Chosen by the Spirits: Following Your Shamanic Calling [Paperback]

Sarangerel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2001

• Mongolian shamaness Sarangerel provides a hands-on guide for serious students of the shamanic path.

• Includes complete directions for traditional Siberian rituals, meditations, and divination techniques never before published.

• Shows how to recognize and acknowledge a call from the spirits.

• Offers traditional wisdom for nurturing a working relationship with personal spirit helpers to promote healing and balance in a community.

The shaman's purpose is to heal and restore balance to his or her community by developing a working relationship with the spirit world. Mongolian shamanic tradition maintains that all true shamans are called by the spirits--but those who are not from shamanic cultures may have difficulty recognizing the call or nurturing the essential shamanic relationship with their helper spirits.

Buryat shamaness Sarangerel has written Chosen by the Spirits as a guide for both the beginning shaman and the advanced practitioner. Although raised in the United States, she was drawn to the shamanic tradition, and in 1991 returned to her ancestral homeland in the Tunken region of southern Siberia to study with traditional Buryat shamans. Her first book, Riding Windhorses, provided an introduction to the shamanic world of Siberia. Chosen by the Spirits delves more deeply into the personal relationship between the shamanic student and his or her "spirit family." Sarangerel recounts her own journey into shamanic practice and provides the serious student with practical advice and hands-on techniques for recognizing and acknowledging a shamanic calling, welcoming and embodying the spirits, journeying to the spirit world, and healing both people and places.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sarangerel was trained in the Mongolian and Buryat shamanic traditions by native teachers who are now free to practice again following the collapse of the Soviet Union. She was the foreign outreach representative of the Golomt Center for Shamanist Studies and the Mongolian Shamans' Association.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Destiny Books (June 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0892818611
• ISBN-13: 978-0892818617
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #247,887 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice introduction to Shamanism, April 15, 2004

By 

Todd Hawley (San Francisco CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Chosen by the Spirits: Following Your Shamanic Calling (Paperback)

Using the examples of Mongolian and Siberian shamanism, this book takes a gentle approach in introducing the reader to this topic, one that is attracting more and more interest these days. I liked how in the introduction the author states that if you are reading this book the "spirits" are indeed calling you to become a shaman. And although one book does not make you into a shaman, this book helps you along this path. The introductory chapter gives a good general description of what shamanism is. The next chapter talks about various shamanic spirits, be them power animals, spirit lovers and guides and ways to contact them. There are also chapters describing "the shamanic journey" and what to be aware of and what to be careful of, working with shamanic spirits, and also ways of healing not only other people but the earth as well.

There are also exercises in the book that help you to "welcome the spirits," and visualizing "the world center." The book's last chapter discusses shamanic tools you can use in ritual and the book's appendixes discuss setting up a ritual space, the shamanic pantheon (amazing how many shamanic deities and spirits there are!), and even a glossary of terms. I have to admit at times the terms threw me a little, so having the glossary to refer to was quite helpful for me.

I felt this book was an informative but still gentle introduction on this topic and one that gives an excellent idea of the shaman's life and world.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Response to false accusations, December 7, 2009

By 

Daniel Foor (SF Bay Area, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Chosen by the Spirits: Following Your Shamanic Calling (Paperback)

It's suprising to see folks claiming that Sarangerel was practicing black magic or was not actually Mongolian.

She was a friend and someone I had the blessing to know before her passing. Here is what I learned from her directly: Her mother's people are of Mongolian ancestry and her father's people are of European ancestry. She was not raised with the traditions but was guided to reconnect with her mom's ancestral people by early Native American teachers. She spent over a decade living mostly in Buryatia and I know that she spoke fluent Mongolian because I heard her speak it often enough with her Mongolian husband or with the Mongolians that showed up here in the Bay Area or in Ohio when she offered ceremony. I also met after her death briefly with Batbayar Gonchigdorj and several other Mongolian shamans who knew and thought highly of Sarangerel. That and she was a part of Golomt Center which I believe is still operational. One of her teachers was Brambadorj who from what I understand is a very well-respected preserver of Mongolian traditions. So...the notion that Sarangerel didn't have enough Mongolian 'cred' is just not an informed position.

And about her practicing black magic, that's hardly the case. I hosted her to offer healing sessions in my home and witnessed the positive transformations that came from that. Writing about and educating folks about real risks is *totally* different from practicing black magic. I knew Sarangerel to be a loving, kind, and humble shaman.

About the book itself, it's a gem. For practitioners it's full of great perspective and practices and for those with more of an intellectual interest, it's a great window into how this particular practitioner of traditional ways approaches things. And for those interested in the history/culture of the region, it's also useful. Sarangerel was also a scholar and was interested in pursuing a PhD in Central Asian folklore/traditions before she passed.

Daniel Foor

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow, such detail!!!, September 21, 2004

By 

R. Pierre "spiritual seeker!!" (usa) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Chosen by the Spirits: Following Your Shamanic Calling (Paperback)

There are certain books, that I "Must" write a review on,and this is one of them. I found this book by accident. I took a chance buying it, and I think this was one of the best decisions that I've ever made!!

Her details, her thoughts; very carefully written out. As soon as I started reading this book, I fell in love. I fell in love with it's honesty.

She talks about, being called by the spirits, to trances, to dreams, meditating, and so fourth. And that's making it brief.
There's so much to learn from this book. Very good for beginners, as well as the advanced thinking. Enjoy!!!