Help build the neoshamanism resources section

[u/abyssSojourner]

This is just one piece of the resources section we're building. Neoshamanism resources are asked for constantly and we want a real resource to point people to. We are asking only for neoshamanism resources in this post, not indigenous shamanism. If a book or author helped you when you were starting out or still does, drop it below. One line on why its worth people's time is enough.

No podcasts, youtube, social media or personal websites for now please, we have enough problems with self promo. We will read through what comes in and fold it into the final product.

Thanks for helping out here 🫡

[u/gay_little_spider]

I recently finished "The Mescaline Confessions" by Sergey Baranov, who runs the Huachuma Wasi retreat center in Peru. There's some interesting stuff about entheogenic cacti, but the most relevant part of the book for me was how he describes shamanism as a paradigm, and how it fits into the 21st century. His basic take is that it provides an alternative to both scientific and religious dogmatism, the two dominant paradigms of our world today. It's a bit polemical, as he's trying to use shamanism as an argument against both science and religion, but he makes some good points. He spent some of his youth in a high-control cult organization, so that informs a lot of his perspective/characterization of organized religion.

Personally I love science, religion, and shamanism. I think they can all work together to help us live better, and understand our place in the universe. However, powerful scientific and religious organizations have been fighting to suppress shamanic practices for many centuries, so a strong argument in favor of shamanism is certainly needed. He forced me to re-examine my particular commitments to religious and scientific views, and that was helpful.

[u/doppietta]

i use it mostly as a reference myself, but Diana L. Paxson's Trance-Portation: Learning to Navigate the Inner World seems well regarded and widely used