The 9 Pillars for Finding THE PATH OF THE HEART – The Way to Happiness, Meaning, and Shamanic Magic

What if there were a way to live a more authentic, meaningful, and whole life — a path that brings your body, mind, and soul into alignment, helping you act with integrity, compassion, and clarity in everything you do? There is. I call it The Path of the Heart.

In this article, you’ll get a complete, grounded overview of what it truly means to walk the Path of the Heart. You’ll discover why living from the heart is far more than romance or vague idealism — it is a practical, powerful approach to building personal character, inner balance, and spiritual strength. You will be guided through the nine pillars that form the foundation of this path: from gratitude and self-regulation to understanding the soul’s calling and reconnecting with nature’s healing rhythms.

We live in a world that praises performance, efficiency, and external achievement — while the inner life is often neglected or forgotten. Here, you’re offered an alternative: a path that leads you back to what is real, lasting, and deeply meaningful. Whether you long for greater inner peace, stronger relationships, deeper purpose, or spiritual expansion — the Path of the Heart can become your compass.

Before I was introduced to the shamanic worldview in 2004, I had never heard of the Path of the Heart. I thought love was simply about relationships, warm feelings, and kindness — but I soon discovered that the Path of the Heart reaches far deeper. It is a direction in life, a way of being, an inner truth that permeates everything we do.

In this article, I’ll give you an overview of what the Path of the Heart truly means, and how your life can transform when you begin living in alignment with this profound inner wisdom. You’ll also gain insight into why the Path of the Heart is essential for a shaman’s ability to heal, create change, and practice genuine magic.

This is not just a philosophy — it is a lived path, one that can open the door to a richer, more authentic, and deeply meaningful life.

The Path of Darkness vs. the Path of Light

The more we carry suffering-based emotional states, the darker life begins to feel. These inner shadows grow out of the ego’s secondary emotions: fear, intolerance, anger, hatred, jealousy, frustration, greed, anxiety, competitiveness, and endless worry. When these emotions govern us, we easily slip into patterns where we treat both ourselves and others poorly. Communication breaks down, and conflicts — at home, at work, and in our closest relationships — can quickly erupt into something loud, harsh, and deeply disrespectful.

I know these states all too well. Before I hit the wall in 2003, I was an expert at living inside them. I held grudges against people who had hurt me or those I cared about. I carried a constant fear of not having enough — not enough time, not enough money, not enough recognition or safety. And no matter how much material comfort I surrounded myself with, I felt a deep, piercing emptiness inside. As if life lacked a center, a meaning, a direction.

The more we are filled with suffering-based emotional states, the darker life will appear.

Pål-Esben Wanvig

Early in my shamanic journey, one truth became clearer and clearer: To live a good life, we must learn to heal the causes of our suffering emotions.

Not just the symptoms.

Not just the surface expressions.

But the root — the deep, imprinted patterns in the subconscious that run on autopilot without us noticing.

Because beneath every painful emotion, there is a pattern. An imprint. A learned response formed long before we were old enough to understand what was happening to us. These patterns settle into the subconscious and begin steering our lives like a hidden navigation system.

And the truth is simple, but not always easy to face: Our suffering emotional states are not something we choose.

They are the result of everything we have been shaped by:

• childhood experiences
• parents and caregivers
• societal expectations
• religious ideas about sin, shame and unworthiness
• cultural ideals, norms and fear-based conditioning

As long as these imprints dominate our inner world, we move through life with a quiet sense of lack — no matter how much we achieve, no matter how much we own, no matter how “successful” we appear on the outside.

Freeing ourselves from this is not merely about changing habits.

It is about healing.

— healing the patterns,

— healing the roots,

— and finding our way back to the heart, to truth, and to a life no longer governed by emotional suffering.

To find the path toward light, toward the heart, and toward a meaningful life, we must learn two essential things:

1. How to free ourselves from the suffering emotional states that hold us down

2. How to fill ourselves with the rich emotional states that lift us up and give our lives meaning

Rich emotional states are what the heart and soul long for. They arise from the heart’s primary emotions — joy, passion, love, courage, empathy, integrity, gratitude, care, and compassion.

When we begin to live from these emotions, something profound happens: we naturally treat ourselves and others with kindness, respect, and warmth. Not because we force it — but because it flows effortlessly from within. In a heart-centered state, we instinctively know the right course of action.

Human challenges become easier to navigate.

Conflicts lose their sting and can be resolved with clarity, respect, and understanding rather than aggression.

When you meet your partner from a rich emotional state, even difficult conversations soften. What could have escalated into a heated argument becomes an opportunity to grow closer —

to understand each other more deeply,

to strengthen the bond,

and to choose connection over conflict.

This is the true power of the heart: it transforms not only how we feel, but how we live, how we love, and how we relate to every person around us.

The Path of Light Is the Only Path to a Fulfilled Life

We can only truly feel alive, whole, and in harmony when we live in rich, life-giving emotional states.

This is where light resides.

This is where meaning reveals itself.

This is where healing takes root.

And it is from this place that shamanic work fully awakens – because a heart filled with light is a heart that can heal, perceive, and create real magic.

To walk the path of light and The Path of the Heart, we must learn how to free ourselves from suffering-based emotional states — and how to fill our lives with rich, life-giving ones.

Pål-Esben Wanvig

The Art of Walking the Path of the Heart

Following the Path of the Heart is far more than being kind, polite, or “positive.” It is an entirely different orientation to life — a way of moving through the world that places the qualities of the heart above the ego’s need for control, achievement, and external validation.

For many of us — myself included — this was never something we were taught at home. My mother taught me that the most important things in life were to earn enough money, build a solid career, be competent, productive, and functional. What the heart longed for — meaning, closeness, joy, peace, presence — was treated as a luxury, not a necessity.

It was the perfect recipe for creating a highly efficient, responsible, goal-oriented achiever.

And at the same time, a perfect recipe for collapse. So it was no surprise that I broke down in 2003.

Breaking these patterns — patterns deeply imprinted through childhood, culture, and society — is not trivial. It takes more than good intentions. It demands wholehearted effort and a willingness to face parts of yourself you may have spent a lifetime avoiding.

And often, we cannot do this alone. A teacher, a therapist, or a mentor can be essential, simply because it is incredibly difficult to be objective about your own behavior — especially when you begin approaching the ego’s fear. And it is precisely this fear that sits beneath all suffering-based emotional states.

This is why following the Path of the Heart is an art.

But it is also the key to a life that feels real, wholehearted, and profoundly meaningful.

The Nine Pillars for Finding the Path of the Heart

To truly walk the Path of the Heart — and experience the profound transformation this path can bring — we need more than insight and good intentions.

We need practice. Commitment. And a willingness to grow on multiple levels at once.

Below you’ll find the nine essential pillars that form the foundation of genuine personal and spiritual development. These are not ideas to merely understand intellectually — they are qualities to practice, to cultivate, and to live in your daily life.

When you do, the Path of the Heart begins to open in an entirely new way — and the changes you experience can be deep, lasting, and life-altering.

1. Become a master of gratitude. A grateful heart unlocks joy, presence, and deep contentment — regardless of external circumstances.

2. Become a master of forgiving yourself and others.Forgiveness frees your energy, dissolves old emotional knots, and allows your heart to breathe again.

3. Become a master of physical, emotional, and spiritual self-regulation. When you learn to calm your nervous system, balance your emotions, and stay spiritually open, you create a powerful inner foundation of safety and strength.

4. Become a master of building a healthy value system and strong personal character. A clear inner compass helps you navigate life’s challenges and make choices that honor your true nature.

5. Become a master of seeing the glass as half full. The ability to perceive possibilities instead of limitations changes your attitude, your actions — and your entire quality of life.

6. Become a master of healing your almighty syndrome. Letting go of the need to control everything — and everyone — gives your soul room to express wisdom, clarity, and inner peace.

7. Become a master of healing perfectionism. When you release the chains of perfectionism, you open the door to flow, creativity, vitality, and genuine joy.

8. Become a master of understanding and embracing nature’s healing rhythms. Living in tune with nature’s cycles helps your body, mind, and soul find balance with far less resistance.

9. Become a master of understanding and living your soul’s desires and life mission. The deepest freedom comes when you align your daily life with your soul’s calling — your authentic inner purpose and direction.

In the podcast The Journey to Self-Realization, Amina and I explore the Path of the Heart in depth throughout episodes 1–12 (coming soon)

Below, you’ll find a short introduction to each of these pillars — and how they can begin to transform your life from the inside out.

1. Become a Master of Gratitude

Gratitude is one of the simplest — and most powerful — ways to fill your life with rich, nourishing emotional states. Yet it’s rare to meet someone who truly masters this art… someone who consciously allows their heart to fill with warmth, joy, and love through everyday gratitude. Far too often, we move through life assuming that the good things will simply always be there.

But gratitude is not reserved for Zen monks or spiritual adepts who have meditated for decades.

Absolutely anyone can learn this.

In fact, just five minutes a day is enough to train your heart to awaken primary emotions such as joy, passion, and love — whenever you choose.

And as your gratitude practice deepens, something beautiful happens:

It becomes much easier to see the glass as half full (see Pillar 5), even when life feels heavy, uncertain, or challenging. Gratitude softens us. It grounds us. And it opens the door to a richer, more heart-centered way of living.

2. Become a Master of Forgiving Yourself and Others

The inability to forgive is perhaps one of the most destructive forces in human life. It lies behind countless conflicts, broken friendships, relationships that fall apart, families that drift away from one another — and it silently drains our joy day after day. If we had been taught genuine forgiveness already in primary school, both our personal lives and the world around us would look dramatically different.

When we cannot forgive, we carry the burden. We get irritated. We hold grudges. We replay what happened again and again. We allow old wounds to shape our thoughts, our emotions — and sometimes our entire life.

But the real question is this: Is it truly worth giving someone else power over your inner peace, your health, and your happiness?

Forgiveness is not just a noble idea — it is one of the most liberating skills a human being can learn on the path to health, joy, inner harmony, and a meaningful life.

But does forgiveness mean that you must accept or approve of what happened?

Absolutely not.

To forgive does not mean you say the wrongdoing was okay. It does not mean you must let the person back into your life. It does not mean you must agree, erase, or minimize what was done.

Forgiveness means one thing:

You reclaim your power.

You release the chains that bind you to the past.

You set yourself free.

Forgiveness is a foundational pillar of the Path of the Heart — a path where we gradually release and heal what weighs us down, creating space for more love, clarity, strength, and inner peace.

In the article “Free Yourself Through Forgiveness! Learn the 7 Pillars of True Forgiveness”, I explain in detail why absolutely everything can be forgiven — and how to do so without accepting the injustice itself. You will also learn the essential difference between forgiving and approving.

Forgiveness is not for the other person. It is for you. It is the key to your freedom.

One of the most important skills a person can learn on the journey toward good health, joy, and a meaningful life is the ability to forgive oneself and others completely – because that is what truly sets us free!

Pål-Esben Wanvig

3. Become a Master of Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Self-Regulation

We regulate ourselves constantly — often without even noticing. When the shower becomes too hot or too cold, we adjust the temperature. When we overeat, we move more slowly. When we push too hard at the gym, the body forces us to rest.

Life is full of subtle corrections that gently bring us back into balance.

Self-regulation is the art of doing this consciously — not only physically, but also emotionally and spiritually.

It is one of the foundational practices of the Path og the Heart.

Learning to regulate yourself at all three levels allows you to create inner stability, clarity, and resilience no matter what life brings. It is how you shift from reacting impulsively to responding wisely. It is how you stay centered, grounded, and connected to your essence even when challenges arise.

Self-regulation is not about perfection — it is about awareness.

It is about listening to your body, honoring your emotions, and allowing your soul to guide your choices.

On the Path of the Heart, self-regulation becomes a powerful compass — helping you return to yourself again and again.

Physical Self-Regulation

Your body is a masterpiece.

A living, intelligent organism that works tirelessly — every single day — to keep you in balance.

Even when you push it, stress it, or forget to listen to it, your body does everything it can to bring you back to harmony. It adjusts temperature, hormones, immune responses, digestion, and energy levels without you having to think about it for a moment.

This remarkable ability is called homeostasis — the body’s innate drive to return to its natural equilibrium.

But your body cannot do everything on its own. It needs your support, your choices, and your care.

Here are some of the most important factors that help your autonomic nervous system — the body’s “inner conductor” — stay balanced and resilient:

• Adequate rest and conscious breathing. Deep, calm breathing and short pauses throughout the day allow the nervous system to settle and reorient.

• Quality sleep (7–8 hours per night). Sleep is the body’s built-in repair cycle. Without it, healing and regeneration slow down or stop entirely.

• Daily physical movement. Just 20 minutes of brisk walking can significantly improve stress levels, emotional stability, and overall vitality.

• Daily forest bathing (Shinrin-yoku). Silence and presence in nature is one of the most potent ways we have to regulate the nervous system. Forest bathing lowers stress hormones, reduces inflammation, strengthens the immune system, and brings both body and mind back into balance. (You can read more about this in your article “Forest Bathing Is Our Most Important Medicine”.)

• Avoid foods that trigger inflammation or immune stress. For many people, this includes gluten, cow’s dairy, soy, FODMAP foods, or other personal intolerances.

• A stabilizing, nourishing diet. Less refined carbohydrates, more healthy fats, and a balanced amount of proteins give the body sustainable energy and the nutrients it needs to thrive.

When one or more of these factors are ignored over time, the body gradually loses its ability to regulate itself. Its capacity to repair, heal, and rebalance becomes compromised — which can lead to fatigue, stress, emotional instability, and eventually illness.

Physical self-regulation means taking responsibility for giving your body what it needs to be the strong, wise, and powerful ally it is meant to be.

The more you cooperate with your body – the more your body will cooperate with you.

Emotional Self-Regulation

When stress takes over — when we become angry, frustrated, overwhelmed, afraid, worried, or low — we slip almost automatically into suffering emotional states. These states drain our energy, close the heart, and make life far heavier than it needs to be.

The good news is this: Emotional balance is a skill.

It can be trained, strengthened, and refined — just like a muscle. Emotional self-regulation is not about suppressing your feelings or pretending everything is fine.

It is about learning how to guide yourself back into balance the moment you notice that you’re starting to lose your center.

There are many simple, effective methods for doing this. Two of the most powerful are:

• Interruption handling. A conscious technique where you stop the mental spiral before it escalates.

• Deep, intentional breathing. One of the most effective ways to calm the nervous system and return to emotional balance in a matter of seconds.

These and several other techniques are described in detail in the following resources:

• “This May Become Your Most Important Decision: Learn How to Live a Happy and Meaningful Life in Your Current Situation” (Coming soon)
• “Struggling with Perfectionism? Learn Why You’ll Never Achieve It — and How to Break Free from the Chase!” (Coming soon)
• …and in my book: Beyond Positive Psychology: A Journey From Burnout to Enlightenment

When you learn to regulate yourself emotionally, you don’t just become calmer – you become freer.

You develop an inner stability that makes it easier to meet life with clarity, warmth, courage, and strength.

Spiritual Self-Regulation

The third — and deepest — form of self-regulation is connected to the heart: the meeting point between our human experience and the essence of our soul. The heart is the bridge between the physical and the spiritual, and it is through the heart that the soul expresses itself in everyday life.

The more we allow ourselves to be guided by the heart’s primary emotions — joy, passion, love, courage, empathy, care, and compassion — the closer we come to who we truly are. These emotions are not random. They are the language of the soul. And when they are given space, life begins to feel more authentic, more honest, and more meaningful.

Spiritual self-regulation is therefore the art of:

• noticing what truly motivates us
• adjusting our internal course when ego, fear, stress, or old patterns take over
• choosing — consciously — to act from the heart, even when it’s challenging

This is a practice that unfolds over time. A daily discipline of pausing, listening inward, and asking:

What does my heart want to express right now?

What is motivating my thoughts, words, and actions?

Is it fear — or is it love?

When the motivation behind our life becomes anchored in the qualities of the heart, something profound begins to shift. Presence becomes easier. Conflicts soften. Meaning becomes clearer. And gradually, we start living in alignment with the soul — not just with our thoughts, habits, or the expectations around us.

Spiritual self-regulation is the art of steering your life from the heart.

When the heart leads, the soul follows — and life begins to fall beautifully into place.

4. Become a Master at Building a Healthy Value System and a Strong Personal Character

Developing a healthy inner value system and a strong personal character is one of the most meaningful projects we can devote our lives to. It shapes everything: how we face challenges, how we treat others, the choices we make, and ultimately the direction our heart is allowed to lead us.

A solid value system acts as an inner compass.

It helps us stay grounded when life becomes turbulent, and it gives us the courage to act in alignment with what truly matters — even when it’s uncomfortable or difficult.

When we cultivate character, we cultivate integrity — the alignment between who you are, how you think, and how you act. Integrity is that quiet inner strength that allows you to live a life that is real, stable, and sustainable — both for yourself and for the people around you.

Ignoring this aspect of personal development can have serious consequences.

Without a clear value system, it becomes easy to lose direction, fall back into old patterns, or be driven by external pressures and the fear-based impulses of the ego. And when that happens, following the heart’s path becomes far more challenging.

If you want to explore how to build a strong and authentic personal character, I recommend reading my book Beyond Positive Psychology: A Journey From Burnout to Enlightenment and the article “What Corporate Leaders Can Learn from a Shaman: How to Build a Strong Personal Character.”(Coming soon)

5. Become a Master at Seeing the Glass as Half Full

It’s remarkable how two people can stand in the exact same situation — and yet experience it completely differently. One person views what’s happening through a dark inner filter that creates frustration, sadness, or discouragement. The other is able to meet the same moment with openness, curiosity, and a more compassionate perspective.

This isn’t about being naive.

It’s about perspective.

The ability to see possibilities instead of limitations is one of the most transformative skills you can develop. When we cultivate this skill, life begins to open in new ways: challenges become lessons, uphill climbs become strength, and what once felt impossible becomes a path forward.

Some of the strongest examples of this come from people who survived the unimaginable.

Both Eva Mozes Kor and Dr. Viktor Frankl — who endured the horrific brutality of the Nazi concentration camps — shared that their inner attitude was essential to their survival. In the midst of overwhelming darkness, they chose to see the glass as half full. That choice gave them strength, hope, and a sense of inner freedom that no one could take away.

You can find the interview with Eva Mozes Kor in the article “Free Yourself Through Forgiveness! Learn the 7 Pillars of True Forgiveness”

«The last of the human freedoms is to choose one’s own attitude in any given situation.» 

Dr. Viktor Frankl, psychologist

6. Become a Master at Healing Your Almighty Syndrome

The Almighty syndrome is a common — and deeply limiting — human tendency: the belief that our own opinions are automatically the truth, and that anyone who disagrees must be wrong. It arises when we make firm conclusions without truly knowing what is real, and without being open to the possibility that reality is far larger, richer, and more complex than our personal perspective.

On the surface, this might seem harmless.

But the consequences are often profound.

Once we’ve decided that “this is how it is,” and that conclusion doesn’t actually reflect reality, we create a distorted foundation for everything else we think, feel, and decide within that area. When the starting point is wrong, every thought, choice, and action that follows will also be misaligned — again and again.

This can create far-reaching ripple effects across our relationships, our work, our health, our self-image, and even the direction of our life.

Healing the Almighty syndrome is therefore about far more than adjusting opinions. It is about cultivating humility, wisdom, and an open mind.

It means daring to say: “I honestly don’t know — but I’m willing to learn.”

This simple shift opens the door to growth, love, genuine dialogue, and deeper insight. It makes us more capable of following the Path of the Heart — and of seeing reality as it truly is, not just as we assume it to be.

For a deeper exploration of this topic, I recommend my book Beyond Positive Psychology: A Journey From Burnout to Enlightenment and the article “The Almighty Syndrome – The Art of Accepting What We Do Not Know.” (Coming soon)

7. Become a Master at Healing Perfectionism

Perfectionism has become one of the great modern afflictions — a quiet epidemic affecting people of all ages.

Everywhere we turn, we are bombarded with ideals of how things should be: the perfect body, the perfect home, the perfect career, the perfect family, the perfect relationship — even the perfect leisure time.

In our culture, perfection has become a kind of modern currency, and many people feel their worth is measured by how polished their life appears and how quickly they climb upward.

But here lies the great paradox: Perfectionism is an illusion.

A shimmering mirage on the horizon — one that disappears the moment we try to grasp it. What does “perfect” even mean? Who decides it? And why do we believe our value depends on achieving something that can’t be defined, measured, or even truly achieved?

The pursuit of perfection drains joy, creativity, spontaneity, and authentic connection — replacing them with stress, shame, pressure, and a constant sense of not being enough.

Healing perfectionism is not about lowering your standards or abandoning your goals.

It is about freeing yourself from the exhausting chase for something that can never be reached — and returning to the heart, to joy, and to the deeply human truth that we are meant to be wonderfully imperfect.

When you finally set down the weight of perfectionism, something remarkable happens:

– a deeper inner calm emerges

– genuine self-acceptance grows

– you regain the freedom to simply be yourself

– and you reconnect with life as it truly is — not as it “should” be

If you want a more practical and in-depth guide to breaking the cycle of perfectionism, I recommend the article “Struggling with Perfectionism? Learn Why You Can Never Achieve It — And How to Free Yourself from the Chase.” (Coming soon)

«If you seek perfection, you will never be satisfied.»

Leo Tolstoj

8. Become a Master at Understanding and Embracing Nature’s Healing Rhythms

Nature holds an ancient treasury of wisdom — rhythms, cycles, and principles that gently guide us toward a healthier, happier, and more meaningful life. When we look closely at Indigenous cultures that have lived free from Western dogma, moral rigidity, and modern performance pressure, we discover something remarkable:

Depression, anxiety, and chronic illness are almost nonexistent.

How is that possible?

The answer is as simple as it is profound: They still live in harmony with nature’s rhythms.

In these cultures, life rests on a sustainable, life-affirming balance:

• a natural flow between activity and rest
• a pace that follows the seasons — slower in winter, more vibrant in spring and summer
• strong bonds within the tribe, family, and community
• and a deep respect for nature as pantry, medicine, and teacher

This stands in striking contrast to the modern world, where natural rhythms have slowly been erased. With technology and artificial light, we can stay “on” around the clock, pushing ourselves to meet goals and expectations that often have little connection to who we truly are — or why we are here.

When we lose touch with nature’s rhythms, we lose touch with our own.

But when we return — when we begin to listen again to the seasons, the light, the darkness, the stillness, and all that nature communicates — something profoundly healing begins to unfold.

Good rhythms create good lives.

And nature’s rhythms are the healthiest teachers we have.

For more inspiration and practical guidance, I recommend the articles “Forest Bathing Is Our Most Important Medicine” and “The Art of Living According to Nature’s Healthy Rhythms.”

9. Become a Master at Understanding and Living Your Soul’s Desires and Life Mission

Your soul did not enter this life by accident. It chose the human experience deliberately — to learn, to grow, and to encounter things that do not exist in its original state, where time, space, conflict, limitation, suffering, and even the taste of a strawberry simply don’t exist.

Here — in a body, in daily life, in relationships, in the choices you make — your soul gains the opportunity to explore the richness and depth of existence in ways that would otherwise be impossible.

When the soul incarnates, it steps into a kind of constraint: the limitations of space, time, karma, the physical body, and free will.

This is not a mistake. It is the very purpose of incarnation. Your soul did not come here to accumulate money, titles, or status.

It came to learn.

To experience.

To grow in alignment with its life mission.

The modern world understands very little of this. As a result, many people feel empty, restless, or unfulfilled, even when they have everything society tells them to strive for.

When we are not living in alignment with the soul’s mission, we lose touch with our inner meaning.

For deeper insight into this, I recommend the article “The Secrets Behind Death and Reincarnation – What Happens After Death?”

The Path of the Heart Is More Than Love

Following the Path of the Heart is not about “being in love” in a sentimental or romantic sense — as it is often portrayed in spiritual circles. It is a deep, honest, transformative process in which you gradually free yourself from the ego’s fears, resistance, and ingrained patterns, allowing the soul to express itself more fully through your life.

When you engage authentically with this path, life can change in ways that are profound, beautiful, and beyond what the intellect can imagine.

I have experienced this myself — and I have witnessed the same transformation in countless students over the years.

You Don’t Have to Walk This Path Alone

Discovering and living your soul’s mission is one of life’s greatest and most meaningful undertakings — but also one of the most challenging.

It is extremely difficult to do alone, because the ego’s fear creates strong mechanisms designed to prevent any form of change.

That’s why I warmly recommend seeking a trustworthy, competent guide or spiritual teacher who can support you, mirror you, and help you navigate the journey.

The path is not always easy, but the rewards are immense:

• clarity
• meaning
• inner peace
• abundance
• joy and delight
• direction
• and a life that feels true all the way to your core

This is the gift of living your soul’s mission — and the essence of the Path of the Heart.

Why the Path of the Heart Is Essential for a Shaman

For a shaman, the Path of the Heart is not just important – it is absolutely essential.

A shaman never works alone. All true shamanic practice is a collaboration between the human and the beings of light: angels, power animals, spiritual helpers, and other consciousnesses that vibrate at the frequency of the heart.

They are the ones who empower our rituals.

They are the ones who carry us through the shamanic dreamworld.

They open the doors to the upper and lower worlds.

They support healing, liberation, insight, and transformation.

They make runic forces, ritual magic, and mystical knowledge accessible.

But these beings of light will never collaborate with a shaman who is guided by the darker qualities of the ego — fear, the need for control, hunger for power, or the desire to harm.

They only support actions that align with their own nature: love, integrity, compassion, clarity, and truth.

This is why the heart is the shaman’s true compass. When a shaman steps away from the Path of the Heart, there is only one remaining option: to rely on dark magic.

Dark magic works by manipulating life force – one’s own or that of others – often including the energy of animals or plants. This form of fear-based magic has nothing to do with the primordial shamanism I teach at Yggdrasil Shaman School.

It stands in direct opposition to the principles of the heart and always leads to imbalance, distortion, and harmful consequences for both the practitioner and everyone around them.

For a deeper exploration of these mechanics, I recommend the article: “Shamanic Magic – A Glimpse Behind the Mystical Veil of Magic”

The Path of the Heart in Practice

At Yggdrasil Shaman School, the Path of the Heart is both foundation and compass.

You cannot grow as a shaman without authentically dedicating yourself to the qualities of the heart. It is only by living these qualities — not merely understanding them intellectually — that you open the doors to greater power, deeper insight, and a more profound collaboration with the beings of light.

One of the most effective ways to do this is through the 9 Pillars of the Path of the Heart.

When you actively practice these pillars in daily life – in your relationships, your communication, your decisions, and the way you meet each moment — something fundamental begins to shift:

• the ego stops ruling
• the soul steps forward
• and you become a channel for light rather than fear

The only true measure of whether someone walks the Path of the Heart is not what they say – but how they live:

• how they treat their partner, family, and children
• how they meet colleagues and friends
• how they speak about others
• how they express themselves online

All of this reveals the intention behind every action.

Shamanic Death — When the Ego Steps Down from the Throne

In shamanism, this transformation is called shamanic death. It is the profound inner process where the ego moves from being the soul’s ruler to becoming the soul’s advisor.

This shift is one of the most important milestones on a shaman’s path. It determines, to a large degree, how far you can go – in power, in insight, and in inner freedom.

For a deeper exploration of this, I recommend my podcast “The Journey to Self-Realization” (coming soon in English) – especially:

• Episode 15: Fear of Death & the Collapse Before Transformation – How to Return to Life When the Soul Demands Change (coming soon in English)
• Episode 16: Primordial Fear, Fear-Shamanism & the Nervous System – How to Return to Inner Safety (coming soon in English)

For Shamanic Teachers, the Path of the Heart Is Even More Essential

You cannot guide others into the light if you yourself are standing in shadow.

A teacher who is driven by ego will inevitably create a culture of fear, jealousy, competition, gossip, drama, and insecurity. The energy of the leader becomes the energy of the group — always.

That is why the Path of the Heart is not optional for a shamanic teacher.

It is the foundation, the ethical backbone, the compass that ensures your leadership opens rather than closes, heals rather than harms, elevates rather than suppresses.

The Path of the Heart as the Cornerstone of All Teaching

At Yggdrasil Shaman School, the Path of the Heart stands as an unshakable pillar – the ground everything else rests upon.

Again and again, I have witnessed how students who open themselves to this way of living experience profound transformation — often within just a few weeks.

Life becomes lighter. Relationships grow warmer. Clarity deepens. Inner power strengthens. Because when the heart opens,

the entire universe opens with it.

«Give every day the chance to become the most beautiful day of your life.»

Mark Twain

More Articles on Shamanism

You’ll find a collection of the shamanic articles I’ve published gathered on this page — ready for you to explore, deepen og discover even more.