You’re no idiot, of course. You know that shamans are also known as medicine men and women, who use the power of the mind and call on spiritual helpers to heal the afflicted. However, this ancient art has been put to more modern uses, including problem solving, empowerment, and personal mastery. But you don’t have to trek through steamy Amazonian jungles or frigid Siberian tundra to become enlightened in the ways of shamanism! The Complete Idiot’s Guide® to Shamanism will show exactly how to discover your own shamanic power—and how that power will guide you in your everyday life! In this Complete Idiot’s Guide®, you get: --Shamanic history—from its origins in Paleolithic times to its spreading influence today. --Power animals—where to locate them and how they communicate with you. --How to take a shamanic journey—traveling through the Lower, Upper, and Middle Worlds, and exploring your past or future. --Shamanic healing techniques in use with modern medicine.

Bruce Trigger has merged the history of archaeology with new perspectives on how to understand the past. He is a critical analyst and architect of social evolutionary theory, an Egyptologist, and an authority on aboriginal cultures in north-eastern North America. His contextualization of archaeology within broader society has encouraged appreciation of the power of archaeological knowledge and he has been an effective voice for non-oppositional forms of argument in archaeological theory. In The Archaeology of Bruce Trigger, leading scholars discuss their own approaches to the interpretation of archaeological data in relation to Trigger's fundamental intellectual contributions Contributors include Michael Bisson (McGill), Stephen Chrisomalis (Toronto), Jerimy J. Cunningham (Calgary), Brian Fagan (Lindbrior Corporation), Clare Fawcett (St. Francis Xavier), Junko Habu (California at Berkeley), Ian Hodder (Stanford), Jane Kelley (Calgary), Martha Latta (Toronto), Robert MacDonald (Archaeological Services Inc.), Randall McGuire (Binghamton), Lynn Meskell (Columbia), Toby Morantz (McGill), Robert Pearce (London Museum of Archaeology), David Smith (Toronto), Peter Timmins (Timmins Martelle Heritage Consultants), Silvia Tomásková (North Carolina), Bruce G. Trigger (McGill), Alexander von Gernet (Toronto), Gary Warrick (Wilfrid Laurier), Ronald F. Williamson (Archaeological Services Inc.), Alison Wylie (Washington), and Eldon Yellowhorn (Simon Frasier)

A groundbreaking reevaluation of paleolithic art through the lens of modernism, from the acclaimed historian of art and architecture In The Beginnings of Art, Sigfried Giedion, best known as a historian of architecture, shifts his attention to art and its very origins. Breaking with an earlier, materialistic approach, he explores paleolithic art by bringing abstraction, transparency, and simultaneity into play as modern art has revealed them anew. Focusing on the dual concepts of constancy and change, he examines paleolithic paintings, engravings, and sculpture, as well as modern art and recent examples of “primitive art.” He argues that the two keys to the meaning of prehistoric art are the symbol, portraying reality before reality exists, and the animal as humankind’s superior in the unified primordial world in which both human and animal were embedded. The result is a highly original and important study of prehistoric art.

A Guided Tour through the Untamed Territories of Magic Book 1 of the Great Wizards of History Trilogy The history of wizardry comes alive with dozens of unique portraits capturing the most remarkable and infamous practitioners of magic and alchemy. Combining up-to-date historical scholarship and his own keen interpretations of primary texts, Guy Ogilvy develops a fascinating saga of magical thought and practice. The story begins with the prehistoric culture of the Lion Man and moves on to Orpheus and the great figures of myth. Discover the unparalleled influence of Pythagoras and the pre-Socratics as they experience the mysterious glories of Apollo's touch. Behold the leading alchemists of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance as they carry forth the surviving wisdom of the ancients, working their unique magic even as powerful social and political forces align against them. Magic is a vital element of history. The Great Wizards of Antiquity weaves together the loose threads of magic to form a comprehensive tapestry, challenging the ideas brought forth by peddlers of the mundane and returning a sense of enchantment to its rightful place in the human spirit. In this book, you will discover the beliefs and teachings of sorcerers, healers, philosophers, alchemists, and mythological figures, including: The Lion Man Animal magic & the modern mind Orpheus Incantations & the magic of music Dionysus Wild rites & the gift of wine Pythagoras Metempsychosis & the wisdom of the cave dwellers Pherekydes Open secrets & the immortality of souls The Pythia The oracle at Delphi & ecstatic prophecy Epimenides Sacred caves & the unknown gods Abaris The golden arrow & the Hyperborean Apollo Zalmoxis Thrace & the Celtic connection Hermotimus Astral travel & the preeminence of psyche Aristeas The form of a raven & the wonders of Apollo Parmenides The man who knows & the nightmare ride to hell Empedocles Bronze sandals & the four elements Zosimos Transmutation & inner purification J?bir ibn ?ayy?n Islamic alchemy & the theory of balance Jan Baptista Van Helmont The stranger & the projecting powder The Comte de Saint-Germain Universal medicine & the elixir of life Paracelsus Legendary cures & the open book of nature James Price The Royal Society & the Philosopher's Stone