Hello, I’m Patricia Koch, this week’s “eyes and ears” at New Renaissance and your resource for all things enlightening, intentional, and uplifting.

 

“Jan is a remarkable woman and teacher. She is wholeheartedly committed to being of service in helping others achieve their highest vibration and potential. Her teachings are wise and gentle, accompanied with a cry of fierceness emanating from impenetrable truth. I feel blessed to be a part of the LightSong school and community.”

~ A member of the LightSong Community

 

Have you ever heard the shaman’s call? I did, and it changed my life. Doors of perception, knowledge and wisdom, long shuttered, began to open. Shamanism remains a powerful spiritual and healing modality for me to this day.

 

The key components of this practice are: everything is alive, everything is ensouled and has consciousness, everything can be communicated with, and it’s all one.  Although I have studied shamanic practice since 2001, I feel I am still, and always, a beginner.

 

I am honored to have had the opportunity to interview Jan Engels-Smith, the founder of LightSong School of 21st Century Shamanism and Energy Medicine and author of the acclaimed books Becoming Yourself: The Journey from the Head to Heart and Through the Rabbit Hole. Using energy medicine, shamanism and skills such as journeying, focusing the mind, self-discovery and spiritual practices, Jan has built not only a school, but a vibrant, active community of healers and seekers.

 

Jan will be facilitating upcoming shamanic gatherings at New Renaissance, which she refers to as “Calling In the Spirits” on Saturday December 15th and January 5th.

 

Jan, please tell us a little about yourself. How were you called to the Shaman’s path?

 

I was called to the shaman’s path by having an apparition. A native woman was standing in my living room and asking me to learn “The Ways”. It took me two years to understand what that meant.  

 

Since hearing my call and completing my training, I have performed over 3500 Soul Retrievals, which is a primary healing technique in shamanism. Approximately 90% of those are recorded, transcribed, and archived, to be used for spiritual research to advance the study of shamanism and the evolution of the soul retrieval process.

 

Who were your teachers?  

 

My teachers were many and varied. I took classes with the Foundation for Shamanic Studies and graduated from their 3-year program. My primary teachers there were Michael Harner and Sandra Ingerman. I was also adopted into a Lakota family, which shaped my life with ceremony. I have traveled the world, mostly in third world countries, working with shamans in the areas I have visited.

 

What do you want people to experience at your event?

 

My intention is to help people connect to their own empowerment, to their natural aptitudes for being connected to spirit and to the vastness of the divine. I do this by having participants “feel” and receive from Spirit directly.

 

I want people to feel the presence of the spirits of the Four Directions when they enter the room. And I want the participants to receive insights from and have experiences with these divine beings.  

 

I can then inform them of the extraordinary opportunities through LightSong that are available to them in their own backyard of Portland. I am available for questions and consult.

 

Please tell us a little about that extraordinary school.

 

At LightSong School of 21st Century Shamanism and Energy Medicine, we are dedicated to the cultivation of thriving, interlaced communities of well beings through the exploration and practice of shamanism and alternative energy medicine. Collaboration, Unification, Love and Support are our 4 cornerstones.

 

We have grown into the leading shamanic school in the country and have an expansive community.  We are the only shamanic school that offers accredited Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral degrees. We have ongoing classes, ceremonies, sweat lodges, sound healing groups, Reiki, and Nature Awareness classes.  We also have a very powerful prayer community. Classes can be attended for casual interest or career opportunities.

 

I have worked diligently in an effort to work toward a world in which shamanism is publicly recognized as a viable alternative to allopathic medicine. To be accessible to all, covered by insurance, and globally available.

 

What do you want people to take home with them?

 

A knowingness that Spirit is REAL. That there are tremendous amounts of spiritual guidance available to anyone that wishes to learn how to connect and to receive.

 

If you’ve been curious about shamanism and want to explore some of its magic and healing possibilities, please join us.

 

Blessings,

 

Patricia

 

 

Call 503-224-4929 to reserve your seat for Calling in the Spirits: Shamanic Gathering with Jan Engles-Smith

 

Saturday, December 15, 6:30 - 8:30 PM, $10

 Saturday, January 5, 2 - 4 PM, $10

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