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Circle of Light

A Community of Shamanic Practice in Yorkshire

​​​Welcome to Circle of Light - a community of Shamanic practitioners dedicated to weaving deeper connections between people and nature.

 

Circle of Light was born from the understanding that true Shamanic practice flourishes when it happens within community.

Affirmations and candles on a board

* This gathering is open for those with Shamanic experience or for those that have attended a Shamanic course *

May 2025: Shamanic Community Gathering
May 2025: Shamanic Community Gathering
24 May 2025, 09:30
St. Aelred’s Community Centre
£30 - for you and your guest
Book your Ticket Here

Community as a living, breathing organism

Our Circle recognizes that community is not merely a human construct but a living, breathing organism that transcends across time and space, and which encompasses seen and unseen worlds. Through regular gatherings, shared practices, and collective ceremony, we nourish individual and collective transformation.

Vision and Purpose

Our community gatherings help us connect and share wisdom with shared purpose. Through our gatherings we:

  • Awaken and honour the living spirit of our new community, acknowledging it as an entity that transcends individual members

  • Create sacred space for practitioners to deepen their practice through shared wisdom, regardless of their experience level

  • Facilitate connections between those walking similar spiritual paths, fostering relationships that extend beyond the gathering

  • Provide structured opportunities for each participant to discover and offer their unique gifts

  • Build foundations for ongoing mutual support and collective growth in shamanic practice

Shamanic Community Gathering Logo
Circle of Light Shamanic Community
Circle of Light Gathering February 2025

Core Principles of Building Shamanic Community

Sacred Reciprocity

Deep Listening

Spiritual Democracy

Ancestral Honouring

Collective Responsibility

In shamanic cultures, community transcends the modern Western notion of grouped individuals. Instead, it is understood to exist as a living, breathing organism that encompassing not only the human circle, but also ancestors, spirits of the land, the elements, and all beings. This web of interconnection of community forms the foundation of healing, growth, and transformation, where personal and collective wellbeing are viewed as inseparable.

Anthropological research reveals how this understanding of community as organism manifests in traditional shamanic cultural practices. Among the Mentawai people of Indonesia, foir example, the uma (longhouse) serves as both physical and spiritual center of community life. Each evening, community members gather in the uma for ritual singing that maintains harmony between human and spirit worlds. The songs themselves are considered living entities, passed down through generations, with specific verses that address conflicts between community members by invoking ancestor spirits as mediators. The sikerei (shamans) lead these gatherings but never alone—they must work in pairs or groups, demonstrating the cultural rejection of individual authority in favor of collective wisdom.

Similarly, the Buryat people of Siberia maintain community cohesion through seasonal tailgan ceremonies, where each clan member has a specific role in maintaining the community's relationship with spirit. The ceremony requires participation from all age groups: elders recall the ancestor stories, adults prepare the offerings, young adults tend the sacred fire, and children learn their future roles through observation and small tasks. If any group fails their role, the ceremony cannot proceed—a powerful demonstration of how individual ego must submit to collective and community need.

Another example are the Dagara of West Africa, no major life transition is seen as individual. Birth, marriage, death, and initiation ceremonies require participation from the entire community, with specific roles assigned based on one's birth day. The thila (community shrines) must be tended daily by rotating groups of community members, ensuring shared responsibility for spiritual maintenance and cohesion.

These diverse traditions share a common thread: the understanding that community is not a human construct but a living entity that must be actively maintained through sacred practice, mutual responsibility, and the continuous subordination of individual desires to collective needs.

Sacred Community in Shamanic Traditions

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© 2022 by Ioan Fazey, Ph.D. 

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