The Reluctant Shaman: A Woman's First Encounters with the Unseen Spirits of the Earth (Paperback)

~ Kay Cordell Whitaker (Author) "Struggling against the force of the wind, I bent forward and walked toward the edge of the cliff..." (more)
Key Phrases: wind keeper, mama turtle, nah seh, Mud Man, Seed Man, Serpent Woman (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This is Kay Whitaker's spellbinding account of her "reluctant" apprenticeship to Domano and Chea Hetaka, two charismatic shamans from the Amazon Basin who come to teach her -- a young homemaker -- to be a Kala Keh nah seh, a builder of webs of balance," and to hand down the ancient wisdom of their people. In spite of her doubts and fears, Whitaker finds the balance and harmony she was destined to know.

About the Author

Kay Cordell Whitaker lives in Oregon.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: HarperOne (December 6, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062509438
• ISBN-13: 978-0062509437
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #214,905 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent instructional instrument. But ..., March 9, 2004

By	Massimo Maddaloni "Maddmax1" (Bozeman, MT United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

To appreciate this book you MUST know what the author is talking about. Without such knowledge this book shall be a waste of time and money. I was planning to attend a workshop instructed by one of the author's foremost students and I was told to read this book, which I did. When I read it the first time, I seriously thought that it was one of the worst books I have ever come across and I decided not to attend the workshop. Through some odd twist of fate I changed my mind and actually attended the workshop. This has been my first practical experience in this field and I have no problem to state it has been an extremely rich one. Then I re-read the book and I realized that it's NOT a new agey, drug-inspired, empty sequence of words. On the contrary it's a down-to-business, very practical instructional instrument. It's almost like a cook-book. Again, as long as you know what it's talking about.
The book in itself is not written very well. It doesn't flow smoothly at all. The continuous quotations of the author's teachers make it a hard reading: after a while the "me-Tarzan-you-Jane" style gets on the nerves. In my opinion this book doesn't do the justice of this very fine lineage of shamanic pratictioners, instructors and healers. However, if you have been exposed to their instruction and need a text-book to go over their teachings, this is a must have.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Be Enchanted. It's fun., November 6, 2001

By	"smoak" (Coquille, OR USA) - See all my reviews

I was very lucky. I read The Reluctant Shaman from little yellow pieces of notepaper a bit at a time as I typed it into manuscript form. At my request, Kay paid me for this service [over paid?] by giving me the ceremonies she had been given as described in her books. I was honored to be among her first few 'students' as she began to practice teaching her craft. But the book -- proof reading my work was difficult as I was constantly dragged back into the vicarious reality of the writing.

This experience changed my perspective of the universe as well as my day-to-day application of spiritual principles. And reading both The Reluctant Shaman and Sacred Link [The sequel, self published] again and again has more deeply inspired me on my own individual path.

Kay starts out the story just as it started into her life; at the edge of the cliff over the Pacific Ocean during a wild storm. Hahaha. What could make it more dramatic if it were happening to you?

Bit by bit the journey of what truly happened to her unfolds. The reader is told the struggles Kay has with overcoming her cultural issues about these very foreign ideas, then hears stories as told by Domano or Chea and then hears a description of her experiences in the Sacred Ceremonies. I love Domano's stories. Like all good parables they come to mind when needed giving a helping hand for the more difficult steps in life.

One interviewer said she was unable to understand why Kay was fighting her fears for so long. Remember, these things were happening in the mid 70s and there wasn't much in public knowledge about New Age stuff -- this is so Earthy! And Kay started out a very, VERY, conventional woman with two kids to raise by herself. It would be well to remember, too, that the Hetakas are not an ordinary couple who teach ideas, but are Shaman quite capable of shifting reality to enhance the experience. As I recall, Carlos Castaneda was slow in getting over his terror, too.

What I experienced with the same ceremonies were far different because Cordell was my "guide", not the Hetakas. And if you have good vicarious skills, you won't be just reading a good story. You could, as I did, make a major shift in your comprehension of the World In Balance or Katasee, as it is said. And it's not even my major path but the experiences brought a greater clarity to what is mine to do.

I may have worked with Kay and eventually become a close friend, but that is not the reason I'm writing this. The material stands well on its own, not for its literary value for there are far better writers out there, but for the whole experience, the environment that is created for the reader to become more. For those for whom this work is intended, you will quickly feel the mastery of the message. Be enchanted. It's fun.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Discovery, August 8, 2004

By	S. Goode (Vancouver, Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I came upon Reluctant Shaman in a used bookstore. I was skeptical at first, having read many books on similar topics and been extremely disapointed. I am a discerning consumer, particularly of material in this subject area, but I kept being drawn to the book, so I took a chance. And what a wonderful discovery it turned out to be!!

Kay Whitaker's writing is straight forward, honest and engaging. It is easy to empathize with her hesitation and confusion when she is approached by the Hetakas. And her struggles with the changes and challenges of her spiritual journey felt so completely real, it was like talking with a friend.

As I got further into the book, the material got more and more dynamic and powerful. I began to feel that I was actually being influenced by the same powers that were working on and through Kay. Her writing became an amazing tool for enlightenment and awakening.

I also was awed by the resonance I felt with my own experiences of focussed, intensive training over the last 15 years.

Reluctant Shaman is a gift for which I'm deeply grateful. I intend to recommend it to all my students!