Didgeridoo for the Shamanic Journey

The didgeridoo is one of the world's oldest musical instruments, originating in Australia tens of thousands of years ago. According to an Aboriginal Dreamtime legend, the god of creation Baiame created man and woman, giving them the didgeridoo to sound all other life into form. It is a wooden wind instrument that produces a resonant trance inducing drone called "the voice of the earth" to support the listener in making shamanic journeys. The shamanic journey is a time-honored method of inner consultation. It is a way of communicating with your inner self and retrieving information. Your inner self is in constant communication with all aspects of your environment, seen and unseen. You need only journey within to find answers to your questions. To support your journey you can choose from three different tracks:

1. Didgeridoo with Hand Clapping
2. Didgeridoo with Rattle
3. Didgeridoo with Drum

The hand clapping, rattle, and drum complement the rhythmic droning, thereby boosting the auditory driving and sonic effect. Each journey ends with a callback. Headphones Recommended.

Beginning the Spirit Journey

Begin your journey by sitting in a dimly lit space. Close your eyes and gently exhale any tension you might feel. Reflect for a moment on the purpose of your journey. It is important to focus on the issue that you want to know more about. Focusing on an issue develops a receptive state of mind and helps you clarify what it is you are truly seeking.

Once you have defined a specific question, begin listening to the CD. Focus your attention on the sound of the didgeridoo, then close your eyes and allow yourself to be carried away by the rhythmic drone. Once you enter a trance state, you may experience a change in body temperature, feel energy flowing through your body, or find yourself twitching or rocking. It is not uncommon to hear sounds or voices. You may see colorful patterns, symbolic images, or dreamlike visions.

Prevalent among the descriptions given of shamanic journeys is that of a tunnel to which the journeyer is transported. The tunnel sometimes appears ribbed and may bend or spiral around. According to shamanic cosmology, this tunnel-like imagery is associated with the central axis that unites the three inner planes of consciousness: the Upper, Middle, and Lower Worlds. It is commonly referred to as the World Tree and exists within each of us. The sound waves of the didgeridoo, like the drum, open the tunnel and convey the journeyer up or down the passageway to an exit that opens out upon the archetypal worlds of the collective unconscious. In these worlds, the journeyer experiences sensations and communications that go beyond the usual senses. Conversing with plants, animals, and the guiding forces of nature becomes possible. The journeyer accesses knowledge, power, and healing. Upon finishing the explorations, he or she returns via the tunnel to ordinary reality.

When you hear the sound of the callback, begin your return journey. Try to retrace the same route back; otherwise you might have trouble remembering the details of your journey. In some cases, your journey experiences will be clear and easy to understand. At other times, your journey may be dreamlike and full of symbolism. Interpret such journeys as you would any dream. Look for possible associations related to each symbol or image. The key is to observe whatever happens without trying to analyze the experience. Like developing any skill, journeying takes practice. Nothing may happen on your first journeys. You may only experience darkness. When this happens, simply try again at a different time.

Special thanks to the following artists for their contributions to this CD:

British record producer, engineer and composer Sandy Burnett for his creative-commons sample pack: "Sandyrb Didgeridoo 01" at Freesound.

Christian A Diez for the public domain cover art "Gecko Watching a Web," an acrylic painting on canvas at Wikimedia Commons.

This product is manufactured on demand using CD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.