Perception

I have to say that my shaman experience will not be the same as someone elses experience. No two shamans are alike, especially when every lineage is different. What's right for me might not be the case for someone else. What's right for them might not be the case for me. It's important that we respect each other. I come across an individual who practices shamanism in a different way, that's cool! I want to know. I want to see. It's something cool for me, personally, when a shaman tells me their experience and how they perform rituals. It is a spiritual practice that is passed down through story telling, through dialogue, and through master to student.

I often say Hmong shamanism, at least for me, is practicing spirituality. Spirituality is almost like a spectrum. Gender is a spectrum and for the most part so is spirituality. It's not an "all or nothing" experience. There's no "you have to be this" or "you have to be that." For a lot of shamans, their experience and knowledge of the world is taking many beliefs and putting it into one; one that works for them. Especially since Hmong people have come to America, we definitely see a new wave of practicing shamanism. And guess what? It's ok! Good for them! Times have changed. When times change, people change. Beliefs evolve. People evolve! If a shaman can access higher power doing what ever they believe is to be true for them, then allow it. Every person vibrates at a different wave.

For me and my perception of self, shamans aren't any better or higher than anyone else. We can't give ourselves so much credit. I wouldn't brag about myself in a general sense, and so why would we brag about ourselves in a spiritual sense? We aren't reincarnated beings, we aren't kings or queens, we aren't gods or goddesses, we aren't reincarnated supernatural beings. For all I know, supernatural gods and beings have no business wanting to become human. They're above the human experience. in my sense. I hear and see a lot of shamans who want to be held at a high pedestal. They seem to be above it all for some reason. They want to be known as an important person. For what I believe in, we aren't any better than the animals we sacrifice and the people we help. We are all one wavelength. So what sets shamans apart? Basically, shamans have the innate ability to open channels, to vibrate at a higher sense. It doesn't matter if someone is the new type of Hmong shaman or the old traditional type, we all give off vibrations and respond to channels that our vibrations can connect with. Shaman's simply are connectors. We simply can access these other "channels" and travel. Our emotional stability is heightened. We aren't super human beings. I don't have any powers, I'm not psychic, and I'm not a reincarnation of a supernatural being. Sometimes, all we do is pay more attention to signs that the universe sends. To say I was once a king or a god would be to brag, to give myself more meaning than I am. We must all remind ourselves that at the end of the day we are simple beings, some of us having higher perceptions of the universe than others, but that's it.

For clarity, my type of shamanism is neeb txwv zeeb. It is passed down from generation to generation, often skipping a generation in between. I have a solid shaman bench, often referred to as "neeb tsis dhia rooj." And no, I don't see ghosts or talk to spirits on a daily. I don't have any ghost friends. I don't know what you're thinking of and I can't read minds. I can't predict the lottery and I don't know who's going to win the super bowl. Most shaman's don't want to tell or talk about it, but the shaman journey is almost like a self discovery journey. We often find ourselves through our spirituality. We find our strengths, our challenges, we constantly learn new things and figure out different aspects of our shaman experience. It's not a job or a career. It's an identity.

-tfl