Shaman "Ethics"

[Meisopomenos]

I know our goals as Shamanic practitioners is to heal, cure, and a term that I use, "call" (which means to bring things to pass by prophecy or to call upon a force, spirit, ally, etc. to aid during life).

However, is a Shaman ever to curse? Or is he/she supposed to heal themselves and then the person that is causing the problem?

This is just something I have been wondering for a while.

I've also done Hoodoo in the past, which contains great knowledge, I think, for the Shamanic practitioner. However, with the whole ethics issue of being a healer, I was just wondering a bit, how should a Shamanic practitioner view curses and hexes.

[Forest Child]

For me, it is an issue of conscience. Ask your guides, what do they say?

[Shanti]

Not all Shamanistic work was or is to heal.
You have Shamans, and in the past too, in all different flavors.
Ethics is for the individual to decide.

Remember balance....your not going to have good in the world without bad too.

Plus bad and good are opinions shaped by a society.

Bad isnt bad for the one that feels thats their way.
Good is bad for them.

[Meisopomenos]

Wise advice from both of you.

Just most of the material I have read and coming from a background of Wicca, I just wanted to see how the flavor rolls around the Shamanic practitioners in regards to ethics.

[MonSno_LeeDra]

I think you maybe falling into the trap that a shaman was one thing only. In many of the early groups there were different types of Shamans or the equilivant of.

For instance, in some of the plains tribes there was a shamanic figure that was aligned with battle and warriors. There was a figure that dealt with the hunt and gathering of food. There was the figure that was a healer and the figure that foresaw the future. Sometimes they might be one in the same, other times they were each individuals.

As such the person associated with food would try to make thier tribe bountiful while cursing or hexing the enemy. A warrior shaman tried to make their warriors fearless and procted by great magic while underming or defeating a counter shaman from another tribe.

Things were never cut and dried as some would like to make them. A shaman may support an action today to better his/her group but then try to destroy the next day for it no longer supported their need.

For instance I spent 23 years in the military and most of my life in a warrior caste shamanic type belief system with strong leanings to a landsman position now. I may try to heal when needed but it is not the calling I have. Yet my purpose and beliefs mesh with what was expected of that flavor (warrior and landsman) of shaman and not that of a healer.

[Meisopomenos]

Hmm... thanks for that food for thought, MonSno_LeeDra.

Makes a lot of since, and you were correct I started to fall into that trap, but it appears that most of the material I've gotten my hands on pertains to healing, which I feel is my calling. However, I'm sure I would curse or hex when it came to someone I was close to if necessary.