Jose ATID LEIM STEVENS 83aloud as he pulled away. Crazy old coot, he thought to
himself, but I wonder. That old guy always seems to know
something. Maybe it's that Indian in him. Naw, he's just
getting old and nutty.
Two weeks later Old Ted sat by his toasty wood stove
and glanced at the snow drifts outside the window of his
farmhouse. "Well, it wasn't exactly a little bird that told
me," he reflected. "Brother Breeze told me direct."For shamans, the spirit of fire has a special significance
because fire and heat are associated with ecstatic journeys.
Shamans the world over use intense heat to purify them-
selves prior to ceremonies and rituals. These heat purifica-
tions were in fact the early origins of the modern Swedish
sauna and the TUrkish steambath. The Native American
practice of the sweatlodge is a good example of heat purifica-
tion and healing that continues to this day.
When used ceremonially, smoke and heat from the fire
carry the shaman up to the sky realms and to the land of
spirit. This is the basic significance behind the Native Ameri-
can use of the pipe. When the pipe is lit and shared, all
present are united through the world of spirit.
Shamans are considered to be masters of fire, and this is
sometimes displayed by their immunity to its ability to burn
them. Firewalking has its origins in this shamanic display of
mastery over the physical properties of fire. In order to do
this, shamans must first have a relationship with fire. They
must know it so thoroughly that they actually merge with it
or become its spirit. When there is no difference between
themselves and the spirit of fire, it cannot burn them. Light-
ning, hot springs, smoke, and fire in all its forms are spirit
powers that shamans seek to know and learn about so that
they can become more powerful.
This does not mean that you should go out and attempt to
walk on fire or play with it in a way that can cause you
danger or harm. These are strictly advanced practices that
require guidance by a master, and they are not necessary for
you to become a more successful person.
Water, like wind, has a spirit self that takes many forms.
Rain, snow, hail, ponds, streams, rivers, lakes, oceans, falls,
torrents, and so on are each wise in ways that people can
benefit from. Each form of water can be contacted and spo-
ken with to discover what it knows that can be helpful to
people.
The sun, the moon, the planets, and the stars are all im-
portant sources of spirit information. The shaman knows that