To a shaman, the world accessed through dreams and visions is no more real than the world we traverse through daily. To differentiate between the two worlds, the shaman will refer to the dreamworld and the waking world.

Unlike western culture, which sees the waking world as more important, the shaman gives equal credence to the insights gained in the dreamworld and the knowledge learned in the waking world. Likewise, since neither world is seen as being more "real" than the other, the experiences lived in both those worlds are valued equally.

Most of us have been taught to disregard the insight from dreams in favor of the wisdom of the waking world, where the concrete and the provable reign. Yet, many times our waking world experiences are just as bewildering and seemingly nonsensial as our dreamworld experiences.

Just what is the nature of this waking world? What is reality? The selections in this issue explore that issue, navigating the sometimes deceptive, sometimes absurd realities of the waking world.

 

Alyce Wilson, Wild Violet editor