Shamanic Trance Postures: A Visionary Path to Ecstatic Experience

Shamanism offers a way for people to realize their potential and begin to explore their spiritual relationship with the universe, with other life forms, and with each other. The experiences that come from shamanism help a person develop a deeper bond with and respect for all of creation, and from this perspective they are likely to lead a vibrant life filled with harmony and balance, which fosters understanding and optimism. The shamanic path is a way to experience this expanded vision of the universe.

One of the central practices of shamanism has been defined as the journey of the Spirit or Trance. One of the ways to initiate this experience of expanded consciousness is what is called ‘the shamanic journey’. On this journey, the shaman travels to the spirit world (commonly known as the upper and lower worlds), to communicate directly with the spirits residing in the other realities. This is done for many reasons, for example to receive guidance for healing, while maintaining both our own spiritual integrity and that of our community.

There are several ways to start a Spirit journey; these can be through dance, sleep, the use of master plants and the adoption of certain specific physical postures. The latter are known as Shamanic Trance Postures, and are a method to achieve ecstatic trance and enter that place of both personal and collective vision.

The word ecstasy and ecstatic is used in its original meaning, which is based on the Greek ex-stasis, which means ‘out of yourself’, out of the everyday world. The ecstatic trance brings with it a change in our perception, a way of becoming aware of a reality outside the world of the ordinary and the mundane. Trance makes us capable of perceiving the continuum of life, from what has been called non-ordinary reality, a reality known to co-exist with our physical reality over time. Black Elk, the Lakota medicine man and great visionary whose life was recorded by John Neihardt in the 1930s, speaks of the “world where there is nothing but the spirits of all things. This is the real world behind this, and all we see here is something like a shadow of that world”.

There are certain works of ancient art, glyphs, carvings, cave paintings that are more than creative expressions of their culture. They are visual teachings for a specific ritual. These ancient paintings and statues depict people adopting various body postures. Many of these body postures are pathways to an altered state of consciousness, visionary experiences, and a way to begin a spiritual journey. There is a wide geographical distribution of Trance Postures, and everything indicates that they belong to all cultures and traditions. These stances have been rediscovered by Dr. Felicitas Goodman after years of extensive research, and a full account of hers has been documented in her truly outstanding and remarkable book ‘Where the Spirits Ride the Wind’.

When a person takes a specific posture as depicted on one of the ancient artifacts, with an accompanying rhythmic sound, for example a rattle or drum, the person may experience a vision that, while personal, is also specific to the posture. It is as if, however personal the vision is, it will fit into a coherent framework.

Ritual has great power in this reality; it is a way of combining the heart, mind, spirit, and body into a single physical action and intention. Religions around the world have long recognized the importance of ritual. The ritual is a means of communication between the Spirits and ourselves, it is a way in which the Spirits can cross from their world to ours. In Western society we have forgotten that ordinary reality and another go together, they are two halves of a whole.

Ritual is a way to empower and enhance the trance state, and is a gateway to safely contain, translate, and guide an altered state of consciousness into a spiritual experience. Another way of saying this would be that a ritual carries an innate intention, a purpose.

Each of the Shamanic Trance Postures is itself a ritual, and it is a ritual with such intrinsic qualities of accuracy and power that its goal is achieved outside of the original cultural setting. This means that we in contemporary Western society can also successfully engage in shamanic trance postures.
To understand Shamanic Trance Postures must be experienced directly, no amount of words can make up for this. The best place to experience ecstatic trance states is in a workshop setting. This brings with it the guidance and support of the workshop facilitator and the collective energies of the group. The power of the group is important because it helps in terms of the focus of the ritual and provides direct and indirect feedback. Feedback is the way to obtain the ineffable quality of trust. Trust is one of the pillars of this work, and the group provides validation of your own experience. Another important factor is that the power of trance postures is magnified, as each person supports and is part of the collective visionary experience.

An exercise: the trance posture of the grandfather bear.

A powerful healing posture.

You may experience high energy, certain colors, a feeling of being supported and contained in a loving and gentle way.

Stand with your feet parallel, about six inches apart, and your toes pointed forward. Your knees should be slightly bent, eliminating any stress on your lower back that would occur if your knees were locked. This posture is consistent for most standing postures.

Gently rotate both hands, as if you were holding a small egg in the palm of each hand. Position your hands so that your flexed fingers form a triangle high above your belly button. The first joint of the index finger of each hand should touch to form the apex of the triangle, with the thumbs resting in front of each other, not on top of each other. Your upper arms can easily rest on either side of your body so your elbows don’t stick out. With your eyes closed, tilt your head back as if you were looking at a point just above the line where the wall meets the ceiling. There may be a feeling of tension in the muscles at the back of your neck.

Comments from people who have experienced the healing Trance Posture known as ‘Grandpa Bear’ in the workshops.

“My throat has been sore for a long time. As I began the pose, I quickly felt a warm energy cradling me from behind, what I saw in my mind as a large bear. I felt the The bear opened my throat with its claws and pulled out a thick heavy mucus-like material.This went on for a few minutes, and then the bear blew heat down my throat and I began to see flashes of purple-blue colors all around me..When the trance posture ended, my throat felt clear and my body felt like it was glowing.”

“It felt like my back was split open, and the metal plates that covered my spine were being pried open and pulled out of my back. By the time we were done, my back felt so much more flexible, I could even touch my toes, which It’s something I haven’t been able to do for quite some time. I had forgotten how stiff my back had become.”