Shamanic symbols and the power behind them.

It has been said that Shamanism was the first religion. In fact the very nature of Shamanism does away with religious notions as direct contact is sought with the divine spirit in whatever form it may be depicted.

This is experiential in its practice and so in a way requires no faith. We have no faith that the sun will rise in the morning and so the Shaman knows that the thread of spirit that runs through all things is very real, very present and very accessible.

From totem animals to the markings on drums to the intricate carvings upon staffs and weapons, the shamanic symbol is a doorway. It is a link to the experience that the Shaman wishes to undergo. The symbol in itself is not the power, rather it represents a particular energy configuration that through a form of spiritual anchoring allows the Shaman to communicate with Deity

The power behind the symbol is a very accurate title for this article. The power is revealed through the symbol during chant, ritual and meditation.

If one wished, for example, to communicate with the raven as was common with Celtic shamanistic journeying, then one could create a totem of the raven to expedite the communicative experience and ultimately form a link between the shaman and the raven. A raven skull on a short staff, raven feathers even a raven's claw could all be used. Once again the power is not contained within the totem, rather the totem is the conduit through which both shaman and raven could communicate.

The so called "modern" world uses power symbols. Take a very symbol resembling a tick that instantly tells you of a sports clothing design company. The symbol is the door that takes you to the power behind.

Within your own lifestyle these power symbols can be utilized very successfully and this is even more so if the symbols you use are ones from your own experience or ones that are specifically made for the purpose at hand. A locket of a deceased relative for example is a shamanic symbol. Obviously we know that the locket is not the relative, yet it does form that all important link that takes you to the experience of your loved one.

Experiencing the power behind the symbols reveals that the power is in fact a thread that runs through the entirety of experience. Like doorways into a central chamber each power symbol reflects a particular energy form and dynamic that joins with the other energy forms that meet in that common denominator that is the ultimate communicative experience for the shaman.The shaman can then return with healing and prophecy and the wisdom of the Cosmos.

Any shaman will tell you, if you are lucky, that they are chosen and did not choose their path. Their communicative ability and their natural otherworldly sense enlightens them, quite literally, as if on a radar screen. The Universe will naturally flow to these conduits and speak to to the populous through the shaman who then become symbols themselves. The shaman thus is a representative of the Cosmos and so acts as a totem through which the person needing healing, for example, can experience that communication with the divine. That communication, that touching of the Universal energy is ultimately all that is required, no matter what the problem might be.

So keep an eye out for shamanic symbols in modern times. Look for companies that are represented by a single symbol or perhaps observe the symbols that show up in fashion. You will then start to glimpse the power behind the symbols used by shamans and who knows, you may be chosen next.