From the steppes of the Himalaya to the jungles of Guatemala, shamanism is a

ritual belief system that has been practiced for over 27,000 years. From cave

paintings in France to aboriginal art in Australia, shamans have recorded what

they experience during altered states of consciousness and journeys into non-

ordinary realms of reality. These remarkable drawings show flight, communication

with anthropomorphic spirit guides, and arcane knowledge of the universe. By

understanding how shamanic beliefs correspond to the four elements, we can

gain a unique understanding of this enigmatic spiritual tradition.

Shamanism is the set of rituals and beliefs that are used by indigenous societies to

effectuate change in our world. Shamanism is characterized by its practitioners

entering Altered States of Consciousness (ASCs) to journey into Non-Ordinary

Realms (NORs) of Reality. At the molecular level, the quantum level, a shaman will

change their energy field to interact with the energy field of living and non-living


Shamans can be both female and male, and are found in many different cultures

from around the world. Vajrayana Buddhist monks in Bhutan and Tibet, as well

as Maya A’j r’ijs from Central America and Cherokee Spiritwalkers from North

America understand the connection between shamanic rites and the Four Elements  of Fire, Earth, Water, and Air. The shamanic journey first begins with the Fire


Before a shaman is accepted by her or his community, and the healer is imbued with powers from

the realm of spirit, the shaman must first undergo a ritualized initiation process. The first step of the

initiation process is the destruction of the self or the ego. A person must be reborn to become a

shaman and harness a new set of abilities, which include astral travel, soul retrieval, divination,

healing, and spirit communication. But to be born again, a person must first die. The Fire Element

serves this end, because Fire is symbolic of ritual purification and death. By undergoing a great

and sudden traumatic event, which destroys the ego and former aspects of the self, the shamanic 

initiate is letting of old belief systems and old ways of thinking. Fire does this by burning away

antiquated aspects of the self and limiting beliefs.

Through fire, an initiate will discard their former identity, and may even die. A catastrophic illness is

one way that communities find new shamans. Many shamans have undergone bouts with near-fatal

diseases, and many have had Near Death Experiences (NDEs). The NDEs provide the shaman a

gateway. By hovering between the realms of life and death, flesh and spirit, the shaman learns to

communicate with spirit guides. The shaman is then offered a choice by the spirit guides—to accept

the new destiny as a shamanic healer and practitioner or become a permanent resident of the spirit

world. Thankfully for us, many initiates choose to continue along the shamanic path.

After the tribulation of the Fire element, fire, and the discard of the former egocentric self, a shaman

will then begin journeying to the underworld. The underworld, or cave, is representative of the Earth

element and symbolizes the link to our collective past, our connection to the planet, and our

inescapable bond with every life form. The Earth element nurtures, it protects. The Earth element is

the womb from which all life comes. From plants, to plankton, to eagles, to grasshoppers, all life

began in the Earth and in caves, where life was protected from the sun’s radiation and life forms

began to evolve and emerge.

A shaman’s journey to understand the Earth element is the voyage to comprehend the connection

with animal guides, plant guides, and humanity’s collective unconscious. It is these symbols of the

collective subconscious, hard-wired into DNA and cellular memory, that provide the shaman with

the vocabulary of Jungian archetypes. Cross-culturally, humans communicate with a common set of

symbols passed down from our genetic past. These symbols, or archetypes, include the maiden,

the wizard, the Nature spirit (such as the Pan or Trickster), the hero and heroine, the crone, the baby,

and the tree.

The Earth element provides this shamanic language for use in dreams, metaphysics, and healing.

The Earth element is the connection to more than one million years of evolution, the collective

subconscious, archetypes, and the realm of nature spirits. After a shaman connects to the wisdom

of the Earth element and the collective past, the shaman must develop an understanding of the Water


Water is the universal fuel of existence; life cannot function without water. To a shaman, the Water

element symbolizes growth by feeding all life forms on the planet. The basis of the shamanic journey isempathic healing. By showing tears of compassion for all living beings, a shaman expands planetary

health. All living beings want to be nurtured and nourished. From Redwood trees, to algae, to killer

whales, to frogs, all living things desire compassion. By promoting all forms of life and having

compassion for all living creatures, a shaman heals the planet. Tears of compassion and love provide

growth to the tree of humanity. And as more rings and generations are added, the human tree becomes


The final element of the shamanic journey is Air. The Air provides the shaman with a connection to

Upper Realms, deities, and gods. By using their psychic abilities, a shaman can transcend the limits

of her or his body to communicate directly with the gods and bring forth messages for humanity.

Shamans describe journeys to the Upper Realm as a Revelation of supernatural knowledge and insight.

The Upper Realms are places of air, flight, and greater perspective. The earliest cave paintings of thirty

thousand years ago

in France and Spain show shamans flying amongst the stars. The Air element represents a place to

gain greater understanding and communicate with the creator deities.

The greatest shamans of the last two thousand years ascended into the Air element after their teaching

missions were complete. Jesus, Mohammed, and Padmashambhava all descended into the clouds

once they finished their earthly journey. For the shaman, the Air element is the connection to land of

Spirit and the Upper Realms from which gods and deities communicate their most important messages

for humanity.

It is into the Air element, that the most powerful shamans ascend once their missions are complete.

The journey of the shaman is the symbolic journey of creation, the metaphor for the evolution of the

human machine. The journey first begins with the destruction of the self and ego through the ritual i

nitiation of the Fire Element. The next step on the shaman’s journey is the voyage to understand the

Earth element. By developing a connection with all living things, a shaman can understand that all life

on Earth is linked together. By exposure to the symbols of the collective past, and the Jungian

archetypes of the collective subconscious, a shaman develops and perfects her or his psychic abilities

with the help of the Earth.

The shaman then journeys to the land of the Water element to learn compassion. By shedding tears of

love and compassion for all living beings, the shaman begins to use her healing abilities to heal the

planet. The final journey of the shaman is the voyage the land of the Air Element. Amongst the clouds,

skies, and further into the cosmos, a shaman journeys to develop a relationship with deities. After the

final realization and a complete mastery of all the elements in the universe – Fire, Earth, Water, and

Air, a shaman will journey into the cosmos to permanently reside in the Upper Realms and live amongst

the gods. 


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