Here I interview Jez Hughes who is known as a Shamanic Practitioner. His journey with Shamanism started many years ago as a young man of 14 where he suffered from several traumatic experiences.
Jez will be presenting a workshop at the Mind Body and Spirit Festival on 11th November 2011 about The Shamanic Path – A Guided Journey. Here I interview Jez about his walk and work with Shamanism and get an insight into the workshop he will be delivering at the MBS in under two weeks time. With the massive shift in consciousness continuing to take momentum, 11.11.11 signifies another important milestone and I will be asking Jez his take about this auspicious moment.
Esther: Jez. Thank you for your time. You call yourself a Shamanic Practitioner. The journey into and with Shamanism is one taken initially with the self and through the self, eventually going beyond the self, if that is a correct interpretation I have presented. This is why I too feel drawn to Shamanism because it is about journeying with the self first before you can reach out to work with or heal anyone else? I feel this is pretty profound because it trains you towards a greater/heightened sense of awareness. Therefore how did your journey begin along this path and how has it transformed your life around?
Jez: HI Esther. As with all paths we need to work with what we have initially, and that is our own experiences and perspective of life, our own souls. And in order to assist others in healing on a deep soul level, we must know those depths within ourselves; otherwise it would be inauthentic and probably ineffective.
My journey began at the age of about 14 when I had a spontaneous experience that initially occurred as a kind of fit, my eyes were rolling around the back of my head, I couldn’t breathe and felt like I was dying. The doctor was called but by this time I had calmed and found myself in a completely altered space, experiencing pure ecstasy at the beauty and inter connectedness of life. However, I had no framework to understand this experience and it was both exhilarating and terrifying. For a long time afterwards when it occurred again I got stuck in the in between space, afraid to be that out of control as I wasn’t in any way initiating the experience. This led to a lot of extreme anxiety, mental disturbances, panic attacks and non-epileptic fits. I now understand I was far too open to the invisible world of spirit, and it was overwhelming my whole being. I was experiencing what I have since understood as a ‘Shamanic Illness’. I travelled a lot to find healing for myself, explored many traditions, particularly Eastern, then in Australia, got fascinated with the Aboriginal culture which led me to train in shamanism. I healed myself, then the next clear step was to use the help I had experienced from the spirits and shamanism to help others. I began practising healing full time about six years ago. I now assist and train others on this path alongside the healing work.
Shamanism has transformed my life by providing both a context and a practical application for me to understand and relate to the world: All my deepest yearnings and longing, to taste something sweeter than the secular existence that I had grown up in, to truly honour and become a part of nature, rather than feeling like some separate entity that’s been placed here in this alien world, as we are often taught in our culture. To come home.
It has enabled me to heal myself, travel to the depths of my soul and into the heart of life. It has also helped me to laugh at myself and life a little bit more, become more playful and accepting of the nature and limits of life, paradoxically while experiencing the limitlessness and mystery of existence.
Esther: From your perspective, or even in a nutshell what is Shamanism?
Jez: An earth based spirituality, focused on healing.
Jez: An earth based spirituality, focused on healing.
Esther: Jez, why is it so important for humanity to be able to go on a journey with the self, to face their “demons” so to speak, to walk a path which resonates with their soul?
Jez: There appears to be a process with most healing/ spiritual paths whereby we are initially opened up to the magnificent fullness of life; we become aware that there is something beyond that we have up to now perceived as ‘reality’. This often comes as an ecstatic feeling of ‘oneness’ with all of life, which in itself can be a response either to great feelings of happiness in one’s life, or equally, as a response to some kind of trauma. Both have the effect of opening us up. However high this experience takes us, the response of our personalities once the experience has worn off, can be one of disorientation. If this is not fully acknowledged or dealt with then it can lead us to crave the ecstatic feelings of oneness and seek to recreate it through more and more extreme measures. We can then get into addictions of a spiritual nature and get lost within illusions, or as psychologists have called it, take the ‘spiritual bypass’, whereby we do not face up to our inner demons but rather seek the light.
Jez: There appears to be a process with most healing/ spiritual paths whereby we are initially opened up to the magnificent fullness of life; we become aware that there is something beyond that we have up to now perceived as ‘reality’. This often comes as an ecstatic feeling of ‘oneness’ with all of life, which in itself can be a response either to great feelings of happiness in one’s life, or equally, as a response to some kind of trauma. Both have the effect of opening us up. However high this experience takes us, the response of our personalities once the experience has worn off, can be one of disorientation. If this is not fully acknowledged or dealt with then it can lead us to crave the ecstatic feelings of oneness and seek to recreate it through more and more extreme measures. We can then get into addictions of a spiritual nature and get lost within illusions, or as psychologists have called it, take the ‘spiritual bypass’, whereby we do not face up to our inner demons but rather seek the light.
Once the heart is opened to spiritual ecstasy, it is also opened to all the pain and trauma, both in our own souls and the larger collective. Life involves pain and longing, this is the nature of temporal life. It would have not the same meaning without the limitations imposed upon it; by death, by loss, by hunger and yearning, by beauty and redemption. As I understand it, we are here to learn about these things. And this often means facing up to the darker edges of life, and the ‘demons’ that are created by our avoidance of these things.
My personal theory is that human beings got tired around 2- 3000 years ago, and the emphasis on the major religions and spiritual paths became about transcendence of earthly living; either getting off the karmic wheel or dreaming of some perfect existence in heaven somewhere. This is in my limited understanding of these things.
Shamanism involves going into things, diving into the depths. It is also a highly practical path. Any going into spiritual; realities is usually done for a reason, either to bring back healing, or petition the spirits for enhanced abilities to feed or protect a community. Or, more importantly to feed the spirits through ceremony, ritual and offerings, to keep the spiritual reality alive that it may then keep us and the whole of creation alive. It is very much about living here, on the earth, taking an active part in the continuation of life here and celebrating the wild, untamed, raw beauty of all of existence: light, dark, heavenly and earthly, and helping create a balance within these things.
Esther: In terms of the greater shift and momentum towards a new wave of consciousness in 2012 and a momentum which I feel has been taking place for a while, your workshop is being presented on 11.11.11 which must be quite significant, what does this date mean for you in terms of not only the delivery of your workshop but in terms of its significance towards the bigger global transformational process that is happening?
Jez:
Jez:
Traditionally a series of elevens in our culture is associated with the longing for peace, as with Armistice Day and the ending of World War 1. However, the terms signed on that day, through their emphasis on payback and revenge, sowed the seeds for further destruction with the rise of Nazism and the Second World War. This being the Scorpionic sting in the tail; associated with this time of the year. The Astrological chart for 11 minute past 11 on 11/11/11 in London has Pluto (the ruler of Scorpio) closely conjunct the ascendant, square Uranus on the IC. Both Uranus and Pluto and what they represent are creating the signature of the times we live in, building up to 2012. This being: deep transformation, rebellion and revolution (on a personal and political level), the nature of power (again personal and political), birth and death and letting go and the desire for the betterment of the world we live in.
This suggests that in order to make the most of the transformational energies, which are indeed coming in waves at the moment, we have to be willing to face up to some of the traumas from the past. These may be personal or ancestral, or a mixture of the two. The poisons are coming to the surface, if you like. We can either choose to push them back down again, or we have the opportunity to heal. Healing always first involves a choice.
But we have to be bold, sometimes the healing path is the initially more difficult choice, and because of this we have to be playful in equal measure. The workshop will be focused on these themes, healing and playfulness.
Esther: What does being at the Mind, Body and Spirit Festival mean to you?
Jez: It means an opportunity to share my passion for shamanism on a wider stage.
Jez: It means an opportunity to share my passion for shamanism on a wider stage.
Esther: You will be running a workshop at the Mind, Body and Spirit Festival called “The Shamanic Path – A Guided Journey” – can you share a little about what people can expect in this workshop?
Jez: The unexpected! We will be looking at the above themes I’ve talked about, healing ancestral wounds and looking to gain greater understanding of the role we need to be playing at the moment in order to serve, to the greatest of our abilities, ourselves, our families, our communities and the spirit of life itself. This will be done in a practical and experiential way and as always with this work, in ceremony.
Jez: The unexpected! We will be looking at the above themes I’ve talked about, healing ancestral wounds and looking to gain greater understanding of the role we need to be playing at the moment in order to serve, to the greatest of our abilities, ourselves, our families, our communities and the spirit of life itself. This will be done in a practical and experiential way and as always with this work, in ceremony.
Esther: You have your own company called Second Sight Healing, how did you come up with that name and also what are some of the courses and workshops you offer there?
Jez: Second Sight Healing came a long time ago, I’m not sure if I remember the details, I enjoyed the symbolism of two snake-like S’s, crawling up the ladder of life in H. Symbols have their power, and this symbol has a long history in healing. When I am healing, I spend the entire time blindfold, so in affect I’m employing a greater vision, a second sight if you like.
The workshops and courses involve initiating people onto the Shamanic path. We do this through powerful ceremonies within nature. We work around the Medicine wheel and the elements (Fire, earth, water and Air) as blueprint for existence. There are Fire ceremonies, Burial ceremonies, Sacred Sauna ceremonies and Vision Quests. We learn the power of prayer, ritual, ceremony, joining in community and honouring nature as potent methods for affecting change and healing on ourselves and the earth. We also laugh a lot and have a lot of fun. All the techniques in order to become shamanic healers and practitioners are also taught.
Esther: Can you leave us with a famous quote or saying which really coins to you what life is really all about and do you have any nuggets of gold and wisdom that you would like to share?
Jez: There’s a line in a Bob Dylan song that says sometimes in life you’ve just got to ‘keep on keeping on’ which I love. Also Leonard Cohen: ‘Ring the bells that still can ring, Forget your perfect offering, There is a crack in everything, That’s how the light gets in.’
Jez: There’s a line in a Bob Dylan song that says sometimes in life you’ve just got to ‘keep on keeping on’ which I love. Also Leonard Cohen: ‘Ring the bells that still can ring, Forget your perfect offering, There is a crack in everything, That’s how the light gets in.’
Thank you very much for taking the time to be interviewed. Wishing you well with your workshops on 11.11.11.
Jez’s workshop will be 5.30pm-8.00pm and will cost £14
Purchase tickets early via the MBS website: http://www.mindbodyspirit.co.uk/winter/date.php?date=11
Website: http://www.secondsighthealing.co.uk
