Why We're Here

Some people are born carrying an unequal amount of the emotional and energetic weight of their families. These people often grow up to be the black sheep of the family. They are left-out, misunderstood, called “weird” and criticized for not fitting into the norm.

In intact cultures, these are the people that would be recognized during childhood as the future healers, seers, shamans, and spiritual guides of their communities. They would be given a place to grow their gifts of insight, courage, compassion, and their capacity to interact with the Other World on behalf of their village and those they loved. Their natural gifts would be respected, cultivated, and they would become the healers and seers of their communities.

In our culture these people, the would-be wounded healers, often end up feeling alone, isolated, misunderstood. The immense emotional burden that they carry on their own can, and often does, lead them to anxiety, depression, addiction, and suicide.

Tending the Fires is a community and a movement dedicated to changing that.

We are committed to giving the would-be wounded healers the skills to:

Develop your natural healing abilities
Heal personal, ancestral, and intergenerational trauma
Overcome addictions and self-destructive patterns
Learn to guide others through their recovery and healing process
Become part of an awesome community of healers-in-training
Transform your life and the lives of your loved ones

Heal Your Wounds

Cultivate Your Gifts

Transform Your Life

Who this is not for:

People that are not committed to changing their lives
People that want others to “heal” them
People that think spiritual growth is “woo-woo,” “airy-fairy,” or worse…that it’s easy
People that don’t have respect for the experiences of other people, cultures, or traditions
People that are just trying to look cool or get laid by pretending to be shamans
People that aren’t ready to invest in their personal growth

Horned shaman with tambourine. Concept of meditation, dance and entrancement.Ethnic little

This community is dedicated to helping people grow on physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual levels. We are here to build ourselves according to our original blueprint, by stripping away all the bullshit that we’ve been told we’re supposed to be in order to get to the essence of who we truly are. In the process, we build and become an incredible community.

That’s awesome, so, what is shamanism…

Shamanism is a relatively-recently used term that applies to all types of healers and seers from different cultures around the world. Originally, the word shaman comes from “saman,” in the Tungusic languages of what is now Eastern Siberia. A shaman is a person that uses different techniques to enter altered states of consciousness in order to journey to other realms to find spiritual guidance or assistance. Sometimes this guidance or assistance is with the intention of healing or helping someone else heal. Sometimes it is in order to find out what direction to take in life in order to grow or thrive.

Wait, altered states of consciousness, does that mean we’re getting high?

Nope. Not in the sense most people mean it, anyway. We enter altered states of consciousness all the time. We will just do it consciously, without the use of any drugs or external stimulants. We will access altered states of consciousness through dreaming practices, drumming, meditation, and breathwork.

But don’t shamans use hallucinogens to have visions?

Some do, but not all. We will talk about these types of shamanism and explain a lot about their cultural context and their relationship to psychotropic plants. It is very different than how modern westerners (us) understand drugs, trips, or getting high. But, we won’t be doing that.

Will I have to do weird shit?

Let’s face it, if you’ve read this far, we are the weirdos. Welcome home. And nothing weirder than having to live a life you have to numb yourself from because you work a job you hate so you can buy things you don’t need to impress people you don’t like. But mostly, we’ll be learning, breathing, meditating, and healing unconscious wounds that make us do painful, destructive shit to ourselves.

Is this a cult?

Sorry, but we’ve got no Kool-Aid for ya. This isn’t about dogmas, telling you what to believe, shaving your head, or chopping off your…uh, anything. What we do is teach you tangible tools that you can use to develop a much deeper connection with the world you live in, both internally and externally. These are tools of consciousness, it’s up to you to use them and come up with your own results.

Is this a religion?

Nope, not that again, either. Personally, the limitations and judgmental aspects of religion make me get all itchy and break out in hives. You can believe what you want to believe and still apply these tools for elevating your consciousness. It’s about the personal freedom that comes with taking personal responsibility. For your experiences, emotions, and your life.

TESTIMONIALS

THESE TEACHINGS HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO IMPACT YOUR LIFE IN INCREDIBLE AND EXTRAORDINARY WAYS. HOWEVER, AS WITH ANY LIFE-CHANGING PRACTICE OR TOOL, IT WILL CHALLENGE YOUR COMFORT LEVELS, FEARS, AND AUTHENTICITY.

SAGRARIO RODRIGUEZ

THE GUY WHO ORCHESTRATES THE WHOLE THING IS ONE WHO CAN BE TRUSTED TO HOLD A SAFE SPACE FOR EVERYONE, AND WHO IS SINCERELY INTERESTED IN HELPING OTHERS WHO WANT TO HELP. THEMSELVES GROW AND DEVELOP INTO WHO THEY ARE MEANT TO BE (OR, WHO THEY REALLY ARE? HAH). NO GIMMICKS, SCAMS, OR BULLSHIT. IT'S WORTH THE MONEY.

SYLVIA RIDPATH

About Oscar

Shamanic Healing & Breathwork Facilitator

For over the last 20 years, I have successfully guided people to overcome inner struggles with self-doubt, depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and addiction through breathwork facilitation and shamanic counseling. I am a Transformational Breathwork Facilitator, Strategic Intervention Coach, Toltec Wisdom Teacher, and have a PhD from Brown University, where I studied cross-cultural approaches to how storytelling and ritual help people overcome trauma around the world.

Ready to become part of the community?

Great! Here’s how it works:

Once you sign up, here’s what you get:

Access to the Private Tending the Fires Online Community
2 Video Lessons on Breathwork/Meditation Practices to get you started
Weekly Live Zoom Breathwork Groups
Weekly Teachings on Shamanic Tools for Healing and Exploration
A Monthly Group Q&A Zoom Call with Me
Access to more TTF Courses and Experiences

You have two options for signing up, a monthly or a yearly subscription.

MONTHLY: $97/month

YEARLY: $997/year (that’s over 15% off the monthly cost)

JOIN US HERE - MONTHLY

JOIN US HERE - YEARLY