Traditional Techniques for Healing the Soul

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14440 in Books
• Published on: 2006-09-14
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 280 pages

Synopsis
In "Plant Spirit Shamanism", Ross Heaven and Howard G. Charing explore the use of one of the major allies of shamans for healing, seeing, dreaming and empowerment - plant spirits. After observing great similarities in the use of plants among shamans throughout the world, they discovered the reason behind these similarities: Rather than dealing with the "medical properties" of the plants or specific healing techniques, shamans commune with the spirits of the plants themselves; shows how shamans heal using their knowledge of plant spirits as well as the plant's "medical properties" and includes extensive field interviews with master shamans of all traditions; and explores the core methods of plant shamanism - soul retrieval, spirit extraction and sin eating - and includes techniques for connecting with plant spirits. From their years of in-depth shamanic work in the Amazon, Haiti and Europe, including extensive field interviews with master shamans, Heaven and Charing present the core methods of plant shamanism used in healing rituals the world over: soul retrieval, spirit extraction, sin eating and the Amazonian tradition of pusanga (love medicine).

They explain the techniques shamans use to establish connections to plant spirits and provide practical exercises as well as a directory of traditional Amazonian and Caribbean healing plants and their common North American equivalents so readers can explore the world of plant spirits and make allies of their own.

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Customer Reviews

masterful plant work
I read this book to prepare myself for a plant spirit shamanism trip to the Amazon rainforest I am taking with Ross this year and must say that I was amazed and knocked out by some of the informa\tion. Plants that talk, walk, count, sing, plants that bring visions, that heal, that can change lives. Plants are amazing healers and transformers. As Ross says "nature is alive and is talking to us. This is NOT a metaphor"! I would recommend this book to anyobe intersted in plants, herbs, healing, energy work, magic, ayahuasca, or who is planning a trip to another country where you might be involved with shamanic practices. This is a wide ranging book that looks at many cultures and their healing tradsitions. It is very readable and like Ross' other books, packed with information. Excellent value for money and a great read!

Good intro to Plant Shamanism
The author's love for their subject is clear all through the book. A reader new to this subject will encounter quite a few challenging concepts: that plants can talk,even sing to man. Another challenging concept is the use of spells to get what you want: the authors argue that it is okay to use spells to attract a lover.
The plants that are particularly studied are the plants in Central South America: the authors try hard to make the book relevant to other readers by suggesting similar plants in Europe.
There are some concepts that are difficult to accept: e.g. the shape of the plant indicating its possible use. So a plant that is shaped like a vine is good for warding off snakes. However, one could equally argue that such a shape makes it good for immoblising one.
This book is an introduction to plant shamanism and so there is some loss in depth as it tries to cover too many topics. You will need to read more widely (and practise) to get a more indepth knowledge of this fascinating topic.

a really interesting book
I read this book without having to many expectations, and I found it to be a most interesting and absorbing book. It contains the right mixture of objective views, ways to explore this path for yourself and personal subjective experiences the latter make for a good read.