The Re-Enchantment

December 12, 2016
Wesselman (The Spiritwalker Trilogy), a paleoanthropologist and shamanic teacher with decades of experience in both fields, constructs an antidote to the “profound disenchantment” that plagues many people today. The author sets the stage for readers’ “re-enchantment” by telling the tale of his own, involving an improbable vision and a series of lucid dreams he had while on a dig in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley in the 1970s. This experience inspired him to pursue a shamanic path. In a tone that’s equal parts memoir and science report, the author renders fantastical events plausible, tantalizing spiritual seekers with the idea that each of us has the potential to expand our consciousness and engage with what Wesselman calls the Mystery, an “elusive presence” that may “draw us forward toward that which we are destined to become.” An openness to the Mystery, a willingness to quiet oneself, and the intention to focus on inner worlds and hidden realms are all components of the shamanic path, which, according to Wesselman, will balance one’s body, mind, and spirit. He reminds readers that their shamanic paths should benefit others as well, by healing and empowering the people around us. Aside from the amazing anecdotes the author shares, his calm voice, positive attitude, and insistence on kindness towards people and spirits are truly enchanting.

February 1, 2017

Alienation from our modern selves--what Wesselman (Spiritwalker) terms soul dissociation--has resulted in myriad issues. Wesselman's decadeslong work as a shaman seeks to overcome the divide between the rational and the nonrational, the seen and unseen, in order to help seekers discover true spiritual health, or reenchantment. A trained anthropologist, Wesselman shares his personal path from paleoanthropology to shamanism, which for him represents focusing awareness away from physical reality into the realm of the hidden interior where the task is to open, watch, and truly listen. As he shares his wide-ranging spiritual experiences, Wesselman seeks to find common ground with more established traditions, such as Hesychasm in Eastern Orthodoxy, or Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung's perspectives on the God of the Old Testament. For mainstream believers and scholars, however, Wesselman risks a similar sort of self-determined psycho-spiritual projection with which he charges various other moribund belief systems. VERDICT This mystical guidebook will appeal most to those who feel spiritually alienated and are seeking clarity.--SC

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