Retrieving the Soul: The Way of the Shaman by Norman W Wilson, PhD

For 40,000 years or more the fundamental belief in the shamanic world has been and still is the soul or part of that soul may leave the body because of disease, being stolen, or even given away. The departure of the soul from the body causes the body to be ill and ultimately die. The idea here is a simple one, yet seldom voiced. The soul has a body in which it temporarily lives. It is fluid, and it is this fluidity that creates problems for the shaman. If the soul or its parts are missing; it is up to the shaman to locate and begin a retrieval of the soul.

     To do this, the shaman must travel to the Spirit World; there seeks out the soul or its missing part(s). He takes with him his Spirit Animal or Spirit Guide who knows where the soul or its parts are located. Negotiating for the soul or its parts is an endeavor fought with danger for both the patient and the shaman. As a cautionary measure, the shaman does not use his own powers to retrieve the soul. Any such attempt could result in suffering, a serious depletion of his powers, skills, energy, and even his death.

A patient is surrounded with healing herbs, crystals, stones, and smudged with healing herbal smoke. The shaman may begin to chant, have a drum beat, or dance around the patient. During this stage of the procedure, the shaman alters his state of consciousness. 

     Altering his state of consciousness is necessary to journey to the Spirit World. The shaman may sit down in a trance state or may remain standing in a suspended state of movement. Once the shaman is in the Spirit World his Guide will lead him to where the soul or its part is located. There, whatever entity has it must be confronted. 

     If he is successful in retrieving the soul, the shaman returns to the present world and then literally blows the soul back into his patient's body. Is this procedure always successful? No, success is not guaranteed. Sometimes, the patient is so ill or broken hearted that any shamanic effort fails. 

     Today, much is being written about shamanic soul retrieval as psychological counseling. The shift from real shamanic soul retrieval to considerations for psychological disassociation, depression, anxiety, sadness, low self-esteem, and or anger is a disservice. Caution needs to be the operative in such cases. A shaman is so much more than an early psychologist and to name modern psychological practices as shamanic are wrong. A psychologist does not treat his patient with herbs and or herbals, he does  not uses sound to change the body's vibrational patterns, nor does he travel to the spiritual world for help in healing his patient. And all of that does not lessen the value of what a psychologist does; mainly guiding his or her patient through their issues to find the answers for themselves. 

Dr. Wilson was introduced to his first shaman at the age of seven. For him, visiting The First People of Canada, actually seeing real "Indians" was a little boy's dream come true. After all, the only Indians he had seen were in the Tom Mix, Roy Rogers, and the Lone Ranger movies. That delight and interest in shamanic ways resulted in a life-time pursuit. He brings his knowledge and understanding of shamanic ways together in Shamanism What It's All About in which he answers the questions of what a shaman is, what a shaman does, and what a shaman believes.

©Norman W Wilson, PhD

PR Tips for Writers: Tools for promoting and publishing your dream book by Michelle Tennant

So you have written that book you have dreamed of writing for years and now want to get it published. What next?

For more than 15 years, I have represented numerous authors through my company, Wasabi Publicity Inc. I also worked in a publishing house soon after graduating college. I have seen many publishing strategies, some more successful than others.

The Web gives you opportunities not only to publicize and sell your book, but also to develop your work interactively with your readers.

Give yourself the best chance for success by using both traditional and online PR tools to build interest in your book.

Traditional PR opportunities include things like radio and TV interviews and print book reviews. Online tools include email, blogs, social networking and free media query services such as PitchRate.com that connect you with journalists seeking experts in your subject area.

The Internet offers all kinds of ways to get your book published that weren’t even dreamed of a few years ago. Just be aware there are pros and cons of self-publishing online or through on-demand printers versus the traditional route of going through a publishing house.

Many people choose to self-publish because it is cheaper and allows them to keep a higher percent of profits. Some authors create their own companies and then have their books printed on demand through a company such as Bookmasters.com (www.bookmasters.com).

Bookmasters and Iuniverse (www.iuniverse.com) are a couple companies that can help you self-publish. Keep in mind that some self-publishing companies, like major publishing houses, take a large share of profits, so carefully review any contracts you sign with your lawyer.

If you don’t want to publish yourself, you can go the traditional route of putting out queries to publishing houses and keep self-publishing as a fallback if you don’t land a deal. I always advise aspiring authors to get a book called The Writer’s Market (www.fwbookstore.com/product/1994). It allows you to see what books are planned for publication in the coming year and what kinds of books publishers are hot to publish.

A third choice that is becoming more and more popular is to publish your book initially in a digital format only. That is what our company did with our “PR Campaign Cookbook” on our Web site, www.WasabiPublicity.com. The book includes professional graphics and can be purchased online. Although it is not one of our primary products, it is a nice perk we can share with affiliates and partners.

Books can be great marketing tools, a way to parlay who you are to a larger audience. Combine them with speaking programs, book signings, radio interviews and Web seminars and you have an overall publicity program that both promotes and draws from your published work.

Many of the clients my company serves are experts in various fields who get national publicity, some before they ever published a book. One client used a series of TV appearances around the country to build a platform for a book and later got snatched up by an agent.

Several of my clients are self-published authors. Dr. Jill Murray, a California psychotherapist who specializes in domestic violence, published her book on Iuniverse and has had great success getting publicity. We were able to get her on Dr. Phil, and she has also been on Oprah and 20/20.

Another client, Dr. Amy Tieman, created her own publishing house called Spark to publish her works. She was later picked up by a larger publishing house. The PR and media platform we helped her develop helped attract the larger publisher willing to invest money to print her book on a larger scale.

However you choose to publish, keep in mind the tremendous potential the Web affords you to make your book a truly interactive experience for readers. Compile email lists of people interested in your work and share useful information, surveys and newsletters with them. Use interactive blogs to let them give input.