Explore every episode of the podcast This Wild and Precious Life | Shamanism and Animism
Dive into the complete episode list for This Wild and Precious Life | Shamanism and Animism. Each episode is cataloged with detailed descriptions, making it easy to find and explore specific topics. Keep track of all episodes from your favorite podcast and never miss a moment of insightful content.
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Title
Pub. Date
Duration
Shamanism, Animism and Being Human: Introducing the Podcast | This Wild and Precious Life, Trailer
30 Oct 2026
00:24:57
In this short trailer, Paul Francis and Isabel Wells introduce This Wild and Precious Life, a podcast about shamanism, animism and what it means to be deeply human in a beautiful, broken, living world. We say who we are, and how the podcast began, when Isabel invited Paul onto her old podcast to talk about soul retrieval and we never stopped talking. We explain our down-to-earth, embodied approach, which needs no beliefs or leaps of faith, and what we mean by animism and shamanism. We talk about arriving at the same understanding from two very different lives, forty-four years and an ocean apart, and about why we don't always agree. Then we give you a taste of the first block of twelve episodes, and of what comes with each one. Episode 1, What Is Shamanism?, is out on Friday 20 November 2026, at 6pm UK time, with a new episode every Friday after that. No beliefs or experience needed, just your curiosity.
In this trailer:
Who we are, and how the podcast came about
A down-to-earth approach, with no beliefs or leaps of faith needed
Core shamanism and core animism, the birthright of all of us
What we mean by animism and shamanism
Arriving at the same place from two very different lives
Agreeing to differ, across cultures and generations
The first twelve episodes, and what comes after them
A free companion guide with every episode
The episode titles have moved on a little since we recorded this. The up-to-date list is in the companion guide.
Chapters 00:00 Introduction 00:56 Why this trailer 01:22 Who we are 02:03 How we met, and how the podcast came about 04:28 Our approach: no beliefs needed 05:47 Core shamanism and core animism, open to all 06:30 What we mean by animism and shamanism 08:53 The same place, from two very different lives 09:59 Across cultures and generations 11:48 Agreeing to differ 13:29 The first twelve episodes 18:45 What comes after the first twelve 20:23 A companion guide with every episode 21:32 Paul's books, and Kaja's companion guide 22:29 Get in touch, and sign up 23:51 Close
E07: TIME TRAVELING: HEALING THE PAST, CHOOSING THE FUTURE with Paul Francis
24 Nov 2023
00:30:58
Welcome to episode 7 of the Three Ravens Sessions on animism, shamanic journeying and therapeutic shamanism. Today we will talk about healing the past and choosing the future. We will discuss ancestral burdens, how reality is a multiverse, and how this knowledge can empower us to live better lives and make more conscious decisions in the present.
00:00 - Intro 00:28 - What is an ancestral burden? 03:43 - Personal vs collective ancestral burdens 07:51 - Ancestral burdens vs Fort holder strategies 10:16 - We live in a multiverse! 10:54 - How do we end up in a particular reality 12:46 - We cannot change the past, but we can heal 18:42 - Past lives and shamanism 19:46 - Shamanic practices to work with the future 23:12 - Choosing the future 25:11 - Knowing what is in our control and our responsibility 26:07 - Shamanic practices we will cover in the "time travel" course 28:11 - Ongoing access and free repeats of the "time travel" course 28:42 - When will the "time travel" course run again 29:29 - What if you can't make it t
E05: TOTEM POLE (TREE OF LIFE) - SHAMANISM, CHAKRAS AND THE HUMAN BODY with Paul Francis
22 Sep 2023
00:23:08
Welcome to episode 5 of the Three Ravens Sessions on animism, shamanic journeying and therapeutic shamanism. In this episode, we're gonna talk about the tree of life, sometimes also called the totem pole and how it can help us connect with our shamanic practice in a more embodied way.
ABOUT THE TREE OF LIFE (OR TOTEM POLE) 00:28 The tree of life and its means in shamanism and animism 2:37 Is Tree of Life the same as the Totem Pole? 3:35 Why Tree of Life we teach at college is universal and not from any particular lineage 6:39 Paul and his first encounters with the Tree of Life?
CHAKRAS 10:32 What are chakras? 11:51 The exploration of each chakra and how does that contribute to building our personal inner Totem Pole
TOTEM POLE COURSE 16:07 Benefits people get from Totem Pole course - making the shamanic practice more embodied 18:20 Part of the chakra system involves the element system of ether air, fire, water and earth. This is also covered in another course - the medicine wheel - for people who have done that course already - is it worth doing the tree of life as well? 19:47 Do students need any prior knowledge of the chakra system to do the course? 20:40 Are there any other courses students need to have done before doing the three of life? 21:41 What if students can't make the live sessions? Will recordings of the session be available?
Welcome to episode 6 of the Three Ravens Sessions on animism, shamanic journeying and therapeutic shamanism. In this episode, we will explore the soul-loss - what it is, what the symptoms are, how we can heal it and more!
00:00 Intro 01:45 We are a multitude of parts 02:38 Signs of soul-loss 05:09 Causes of soul-loss 08:24 How does soul-loss happen 10:57 Where does the lost soul part go? 13:35 Reclaiming the lost soul parts 16:18 Modern soul retrieval is not a straightforward process 21:33 The process of soul retrieval 23:18 Supporting soul retrieval and preventing further soul-loss 26:22 Learning soul retrieval 28:12 Words of encouragement
E03: THE SHAMANIC WORLDS - THE HEALING POWER OF THE REALMS OF SEA, LAND, SKY & FIRE with Paul Francis
04 Oct 2022
00:30:36
In episode three of The Three Ravens Sessions, we dive deeper into the symbolism of things we encounter in shamanic journeys, going beyond just Animals, Plants and Stones and start paying attention to environments that turn up in the journeys.
-------------------------- About Paul Francis I grew up in the north of England. At the age of eighteen, I went to Lancaster University where I studied philosophy and social anthropology, primarily studying tribal (shamanic) cultures. After graduating I worked for a few years in a hospital, teaching sign language, and in my spare time studied complementary medicine, various spiritual traditions, and psychotherapy. I set up in private practice as a complementary medical practitioner and psychotherapist in the early 1980s and gradually developed my shamanic practice. Eventually, in 2007, I founded the Three Ravens College of Therapeutic Shamanism. I published the first in the "Therapeutic Shamanism" series of books.
Although retired from one-to-one work now, I continue to teach and write and develop the Therapeutic Shamanism approach. Otherwise, I lead a quiet life.
E02: SHAMANIC JOURNEYING - ENTERING THE SHAMANIC REALMS with Paul Francis
02 Sep 2022
00:36:31
In the second episode of The Three Ravens Podcawst, we dive into shamanic journeying - what it is, where we journey, how we can learn it and why it is something that can really enrich and deepen our everyday shamanic practice.
START YOUR SHAMANIC JOURNEY 📖 bestselling book series: https://www.therapeutic-shamanism.co.uk/shamanism-books/ 🌎 shamanic training: https://www.therapeutic-shamanism.co.uk/courses-overview/ 🤓 resources on shamanism: https://www.therapeutic-shamanism.co.uk/blog online community: FB: https://www.facebook.com/Therapeutic.Shamanism IG: https://www.instagram.com/therapeutic_shamanism NEWSLETTER: https://www.therapeutic-shamanism.co.uk/contact
-------------------------- About Paul Francis I grew up in the north of England. At the age of eighteen, I went to Lancaster University where I studied philosophy and social anthropology, primarily studying tribal (shamanic) cultures. After graduating I worked for a few years in a hospital, teaching sign language, and in my spare time studied complementary medicine, various spiritual traditions, and psychotherapy. I set up in private practice as a complementary medical practitioner and psychotherapist in the early 1980s and gradually developed my shamanic practice. Eventually, in 2007, I founded the Three Ravens College of Therapeutic Shamanism. I published the first in the "Therapeutic Shamanism" series of books.
Although retired from one-to-one work now, I continue to teach and write and develop the Therapeutic Shamanism approach. Otherwise, I lead a quiet life. When not working, I spend my days either on the beach or walking in the hills in beautiful North Wales where I now live, watching clouds and sunsets, gardening, cooking for my partner, holding her hand, reading, researching on the internet (there is so much I still want to learn and study!), thinking, laughing and crying, occasionally wrestling inner demons, doing nothing, in particular, talking to my guides, feeling gratitude and wonder, and gazing adoringly at my four cats.
---------------------------------- About Kaja Gulič, the host I discovered Therapeutic Shamanism via Paul's books, immediately falling in love with its grounded and experiential approach. When the college moved the courses online, someone needed to step in to hold the digital space for the growing online community, and here we are! 🙂
When I am not running after my three kids, you can find me at the piano or wrapped in a cosy blanket with a book in my hands. I love to connect with like-minded people, so if you want to chat, get in touch on the college's socials!
E01: WHAT IS SHAMANISM, AND HOW CAN WE MAKE IT RELEVANT FOR THE PRESENT TIME with Paul Francis
02 Sep 2022
00:39:29
In episode one of The Three Ravens Sessions, we explore what shamanism is, how it differs from animism, how psychotherapy can contribute, and why we need shamanic practices back in our modern world.
START YOUR SHAMANIC JOURNEY 📖 bestselling book series: https://www.therapeutic-shamanism.co.uk/shamanism-books/ 🌎 shamanic training: https://www.therapeutic-shamanism.co.uk/courses-overview/ 🤓 resources on shamanism: https://www.therapeutic-shamanism.co.uk/blog online community: FB: https://www.facebook.com/Therapeutic.Shamanism IG: https://www.instagram.com/therapeutic_shamanism NEWSLETTER: https://www.therapeutic-shamanism.co.uk/contact
-------------------------- About Paul Francis I grew up in the north of England. At the age of eighteen, I went to Lancaster University where I studied philosophy and social anthropology, primarily studying tribal (shamanic) cultures. After graduating I worked for a few years in a hospital, teaching sign language, and in my spare time studied complementary medicine, various spiritual traditions, and psychotherapy. I set up in private practice as a complementary medical practitioner and psychotherapist in the early 1980s and gradually developed my shamanic practice. Eventually, in 2007, I founded the Three Ravens College of Therapeutic Shamanism. I published the first in the "Therapeutic Shamanism" series of books.
Although retired from one-to-one work now, I continue to teach and write and develop the Therapeutic Shamanism approach. Otherwise, I lead a quiet life. When not working, I spend my days either on the beach or walking in the hills in beautiful North Wales where I now live, watching clouds and sunsets, gardening, cooking for my partner, holding her hand, reading, researching on the internet (there is so much I still want to learn and study!), thinking, laughing and crying, occasionally wrestling inner demons, doing nothing, in particular, talking to my guides, feeling gratitude and wonder, and gazing adoringly at my four cats.
---------------------------------- About Kaja Gulič, the host I discovered Therapeutic Shamanism via Paul's books, immediately falling in love with its grounded and experiential approach. When the college moved the courses online, someone needed to step in to hold the digital space for the growing online community, and here we are! 🙂
When I am not running after my three kids, you can find me at the piano or wrapped in a cosy blanket with a book in my hands. I love to connect with like-minded people, so if you want to chat, get in touch on the college's socials!