. Lots of exercises for individuals and groups.
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If you know a great book or resource related to contemporary shamanism, write a review and submit it to info@soulrestore.com. If suitable, we'll post it on the site. Let others benefit from your reading!
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