In his third drum guide, Shamanic Drumming: Calling the Spirits, Michael Drake recounts his journey into shamanic practice and explores what someone should do if they feel the call to become a shaman. Following up on his definitive handbook on shamanic drumming, The Shamanic Drum, the author provides a new series of exercises and lessons that allow for a deeper understanding and utilization of this core shamanic practice. He has written a guide to becoming a shamanic healer that encompasses the power of the drum, of community, and of the accountability inherent in authentic shamanic practice. This empowering book is a call to build relationships with helping spirits. Spirit helpers are the caretakers in the unseen world who want to support the earth and her inhabitants at this time. They are here to teach us how to gather wisdom from the spiritual realms, the natural world, the past, the present and the future in order to give birth to new ways of being. The shamanic relationship between humans and helping spirits supports our spirit's quest for self-realization. The spirits are here to assist us in doing the principal, unique thing we have come here to do in a way that benefits all living things.