Shamanic Secret #16 - Faith is an Action, Not a Belief

The word "faith" has always generated a lot of controversy,
especially when used in conjunction with religion, magic,
shamanism, God ... anything that stirs up the emotions and can
rock the very foundation of our souls.



But what is faith really? Is it a belief? Is it a knowingness?

Look up faith in a dictionary and you'll find something like
this:

1. confidence or trust in a person or thing: faith in another's
ability.
2. belief that is not based on proof: He had faith that the
hypothesis would be substantiated by fact.

Biblically, faith is "the general persuasion of the mind that a
certain statement is true" (dictionary.com). So basically faith
is a belief that something is true whether or not there is proof.
This is according to standard dictionary definitions ... and
probably the opinion of the man on the street, too.

<><> Shamanic Secret: Faith as Action <><>
But the above definition doesn't really work for shamans and
magical practitioners. To believe something to be true, a
shamanic or magical practitioner has to have personally observed
or experienced the phenomenon. Until then, everything remains in
the category of hypothesis. That's all well and good, but then
how does someone--like you or the average Joe on the
street--figure out whether something is true or worthy of
"faith"?

You take action!

Pick any magical or shamanic statement and determine for yourself
whether or not you should put your faith in it. Practice any
daily magical ritual for 40 days and see if it does what it is
proclaimed to do. Do any shamanic exercise for 40 days and see
whether your life is affected or changed--for the better or the
worse! In the immortal words of Nike, "Just do it!"

Don't bother asking a shamanic practitioner whether you should
believe in love spells. Don't bother asking a magical
practitioner whether the Tarot is accurate. Why? Because you will
only be getting THEIR experiences and observations. THEIR stuff
may not work for YOU. So YOU have to determine what is true and
not true for you, as a person, as a magical practitioner, as a
wanna-be shaman ... whatever. Whatever YOU want to be. Whatever
YOU want to have faith in ... figure out whether it's true for
YOU first.

<><> An Example <><>
What do we mean by the 40 day experiment? Pick any daily ritual.
One that we talk about a lot is the Sun Candle blessing. Sun
Yellow is the color that nourishes Spirit, is the color of joy,
and can be a "pick-me-up" when you are feeling blue. Should you
have faith in the Sun Candle? You decide. Do the following for 40
days and see what happens, if anything, in your life.

Get a bright Sun Yellow candle (no orange or red overtones).
Have some paper or wooden matches handy.
Sit in the South facing North, with the Sun Candle in front of
you.
Light the Sun Candle with the matches (no lighters!) and wait
until the flame steadies into a bright tall flame.
Cup your hands around the flame and say in a voice of command:

"Child of Wonder,
Child of Flame,
Nourish my Spirit,
and Protect My Aim!"

Keep the Sun Candle burning for 30 minutes (remain in the same
room as the Sun Candle). After 30 minutes, blow out the candle
(do not snuff the flame).
Write down how you feel, and keep jotting notes for 40 days.

At the end of 40 days of this same action, ask yourself, "Is the
Sun Candle worthy of my faith as a daily magical ritual?"
Answer the question for yourself! If you find it not worthy of
your faith, you have not lost anything, least of all your time
and effort. You will have paid into your magical practice ... and
your practice will eventually pay you back. If you find the Sun
Candle worthy of your faith, you have not only paid into your
practice but you have also gained a new magical tool to put in
your toolkit! It's all to the good ... Best of all, it is all
YOURS!


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Shamanic Secret #34 – We Are Doing Something for the Planet

Sometimes people get frustrated with something that's happening in the world, and they turn to us and ask, "Why aren't you using your magic to fix the economy, stop wars, or prevent weather disasters?"

It's a good question. Our answer is simple: "We are."

As a tribe, we who study and practice together keep track of world events, specifically the passage of this planet through its predicted evolutionary history, and we look for places where we can create positive effects. We do magic rituals. We communicate with the hierarchy. We do spellwork. And we check every step of the way with divination, dialog with the Hierarchy, guidance from our totems, and more.

What we don't do is talk about it. We don't put out press releases. We don't advertise it. There is no need. The work that we do "behind the scenes," so to speak, is more effective when done quietly, without fanfare.

What we do talk about publicly are ways that you can help yourself, help those you love, and help the planet. That is where we interconnect best with you. We can provide practical magic and shamanic knowledge that you can apply to your life right now. This knowledge is effective and useful for our current planetary times, based on our experience and observations. So we put forth this information to you.

But that information is simply part of what we do. Our other ongoing efforts on magical and shamanic fronts continue as needed.

As for why certain planetary "disasters" are "allowed" to happen, we can only say that we take active shamanic or magical action only where we are guided to do so. Some of these events are an inevitable and necessary part of this planet's evolution (not all of which we understand), and we cannot act where we are clearly not needed or will not be effective.

Thank you to those who are concerned for planet Earth and ask us these questions. We are doing what we know to do for this planet, as are millions of others across the globe ... as are you!

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How Much Magic Do You Want in Your Life?

This may seem like a silly question, but amazingly it is a question that the majority of people who want to practice magic don't consider. Most people say, "I want magic in my life!" and stop there.

But magic is a precision science, which means that if you want to have magic in your life, you need to define precisely what kind of magic you want in your life ... and how much of it. Why do you need to answer these questions before inviting magic into your life? Multiple reasons ...

1. Magic always works but sometimes its effect is difficult to see. If you don't define exactly what you want, chances are that magic will manifest in your life and you won't even know it!

2. Magic, improperly handled, can wreak havoc in your life! One woman did a spell to pay off her credit card debt, but never specified PRECISELY how the spell should work. Her husband died and his life insurance policy was just enough to pay off the credit card debt. The magic worked ... just not in the way the practitioner wanted.

3. You need to prepare yourself and your life for magic. You need to make space in your life for magic in terms of the kind of practice you are willing to do, the amount of time you are willing to spend learning and using what you learn, and the amount of inconvenience you are willing to accept into your life.

The Inconvenience Factor
Yup, we just said inconvenient. Magic is, well, quite magical, but taking on a magical practice often means a lot of inconvenience at the life level. It has been our observation, through the teaching of many classes, that students of magic come up against this inconvenience factor from the beginning of our studies and onward. At some time in your training it is inevitable that taking the time and making the effort to learn and use magical techniques will become highly inconvenient.

For some people, the inconvenience factor manifests in making uncomfortable "choices" about being in class because of phone or car problems, work related demands, family affairs, or any of a myriad of drastic life events. This may require you to make small, even sometimes radical changes in your lives. Be aware of the inconvenience factor before you invite magic into your life, and as you begin and continue with your practice. We tell you this not to discourage you ... only to give fair warning!

So ... How Much Magic Do You Want?
If you want to practice magic in a big way and create very strong effects in your life, then you will need to clear some major space in your life for your magical practice. You will also need to be prepared for the inconvenience factor to show up in a major way, and not let that deter you from your practice. If you are ready to engage in a major magical practice, the Basic Magic Homestudy Course is an excellent way to go. Also look for the online version available now.

On the other hand, you can start slowly and learn some basic mini rituals. Try a light magical practice and see how you like it. Some of our ebooks are excellent starting points for this kind of practice.

Whichever option you choose, enjoy the magical mystical journey!

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Shamanic Secret #27: Silence is Golden

Hang around with any magical or shamanic practitioner and chances are that you might hear very few words. Why? Because shamanic practitioners know that magic, miracles, and other wondrous events occur in the silences between our words, in the quiet between our actions, and in the gap between our thoughts.

Silence and stillness are shamanic tools just as much as the staff, the medicine bag, and the shaman's chosen amulets. Silence and stillness move us out of the way so the Universe can perform that which we have requested of it.

Tip: If you want to enhance your shamanic or magical practice, include a period of silence and stillness each day. It is best to practice this quiet period at the beginning or end of the day. This tip, while simple, is one of the most valuable shamanic secrets in the world.

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Psychic Surgery - Real or Bogus?

The world of magic is filled with strange psychic phenomena of all kinds, and a wide variety of people who want to develop their psychic powers. Others simply need some "psychic help" but are not sure who to trust, or whether psychic powers really exist.

A common example that falls into this realm of doubt is psychic surgery. We are frequently asked whether psychic surgery (or the application of psychic energy to the body) can heal illnesses, diseases, and other chronic conditions.

In general, the answer is "Yes." When done properly, following the Rules of the Road and the properties of the four elements on this planet, psychic surgery is a viable option for healing. Having said that, for psychic surgery to be successful, you need to work with someone who has the proper knowledge and experience.

2 Examples of Psychic Surgery
Back in the early 70s when I lived in Boulder, CO and everyone was into everything psychic (well, maybe not everyone ...) I developed a blockage in my stomach region which could not be diagnosed with any certainty. A friend suggested I work with a psychic surgeon. With serious doubts, I agreed. During the surgery, the psychic asked me to close my eyes. I felt nothing except for his fingers pressing and probing around the area of the blockage.

After the surgery was complete, he showed me the blockage he had removed from my system, neatly encased in a jar. It looked like a chicken heart or an oval grayish sponge of some kind. I never knew how the psychic did what he did, and it did not matter to me at the time. I was free of the stomach blockage, which was of great relief.

Now, many years later, I have a much better understanding of how psychic surgery occurs, based on universal and elemental laws and properties. Let's take the example of a decayed tooth under a crown. The decay is inaccessible because of the crown, and is also eroding the bone holding the tooth in place. An oral surgeon would need to pull the crown and tooth, wait for the bone to grow back, and then put in an implant and new crown. End result? Mission accomplished but very expensive.

Psychic surgery is another alternative. From a magical viewpoint, the problem boils down into 2 parts:

1. Infection/decay in the tooth and bone - Fire energy
2. Unstable bone due to decay - lack of Earth energy

To use magic or psychic surgery to correct the problem, a practitioner would:

1. Pull red-orange and yellow-orange out of the tooth and bone to reduce the inflammation.
2. Flow bright red and deep red through an athame into the area to cauterize and seal the area of decay.
3. Flow water blue energy through a chalice to rinse away any leftover decay or detritus.
4. Flow grass green and earth brown through a plate (pentacle) to regrow bone and stabilize the tooth.

If you think this sounds too good to be true-or too simple to achieve results-then you probably won't be signing up for psychic surgery anytime soon. However, rest assured that in the right hands and with the right tools, psychic healing does occur on a regular basis.

Psychic surgery gives you options. That is the beauty of a magical practice-you are not limited to the skills and resources available only on the visible earth plane. So long as you understand and can manipulate the four elements of Air, Fire, Water, and Earth, you can achieve just about anything in this Universe!

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