And so it is this, we might say, that defines a shaman; the ability to readily slip out of the collective perceptual boundaries that define his or her culture—boundaries held in place by social customs, taboos, and especially the common language—in order to directly engage, and negotiate with, the multiple nonhuman sensibilities that animate the local earth.

~ David Abram

Bryce Canyon National Park, UT – photo by RuslanKphoto, bigstockphoto.com