Shamans generally wear special clothes or ritual costumes when they perform ceremonies.
Many wear crowns or head dresses when they perform ceremony too. I use peacock feathers and porcupine quills in my head gear to represent the animal and bird kingdoms. They also wear a lot of red and white, perhaps as streamers or as turbans. These colours represent the male (white) and female (red) energies. the costume also generally has a white shirt and a white skirt, bandoliers or a belt, a medicine bag with some offerings and prayer rosaries (mala).
The shamans also wear some small bells made from iron or copper, and these are fixed onto metal chains. They may also have special necklaces of stones or some special woods and bamboo. Necklaces and mala are passed down through the generations or the shaman is asked to wear them by the spirits. Some shamans also wear snake vertibra necklaces, but most keep these in their sacred space.
Snake vertibra represent the lower world or the world of rain making and fertility spirits (naga). The other objects they generally have are representations of the five gross elements of nature (earth, air, fire, water and either).
The earth element is represented by rice or crystal rocks; water by the water in a sacred vase (kalasa); fire by a candle or oil burner; air by bird feathers; and ether by songs and sacred chants.
They also have a ritual knife, used to cut threads used in ceremony or offerings. These can be a little curved or sometimes are shaped like a sickle. Sometimes that are also kept inside the sacred healing bag of the shaman to protect them from the malign spirits, as the knife drives away any dark forces that might threaten the shaman.
Some shamans also use tridents made of iron. These represent the three worlds; the three parts of the body; the three moments of birth, death and rebirth. They also hold and represent the fire element which is the principal element of transformation.
Other items will include candles or burning wicks, a shamanic mirror, incense, sacred fire ash, and a ritual dagger (khurpi in Nepali or phurba in Tibetan). Shamans often make offerings to the spirits, and the helper spirits accept whatever you offer.
There are some wrathful spirits who want non vegetarian offerings and sacrifices too, but really it all depends upon the shaman. If you habituate your spirits with what is available in the place where you are, they will accept it, but if you make the habit of giving some particular offerings, then they will long for that and will not be pleased if you do not offer it them.
I usually offer, water, milk, sweets, flowers, fruits, multicoloured strips of cloths, yellow and red powders (tika), the sacred grains of creation (rice, wheat etc.), oil, wicks and candles, corn flour and plant leafs.
The shaman’s relationship with the spirits and the sacred depends upon the personal relationship they have with themselves. If they have a very deep relationship with themselves, high awareness, an open heart, deep confidence in what they do, and a belief in themselves, than their relationship with the outside world will be always harmonious.
This strong inner confidence and harmonious relationship with the outer world helps a shaman to create a fluid relationship with the spirits - a good relationship with the spiritual world.
