Beneath the Water- Exploring Unconscious Images in the Shamanic Journey

Eastern Sierra

In my last entry I wrote about the above-ground, ordinary-reality, logistical process of shamanic counseling. What does a session look like? In this reflection I’d like to write about what is happening beneath the surface, in non-ordinary reality, and why the images presented within a shamanic journey hold so much transformative power.

In this healing modality it might be useful to state our assumptions. We are assuming that the self has a ‘higher self’ or soul and that soul desires wholeness and integration. We may come into this life whole, but through our conditioning and basic need for survival, we quickly develop coping strategies, defense mechanisms and other patterns that begin to fragment that wholeness. Altered states work seeks to repair that fragmentation and return us to wholeness.

From a psychological perspective and as a basic grounding for our discussion: “The unconscious is the vast sum of operations of the mind that take place below the level of conscious awareness. The conscious mind contains all the thoughts, feelings, cognitions, and memories we acknowledge, while the unconscious consists of deeper mental processes not readily available to the conscious mind. Much learning, especially recognition of complex patterns, takes place outside of conscious awareness. Similarly, many of the elements that go into judgments and decision-making are processed outside of awareness. Intuition, too, is a product of unconscious mental operations, a set of assumptions swiftly assembled from cumulative knowledge and experience. Much of human motivation and interpersonal attraction also take shape beyond conscious awareness.”

One of the reasons hypnotherapy and shamanic journeying are so effective is that both processes use altered states work (guided meditation and/or repetitive sound), which allow us entrée into the world of the unconscious. Our conscious mind takes a well-deserved rest, providing space for the unconscious mind to communicate to us—often through images. In accessing a different ‘channel’ we essentially bypass our competent, strategic mind, inviting the exploration of deeper mental processes often less available to us. In depth hypnosis and applied shamanism we are making the assumption that the information being delivered is intentional and can be explored for the sake of our healing. Meditation, dreams, and plant medicine are also vehicles for such insights.

Why the emphasis on images? When we are doing altered states work, we open to our inner sense of taste, touch, smell, sight, hearing, and knowing. While we gain insights within each of these areas, images remain one of the most common ways to receive information. In general, images are projected both externally in how we perceive the world and therefore interact with it, as well as internally, for instance in our dreams.

The altered states work allows these other aspects of knowing to come forward and in our strategically minded culture, these more intuitive ways of knowing have often been undervalued, discouraged and even silenced. Altered states work allows us to interact with the spirit world in a different way. In traditional shamanism, the shaman would direct those energies toward healing. In a modern context, the practitioner and client work together with their guides to attain healing.

I think one reason why shamanism, which was practiced the world-over, became threatened, is these practices promote connection to oneself, one another and the earth, making it more difficult to manipulate, manage, and control people. In coming back to our wholeness, we help heal our culture—thereby threatening to disrupt systems of oppression.

When images arise in the shamanic journey the client is bringing their intention to their own self-healing and discovery. What do the images mean to them literally and figuratively? What feeling or emotion is associated with the image? What is trying to be communicated? How did the images relate to the question the client asked the guide going into the journey?

In this more liminal space, as we open to other ways of knowing, healing energies and guides can lend their support toward understanding the images and experiences presented. Our journey’s images and experiences allow us a window into what patterns might be circulating and those patterns, once explored, can lead to an understanding of what is generating the pattern. Once we assess the need the client is trying to fulfill, we work to meet that need and therefore help heal that aspect of self/soul that generated the image.

Images and guides communicate work that needs to be done.

What is also ‘beneath the water’ are the energy patterns at work within us. The journeyer has the opportunity to ‘rewire’ themselves within the journeying process. Our energy patterns overlay these images. So when we delve into the waters of the shamanic journey we are listening on every level of our being to what wants to reveal itself for the sake of our healing.

In this hypothetical example, how does, for instance, an image of the journeyer’s guide, who shows up in animal form (Bear), holding his hand, standing on the shore looking out at the ocean, bathed in light, help him understand what unconditional love and support feel like? How does it help him answer his initial journeying question of wanting to more fully understand how to work with feelings of isolation?

Based on my own experience, I know the power of this kind of exchange is genuine. In this case, my guess would be the client would feel a deep sense of support and connection. The image generated by the client’s unconscious, of the client and the bear standing, unified, in light, with an open horizon, creates a somatic sensation in the body that can later can be accessed and practiced outside the experience of the journey.

In a session, we may carry it further and ask Bear for a daily practice to help the client practice this feeling of connection.

The pattern at work for this client may have been one of feeling alone, not seeking support, and not thinking there was support outside of himself. Perhaps what motivated that pattern initially was fear of looking weak, having grown up with a very masculine, traditionally ‘male’ father figure. The need under the motivation was one of needing to be liked and accepted as he was. Here, through just this one image and somatic bookmark, the client felt the shift toward greater acceptance, connection, and authenticity. Depth hypnosis would also support the client in getting at the roots of these issues, such that even more information can come through in the journeys.

The more one does the work to uncover and shift patterns, the more opportunities arise to replace those negative patterns with self-healing energy patterns. Images are gateways of understanding that allow this very elusive unconscious territory to become ‘seeable’ and translatable.

In shamanic parlance, the images and guides that show up can shape-shift. They present themselves in fashions that a client will understand and be able to relate to. Images are not always literal. This is where sharing the journey with a counselor can be so helpful. Having a witness to your journey and a partner in supporting your own understanding of the experience is truly a gift worth giving yourself and others.

Additional resources on Shamanic Journeying:

Foundation of the Sacred Stream

The Foundation for Shamanic Studies