LuizArt

The shaman in the forest jungle (or in the city) often first receives his or her calling through an illness. This illness will lead him to someone who is already a shaman and who can guide him through his illness. Along the way the shaman will learn about herbs, divination and many other things which, in time, will begin to lead to personal healing. But by then he has learnt to serve the ancestors, the forest spirits, and any person who comes for help. One of the shaman's main tasks is to make the environment an agreeable place for the ancestors. He discovers that if he fails to keep his environment beautiful and happy his ancestors begin to leave and bad spirits take their places. His environment stops operating at good levels and begins to fail. By maintaining the environment the shaman's world remains whole.

Similarly the therapist. Through a personal illness or the struggle with a deep inner imbalance the therapist is drawn into the world of painful minds and emotions.