I was chatting to somebody about hypnosis recently, a subject I know very little about, to be honest. I do know that it is used in ceremonial situations as well as for healing and trauma release, which makes it very similar to some Asian shamanistic techniques, as well as many other types of healing work within the context of what is termed indigenous and native medicine.
Although the term 'soul retrieval' is often used, it can be a bit misleading, as well as restrictive, with respect to the work of those who are called to this path. There are many definitions of a soul, as well as the soul itself often being broken down into constituent parts within the various world traditions and 'spiritual' paths.
When it comes to trance, though, it is striking how all traditions which use it record its power to break a person from the 'spell' of normal reality, which might be an ironic thing to write. And yet, what those who return from mystical trance tell us is exactly that: our reality is but one aspect of a larger field upon universal field in which our consciousness may move, depending on circumstance, and, some say, ability and training.
There are often times, though, when a person may slip from their ordinary mind into this otherworld where they find time and space seem to either not exist at all, or are of such a numinous quality that any understanding of their function is impossible to describe. For example, in previous posts I have written about the appearance of fairies to women while they are sitting at spinning wheels in Irish folklore accounts. There are many examples of this in classical fairy tales as well as within our collected Irish folklore, it should be noted.
This association between spinning and altered states is an ancient and archetypal motif. Whether it is dance, drumming or chant, repetition seems to invoke the ability to cross thresholds of consciousness.
We shouldn't be surprised at this, as spinning and turning are represented in ritual art at some of our oldest monuments around the world.
The Norns of pre-Christian Norse mythology were the rulers of destiny and the past, present and the future. Although there were many Norns, the three most important spun fate beneath Yggdrasill, the world tree. The Old Norse poem, Fáfnismál, describes there being many Norns with some of them originating from the gods whereas others come from the elves. In contrast to this, the poem Völuspá describes the Norns as another type of being who don't originate from any of the worlds or supernatural beings. Some etymologists believe the word 'norn' actually derives from the meaning 'to spin'. The Norns, like other triple goddesses such as The Fates, then, were seen as weavers of time and fate itself.
There are also many prophetic mentions in the Norse sagas beginning with the line, “And a chant came to her lips.” This distinguishes the poem or song from being routine and means that the spirits are speaking through the seer. Similar associations run all the way through various indigenous-European pagan cultures and traditions. These are pre-spinning wheel goddesses, obviously, but the weaving motif is the same.
In this account from the Irish folklore archives a woman stays up late spinning and her actions seem to break the border between the earthly world and the Otherworld. She then encounters three spinning fairy crones. This account comes from Mayo and was collected in 1938:
"Once upon a time there lived an old woman who used to be up very late spinning. One night after all the rest had gone to sleep she remained at the wheel. When she had finished she looked up to the fire and saw an old woman spinning in the corner. She saw another old hag under the bed spinning. She turned around and saw another at the backdoor. She knew at once that they were fairies and that it was not right to wait up late spinning. She put out the light and went to bed. From that time forth she never waited up late spinning."
When returning from trance, examples in folklore record women speaking of future occurrences or even those in the past. In many stories the women speak of things they cannot even explain themselves, as if their consciousness has encompassed events for which they have no context. Sometimes the visions are of Otherworldly realms and ethereal beings who seem to belong to a completely different non-human category. In many accounts the spinning women are given wisdom and advice ahead of time. It is because of this that there was often confusion when trying to decipher what they meant.
Another factor here is that many people who speak of having been in an altered state often quickly forget what has been revealed to them and they can only manage a jumbled version. We see this frequently in cases of NDE's and OBE's. In fact, many people waking from a dream will often grasp desperately at what the dream has told them only to despair as the knowledge fades upon waking like sand between their fingers. Although, perhaps sometimes we are not meant to remember?
A less discussed manifestation of a fairy encounter is madness and an inability to process something so otherworldly that a person falls into a complete breakdown never to return to normal life again. In Ireland, we have accounts of the Druí, fáithi, fili, and fénnidi who all were said to be able to communicate with spirits and through trance enter the Otherworld. We have mentions of Imbas forosnai, a type of prophecy practiced by certain ‘poets’ of ancient Ireland. Now, the use of the word poet is where we might consider digging a little deeper. You see this may refer to either ‘normal’ poetry, which can be memorised, or that of a ‘received’ poetry, which was understood as being a power or gift given by the Gods and Goddesses of the Otherworld itself.
An intriguing link between Irish women Druids and the Nordic Volur occurs in the old Irish text the Cogadh Gaedhel re Gaillaibh. In this case the woman is a volur seer named Otta and she used the church at Clonmacnoise for her oracle workings. She would seat herself in a high chair upon the altar where she would enter her trance states. Chair amulets and ritual staffs have been found at many of the graves of these shamanic-like women in Scandinavia. We have also found a volur staff here in Ireland at Kilmanham. There is much more to be said about these staffs. Some of the burials have found women riding the staffs in the manner of a broom and many have been found decorated with runes and magical symbols.
Of course, as this tradition of prophetic women continued, with time the names of these women also changed, as well as their treatment and standing. It is interesting, then, to see how many of these techniques are now used in a non-spiritual context for trauma release and regression therapy, as well as the more focused psychopomp work which continues today. (C.) David Halpin.