Ecstatic Healing: A Journey Into the Shamanic World of Spirit Possession and Miraculous Medicine

Margaret De Wys recounts her decades-long path into spirit possession, mediumship, and physical healing. Starting with a childhood fascination watching Holy Rollers, her exploration begins in earnest thirty years later in Upstate New York when she experiences a sudden possession triggered by a sacred Zulu necklace. This event propels her to seek out legendary practitioners across two continents. In Brazil, De Wys spends years at the Casa of famous healer John of God (João de Deus), observing psychic surgery and experiencing ecstatic visions. Her search leads her to Umbanda possession rituals led by Pai Lazaro, where she discovers her capacity as a medium for African deities, and eventually to Credo's Healing Village in Africa following a call received in her dreams. The narrative combines personal memoir with direct accounts of shamanic rituals and spirit possession. De Wys draws directly on her firsthand apprenticeships with high shaman Vusamazulu Credo Mutwa and John of God, detailing the practical reality of psychic surgery alongside African spirit traditions. As a practitioner who experienced these states directly over years of spiritual service, De Wys writes from inside the rituals rather than as an outside observer. She outlines how individuals possess an inherent capacity for self-healing through ecstatic states. This title suits readers seeking detailed, firsthand accounts of African shamanism, Umbanda traditions, and Brazilian faith healing. It is less suited to those looking for a theoretical analysis or an instructional step-by-step manual, as the text focuses on personal biography and lived ritual experience.