The Journey to the Otherworld: A Way of Starting your Shamanic Path.

Glastonbury Tor Midsummer 2016

Ideas were swirling around in my head in the autumn of 1998 when I attended a series of workshops with the Celtic shamanic practitioner John Matthews. I’d read a lot of his books, and that of Caitlin Matthews, and had already tried to journey. 

I first experienced an ‘inspired visualization’ in the home of a Druid. There were twelve or so of us sprawled out on her carpet. I laid my jumper over my eyes and listened to her seductive voice describe an imaginary landscape, telling us to smell the scents and look around us. She called this ‘using our psychic eyes’, which, apparently, were open behind our closed lids. At first, thoughts kept getting in the way… do I look a prat lying here…is my bag of Chorizos good enough for the communal table? Bit-by-bit, I began seeing things that felt very real. I could feel the grass beneath bare feet, hear a skylark singing. Her voice faded away, and it was up to me what happened next. 

I wanted to learn more and so I turned to shamanism. I wanted to ‘journey over the rainbow bridge’ that would take me into an otherworld, and gain a deep connection with Nature, an understanding of what is outside ourselves and learn about Spirit. One of the first things John Matthews said on that day is “this will change your life”. I was there to learn, but even so, the thought that came to me was, “what rubbish that must be!” By the end of that weekend, I had realised he was right; journeying across the rainbow bridge into the otherworld changes your life in a phenomenal way.

That was 25 years ago. Now I use shamanic techniques regularly and with amazing results, which help me in my personal life, in ritual, and my creative work, too. 

I'm not recommending that you simply jump in without a guide, though.  'Baby steps' is a very good approach when thinking about investigating shamanism; it's profound, it's global, it's literally mind-blowing; it really does change your life, and it needs to be approached thoughtfully, steadily and with caution.  It's not a hobby, to be picked up lightly then dropped again. Once you've started, it's very hard to stop. There are some guidelines you should be careful to follow. Be warned –– then you can be fearless.

The first thing, perhaps, is to decide how you are going to access this amazing otherworld. Some say that you cross a 'rainbow bridge', others say you 'take a crystal path'. These are metaphors, of course, but some medium in necessary to get you into an Alpha Brian state so that you are no longer fully in the present world. 

I use drumming; others use chanting, dancing/spinning, or listening to a gong or didjeridoo. Some, of course, rely of drugs, but I have actually ever attempted that. I find drumming effective and useful. At some point, you should make (or buy) a drum (bodhran), but to begin, it's best to use a recording of a shaman drumming. These can be downloaded from the internet, or purchased as CDs. Chose the plainest; no speaking, and limited other sounds (such as birdsong).

You might try the website The Way of the Buzzard for more information on listening or creating drums. Play the drumming, not too loud, while you are either sitting comfortably or lying prone. Cover you eyes with something soft and dark. Allow yourself to relax, one muscle at a time. Focus on the 'song' of the drum, which is a constant note above the drumming. Allow whatever images you feel are arriving to form more solidly in your mind. Forget about the outside world, and 'see' with your psychic eyes. Watch the images unfold. These can be very varied; people see events, or shifting patterns, or 'a variety of 'still images' or a 'movie'; or hear, rather than particularly see, things. 

Choose the shortest drumming session for your first attempt. Note how there is a starting beat, then the fast drumming ( around 4 beats per minute, which is far slower than the 'rhythm' of your brain – this fast beat actually slows your mind). Finally you'll hear the 'call back' which is a different beat that interrupts your journeyings. Stretch and take off your 'mask' at that point. You are back in the apparent world, and ready to make a record of your first journey to find the song of the drum. Before you forget, note down everything that happened. Write down something of what you saw, heard, felt, etc, and any thoughts that occurred to you.

Find out more about that here 

You can read some of the records I've kept about journeys by clicking on any of the links at the SHAMANISM PAGE (Shamanism; The Crystal Path to the Otherworld)