When I teach the Andean tradition through the lineage in which I was taught, I make it clear that what I am sharing is a mystical tradition rather than a shamanic one. I have a lot of experience with both mystical and shamanic practices, and as a former academic am rather a stickler for the historical context of such concepts, so this is not a trivial distinction to me. To my mind, if you are going to engage a tradition and its practices, you would want to know what it is you are doing, right?
So let me make the case that Andean practices are mystical, and not shamanic, by starting with generally accepted definitions of the concepts mystic/shaman and mysticism/shamanism.
The Cambridge English Dictionary definition of shaman is: “In particular religions, a person who is thought to have special powers to control and influence good and evil spirits, making it possible for them to discover the cause of illness, bad luck, etc.”  Merriam-Webster’s definition is: “A religion practiced by indigenous peoples of far northern Europe and Siberia that is characterized by belief in an unseen world of gods, demons, and ancestral spirits responsive only to the shamans.”
What do some academics and authorities have to say about the meaning of shamanism or what a shaman is? Let’s look at a couple. Carlos Castaneda, an academic who was perhaps the most instrumental practitioner and purveyor of Yaqui shamanism in American popular culture, taught that shamanism is the ability to enter, at will, “non-ordinary” states of reality.  Another academic, Roger Walsh, in his book The Spirit of Shamanism, writes, “Shamanism can be defined as a family of traditions whose practitioners focus on voluntarily entering altered states of consciousness in which they experience themselves or their spirit[s], traveling to other realms at will, and interacting with other entities in order to serve their community.”
Walsh makes an important point at the end of his statement: “to serve their community.” If you read the historical and academic literature, especially world authority Mircea Eliade, you will learn that no one calls themselves a shaman. It is a title conferred upon someone by the community in recognition of that person’s skills and talents. Shamans traditionally played multiple roles in their communities, acting as peacemaker and arbiter, psychologist and priest, intuitive and visionary, helper and healer. Their primary way of accessing information by which to carry out these roles were shamanic—that is, using altered states of consciousness or non-ordinary ways of accessing information and insight.
Depending on the culture, a shaman usually undertakes an arduous training to learn various ways to shift to a non-ordinary or altered state of consciousness: psychoactive substances, fasting, trance dancing, drumming, chanting or singing, and so on. Once in an non-ordinary state of consciousness, the shaman can shape-shift into non-human forms, travel inter-dimensional realms, meet beneficent spirit beings for counsel or do battle with evil spirits, among other endeavors. Because he or she is always working on behalf of the community, the shaman undertakes this journeying to non-ordinary realms for a specific purpose: to divine where the best hunting is, to discern the cause of an illness, to predict when the rains will stop or start, and so on.
Of course there is so much more that could be said, but the points I have made provide a broad overview of what it means to be a shaman and what a shaman does.
Let’s now turn to the mystic and mysticism. The Cambridge English Dictionary definition of a mystic is: “A person who tries to communicate directly with God or other forces controlling the universe.” Merriam Webster’s says that the mystical means “having a spiritual meaning or reality that is neither apparent to the senses nor obvious to the intelligence. Involving or having the nature of an individual’s direct subjective communion with God or ultimate reality.” A mystic is, generally, speaking “a person who seeks by contemplation and self-surrender to obtain unity with or absorption into the Deity or the absolute, or who believes in the spiritual apprehension of truths that are beyond the intellect.”
Whereas shamans are able to enter non-ordinary reality at will and through specific practices, mystics generally do not use ceremonial or proscribed practices, instead seeking an immersion in and direct apprehension of nature. Generally speaking, a shaman is seeking to leap beyond the human world, whereas a mystic is immersing him- or herself in the natural world and by doing so sometimes is able to transcend to the world-within-the world. Generally, mystics are seeking a solitary and deeply personal experience and pursuit, although they may work with healing and on behalf of others. However, their practice, unlike the shaman’s, is largely invisible. They are “non-doing,” using practices such as focused attention, contemplation, and meditation, by which they may experience perceptions of oneness and of timelessness and infinity, loss of the boundaries of the self and integration with the “other” (be that a tree or God), ecstatic joy, and more. Well-known mystics include Rumi, Meister Echkart, and St. Teresa of Ávila.
I think you can see, from this discussion so far, that Andean practices are much more mystical in nature and form than they are shamanic. The core of the definition of a shaman is someone who can alter his or her state of consciousness at will or through a practice such as drumming or singing. Paqos are not altering their consciousness. They are working in “normal” states of awareness, albeit energetic ones. They don’t preform much ceremony (usually only the despacho), instead practicing ayni, which is energetic reciprocity with the living cosmos through the power of their intention. They are seeking conscious evolution for themselves and others. Can Andeans receive counsel from the “spirit realms”? Yes, but they receive that counsel through contemplation, through listening—through ayni, which is purely intentional and energetic. They don’t have to perform preparatory or elaborate ceremony or travel to non-ordinary realms to do that. And since the natural world is made only of sami, they never have to do battle with evil spirits.
One of the points of confusion, I think, is that the word “shaman” has entered the popular vocabulary and been co-opted by so many different groups with differing belief systems and practices that it has lost the distinction of definition it once had. I remember having a conversation with one scholar of shamanism, Timothy White, who was the founder and editor of Shaman’s Drum magazine. He was a stickler for terminology, and he insisted that modern practices in Western countries must be called “shamanistic” only. That is, they resemble certain aspects of the indigenous practices historically associated with shamanism. I think that is a wise distinction. When a word can mean anything you want it to, it is bled dry of any meaning at all. There is a world of difference between saying you are a shaman and saying that you practice shamanistic techniques. I don’t think I am splitting hairs here. . . .
Juan Nuñez del Prado, my primary teacher in the Andean tradition, says that his masters told him one the several things a fourth-level paqo must know is his or her lineage. There are shamanic and shamanistic practices in the traditions of the North Coast of Peru and the Amazonian regions, but there is little evidence there is in the Andean tradition (which means the tradition of the Andes mountains). Our lineage of paqos were, and still are, much more mystical than shamanic. And using these non-shamanic practices, they are able to perform all of the things a shaman can. Of course, you are free to call yourself and what you practice anything you want, but I hope that this discussion has at the very least provided some information by which you can better understand those of us who do make a distinction.

Link to Joan Parisi Wilcox's blog:
https://qentiwasi.com/2017/08/08/andean-mysticism-or-andean-shamanism/

As I search for balance,
I teeter between arrogance and humility,
between light and dark, between belief and doubt.

As I search the archives of religion
I find both beauty and decay.
I am both touched by the devotion of past thinkers
who felt their thoughts deeply and expansively within their soul,
as I do at times,
and also disturbed by their inability, as well as mine,
to change the world for the better forever.

I seek that place of balance between false hope and despair,
fantasy and harsh reality, narcissism and selflessness.
I ask, "Do I have a right to expect anything from my Creator?" and
"Does my Creator expect anything from me?"

I long to bridge the divide within my mind
that causes me to believe we are separate.

As I weave in and out of the corridors of thoughts and prayers,
hopes and intentions, philosophies and theologies I find I am in awe
and bewildered by them all.

So I lay them all down; the rules, the dogma, the rituals,
the teachings from earlier and present times.
I am here now, in this moment, and I understand that none of them matter.

All that matters is love.
All that matters is the compassion and kindness of love.
There is no dogma, rule, ritual, philosophy or theology
that can dictate love. - Love is. 

It is up to me to accept it within myself,
to grow in the spirit of love and learn from it.

To create within that spirit of love my own rituals, my own beauty and my own form of worship.

I have witnessed that all things fade and then return in a new form.
I have seen how we either destroy those things which we cling too tightly to
or that “they” destroys us.

I am content with the knowledge, that should I die and all
that I believed was wrong and all those who laughed at my foolish way of
life were correct.
It will not matter;
I won't know and I still would not choose to live any differently.

I believe that with love I will satisfy the hunger within me to know.
I will quench the thirst to understand. 
I will quiet the turbulence within my soul.
I have come to terms with the fact that I cannot adhere
to any religion, philosophy or theology with their rules or rituals.

For I see both their beauty and their limitations,
the solace they bring to others
and the harm.
I have found that there is only one rule with love and that is balance.

Daily life and whatever transpires within it, should I so choose
and intend it to be, is a ritual of love.

The Spirit of Love is what I worship.
It is an increase in Love within me that I ask for and strive for.
Love is the giver and the gift.
If I have love, I have everything.
Love will fill that great divide within my mind that
keeps me believing that Love and I
are separate
and in turn that I and others are also separate. 
Once the divide is filled with love, love brings all things into balance.

-Miriam
​ 09/04/2011

There is no one in this world that will ever know how to love you, except for you.  There is no one who will know you better than you do.

Once we accept ourselves. Begin to know and love ourselves as we truly are; removing those masks that portray a person others believe we should be; when we truly love our authentic self then we can do everything with love instead of for love.

It helps to observe the motivations behind why you do what you do. Check in with yourself.
Are you being kind, loving and giving because in some way you are looking to be loved in return?

We all want to be loved and appreciated.  We all want to mean something to someone else, to be that "special someone" in someone's life. To be honored and respected; All of these things you do deserve and yet not many people know how to make that happen.

It is quite simple really, but not always easy. 

The answer is to simply love and accept yourself and be true to who you are. Don't deny your authentic self.  Be who you know you already are, be who you authentically want to become because in some thinly veiled way, you are that person already.

Instead of saying, "Someday I will be this or that way, once I accomplish this or that goal or acquire this or that skill." be the person you see as your future self now. 

Let go of the shame, the blame, and the stories that don't belong to you.
When you do, you find yourself more loving, more compassionate, more accepting and more truthful with yourself and others. 


As you become more truthful with yourself, you drop the burdens placed upon you by yourself and others and allow others to drop the burdens placed upon them.
When you are comfortable with yourself, you become capable of being comfortable with others.
You find you are no longer critical of others' flaws because you know you have your own. You also have accepted that healing and growth are lifelong processes for others and yourself.
​
You no longer worry about criticisms from others or about others not liking or loving you.
If you love yourself with a balanced ego, loving and accepting others becomes natural.
If you love yourself because you understand that you are a creation of and made for love from The Divine Spirit, it becomes easier to see others as a part of that same creation and worthy of love.

The concept of loving others in a healthy way comes not from total selflessness and self-sacrifice, but by being self-aware and Spirit-filled
We need to keep what is fair and good for others and ourselves in balance.
When we do things for others with love instead of for love we nourish and love our self, because we see the other and our self as an extension of the same Creator and creation.

When we do things for love, we rob our self of true nourishment and fall into control and manipulation. Simultaneously the victim and victimizer in an insane mind game of giving and taking junk love.

Instead of needing other peoples' love and approval we can instead enjoy it, Always keeping in mind, that unless those who are bestowing their love and approval, are of the sort that love and accept themselves, their love and acceptance of you may change. However, even if it does, you can remain unaffected by that change because you know, love and remain true to yourself.

Loving yourself is not selfish, narcissistic or egotistical. It is honoring to the One Spirit that loved you into being.
The One Spirit of Love that knew you were worthy of being a part of Itself. If this were not true, you simply would not be.
Love and honor the being that you are. Be gentle, loving and kind and in doing so love, gentleness and kindness will emanate from you.
Just be who you are because that is all that is required of you.
​Then realize how easy you are to love

Miriam Danielle 2011

Have you ever had such a profoundly traumatic experience that you wondered if you would ever be the same again? The Shaman call this type of experience “Soul Loss”. 

It’s a feeling that nags or gnaws at you which indicates or seems to say “Something is missing from my life” or “I don’t feel complete,” If you have felt or feel this way, you may be experiencing or have experienced Soul Loss. 
I know, from my own experience , that a few parts of me were missing after encountering traumas in my own life which I believed, at the time, had change me forever, and not in a good way. I felt a hole within me that I described as “an undertow of sadness” that would never go away. I ached and ached deeply. I did not realize I was in mourning for those parts of me “that went away or jumped out” and caused my soul loss.

An amazing healer performed “A Soul Retrieval “on me, and despite all my skepticism, it worked! After one session, I began to feel complete again. After so many years of suffering, I was healed and that “undertow of sadness” went away. Truly, just like that! 
My healer soon became my teacher. I wanted to share this healing process. I wanted to learn how to help others who hurt on such a profound level to feel that deep sigh of relief, which I felt after being healed from such an intense and debilitating inner pain. 
Soul retrieval brings back and integrates those parts of us that jumped out during traumatic experiences that have occurred in our lives: Car accidents, physical or sexual assaults, molestations and all sorts of traumas that we have experienced in this lifetime or even our past lives. 

Retrieving those pieces of the soul that have jumped out of does require a promise of protection for and responsibility toward the missing pieces of the soul from the person who is asking for healing. Often, within the negotiation between the missing pieces of the soul a promise of protection is required before they agree to return. This is where the shaman negotiates with and promises that part of the soul that has jumped out that if it returns it will be safe and the client will protect it from the type of situation(s) that caused it to leave in the first place. When the shaman returns from the place where it found the missing part or parts of the soul, the promises made in order to retrieve and reintegrate are explained to the client. 

At times it may take a few sessions to retrieve all the parts of the soul that have jumped out depending on how much trauma the client has experienced in this earth walk and past life experiences. Only a certain number of pieces can be reintegrated at one time. Many times the piece or pieces of the soul want to reintegrate and are more than willing to return.

​Those pieces often call to us in our dreams or sudden flashback memories they tap us on the shoulder, so to speak, and ask us to heal. Once these parts of our psyche or soul return we begin to feel complete again. We laugh easily again, we find our curiosity or suddenly our discernment is sharper than it used to be, we join a sports team or take acting or music lessons. Once those parts of us are returned, and the promises of protection or honoring are kept, and they feel safe within us again our lives become fuller and richer. We live more completely than we did before the healing because we actually are more complete.
If you believe you may be experiencing Soul Loss and would like to schedule an appointment for A Soul Retrieval contact me at miriam@wellspringenergyandspirit.com

Within each one of us there are 7 main energy centers that are called Chakras. They spin three to four inches outside the body and link to our spine and the central nervous system. They rotate clockwise and each has their own frequency that corresponds with the colors of the rainbow.

The chakras are a direct pipeline to the human neural network. Many ancient teachings from a multitude of different traditions speak of their existence within the body. The strength of the vibration of each chakra plays a tremendous role in our own emotional, spiritual and physical sense of well-being. When our chakras are open, spinning freely and vibrant, we feel wonderful, alive, loving, happy, confident and connected.

A newborn child’s chakras are absolutely pure in their color and frequency. However, as we grow older and as we experience the traumas and difficulties of day to day life our chakras become sluggish and dull in color. Being around environmental pollutants and toxic people or situations can also affect our chakras.

When our chakras are adversely affected, we often find ourselves feeling spiritually dry, less expressive in our creativity and sexuality, less compassionate, irritable, hopeless, uncertain of our purpose in life, unable to trust our intuition or speak our minds without fear.
The residue of loss and trauma in our everyday life takes its toll on us and clogs or closes our chakras and we find ourselves limping along, feeling less certain and unclear. Often we begin to feel as if our life force or energy is depleted.
The good news is, they don’t have stay that way. The chakras can be cleared and balanced. The residue causing the blockage can be energetically removed and the proper flow and frequency restored. Once this is completed; your sense of well being is renewed and restored. Often times in one session.
​
As a certified Shamanic Healing Practitioner and ordained minister I am trained and have experience with clearing the chakra system. I can help you begin to feel better almost immediately, depending upon how much trauma and loss you have experienced.
Please feel free to email me at wellspringenergyandspirit@gmail.com to discuss your situation and how you are feeling. I would be happy to set up and appointment with you and help you along your healing journey.