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"Why Shamanism Now?" with Christina Pratt

Shamanic Shrines and Creating Community

We live in sacred space all the time, everyday, but most of us do not know how to acknowledge it or to use it. By working skillfully with altars and shrines we can acknowledge the energies of the sacred around us and engage these energies in creating mutual benefit. Given this, the most basic purpose of a shamanic shrine is to open up a direct dialogue with an important energy in your everyday space. Traditional examples found around the world in the practices of shamanic peoples are the ancestral shrines, elemental shrines, and shrines dedicated to mountains or lakes or other specific spirit energies of the region. Usually misinterpreted as places of worship these shrines are places of relationship and direct communication between the people and powerful energies present in their daily lives. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she explores the contemporary creation and use of shamanic shrines. For example you may travel to Peru and learn powerful practices for working with the Andean mountains, but that isn't going to help you much if you live in Florida where there isn't a true mountain in sight and the most powerful spirit of the place is either the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf, or the Everglades. You can create a water shrine, open a dialogue with the energies that are actually part of your sacred space, and develop powerful practices for your life and the sacred space you live in.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

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Hail Columbia

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

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At 6:00 this evening, DC40 kicked off their "siege" in the US capital. Tomorrow they begin their prayer mission of "reformation" in each of the 50 states starting with Hawaii because it was the last state to join the union. From there, they'll continue through the states in reverse order. As discussed here, they're turning turning their guns directly on the goddess Columbia as they attempt to obliterate the Pagan underpinnings of the US. In response, this site, and many others, will be engaging in a counter campaign to honor the Pagan underpinnings of the US by honoring Columbia. See how that works?

When the organizers on the DC40 got wind of Pagan interest in their event they responded with a blood invocation.

The New Apostolic Reformation, a neo-Pentecostal Christian movement, hosts an event called DC40 to “lay siege” for 40 days on Washington D.C. to change the District of Columbia into the District of Christ and eliminate compromise in our government. Pagans around the country attempt to counter the event’s goal of influencing elected officials.

. . .

In their latest newsletter, DC40 sent out this response to the Pagan community:

We are well aware of the websites and blogs rallying to try and curse our effort and counter it. Always remember, You can’t curse what God has blessed! Read Psalm 2. Remember also that Jesus is the light of every man. We have read some of your accusations and false perceptions of us, and we say “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” We were once in darkness too, and we call you out of the darkness and into the light. We release the power of blood-covered light over you.

Will James Arthur Ray EVER Be Sentenced?

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Well... I think he will... presently. But I sure do understand the frustration of the families and friends of the deceased -- let alone the many, many, many people who have suffered physical, emotional, and financial damage at the hands of this lunatic. Due to Kelly's health issues, Judge Darrow said in a hearing yesterday that he will not reschedule the presentencing hearing before the middle of October.

Attorney Tom Kelly, still recovering from treatment for a heart condition, appeared alone in court and outlined the defense's difficulties in arranging schedules, both their own and that of the many witnesses they intend to present at a pre-sentence hearing.

Kelly said his doctor has cleared him to defend a client in a jury trial that begins Oct. 19, but emphasized that he was also ordered to be on light duty. He said he needs a second procedure that has not yet been scheduled.

The re-emergence of Kelly prompted Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk to suggest that the proceedings could resume immediately, even offering to forego a scheduled family vacation the week of Oct. 7-15. Saying that the state has made a strong showing, both in arguments and pleadings, of "the need to move this case forward," Polk said she would be fine with the previous scheduling, which would have started the pre-sentence hearings on Wednesday.

Darrow, though, said he would not set the hearings and sentencing, which will require at least six court days, to begin before Oct. 15, adding that perceptions that the delays have been solely caused by defense maneuverings were somewhat inaccurate.

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"Why Shamanism Now?" with Christina Pratt

Creating Sacred Space Anywhere, Any time

Space is inherently sacred, as are all things, as are you. When we act to "create sacred space" we are acknowledging that fact of the sacred in the space and greeting The Mystery there. In effect, we are saying "hello" so that we can engage and begin our relationship in a good way. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she explores how we can recognize, cultivate, and commune with the sacred through the art of creating altars and shrines. Altars can be indoors or outdoors, permanent or impermanent, portable or part of a place in nature. The most important thing in any altar is that it works; it allows you to better communicate with the sacred in your life. Some places are considered naturally more sacred or powerful. This really means that the place allows us access to energies that matter to us or that we value highly, like a boulder in the side of a mountain that radiates the energy of Shiva. Other places, like temples and monasteries, have grown powerfully sacred through their use in the same way, day after day, by person after person. Join us as we explore the ancient practices of creating sacred space. Learn the principles for creating altars and shrines in a way that engages the sacred in relationship so that you can create sacred space for yourself anywhere and anytime.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

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Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
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All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Shel Silverstein's Vision Serpent

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Today is Shel Silverstein's birthday and there doesn't seem to be any escape from Silverstein hagiography. That's probably due in part to a well timed pub date for this new collection of his work from HarperCollins. No lover of Shel Silverstein, I. I think I've made my views on the thoroughly offensive Giving Tree very clear. But this image really grabbed me when I was reading Andrew Sullivan earlier today.

I immediately thought that it was very evocative of Mayan hieroglyphs I've seen. Something about a squat, little person with a convoluted tangle of images rising in front of him put me in mind of a number of Mayan reliefs. I did a bit of digging and I think it was this image, specifically, that was jogged in my memory, because the parallels are really quite striking.

James Ray: I'm Sorry, Now Give Me Probation!

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

James Ray must be getting very, very nervous. Know how I know that? He's all apologies and remorse all of a sudden.

A self-help author convicted of negligent homicide expressed extreme remorse for the deaths of three people following an Arizona sweat lodge ceremony he led and vowed never to conduct another one, a probation officer wrote in a presentence report obtained by The Associated Press.

. . .

Ray told the probation officer that he was responsible for the sweat lodge but that he is not a threat to society. He said he wanted to apologize to the victims' families but he hasn't been allowed to contact them, nor did he think it was appropriate to do so at an earlier time.

I guess it was also inappropriate for him to contact the families of the dead and dying when they were rushed to area hospitals after his 2009 sweat lodge. And it would have been positively crass to hand over their identification and paperwork to medical personnel so that they could be admitted as something other than Jane and John Does. And Ray would never have been so forward as to call 911 just because people had stopped breathing. If James Ray knows anything, it's how to respect other people's boundaries when they're in a life and death crisis.

James Ray Hearing: New Dates and More Objections

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Sentencing has been rescheduled for October 6; a day that is not my birthday. The mitigation and presentencing hearing is now scheduled to begin September 28. Worse, word on the street is that the defense intends to object to the new schedule. As per Tom McFeeley, they are claiming that Tom Kelly needs more time to prepare. Being hospitalized for a heart ailment certainly prevented him from appearing yesterday but how did this sudden, health emergency prevent him from being prepared for the previously scheduled dates? Did the dog eat his homework, too?

Once again, I find myself stunned by the slap-dash approach of this expensive, high-power defense team. They always seem to be whining that they've been caught flat-footed by an under-resourced, small-town DA's office. So overwhelmed are they that they can't even find the time to black out the addresses and phone numbers of private citizens on publicly posted documents.

They've got bigger problems with those letters from James Ray's supporters, too. I've been picking my way through them and there are some things that don't add up. I noticed a discussion on Connie Joy's Facebook page that raises some serious questions. Many of the letters were written last fall before the the trial began. It's unclear whether support from some of those letter writers is still forthcoming. From some of the comments in that thread, I would guess not.

48 Hours Mystery -- West Memphis 3: Free

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

In case you missed the new 48 Hours Mystery on the WM3, I have posted the show in its entirety above. Much of it is a rehash of their earlier coverage but the new interviews with Damien Echols, his wife Lorri Davis, and Jason Baldwin are incredibly heartening. It's wonderful to see that Echols has gotten some color. His skin looked like alabaster on the day of his release. And Jason Baldwin has won a whole new level of admiration from me. His joy and optimism after having lost half his life to the criminal justice system of Arkansas are amazing. He has proved himself to be a man of honor and integrity. He could have gotten a reduced sentence, all those years ago, if he'd testified against his friend. He refused. And torn between his desire to see a just verdict in a new trial and the certainty of saving Echols's life with the plea deal, he chose to save a life. Has the absurdity of putting this man behind bars for murder ever been more glaringly apparent?

The written coverage from CBS underscores the absurdity:

This is what justice in Arkansas looks like: On Aug. 19, 2011, Judge David Laser in Craighead County released three men who had spent the last 18 years in prison, one of them on death row. But as part of an unusual plea agreement, the three men -- Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley -- who insist they are innocent, had to first plead guilty to three counts of murder.

It struck more than a few observers in the packed courtroom that morning that the surreal spectacle had very little to do with justice. As one of the newly freed men, Jason Baldwin, later described it, "When we told prosecutors we were innocent, they put us in prison for life. Now when we plead guilty, they set us free!"

The county prosecuting attorney Scott Ellington's actions didn't help clear up matters either. He said publicly that he still believed these men were guilty of one of the most heinous crimes in the state's history: the brutal murder of three 8-year-old boys in 1993. And yet, he made them all sign a waiver promising not to sue the state.

Nope. It's still not justice. But at least three innocent men are finally free.

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"Why Shamanism Now?" with Christina Pratt

Global Dismemberment: Through the Shaman's Eye

What is happening around us? We see severe weather, colossal oil spills, and species die off. We see illness, obesity, and rising incidents of mental illness and coping disorders. We see corruption and an unfathomable void of ethics in banking, politics, and religions around the world. We see riots, anger, and hopelessness in our communities. The shaman sees Dismemberment, the experience of being pulled apart, eaten, or stripped layer by layer, down to the bare bones on a global scale. "In a shamanic dismemberment," explains host and shaman, Christina Pratt, "the individual, unaware that the experience is occurring in an altered state, dies the little death, which is the surrender of the ego that allows for a shift of awareness and transformation of consciousness." Join us this week as our guest, award winning author, teacher, consultant, motivational speaker, successful businessman, and urban shaman, Richard Whiteley, explains what is going on out there from a shamanic perspective. And perhaps more importantly, he shares why he feels there is reason to be hopeful and how we can participate with spirit in the Remembering so that the world we co-create is different than before. Richard joins us for the next show in the Society of Shamanic Practitioners sponsored interview series.

This week's guest:
Richard Whiteley

Richard Whiteley, author of The Corporate Shaman, (2002) was awarded five top honors shared among his three business books on customer-centered business and finding joy in your work. He is "A Harvard Business School educated, best selling author and management consultant who moonlights as an urban shaman," says Business Week. He co-founded The Forum Corporation, a large, global business training and consulting firm, teaches at business schools across the country, and currently offers his expertise at The Whiteley Group.

Richard is an award winning leader and consultant and a dynamic presenter. He earned a BA from Wesleyan University, an MBA from Harvard, served in the United States Navy for three and a half years, and studied with medicine people for the past eighteen years. Richard has a healing practice in Boston, which is based on his study and practice of shamanism. His work has included power animal retrievals and soul retrieval for individuals and organizations. He has recently performed as a percussionist and vocalist on a new CD entitled Shamanheart. With his three sons, he has also created a drumming CD for assistance in shamanic journeying.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

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Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

James Ray Hearing Vacated Due to Illness

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

What part of next Monday is my birthday don't these people understand?! James Ray was scheduled to be sentenced that day, but justice has been delayed... again.

Supporters of a self-help author convicted in the deaths of three people after an Arizona sweat lodge ceremony will have to wait to testify in an effort to convince a judge that James Arthur Ray deserves a lenient sentence.

An attorney in the case had a medical emergency, prompting the cancellation of a weeklong hearing that was supposed to start Monday, Yavapai County Superior Court officials said.

. . .

This week’s hearing hasn’t been rescheduled. Ray was scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 26, and it’s unclear whether that will go forward as planned.

Word is that Tom Kelly has been hospitalized and because he is Ray's Arizona counsel, the law requires his presence. Luis Li and Truc Do, in addition to being almost inconceivably annoying, are out-of-towners.

WM3 on 48 Hours Mystery

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

CBS 48 Hours Mystery, which profiled Johnny Depp's interest in the West Memphis Three a year and ago will be doing a follow-up report. It will air Saturday, Sept. 17, at 10:00 PM Eastern Time. I know I already have my DVR set. More info can be found on the CBS website here.

When three men convicted of murdering three young boys were released from Arkansas prisons last month, it made headlines. This Saturday, "48 Hours Mystery" will air a comprehensive report on the case, including the first television interviews with two of the men known as the "West Memphis 3." Correspondent Erin Moriarty, who has been working this story for four years, offered a preview on "The Early Show."

Watch a preview of this "48 Hours Mystery" episode

Jason Baldwin, Moriarty reported, is beginning his life at age 34, doing the kinds of simple things most of us take for granted, such as getting his driver's license and enjoying the outdoors.

Baldwin told CBS News, "The first thing I did? Oh, I just smiled and got, like, a thousand hugs from everybody, you know?... I smiled so much that my face actually hurt from it, you know, but it is a good thing. ... It just felt like everything was alright. Like, here's the time to begin, you know?"