Bushman Shaman: Awakening the Spirit through Ecstatic Dance
Bushman Shaman: Awakening the Spirit through Ecstatic Dance
By Bradford Keeney
Publisher: Destiny Books (December 2004)
Pages: 231 – Price: $16.95
Ghostvillage.com review
A remarkable and well-written work, Bushman Shaman analyzes methods of awakening the spirit through ecstatic dance, and it is a book which is hard to put down once the reader starts reading! The author details his initiation into the shamanic tradition of the Kalahari Bushmen in Africa. Some scholars believe this is one of the oldest living cultures on Earth.
The discussion of the healing ceremony is excellent, and detailed. Additionally, Keeney shares with the readers his accounts of shamanic world travels. He explains his work and involvement with shamans from Bali, Japan, the Caribbean, and North and South America. He also serves as cultural anthropologist at the Mental Research Institute in Palo Alto, California. The author of several works, his work is highly respected by his peers.
Chapter Two, “Rapture in Missouri,” is a wonderfully written memoir of the author’s life in Missouri, and where he lived in Smithville, Missouri. He discusses his love of science, jazz and jazz piano, and church, and how he was encouraged in all three!
A discussion of his awakening of the kundalini power within him is detailed. He came to define this kundalini presence as found in many cultures. Kundalini is the yoga name for inner spiritual energy found in every human. With the passage of time, he found kundalini was the same as chi, ki, seiki, yesod, holy spirit, and other power word definitions.
There are twenty-three chapters in the book, and an afterword. The realism of the writing and the detailed information shared with the reader makes this a memorable reading experience, one that is to be enjoyed often. Highly recommended as a first account encounter with shamanism, this would be a good reference book to have in your home, and a fine selection to have your librarian place in your local public library.
A classic of its kind, this is one to read and enjoy for its knowledge, and truths. Bushman Shaman is filled with remarkable insights.
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