These spiritual lessons are based on Native American shamanism but fit a wide range of interests from yoga and alternative medicine to Bible study and nature hiking. Hands-on exercises, step-by-step instructions for ceremonies, and sketches by the author's wife explain how to clear spaces of unwanted energy, create simple ceremonies, connect with spirit guides and angels, and interpret symbols. An extended discussion tells how to make a medicine wheel that resembles a labyrinth and use it as an engine for distance healing. Additional ceremonies for daily living, healing the earth, and soul retrieval are also described, and the spiritual quest itself is shown to follow the process of choosing a sacred place in nature, finding a sacred place within oneself, and connecting to the inner and outer worlds. Readers are encouraged to keep a notebook about their spiritual growth and refer to the key words and suggestions for internet research that are included.
Author Biography:
An accomplished journalist, shaman, Reiki Master, and sought-after teacher and lecturer, Jim Ewing (Nvnehi Awatisgi, in Cherokee) is an acclaimed innovator in energy work. In addition to serving as his community medicine man, he sponsors workshops throughout Mississippi for the Mill Valley, California-based Foundation for Shamanic Studies, teaches Karuna Reiki classes throughout the United States, and travels extensively, lecturing on shamanism, energy medicine, and Native American spirituality. Jim served as editor of the Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Mississippi, from 1979 to 2005, where he won several awards, including Best of Gannett, The AP Managing Editor's Award, and is a three-time winner of the prestigious J. Oliver Emmerich Award for Editorial Commentary conferred by The Mississippi Press Association. A published writer as well, Jim's articles have appeared in PlanetLightworker, Spirit of Ma'at, Awareness, Voice of the New Earth, Smash! and About.com. Ascension Tests, his series of philosophical essays, has been reprinted internationally and is featured in his monthly online international newsletter, Keeping in Touch. His Web site, www.blueskywaters.com, boasts 30,000 page "hits" annually from around the world. Jim is an elder of the Manataka Indian Council, of Hot Springs, Arkansas, as well as an enrolled member of the Southern Cherokee Tribe and Associated Bands in Texas and the Bear Clan Medicine Society of Russellville, Arkansas. A Bear Dancer and Water Pourer, he holds Bear Lodge and drum circles honoring the Medicine Wheel in his hometown of Lena, Mississippi.
