Soul Loss & Soul Retrieval
Hello to my return journeyers. A warm welcome to my semi-constant journeyers. And, a very special welcome to my new journeyers.
I am so glad you’re here.
Today, I am inviting you into my mental meanderings to explore the topic of Soul Loss.
Soul loss is a spiritual illness that causes physical and emotional dis-ease or disharmony. From a Shamanic perspective, soul loss is one of the most significant causes of illness.
Soul is a tricky term to define and even more difficult to understand. I will use the word soul to mean vital essence for this commentary.
The work of the Shaman or Contemporary Shamanic Practitioner is to journey, while in an altered state of consciousness, to first understand the story of your soul. This journey is usually aided by some form of rhythmic percussion, such as the drum. Once the Shaman understands your soul's story, they are then able to retrieve any lost soul pieces that are willing to come back and integrate with you in the present reality.
I have often queried if one of the most ubiquitous experiences of soul loss begins when we are socialized as young children. Of course, it entirely depends on your culture, the over-culture of your geographical location, family spiritual beliefs (or lack thereof), education systems, political milieu, religious systems and so on. Despite our differences, the drive for exploring or reclaiming the spiritual aspect of the Self is strong. As humans, we are born into this reality, understanding that the seen and the unseen are one. Yet, in time, we become less and less familiar with walking a path that accepts ordinarily hidden realities or the Spirit World.
The concept of soul loss is complex but can essentially be summed up by accepting that parts of our soul can be lost, fractured, fragmented, hurt, frightened away, or stolen when our soul lives through the difficult experiences of life. Today, soul loss results from surgery, abuse, neglect, loss of a loved one, acute or chronic illness, addiction, miscarriage, catastrophic events, war, accident, injury, and the daily events of life in which we were not seen, heard, loved, or when our existence wasn’t held sacred. When we experience a traumatic event, a part of our soul or vital essence separates to escape the full impact of the pain. The soul part leaves to survive.
Modern psychotherapy approaches are incredibly adept at exploring the depths of wounding inflicted upon all aspects of our Self and soul. Therapy and soul retrieval, when used together, can bring healing to both the parts of the soul that are already home with you and bring home the parts of the soul to receive healing.
The soul tells its story through common themes. You may have experienced the loss of a loved one and felt as though you were sleepwalking through your life. You may have experienced surgery and felt foggy long after the anesthetic has been physiologically processed. You may be experiencing an abusive relationship or toxic work environment and feel without the power to shift away from this. Sometimes, when disentangling from abusive relationships you may feel that you left something behind.
The most common experience of soul loss that I have worked with is with the child part of the soul. When a child experiences abuse or neglect or does not have an attuned, responsive caregiver, the soul piece leaves the body to survive (an argument can be made to compare this to the mental process of dissociation familiar in psychotherapy). The pain of being dismissed, criticized, or shadowed by a caregiver’s actions or inactions (usually resulting from their own soul loss) is so often the reason that the child part of the soul places a part of their soul away for safekeeping. In other words, the child part may have tried to safeguard their own soul piece.
This is the time that I feel it is important to remind you, dear journeyer, that most of us will experience soul loss. Humans are amazingly adaptive beings. We can function in our lived reality with one or more soul pieces missing for most of our lives.
You may be asking yourself: how do I know if I am experiencing soul loss? I invite you to ask yourself some of these questions:
Do you have difficulty staying present in your body?
Do you feel deadened or numb?
Does life lack joy?
Were you chronically ill as a child?
Do you have gaps in your memory after early childhood (3-5 years) or feel you may have blocked out traumas in your life?
Do you struggle with addictions to food, alcohol, sex, social media, drugs, etc.?
Do you experience an internal void or sensation of emptiness?
Have you lived through an experience, such as the death of a loved one or the ending of a significant relationship, that has left you feeling unable to move on?
There are many causes of soul loss. Every soul has its own story, and the Shaman must take the time to learn the song of the soul to sing her home.
Physical illness can cause or be a symptom of soul loss.
Relationship breakdown may lead to soul loss if the nature of the dissolution does not include cord-cutting.
Depression can be the expression of soul loss because the person is unable to invite joy and vitality into their life when they are still knowingly or unknowingly seeking the soul piece that is lost somewhere in non-ordinary reality. For any therapist reading this, you’ll know what I mean when I say the past is present. Part of their soul really is lost or trapped in another time, place, and space.
More and more, the souls that have shared their stories with me are dispirited with life. They feel a sense of pervasive loneliness and rumination despite living a “good life.” They sense an incompleteness that is difficult to describe in words. Some are even able to point to different parts of their body and describe the sensation of emptiness that relates to the place in which the soul piece wishes to return home to.
Let’s return to the example from a moment ago of the child soul piece that separates during abuse, neglect, or misattunement. As I have become more familiar with the process of Soul Retrieval, parts of the Spirit World terrain also become more familiar. I often recommend that those new to journeying begin with an anchor spot meditation/journey to familiarize themselves with a place at the threshold between this world and the Spirit World. The Anchor Spot is a place where you start and end every journey, ensuring that you are spiritually and energetically intact and free of any intrusions from your travels in the Spirit World. I also recommend that new journeyers work with a Guardian Spirit (Power Animal) and Spirit Ally, who can provide guidance and support for the journeyer and lend their power in times that are necessary, such as in the quest for a soul piece. Once these parameters are established, the journey into the Spirit World to retrieve the soul piece of the wounded child has often led to an archetypal place in the Spirit World commonly referred to as The Cave of Lost Children.
Sometimes, the soul piece is retrieved by the Shaman returning to a past moment when the wounding occurred to find a way to get the soul piece out. I often negotiate with soul pieces and remind them that the Wise (insert True, Healed, Whole, Older or any other descriptor that fits for you) version of the human in my healing room is prepared to create space and care for the soul piece once it is returned home.
Not all fragmented soul pieces are found in good condition.
A soul piece that is deeply hurt may need additional healing. Sometimes, the allies in the Spirit World that aid in the retrieval of the soul piece have information that is communicated with the Shaman about how to care for the soul piece and continue the process of integration. The time for integration varies for each person.
The way in which this work is commonly performed – the Shaman acting on behalf of the client – can move in opposition to the current model of psychotherapy. Our current model of therapeutic intervention places the client in the driver’s seat of exploring their trauma and wounding with the therapist as the guide through potentially dark and turbulent waters. In soul retrieval, the Shaman is the more active participant in journeying to the Spirit World to retrieve the soul piece. Once the soul piece has been retrieved and breathed into the client’s body, the work of integration becomes the active part for the client to engage fully.
Ultimately, soul retrieval brings a sense of connection and vitality back to you.
I invite you to find a comfortable place to sit and close your eyes. Breathe deeply. Ask your Self-critic to step aside. Breathe deeply. Feel your soul – your vital essence – and ask your soul what is needed.
As always, thank you for your kind attention.
You can reach me at heather@theshamanspath.ca for more soulful discussions.
Until we meet again in this time, this place, this space, happy journeying.
-Heather
The Shaman’s Path recognizes that the information presented here is not a substitute for medical advice from a qualified medical practitioner.
Reference: Soul Retrieval: Mending the Fragmented Self, Sandra Ingerman (1991).