Jose AIID LENA STEVENS 95present events from the past. This is a technique from an-
cient times, when no written language existed nor were there
libraries and databanks to record the wisdom and knowledge
that people gained through their experiences. Had shamans
not developed a method to retrieve this knowledge and bring
it forward, each generation would be doomed to rediscover
the same information and no progress would be made. Sha-
mans made it possible for people to know vital survival in-
formation in all parts of the globe at any time.
Queta watched the sleet as It slanted down onto the
thatched roofs of the village, ice collecting between the
fronds and bindings of each dwelling. Never had he re-
membered the weather to be so cold in this usually tropi-
cal climate. Not even the most aged elder could
remember when the people needed to wear more than a
simple shawl in the balmy time they called the Season of
the Late Sun. The people were cold and fearful that the
normally plentiful game would become scarce.
Queta knew it was time for Big Flying: the time to talk
to the ancestors and find out whether they could help with
their ancient knowledge. He had spent the usual seven
days preparing for the journey through fasting and chant-
ing. Now he called for his apprentice Anka to bring the
drum and the great clear crystal. He raised the crystal to
his forehead with the point raised. With Anka drumming,
he began to enter the dream. "Oh, Great Crystal," he
chanted, lake me to the land of our ancestors. Assist us
now that we are so cold. Please help us." For some time,
Queta sat pleading for help, until quite suddenly he felt so
heavy that he could no longer hold himself up. He col-
lapsed onto the matting and lay very still. His spirit body
was flying, riding the crystal across brilliant landscapes of
every hue. With a jolt he found himself in a bark shelter. A
fire was burning and the room felt safe and cozy. An old
woman sat before him. Looking at him steadily, she
began to speak. "So, you are cold. Here, warm yourself."
She handed him a mug of something sweet and hot.
"Long before your land became sunny and balmy, long
before the jungles grew up tall, this land was cold and
bitter. We, your ancestors lived here in contentment be-
cause we knew the ways of the cold winds and Grand-
father Snow. Come, I will show you how we live." Queta
remained with the old woman for six months, learning her
people's ways. He learned to make warm clothing from
the furs of the animals and how to build sturdy shelters