New Age teachings are attracting
a growing following as we search
for meaning in life

By Kimberly Fu
Illustration by Kip Aoki
Star-Bulletin

Used to be that those who adhered to New Age concepts were fringe types carrying around crystals and building medicine wheels in the Arizona deserts.

But as the new millennium approaches, more and more people are beginning to explore New Age teachings, latching onto gurus -- witness the recent hoo-ha over Deepak Chopra -- and shedding traditional beliefs.

The New Age movement "has been around for a number of years already. But now, the general population is beginning to take more of an interest," says Carol Morishige of the Inward Healing Center in Honolulu.

"People want to learn more to have more choices. It comes down to empowerment, to taking (personal) responsibility," she says.

So where medical doctors, religion, family and friends once provided reassurance and guidance, things New Age now seem all the rage.

"These are not new concepts. People are just kind of renewing their faith," said Malia Johnson, owner of Sedona in Ward Centre.

"It's the mass consciousness now ... It's something people are looking for to add meaning to their lives."

Said psychologist Virginia Fine: "I think people are just searching for something that will work, and they've given up on anything conventional."

What New Age followers could also be looking for is a spark of hope in a time of darkness, with the island's economy down and unemployment on the rise, violence ruling the streets and no obvious safe havens in sight.

"It's encouraging people to find their own path, their own way in life," Johnson said. "It doesn't really have a gender, race or religion."

Johnson said clients are acutely experiencing the growing tightness in their wallets, although business at Sedona has more than doubled since its opening in 1988. They seem to be searching more for quality instead of quantity, she added.

"People don't have much money, and the things they do buy tend to be more

thoughtful, inspirational -- things with meaning behind them."

Janet Somers, assistant manager of East of Sun-West of Moon in Ward Warehouse, said crystals offer her a lot of healing power, usually at little or no cost.

"I have 20 of them," Somers said. "Some I bought, some were given to me, some I found ... They are very special." One crystal was given to her on a trip to Peru. The stone, Somer's companion said, called to him, telling him it belonged with her.

Somers said people will be attracted by certain crystals, that specific crystals are waiting for each person. "They come to you, most of the time unexpectedly," she said. "And you are drawn to them."

Elixirs made of soaking certain crystals in water have strong healing powers, as do special carrying bags worn close to the body, Somers said.

A student of shamanism, a religion focusing on spirituality and healing, Somers said she believes New Age beliefs and practices can help turn lives around and put people on the path to spiritual freedom.

But does New Age technology really help followers find spiritual healing? Or is it a fad to be lost and replaced sometime in the distant future?

"It's not like a Band-Aid, a quick fix," said Morishige.

Morishige said the Inward Healing Center plays host to a variety of patrons each day, from families to business people, from teen-age skateboarders to New Age followers, from the elderly to the homeless.

They all come for the same reason, to attempt to take control of their own lives, to finally have a hand it what happens, Morishige said.

"I guess almost anything that helps people to read their uncertain future is a comfort," said psychologist Dr. Nancy Knight. Knight added that she doesn't personally believe in New Age miracles, but said studies have proven that they have happened.

"We all need spiritual healing," Knight said. "We get it through prayer, through meditation, through being outside. I don't think people should ignore their spiritual side, regardless of what they have to do to help it."

---

By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
Janet Somers holds the rain stick and drum
she uses in her training as a shaman.

---

Learning the ways
of a shaman

By Kimberly Fu
Star-Bulletin

Two years of procrastination, a little nerve and one phone call.

That's what it took to make a definitive change in Janet Somers' life -- a challenging one she has never regretted.

"It really requires a lot of discipline and dedication," said Somers, who is studying to be a shaman. "There's just many times (when) I've been kicking and screaming down this path."

Somers said the study of shamanism requires time to study, to meditate, to commune with nature. Life must revolve around the religion, she said.

Five years ago, Somers found shamanism by accident. At a metaphysical fair representing the shop East of Sun -- West of Moon, where she is an assistant manager, Somers struck up a conversation with the woman in a neighboring booth, counselor and teacher Dr. Susan Gregg. Somers placed her name on Gregg's newsletter mailing list, later putting each newsletter aside for future reading.

The wait lasted for almost two years.

"One day, when I was feeling especially stressed, the newsletter came. I decided to call her (Gregg) to see what was going on." Somers said Gregg mentioned her study of shamanism and Somers gained an interest in the faith. "I was so drawn to it, I just knew it was where I was meant to be," she said.

An apprentice of three years, Somers said shamanism -- which focuses on healing and finding spirituality through personal power -- replaces a strong childhood spiritual connection that she had lost.

As a child sitting in a pew on Sundays, Somers was taken to a higher spiritual level by the beauty of the organ music and the singing of the choir. But the sermons left her flat, empty and full of unnecessary guilt.

"Shamanism is not a belief system. It is about healing and relationships," she said. "It challenges everything we think we know about everything."

Accepting the teachings was hard at first, she said, because of the religious beliefs drummed into her as a child. "My beliefs made me feel safe ... They're a structure I've been comfortable with, something I've known all my life."

Shamanism teaches that everything is energy, that the world itself and all the beings in it are also made up of energy. "There's no good, no bad, no right, no wrong. There's just energy."

Through this energy, people gain spiritual healing, guidance and, eventually, personal freedom through conscious thought. As people learn to control their emotions and derive the reasons behind actions and reactions, life becomes easier.

"It's about being able to choose moment by moment what I feel is (good) for my life," Somers said.

To be included in this level of being, personal beliefs -- considered limitations -- must be released and energy let in. "As we drop our limitations, we become unlimited beings," Somers said. "Then, miracles happen."