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Shamanism and transcendence

In general, transcendence means experience beyond the normal and ordinary. It can be assumed that things such as “near death” experiences are classified as an example of transcendence. Generally, transcendence means that one has gone beyond the ordinary limitations of physical realities, that is, that one has engaged in a spiritual state. For the shaman, it means the potential connection with a particular spirit in Nature, in universal energy fields, realms and parallel universes.

Much has been written about the use of hallucinogens and shaman travel. Not all shamans use drugs. They use sounds and they like hallucinogens, no matter how much has been said about it. When I speak of shamanic transcendence I mean a significant consciousness beyond what is called normal for the human being, specifically one that has been altered.

For me, this shamanic transcendence really means a self-transcendence. This, in turn, means becoming part of that which is greater than you. I am not talking about developing a “God complex”. What is intrinsically involved here is a movement out of the mundane everyday world, the world of repetitive grind, of accepting things as they are. Researcher Pamela Reed suggested in 2003 that it is here that the individual “connects with dimensions beyond the typically discernible world.” It is at this crucial juncture that the shaman connects with these other worlds. These worlds often called the Upper Realm, the Middle Realm, and the Lower Realm do not correspond to some religious concepts of Heaven, Purgatory, and Hell. At this point, for the shaman, it does not matter what is greater than the self. The shaman’s concern arises after the change from ordinary to non-ordinary time occurs. Then, with his spiritual guide or helper, the shaman seeks the answers to his healing questions, questions related to the patient’s problems.

In Canto XXV of the Dhammapada, we find this sage advice that is the most important for transcendence: “Empty your boat … when you empty it, you will go lightly.”

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