Thursday 11^th April 2013

It’s 1.30 a.m. I’m on a high because I’ve just finished the fifth of six chapters of Love is not a Reward, a friend has sent me a link to a Shamanic event in Liverpool and it looks interesting. There are links to Shamanic meditation music and I think ‘what the hell, let me have a go.’

It’s a thirty minute drumming and rattle piece with recommendations to listen through headphones or through big speakers. I opt for the former with soft candle light and a little apprehension.

The effect of the drumming is instant. Within seconds I can feel the vibrations in my body, even though the volume is not high. It pushes all thoughts out of my head and replaces them with a feeling of being spoken to so quickly and insistently that nothing else can stay in my head.

Quite quickly I feel my body disappear, blend into the bed, the air around me. Not the floaty feeling I get sometimes in other meditations, just an instant nothingness. And for a while that’s all there is – the drums and rattles in my head.

Because I’ve lost track of time I don’t know how long it is before I see a person carrying a flag on a long pole. S/he walks up and lays the pole down in front of me. Another image I get is of a person struggling to control five dogs, all tied to the same lead and all straining to get to me.

Before I know it the thirty minutes are up and I return to my body refreshed and WIDE AWAKE. (Maybe not such a great state as I have to get up early for coaching).

Have you ever done a Shamanic meditation? What was your experience?

I couldn’t find anything meaningful about the flag, and I believe dogs mean protection, but why five? Any other views?