Shamans, Healers, and Medicine Men

There are many reasons for reading this book. For a start, it provides a concise and accessible overview of shamanism, its history, the process of initiation, and the role and practice of shamans. The book is also a valuable resource for comparing shamanism as practiced in different cultures, highlighting similarities and differences, with many informative stories and accounts. However, what I find most valuable about this book is the way Kalweit speaks about shamans in terms of energy and awareness, and how these relate to ordinary ways of understanding and making sense of the world. His ideas on how shamans and tribal cultures have been discredited by western language and medicine is particularly valuable. He does not present shamanism as an escape into obscure practices and rituals, but rather as a source of inspiration to transform our awareness, leading to a deeper and more intense appreciation of life.