F O O T P R I N T S . O F . T H E . A N C I E N T S

Healing our Cultural Family
by Evelyn C. Rysdyk


The Ring of Brodgar, Orkney, Scotland

As a person of Northern European descent, I have always been troubled by the radical dichotomy between my culture's creative and destructive urges.  It seems that for millennia, we have made wonderful contributions to the health and welfare of the larger world while simultaneously engaging in the wholesale annihilation of groups of peoples and destruction of the environment. Culturally, we seem to be in aconstant state of conflict about how to "be" in the world and with each other.  We act as though we are separate from other people and from the Natural world and these chasms seem to be widening.  As a result, all Life on our world is being threatened.

In our healing practice, when we work with individuals who are exhibiting these kinds of conflictual and destructive ways, we help them to look to the sources of the perceptions which are driving the reactive behavior.  Since perception becomes our reality, the work usually involves supporting the person to look at what they "learned"  in childhood.  Often times, people continue to manifest unhealthy behavior patterns until they are able to heal the unbeneficial perceptions that they developed while in their family of origin. 

The Development of Perception
Each of us develops a set of perceptions about the world, other people and ourselves which are based on our early experiences.  We receive sensory input from our environment which we then use our minds to process.  In this processing, we seek to understand and classify the input we have received.  We then can classify and categorize the experience itself.  Our perceptions are the conclusions we have drawn in this classification/categorization process.  Often times, the conclusions we draw are incorrect.

For instance, a small child with an ill parent may come to the conclusion that the parent's illness is their fault. This may occur because of the cognitive limitations of early childhood.  Up until the age of seven or so, children are unable to completely separate the outside world from their own internal world. Everything that happens outside is felt to be a result of their thoughts and actions. So, when a parent falls ill, unless the child is  continually reassured--in both word and deed--they may draw the conclusion that they made their parent sick.  It is an incorrect conclusion, but based on the available information, it is the only conclusion the child can make.

As a result, the child may develop the misperception that they are "bad" (for creating their parent's illness), or hold the belief that they "aren't good enough" (for being unable to fix them). In other words, if the input in our early life is confusing, incomplete, dangerous or occurs in a family situation that doesn't provide enough emotional support or nurturance, we develop misperceptions about ourselves and the nature of our reality.  This is usually compounded as we grow, because perceptions that already exist in our mind will impact how we draw conclusions about any subsequent experiences.  How we have "learned" to understand the world also provides the foundation for our behavior patterns.  For instance, if a person "learns" at an early age that they are unworthy, they may consistently place themselves in harm's way either emotionally or physically.

Looking at our Cultural "Family of Origin"
To begin to unravel the cultural mindset that began in Northern Europe, we need to go back to the Neolithic or New Stone Age.  This is the period that saw the transition from hunting and gathering to farming of cereal grains and the keeping of animals.  While this shift began after the end of the last period of glaciation, approximately 12,000 BC, the time frame of wide-scale flourishing of settled agriculture in the region began around 7,000-6,500 BC.(1)

What we know about the indigenous, “Old European” culture of the Neolithic, is based upon archeological interpretation of the artifacts they left behind.  The late anthropologist, Marija Gimbutas studied these artifacts for thirty years having begun excavating material from this time period starting in the early nineteen sixties.  Having been born on the continent herself, her desire was to look underneath the layers of history to find an original European culture. (2)  During her field work, she reported that she found “beautiful painted pottery” and hundreds of female-figured sculptures. (3)  This material was very different from artifacts that were found in the layers with more recent dates.  She postulated that a female-honoring culture persisted in Europe from as far back as the Paleolithic Age.  She used the terms “matristic” or “matrifocal” to describe this culture as the term matriarchal implied dominance by women.  Instead, she believed that it was a balanced society, with men in their rightful position, doing their own work and having their own power.  In spite of this balance, the persistence of female figures implied for Gimbutas that there was a veneration of feminine creative energy in the form of goddesses. (4) 

"Venus" of Willendorf c. 24,000-22,000 BCE

According to Gimbutas, as far back as 35,000 B.C., symbols and sculptures venerated parts of the female body that were involved in generation/creation, that is the breasts, belly, buttocks and vulva.  The vulva is one of the earliest symbols engraved, and one of the longest-lasting, continuing to appear for 20,000 years.  It is symbolically related to growth, to the seed and therefore, a representation of the ideas of creativity, continuity and fertility. (5)

It was Gimbutas’ belief that these female sculptural images implied veneration of a creatrix/earth goddess.  In her further work she discovered several other forms of the goddess which encompassed the fundamental phases/passages of continuance--Life, Death and Regeneration.  She grouped the goddesses of Old Europe into images of the the Life-Giver Goddess--which include representations of a figure giving birth, the Nourisher/Protector Goddess--included in these categories are pregnant images, and the Goddess of Death and Regeneration.  Some of these figures were represented as not solely human-shaped, but with animal or bird features implying the interconnection of all Nature. In other words, every thing and creature was a part of the Goddess.  She was depicted in a variety of forms and yet all of them were aspects of a singular Archetypal Feminine Deity.(6) This goddess imagery persisted in Europe for 30-40,000 years into the late Neolithic/early Copper Age.(7) 

About 4,000 BC, the first wave of horseback riding Kurgan (8) people arrived in Europe migrating from their homeland in South-Central Asia far to the East.  While we cannot ever be sure about why the Kurgan/Proto-Indo-European herders began to move their flocks and families westward, there may be clues in the global climate record. 

The Earth experienced a rapid cooling event that peaked approximately 8,000 years ago dropping the overall temperature about 3 degrees Celsius.   While climatologists disagree about its cause, it may have been related to a sudden shutting down of the North Atlantic conveyor.  This is a critical ocean current which has its origins off the coast of Greenland.  In this area, very cold water sinks deeply off the coastal shelf to the bottom of the ocean floor.  This sinking causes a flow of water throughout the oceans of the planet.  This circulation which takes about 2,000 years to fully circulate, travels through all the interconnected oceans.  It stirs in the water of the tropics and ultimately brings currents of warmer water and weather to the Northern Hemisphere. (9)  Any alteration or cessation of this current dramatically cools the North and changes weather patterns.  The resulting change in climate would have had an impact on both the quality and quantity of food that is available for people and their livestock.  A climate change of this kind would have affected Old Europe and South-Central Asia.  However, since the Kurgan people had domesticated the horse and were nomadic, they had the ability to pick up and move in search of “greener pastures.” This search took them westward and into the seat of the Old European culture.

Based on the archeological record, these Kurgans or Proto-Indo-Europeans had a more patriarchal-focused, warrior culture that was quite different from the one of the Old European culture.  Kurgan artifacts include stone weapons/implements such as daggers, axes, spears and arrowheads.  This is different from objects gathered in excavations of the indigenous Old European settlements.  Archeologists found no warfare imagery or weapon artifacts.  In fact, sites from this period have been excavated across Europe and no examples of daggers or swords have ever been found. (10) 

In addition, in contrast with the Old European culture, these newly arrived people honored Sky Gods as they primary deities.

While much has been written about this time period, there is a tendency to deify or demonize one or the other of the groups.  In one camp, there are people who belief that the golden era of goddess worshiping, matrifocal culture in Europe was overrun by warlike invasions by the patriarchal Kurgans.  Other camps suggest that the Kurgans were a technically superior culture who brought order and civilization to Europe.  I tend to deny both extremes in favor of a model which suggests that the Proto-Indo-Europeans and Old Europeans met because of environmental pressures.  Whatever the reason for the meeting of these two vastly different cultures, one can certainly imagine that it must have been a time of terrific intensity!  Given what we understand about human nature, conflict would have been inevitable when such different mythic and social structures collided--particularly if the cultural collision occurred within a stressful environmental context.  If the struggles weren't physical in nature then our ancestors must have at least experienced intellectual and emotional trauma in the meeting.

Clues in the Myths of Northern Europe
Whatever the case, over time the people came to an uneasy compromise so that a kind of hybridized culture eventually arose among the groups--becoming the Indo-European culture we recognize today.  According to Ralph Metzner, "During the hundreds, even thousands of years of cultural interaction there was undoubtedly not only conquest, assimilation and superimposition of an alien religion, but also intermarriage of peoples, a blending and combining of religious and mythic images." (11)

The Tjängvide image stone found in 1844 in Gotland, Sweden.

When we look at  Northern European mythology, we can clearly see reflections of this clashing of cultures and blending of mythologies between the Proto-Indo-European Kurgan invaders and the Old European cultures. For instance, the ancient Norse/Germanic mythic traditions honor two distinct families of deities.  These are the Vanir and the Aesir. In the myths, these two different clans or families of gods and goddesses are at odds with each other and often engage in warfare.

When we look at the two groups of deities, we can see reflections of the cultural diversity that existed between the two groups of people in Europe.  In addition, they can give us clues about cultural perceptions that must have evolved due to the traumas associated with many centuries of conflict. This conflict would have been felt differently by the "invading" Proto-Indo-Europen tribes from the East and the aboriginal populations of Old Europe who "resisted" the assimilation.  What seems clear, however is that the resulting blended culture was left with two, conflictual perceptual frameworks locked into its psyche.

Two Families of Deities--Two Paradigms
The Vanir
The Vanir is the clan of earth, sea and nature deities.  They include Njörd, god of the sea who is the father of the Vanir which include, Freyr and Freyja. The realm of the Vanir is Vanaheim.  Their sphere of influence includes connections with the elves/air spirits in Ljossalheim, the dwarves/stone spirits of Svartalfheim, the Nature elementals of ice/cold in Niflheim and heat/fire in Muspellheim.  If we look at this through the lens of traditional shamanic views of the spirit world, the Vanir have their connections and associations in Middle World.  In other words, they are more closely aligned with the Old European, earth and nature worshiping traditions.

Freyja by Arthur Rackham

Of this group, the Goddess Freyja may be thought of as an excellent representative.  Having complex traits, Freyja bears a resemblance to the aboriginal European Earth Goddess.  She is the goddess of fertility, love, beauty, attraction and wealth.  She was also the goddess of war, battle, death, magic and prophesy.  In her role as goddess of prophesy, Freyja also has ties to the Norns or Fates who control destiny and on whom all the deities pay homage.  The Norns are the "Three Wyrd Sisters" who are described in the Icelandic Poetic Edda--a collection of Old Norse mythic tales--as giantesses.  This is an important clue to their identity, as giants are thought to be progenitor beings who existed before the gods/goddesses. (This is a view that is common to other European cultures such as the Celts.)  The Norns were said to have come out of Jötunheim to limit the god/goddesses' powers and to act as protective spirits for the people of earth.

The Norns by Arthur Rackham

The oldest Norn, Urd draws the threads of existence from the void and passes them to her sister, Verdandi.  It is she who weaves.  The last and youngest sister, Skuld is the one who eventually cuts the weave and sends energy back into the formless.  In their triple aspect, these sisters reflect the three-fold face of the ancient earth goddess--maiden/mother/crone, life-giver/nurturer/destroyer. 

Freyja also encompasses these energies in that she holds sway over fertility/love and battle/death.  In addition, she is capable of viewing that which the Norns weave in her role as goddess of magic and prophesy.  Those women that acted in the role of seer or völva in Old Norse culture were acting as Freyja in that they too, were able to see the strands of the Norns' weaving.  As goddess of prophesy, Freyja is also a shaman being able to see that which others cannot. (13)

The Æsir
The Æsir are the gods and goddesses of the sky.  They reside in Asgard which is high above the other realms. The gods Odin (Chieftain of the Gods) and Thor (God of thunder and battle), and the goddesses Frigg (Odin's wife) and Hel (Goddess of the underworld and of the dead who aren't fit to dwell among the gods because they did not die in valliant battle) are said to be Æsir.  Among this clan, Odin is the chief and as the Vanir were dominated by the Æsir he held sway over them as well. 

According to the Eddas, the Runic alphabet was a gift from Odin. A selection from the Eddas tells of their discovery. Odin hangs for  nights upon the World Tree, Yggdrasil.  During this ordeal, the Edda describes him saying:

"Wounded I hung on a wind-swept gallows
For nine long nights,
Pierced by a spear, pledged to Odin,
Offered, myself to myself
The wisest know not from whence spring
The roots of that ancient rood.
They gave me no bread,
They gave me no mead,
I looked down;
with a loud cry
I took up runes;
from that tree I fell."

An 1886 depiction of Odin by Georg von Rosen.

In hanging himself from Yggdrasil, Odin's story echoes the ancient Siberian shamanic ritual of hanging those who would be initiated as shamans from great poles or trees.  It was believed that from this lofty position the initiates could gain access to the spirits.  Odin hung on the tree for nine days and nights--one day and night for each one of the spiritual realms. Through his suffering, he experiences what may be best described as the shaman’s death.  His old self is sacrificed.  He transcends death so that he may gain knowledge.  On the ninth day on the Tree, Odin has a vision of the Runes hovering below him.  With his last remaining strength, he tears himself from the tree and literally grasps his vision.  Screaming, he scoops up the Runes and falls back to the Earth.  His scream marks the moment he passed through the doorway of initiation into a new way of being. 

The word 'rune' means 'whisper,' or 'secret wisdom.'  Once Odin had the Runes--what we can think of as raw knowledge, he had to learn how to use them.  Learning how to utilize knowledge is the path to wisdom.  For Odin to become wise, it was necessary for him to make a further sacrifice.  In order to see/understand knowledge and transform it into wisdom, Odin sacrifices one of his eyes for a drink from the Well of Remembrance.  This well contains all ancestral, primordial wisdom and is guarded by the giant Mimir whose name has it’s root in the word "memory.”  Although this magical well is sometimes described as belonging to Mimir, it is under Urdh’s dominion and Mimir the giant functions as its guardian.  He protects on behalf of the eldest Norn.

Odin’s sacrifice of an eye--of his ordinary sight--symbolizes the perceptual shift that is necessary for all seers to accomplish their work.  That is, seers and shaman require the ability to shift into a non-ordinary, visionary way of “seeing” to accomplish their calling.  Through his ordeals, Odin transforms himself from the guider of the dead to the Guide Of Those That Are Living.  His task is to help us in gaining the wisdom we need to make the best choices for our lives.   In addition, his wounds taught him compassion for others.  These experiences give him the tools to be a healer, the kind we refer to as “wounded healer” or shaman.

Warfare
The Eddas tell us that the clans of the Æsir and Vanir battled for a long time.  Each side destroyed the realm of the other and neither side gained the upper hand for very long.  Finally, it is said that the two sides grew weary of warfare.  So leaders of the Aesir and Vanir met to discuss terms. They argued about the wars' origins--whether the Aesir alone were guilty of causing the war, and whether either side was entitled to recompense. Each side swore to live side by side in peace.  They exchanged captives/hostages as proof of their intentions. Njord and his son, Freyr, and daughter, Freyja, journeyed to Asgard. For their part, the Aesir sent handsome Honir and wise Mimir to live in Vanaheim.

Living in peace wasn't in the cards, however. Over time, the Vanir began to realize that the Aesir had tricked them and that they hadn't gotten a fair exchange. In anger, they seized the wise giant, Mimir, and hacked off his head which they sent back to Odin.

A Final Battle
It is foretold in the Völuspá of the Poetic Edda, that there will be a terrible and final battle. This battle Ragnarök will be waged between the Æsir, led by Odin, and the various forces of the giants--the Oldest of All Beings. In this apocalyptic conflagration, the gods and goddesses die and almost everything in the universe will be destroyed to make way for its subsequent rebirth.

For many years and across many traditions, spiritual texts have suggested that our current time period will bring humankind the possibility of great change--a time of opportunity. In going through the crisis of Ragnarök, new human beings and new “gods” - that is, new ideas about what/who is considered sacred - will emerge.

In the Northern European myths, the new human beings are the man, Lif, and woman, Lífthrasir.  Their names mean "Life" and "Eagerness for Life."  It is they who survive Ragnarök by taking refuge in the World Tree. Inside Yggdrasil, they are made ready to emerge and begin the new world.  This part of the Ragnarök myth has very important significance as cross-culturally, the world tree is the domain of the shaman.  It is through entering the world tree that shamans do their work of journeying and healing.  Nearly universally, a magical, great tree is commonly used as a way for shamans to travel through the many spiritual realms.  It is depicted as growing through the worlds--functioning as a support for the heavens and holding the earth together.  Indeed, this kind of axial pillar is seen in cultures from South America to Siberia as a bridge between the shamanic realms.

The shaman is able to access wisdom, insight and guidance by traveling into the spirit realms by way of the World Tree.  While in/on the Tree and through being in relationship with the spirits--a human shaman is changed in the same manner as Odin himself. In essence, this is a shift in perception.  One begins to "see" that there is no separation between ourselves, the Earth and the rest of creation.

Evoking the Unexpressed - Healing the Legacy of
Our Ancestral Perceptions
According to the Ragnarök story, those who know how to enter the World Tree will bring forth New Life and Eagerness for Life, thereby creating a New World. Those that choose to be transformed are the people that can dream a new dream for humankind and nurture a remaking of the world into one of beauty, love and joy for all beings.

A recent conference program hosted by the Assisi Institute was titled: "Evoking the Unexpressed: Healing in the Realm of Matter and Spirit."  The description offered this wisdom, "To heal means to invoke what is unexpressed.  Since the beginning of time, healing practices have invoked an activation of fields and mental states other than the conscious mind, freeing us from the habitual and allowing access to the transcendent."  In other words, we need to develop a new perceptual paradigm which offers harmony and healing through union. In the experience of the transcendent, we are able to allow the illusions of separation to fall away.  This is not an act of will, but rather a complete shift in perception.  Through shifting awareness we are able to "see" differently.  In seeing differently, we "teach" our minds new "lessons" and in so learning, we gain the necessary new perceptions.

This shift can produce a healing of the ancestral trauma and can finally lay to rest the ancient inner turmoil in our psyches. These new perceptions reject the dichotomy reflected in the battles of the Vanir and Æsir. No longer allied with either the feminine/earth or masculine/sky we will not seek to have one dominate over the other.  We set ourselves free from the shackles of our brutal past and are made open to a new way.

The Work: Shadow Archetypes, Compassion and Union
While we may find it daunting to try and shift our culture, what we must remember is that our culture may be changed by the very people within it.  As each one of us breaks the old mold and heals the ancestral trauma, we set off a vibration through the web of cultural consciousness.  The following steps are not to be done in a linear, step-by-step manner.  Instead, you will find that each of them will come to play with the other until an internal paradigm shift occurs.  I have listed the three archetypes so that they are bracketed by Compassion and Union.  These forces will help to shift the energy of the internal shadow archetypes in a way that is loving and gentle. 

Loving Compassion for The Self
Compassion is an understanding of the emotional state of another or oneself. It is often combined with a desire to alleviate or reduce the suffering of another or to show special kindness to those who suffer. The Dalai Lama has said that "Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive."  While many of us have done a good job of lavishing compassion on other people and creatures we may not be as generous with ourselves.  In truth, if we do not include ourselves in the arms of our compassion, we are incomplete in our expression.  Leaving ourselves out eventually leads to resentment,  disappointment and a hollow, sad feeling inside. 

The Action:
Get a happy photograph of yourself at a very young age--under three-years-old, if at all possible.  Make at least four good photocopies of the photo.  Place the copies of this wonderful little child by your bedside, in your car, at your desk and in your journal or diary.  If you can, also place the image on the screen of your computer, PDA or cell phone as well. 

Every time you see that tiny, open-hearted face, thank him or her for being born! Tell the child what you are planning today. Remember to share those things that will bring him or her joy. Hold your Child Self in your heart as you go through your day.  When you are about to do something ask yourself, "Is this good for her/him?"  This child still lives within you and is listening to your self talk, watching your actions and hoping for you to become her/his loving sanctuary.  Have compassion for her/him.  Bring your very best to that child each and every day. If you falter, apologize and with compassion for yourself, treat the child with even more reverence and love.

Shadow archetype: "The Invader"
Shadows, by their very nature feel invisible to us as they are in the darker recesses of the Self.  Even though they themselves may be hard to see, their actions always give them away.

You can recognize your inner "Invader" by these kinds of feelings and thoughts: 

• "It's my way or the highway!"
• "I don't care about what you think, I'm doing it anyway!"
• "I want it and I'm going to get it!"

..and these kinds of actions:

• Cutting off someone in traffic.
• Taking something (even something small) from a person or organization.
• Going after more than your alloted share of anything.
• Doing something hurtful or unfair behind someone's back.

The Invader, looks for power by taking it from another person or by hoodwinking an organization. The Invader feels "entitled" because he or she feels some form of lack in their own life. The Invader sabotages the self by continuing to generate angry feelings.

The Action:
Through deep meditation, prayer or by using the shamanic journey process, meet your Inner Invader.  In an atmosphere of compassion, find out what makes her or him tick.  Especially look for the things that make the Inner Invader afraid.  Ask yourself, what is he or she defending against? Often the Invader's fears are connected to "not having enough."

Once identified, the fear(s) which had been operating from your unconscious will begin to lose their grip on your psyche. Continue working on alleviating them.  You can do this through more meditation, more journeys to your compassionate guides or through deep and spontaneous, heart-felt prayer. In addition, you may find it beneficial to work with a professional counselor.  There are several techniques available today for supporting gentle, powerful perceptual shifts. Many people have had excellent success with Shamanic Inner Body Healing, Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT tapping), hypnosis and others. Find out more about these methods and look for a practitioner that you can trust. 

In all the work, keep your eye on creating a safer and more loving place for your little child.

Shadow archetype: "The Resister"
The Resister sometimes reveals him or herself through passive-aggressive behavior.  This refers to passive, sometimes obstructionist resistance to following authoritative instructions in interpersonal or occupational situations. It can manifest itself as resentment, stubbornness, procrastination, sullenness, or repeated failure to accomplish requested tasks. It is a defense mechanism.

You can recognize your inner "Resister" by these kinds of feelings and thoughts: 

• "You can't make me!"
• "I'll show her!"

..some examples of the Resister's  actions may be:

• Chronic lateness
• Petty gossip about person who is perceived by the group to have higher status
• Making excuses
• Generating chaos or confusion

The energy of "righteous anger" is a sign that the Resister is present.  Underlying this is a fear of inadequacy and this shadow often holds the fear of "not being enough (unworthiness)" or "not being lovable."  This shadow can even create situations so that other people reject you and so prove the fears are correct.

As before, once the fears that motivate the Resister are identified, they will begin to lose their power over you. Continue working on them using the methods outlined above.

Remember, you choose to release the fears to create a better inner environment for your little child.

Shadow archetype: "The Victim"
This shadow archetype is the reflection of the first two archetypes for inside of a victim is the seed of a potential victimizer. According to some fields of psychoanalysis (14) there are actually three faces to this energy which may present themselves in any given situation and a person may switch roles spontaneously.  These are:

• The person who is treated as, or accepts the role of, a victim
• The person who pressures, coerces or persecutes the victim (flipping into the victimizer role)
• The rescuer, who intervenes seemingly on behalf of the victim, but who is actually acting upon their own selfish needs, rather than acting in a genuinely adult, responsible or altruistic manner.

You can recognize your inner "Victim" by these kinds of feelings and thoughts: 

• "What's the use?"
• "I'll never (feel better, be loved, get a raise, etc.)."
• "I f I do this he/she will love me!"
• "It's MY turn!"
• "Yes, but."
• "You made me do it."
• "Look how hard I've tried."

..some examples of the Victim's actions may be:

• Helping someone so that you feel better about yourself
• Setting yourself up to fail
• Feeling inadequate
• Self-sabotage
• Meddling in others' affairs

The Victim's fears can include some form of the one's attributed to the other shadow archetypes but may also include a new one, "the fear of being powerful!"  Remember once the fears that motivate the Victim are identified, they will begin to lose their power over you. Continue working on them using the methods outlined above.

Releasing the fears brings loving and healing energy to your little child.

Transcendence/Union
Transcendence is a kind of mystical experience in which the sense of a separate Self is either dissolved or abandoned into the "Oneness" of the Divine.  It is a state of being and awareness that is typified by an expanded state of consciousness, the feelings of which persist into ordinary awareness. 

This state can happen in deep prayer, through shamanic journeying, spontaneously in a near death experience, meditation, period of fasting or during a prolonged illness.  Some have found this state also by using other consciousness-expanding techniques such as those used in the work of the Monroe Institute.  The Medicine for the Earth work of Sandra Ingerman offers a state she refers to as transfiguration which can be a doorway to this experience as well.  She has recorded guided imageries to assist the listener into that state of being on the CD Miracles for the Earth.

Whichever method you choose, keep at it so that the feelings of being part of the divine persist in your everyday life.  The ideal is to have this feeling become your default or baseline experience of your Self.

In concert with Spirits of Nature
Working with the Spirits of Nature involves stepping into relationship with the Old Ones--ancient, Earth spirits who enliven the natural world, the wisest of our ancestors and the progenitor/spirit beings with whom we share the Earth.  Traditionally, shamans depended upon these beings as the source of their spiritual powers.  These spirits are deeply connected with the elemental forces of creation and are embodiments of the life-force.  As such, they are integral to creating a new future, however we need to work in partnership. Our physicality is an important contribution to the New Earth's actual manifestation.  Neither the spirits alone nor humans working alone can make it happen. 

The Action: Practice gratitude for all the magnificence found in Nature. Each day, take time to list off at least five things that you are grateful for in the world. Remember the blessings of the sun, rain, and wind.  Give thanks for the plants and trees who give us breath.  In a concrete way, give back to nature by doing something such as feeding the birds, helping to rebuild a trail or volunteering at an environmental organization.

Conclusion
We have the potential of being able to break free of the emotional trauma of our deep ancestry. The actions of our culture will shift as the members of it make their individual shifts. We can never know which one of us who is choosing to do this work will be the "hundredth monkey" creating the meta paradigm shift which will revolutionize the way we are in the world.

The Vanir and Æsir remind us that no single force can flourish without the unreserved support of the other.  The spirits of nature need the Earth to be reborn and replenished as much as we do.  By working together, we have the potential to create a world that is more magnificent than has ever been seen before.

Evelyn C. Rysdyk, author of Modern Shamanic Living is a nationally recognized presenter.  Included in the book Traveling Between the Worlds she is among the world’s most influential writers and teachers of shamanism.

Originally trained in core shamanism, she has integrated practices taught to her by elders from North and South America, Central Asia, Nepal and Siberia.  She is also a Medicine for the Earth Teacher--teaching ways that transfigured human energy can heal our planet. 

With her partner C. Allie Knowlton, MSW, LCSW, DCSW she presents eco-spiritually focused training programs--which include advanced shamanism and shamanic healing---across the USA and Canada.  In addition, as a founding member of True North, a unique, integrated medical center in Falmouth, Maine--she collaborates with physicians, nurses, a psychiatrist, a naturopath and several other complementary healthcare practitioners to provide a new model of health care that includes the spirit.

www.spiritpassages.org| www.spiritliving.org

Footnotes:

1.Gimbutas, Marija, The Language of the Goddess, (New York: Harper Collins Publishers, paperback edition, 1991), pp. 330-336.

2. Interview between David Jay Brown and Marija Gimbutas from the internet version of Mavericks of the Mind. www.levity.com/mavericks/gimbut.htm.

3.IBID

4.Gimbutas, Marija, The Language of the Goddess, (New York: Harper Collins Publishers, paperback edition, 1991), Introduction, pp. xv-xvi.

5.Interview between David Jay Brown and Marija Gimbutas from the internet version of Mavericks of the Mind.www.levity.com/mavericks/gimbut.htm.

6. Gimbutas, Marija, The Language of the Goddess, (New York: Harper Collins Publishers, paperback edition, 1991),pp. 316-317.

7. The Copper Age period (also known as the Eneolithic (Aeneolithic)), is a phase in the development of human culture in which the use of early metal tools appeared alongside the use of stone tools. 

8. Term coined by Gimbutas referring to the burial mounds or kurgans used by these peoples. The actual cultural progression from early to late Copper age is described as Samara to Khvalynsk followed by Yamna.

9. Peter Spotts, Ice Age to Warming--and Back?, Christian Science Monitor, March 18, 2004 edition. The full text may be found at: www.csmonitor.com/2004/0318/p13s01-sten.html

10. IBID  Introduction xv-xvi and Interview between David Jay Brown and Marija Gimbutas from the internet version of Mavericks of the Mind. www.levity.com/mavericks/gimbut.htm.

11. Ralph Metzner, Sky Gods and Earth Deities.  This essay was originally written in conjunction with The Well of Remembrance. Under the title Clashing Cultures and Hybrid Mythologies, it is published in From the Realm of the Ancestors - Essays in Honor of Marija Gimbutas, ed. Joan Marler.

12. Ralph Metzner, The Well of Remembrance - Rediscovering the Earth Wisdom Mythology of Northern Europe (Shambhala, 1994).

13. Shamanic traditions in Siberia tell of a mythic, First Shaman who is thought to be female and other worldly in her origins.

14. Some of the best known examples are Virginia Satir's model of coping patterns and Karpman Drama Triangle pioneered by Steven Karpman.  Ms. Satir's work is outlined in her books, Making Contact and The New Peoplemaking.  The later mentioned work by Karpman is an aspect of transactional analysis.