Gabrielle Roth - Maps to Ecstasy: A Healing Journey for the Untamed Spirit

Gabrielle Roth is a unique and inspirational teacher, and this book is filled with her presence and her wisdom. I find Maps to Ecstasy fascinating, powerful, and delightful....

Gabrielle Roth is one of the most astounding beings alive and moving on the planet today. Her story and method move beyond ordinary definitions.

A wonderful and inspiring book that can lead people to a new level of understanding and give them the courage to follow their dreams.

I love Gabrielles unique, poetic, down-home, funky style. She has been a constant inspiration to us creative people around the world. Maps to Ecstasy opens the door to living an ecstatic life.

Whether we live in urban or rural environments, our task is to remember and use the inherent instincts, rhythms, and intelligences available to us. Gabrielle Roth identifies these aspects of human nature and shows how we can apply perennial wisdom in contemporary times. Many books talk about shamanism; this one gives the reader an experience of shamanism.

Gabrielle Roth dances timeless wisdom to the rhythms of today and tomorrow. Maps to Ecstasy is a moving, inspiring, and vivid experience from one of the worlds greatest teachers....

Gabrielle Roths book is a joy, a truly moving experience from a very fine teacher. It is both fun to read and immensely instructive. Dont expect to finish the book in a couple of sittingskeep it around and work with it over time like an old friend FIVE STARS FOR GABRIELLE ROTH AND MAPS TO ECSTASY.

Youre in the desert. The raven comes down and talks to you in a dry, ancient voice. Dont mind the wordsyou recognize the voice. You knew it before you were born. Thats Gabrielle.

Gabrielle Roth is a woman of power. In Maps to Ecstasy she takes us on a mythic journey through our lives and points the way to true balance. She challenges us to move and empowers us with the tools to dance our own dance.

This book of impassioned, dancing wisdom teachings will delight you. As the saintly Mr. Gurdjieff might have said, Gabrielle Roth is a human being not in quotation marks.

Nataraj Publishing A Division of

New world Library 14 Pamaron Way Novato, CA 94949

Revised edition 1998 by Gabrielle Roth

Original edition 1989 by Gabrielle Roth

Permissions acknowledgments are on page 213

Cover design: Michele Wetherbee

Cover illustration: Paul Heussenstamm

Interior design: Aaron Kenedi

All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other, without written permission from the publisher.

The author of this book does not dispense medical advice nor prescribe the use of any technique as a form of treatment for physical or mental problems without the advice of a physician either directly or indirectly. In the event you use any of the information in this book, neither the author nor the publisher can assume any responsibility for your actions. The intent of the author is only to offer information of a general nature to help you in your quest for personal growth.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available upon request

Roth, Gabrielle, 1941-

Maps to ecstasy : a healing journey for the untamed spirit / Gabrielle Roth.

--Rev. ed.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 1-57731-045-4 (alk. paper)

1. Shamanism. 2. Mental healing. 3. Shamans. I. Title.

First printing, October 1998

ISBN 1-57731-045-4

Printed in Canada on acid-free, recycled paper.

Distributed to the trade by Publishers Group West

10 9 8 7

I guess it would be easy to write acknowledgments if I only owed a little to a few people, but my life and work have been touched so deeply by so many. In general, I have received something from everyone Ive ever worked with. My most important teachers have been my students. I can only lead by following and they have always taken me exactly where I needed to go.

I am deeply indebted to my whole family. Especially to my father, for initiating me into the art of living and of dying. To my mother, for her constant flow of unconditional love and support. To my husband, Rob, there are no words to convey how profoundly he has served the development of my work in general and this book in particular. I thank him for being my best friend, wisest teacher, and constant collaborator the one who dances with me through all the changes. And to my son, Jonathan, for being my deepest pipeline to my real self I am honored to be his mom, and often humbled by his wisdom, some of which has made it to the pages of this book.

I am also indebted to Oscar Ichazo for teaching me how to tell the difference between who I am and who I am not. I could not have written Chapters Three and Four of this book without his teachings.

My deepest thanks to the Mirrors, kindred spirits with whom I worked and performed daily for three years, and whose courage, honesty, and commitment in stripping down their psyches and performing their pain enabled me to develop the material in Chapter Four. These warriors of Ritual Theater gave life to a whole new level of my work. Thank you. Jay and Amber Kaplan, Martha Clark Peabody, Elliot Sobel, Melissa Rosenberg, Robert Ansell, Ma Prem Lolita, Nirvesha, Bonita Mugnani, and Bobby Miller.