Singing the Soul Back Home provides a step-by-step guide to shamanistic wisdom that can be practiced at home. Caitlin Matthews has written extensively on the subjects of Celtic spirituality and tradition, and believes that by integrating shamanic practices into our daily lives, we are able to tap into the wisdom of many teachers and guides.
This book states very clearly that it will not make you a shamanic practitioner. What it will do, is give you very detailed guidance through the journeying practices of shamans, with excellent, easy to understand (not necessarily easy to perform) exercises to help you to journey to each of the three realms, Middleworld, Underworld and Upperworld. The author clearly defines the information she intends to cover in each section, and includes basic information such as seeking an animal ally guide and framing the questions you wish to have answered.
Why would someone wish to make shamanic journeys? By seeking wisdom from allies and teachers, we strengthen our connection to our past, and to the cosmic web. We can work to recover aspects of our selves that have been scattered through centuries of disuse, and distrust. When we reestablishing our connection with ourselves, nature and with Spirit, we begin to heal the dysfunction within our selves, our culture, and our countries.
Even if you do not utilize the practices, you will still come away from this book with a renewed sense of awe and respect for the powers that Ms. Matthews writes about. I found this book very pertinent for gaining a greater appreciation that we are not alone. There is wisdom and information available, from the deepest ancestor to the highest deity, and much in between. It is a matter of (re)learning to access what is around us.
~review by Karen Phillippi
Author: Caitlin Matthews
Connections Book Publishing, 2002
pp. 272, $14.95
