It is called a sastun in Maya and is powerful, magical, and necessary to be considered a shaman in the Yucatan. It is extremely rare. In all my years of working with the Maya, I have only seen ONE!
It is a bit like a crystal ball too! But the very cool thing is, YOU can look through it with the help of the shaman and you will see what HE sees! This is not the kind of magic where they tell you not to look behind the curtain. In fact, Don Francisco loves to teach about it and show you how it works so you can see it for yourself!
So, what is a sastun shaman stone?
Well, the one owned by Don Francisco, our good friend who is a generational Maya yerbatero/healer/shaman is a beautiful aqua color and is shaped like a stone egg. He uses it to see your energy, among other things (which we will get to) It is translucent and he looks at you through it when he does your healing session. While it is not in use, the sastun or shaman stone soaks in a cup filled with rum on a simple but profound altar. You can see it in the photo here. It looks like it's floating, but it is being supported by a clear quartz crystal.
What does he see?
He might see a dark shadow over your head or under your feet. He sometimes sees a grey cloud around you. The cloud can be one one side of your body or cover the top half of your body. Sometimes there is a white light line attached to your body. It can be under your arm and attached to your side. The shaman might also see a cross which can be black or white and can be upright or lying on its side. He can even see your image upside down!
What do the images mean?
Don Francisco understands the messages these images give him and uses them to tell you what is going on with you. An image can mean that you have a negative energy attached to you. It can mean there is a negative energy, like a mal viento or mala vibra, that is bothering you, but not attached to you. It can show him a physical illness or injury, even an old injury. It can illuminate bad luck or curses placed on you. It can tell him about your dreams, your energy level, and your emotional state. It can even tell him what is in your future!
What does he do with the information?
Based on the information Don Francisco gains by looking at your through the sastun, he will apply a healing method like give you a tea, do acupuncture with a snake tooth, do massage with a special stone, do a physical adjustment. He may also chant in Mayan to do some type of magic like break a curse, change your luck, bring you blessings and good luck, even help you manifest what you desire.
What ELSE can he do with the shaman stone?
Great question! He can look into the earth where the ceremonial tamales are cooking buried in a pit and wrapped in banana leaves. He can check to see if they are done. Once when I was at his home, they were cooking tamales for the Cha’a Chak Ceremony to ask for rain. Don Francisco and his sister were not in agreement about whether the banana-leaf-wrapped offerings were done. So, Don Francisco just got out the sastun and looked. He let her look too and they agreed that the ones at the bottom where done but the ones at the top needed more time to cook!
He can also look at a place far away and see what is happening there too. Once he saw me driving in my car heading to his house. I didn’t have a way to call him and let him know I was coming, but when I arrived, he had already prepared for my arrival and had a gift ready for me!
Are we learning more about the shaman stone?
I don’t know what else he can do with this powerful artifact, but next time I visit him, I will ask! Every time we visit Don Francisco, we learn more about Maya healing modalities and the shaman stone. It is an important part of the work we are doing, learning about and recording the amazing wisdom and magic of the modern Maya people. They have so much to share with a hurting world!
Perhaps, you might even want to join us!
Hugs and butterflies
laura