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The shaman of the three brothers

The Trois Freres caves in France hold some fascinating images. This is a brief discussion around those paintings. What was its meaning?

Cave paintings exert a powerful fascination. They are one of our most direct ways of touching our ancestors. Those men and women who lived by primitive means would have been more aware of the world around them than we are. The nature of their lives would have made them more in touch with the seasons and patterns of life. Life and death depended on his knowledge of food supplies and seasonal variations. Was this the reason for the cave paintings?

Deep in the Trois Freres (Three Brothers) caves in France, the visitor can see vague ancient images of figures and animals. One of these figures in particular has attracted international attention. It is believed by many to be one of the earliest depictions of a shaman.

When I first saw the images of these caves in France I was struck by their graphic nature. The images of cattle and other beasts that surround the central figure high on the cave ceiling are now vague but cleverly drawn.

The central figure is approximately 2 and a half feet or 70 cm tall. His appearance is strange, part animal part human. On his head are deer antlers, probably reindeer, his mask has owl eyes underneath this there appears to be a long beard. His hands are hidden inside the paws of a lion or a bear. The back is shaped like an animal, does it carry an animal sin? The tail is that of a fox covering his erect penis.

My copy of Animal Master is at http://www.mask-and-more-masks.com/The-Shaman-of-Trois-Freres.html

Around this figure there are many comments and speculations as to its true nature. It is generally accepted that it is a figure in an animal mask and costume. That it has some spiritual/magical meaning to the animals around it makes sense. He is also widely thought to be a shaman.

Below the shaman is a plethora of animals drawn one on top of the other. Almost like a drawing pad. I know sometimes I draw this way. I try shapes and forms that sometimes flow from the pencil other times it seems much more difficult to achieve the effect I want. As I type, the page fills with overlapping images too busy to handle. Ideas and notation. A place to return to in the future to rework a captured image.

But that’s me and maybe many other artists today. What about the artist in the darkness of those caves? These images created, was it 14,000 years ago or more? Who really knows?

Can we assume that these artists of the paleolithic period did not have the same mentality as they do now? Art for us is a process of recording, of expression, a reflection of our inner nature and sometimes of the divine. What were these artists expressing or communicating?

Let us accept one thing before continuing in this sense. It would seem that some natural talent was used by the artist in these times as the quality of the painting and the use of line show. Figures were often enhanced with color sprayed through a tube, the paint blown from the mouth. Were these artists part of the magical process or were they paid in some way? Did they come from within the tribe or from elsewhere? Was it the shaman who created the art for his own rituals?

Most of these questions are impossible to answer. What is possible is to use the knowledge we have of indigenous peoples and their traditions.

The shaman or healer or priest/holy man/woman is a figure that still exists today in some cultures. In fact, shamanic knowledge is being passed down to certain members of Western cultures. Shamanic practices have been well documented by anthropologists for the last 150 years.

Shamanic practices throughout the world have several characteristics in common. The shaman is a link to the spirit world. By entering a trance, the shaman enters the other world and communicates with the spirits of animals or ancestors. These spirit guides help the shaman solve problems for individuals or entire groups. The spirit world is divided into three sections.

middle earth where we live

The land of the underworld of spirits and the dead.

The Upper World the place of the Gods and Guardians

To reach a state of trance, the shaman has several methods, the main ones being dance, meditation and drugs. When he enters the other world, the shaman seeks out his spirit guide to help solve the search for him.

In these early times, as in more recent recorded events, the shaman communicated with the spirits of animals that would be or had been killed. It was necessary to maintain a balance in the order of nature. In times of scarcity he communicated with the spirits to help him bring food to his people. In times of drought he sang asking for rain.

This still doesn’t answer the question why these images are hidden deep in a dark cave away from prying eyes. When the shaman enters a trance, he begins the journey to the underworld, the cave could well represent that journey. The images on the walls are the images seen on the trip. This could simply be a way of recording a spiritual journey. A way to hold images. It could even be used as a teaching device for new initiates. Maybe that’s why there are so many overlapping animals.

Can you imagine the impact of such paintings on the uninitiated who visit the cave? In the dim light, the images would have been clearer and brighter than today. The shaman might as well have been dressed like the image. The drum would be beating. The incense might as well be burning. Undoubtedly, a great scenario in which to induce hallucinatory experiences, or if you prefer, induce the beginning of a trip to the world of spirits.

There are many other representations of what have been called Animal Masters in caves in Europe and Asia. They are linked to the horned and antlered figures of Norse mythology and Pan in Greek mythology. Whatever the true explanation is, you can let your imagination run wild over the possibilities and it will certainly add to my speculation.

Bibliography

Spirit and art of Van James: paleo-shamanic iconography View [http://www.theosophical.org/questmagazine/janfeb04/james]

George Frazer The Golden Bough

Nevill Drury The Shaman and the Magician

Michael Harner The Way of the Shaman

©Ian Bracegirdle 2005 http://www.mask-and-more-masks.com

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