Stonetalkers Tarot Herbs and Crafts

Back to previous page  Stonetalking with the Stonetalker "What is the difference between a psychic and a shaman?" If only it were that easy to put into words! Many people assume that the word shaman is a Native American term, but actually the word shaman is believed to be North Asian in origin, although its roots are not certain. A Native American shaman is called a 'Medicine Person', and they have nothing to do with hospitals and pharmaceuticals! In this context, the word medicine means energy, or spirit. I think I was simply born to be different. My early years were checkered with illnesses and challenges, and from an very young age -- although I did not know it at the time -- I've traveled the astral and communicated with Spirit Guardians and Totem Animals. Of course, to my pre-school mind, these were just my 'invisible friends' and I thought that everyone had them. It wasn't until I started school, bullied by the more able bodied children and disciplined by the teachers for being disruptive, that I realized not everyone was experiencing the same thing that I was. By the time I was a teenager I'd learned not to tell everything I knew. I'd been marched into the principal's office on more than one occasion for disagreeing with a teacher (yes, Linda 'did' fall off the trampoline, just as I'd argued she would!) and I'd been reprimanded in church because I made the error of telling the choir master that the aura that I saw around him looked a bit pale and was he feeling alright? In the 1970's I made a trip that I believe was pivotal in my spiritual development. I was in my mid-teens, and with five friends and two chaperons we drove to Alaska and back on a camping trip! On that trip I experienced Nature in all her glory, and began to learn her secrets. The Grandfathers of the great mountains and valleys spoke to me, I intuitively heard them call me by what was to become my name, and they instructed me where to go from there. I returned home knowing that, for the rest of my life, things were never going to be the same. I think my largest wake-up call was when I started seeing people as animals. This might sound crazy at first, but think of it; picture seeing Winston Churchill as a bull, Mahatma Gandhi as a raven, or Ronald Reagan as a horse. I later learned this is called 'totem sight'. A totem is a representational item; it is usually an animal but can also be a plant, stone, or color. I learned from my Medicine Elders who later taught me in the ways of the shaman that we all have totems and spirit guides. Some totems can be determined by the date of birth, and others are determined by the energies that are around us. I learned that I can use the totem sight to see the energies around people, and use their totems to advise them regarding their current situations. A shamanic reading is different than a psychic reading, because I don't look into the future to tell you what is going to happen. We all create our own future; it is not carved in stone. What I do is to look at your current situations, see what totem animals and spirit guides are walking with you, and intervene to bring their energies into a place of strength. There is duality in all things; with every blessing there is a challenge, with every lesson their is accomplishment. Is it easy being a shaman, with somewhat archaic ideas and tenets, in today's modern world? No. It is never easy, but it is always worth it. To be able to hold a rock and know what it is saying, to be able to hear the stars as they dance across the sky, to be able to see the colors of music; I know I am blessed to experience these things. The discipline is stringent, the lifestyle can be somewhat isolated, but I wouldn't trade it for any other path on Earth -- or in any other realm for that matter! Code of Ethics Before you book a reading with me, please read my code of ethics. This is the code to which I adhere as part of my certification with the Tarot Certification Board of America as a professional reader, and in my capacity as a Department Dean and an instructor of metaphysics with the Grey School of Wizardry. I do not predict the future. I will not tell you what to do, or how to live your life. I am not a fortune teller. We all have the gift of choice, and it is seriously against my beliefs and traditions to take on that responsibility. What I will do is to help you to understand what is influencing you at the moment, where your strengths and weaknesses lie, so that you might create the future in which you wish to live by the choices that you make in the here and now. All of my readings are done personally for you. Each reading is as unique as you are. Depending on the reading, they can take several days for me to complete, and can be several pages long. I do what I need to do, when I need to do it. Every case is different. Part of shamanic work is to celebrate the uniqueness of who you are by reveling in the interconnectedness of all things. It can take time. I endeavor to get the readings to you within 72 hours of payment, but sometimes life gets in the way. Thanks for understanding. I take my work very seriously. It is not a 'quick fix'. It is not a substitute for legal or medical advice. And federal law says I have to tell you that it is for entertainment purposes only. Feel free to write to me with any questions you might have. Thank you for your interest in my work. Peace be with your spirit; I wish you the very best of days. Code of Ethics 1. I will never say anything or behave in any way as to frighten a client. Even news that some might perceive to be negative can be delivered in a positive and uplifting way. 2. I will never try to persuade the client to hear what they do not wish to hear. Neither will I allow a client to twist my words into something that I have not said. We are all at different levels of awareness, but none of us is greater or lesser than the other. 3. I will never make decisions for the client. I will always offer them the most complete information to best of my ability, but it must be their decision. I cannot and will not live their lives for them. I reserve the right to lovingly turn away clients who start to become to dependent on me. 4. I am not a doctor, nor a lawyer, nor a physician, and I will never assume to be one in my readings. 5. I will give the client the fullest of my attention at all times during the course of the reading, and I will do so with humility and grace; without assuming any airs or arrogance, and never portraying myself to be something I am not. 6. There are some questions – such as, "When am I going to die," that I cannot answer and will not try so to do. I am not a fortune-teller; the readings must be sensible, two-way conversations. My goal in a Tarot consultation is to give as much information as possible, so that the client can make the best decision based on the information which I have shared. 7. I stand behind my work 100%. If the client and I do not form a bond, I will gladly refer the client to another reader, and where applicable give a full refund of the payment the client made to me. 8. I will never entice the client to purchase a talisman or amulet or any other goods or services from myself. I will never tell the client that they will have 'bad energy' if they do not return for a further reading, nor will I keep raising my prices for repeat clients. I will never be greedy, and I will never turn someone who is genuinely in need. 9. I will make nothing about the reading public in any way, nor will I ever ridicule a client or their situations. 10. Above all, I avow as a shaman and a counselor to use my skills as a reader to help clients become authentically empowered. Favorite Links A Voice from the Earth Grey School of Wizardry

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