The Animal Spirit Medicine One –Year Training guided me deeply within myself, into a place of ancient familiarity and trust, a source of guidance and knowing, a place of potential and celebration. The year took me full circle, teaching me that I am all I need and want to be, already, it is simply a matter of seeing, hearing, believing.
Alice Bacon
Veterinary Student
The Way of the Melissae workshop and the training Arte Triptych Melissae have introduced me to spiritual practices that are staggering in their beauty, power and scope. Their effects reverberate throughout my spirit, psyche and body, rippling out through my life. I am changed as a result, peeling off the layers of myself and in turn, opening to layers of the Universe hitherto unknown. As important as the impact of these teachings has been on me as an individual, the group undergoing the training together also has developed into a true sisterhood; a cradle of support and nourishment upon which we can, and do, rely heavily. We have been held, and deftly led through these exquisite teachings by two beautiful and loving women whose ability to teach a diverse group of individuals never fails to inspire us all. They in turn are supported by an ancient lineage that feeds, sustains and directs the instruction. I can barely measure, much less describe, the value I place on this experience, which I know will continue to unfold throughout my life. I would not have missed a single moment of it for the world. And throughout all, the humming of the mighty honeybee leads us through her infinitesimal dance, a celebration of life and death.
Dr Patricia Coates
Microbiologist
After reading Simon’s book The Shamanic Way of the Bee, I knew from my heart that the next steps of my life path would be woven around the way of the Melissae. I have since completed the Arte Triptych Melissae training which was a potent cauldron of awesome and extraordinary wisdom; one that has changed me in the most magical of ways.
For any woman who dares and seeks to know herself, this training holds bountiful promise of deep rich fulfilment, sourced from transformative experiences and powerful practices that nourish and nurture growth on all levels; no part of my life has remained untouched by the magnificence of this training and the healing that I facilitate for others has grown in magnitude. I have accrued a wealth of knowledge and tools through allied assistance from the sisterhoods and a level of connection with myself and the elements of nature that is unparalleled in its beauty and honesty.
It has been an honour to train with the teachers from within the Lyceum – they are absolutely incredible women and amazing teachers who guide impeccably with a unique blend of grace, strength and humour. To be part of this exquisite training truly was a homecoming ; one which has imbued and reconnected me with the raw power of the feminine and the sizzling energies of creation.
Sonia
To date I have undertaken two workshops and the Two-Year Professional Practitioners Training with The Sacred Trust: On The Way of the Shaman weekend workshop, the very moment the drumming began, every cell in my body responded and the words, “I am home, I am home, I know this” thundered through me. Actually I knew nothing, but it was a singularly and spectacularly a moment in time that has changed my life forever. If you are even a tiny bit curious about exploring shamanism, then please attend this workshop. Within the Two-Year Professional Practitioner Training each module of the training led the students deeper into work, work that was intensely beautiful, challenging and amazing. It felt like a series of ‘Rites of Passage’ for me; in that each learning was affirmed by events and occurrences in my life that left me in no doubt that I had found my true path. To meet and work with people of incredibly diverse talents and skills has been a true privilege – and what a joy to speak freely with people who understand and don’t demand you ‘rationalise’ every word you utter. I have also attended The Spirit of the Drum workshop and found that working with the drum over an intense period of days and nights revealed aspects of me that would never otherwise have been discovered. To know that I ‘hear’ the drum speak and can interpret for others is one of a number of exquisite gifts that this work has brought. Thank you for the unique teaching.
Sally Randell
Shamanic Practitioner and Journalist, Switzerland
The Professional Shamanic Practitioner Training that I completed in 2007 has allowed me – through initiations, explorations of the self, methods, rituals and pilgrimages – to undertake profound healing work. The Art of Teaching that Simon Buxton and his assistants possess encouraged me to perceive the melody of my own shamanic ways and to go ever deeper into the never-ending dance with the healing arts of our ancestors. When I fell, they were there to hold me. When I struggled, they encouraged me. Guided by spirit at every step, they sensed where I needed to be and firmly led me and my classmates into sacred landscapes, which brought about a deep sense of community for us all. The Sacred Trust hand down their knowledge with a profound understanding of human nature and have given me sacred, solid tools married to clear ethical guidelines which I have now brought back to share in my own country. Thank you, I am full of respect.
Irène Zumsteg
Shamanic Practitioner and Journalist, Switzerland
The Sacred Trust embody the qualities of wisdom, compassion, strong intention and integrity in all that they undertake, ever guided by ancestral kin and tutelary spirits who ensure that the work is spirit-driven. They have become like a family to me, a caring family that one wants to return to whenever seeking guidance and instruction or the opportunity to hear and receive the silent knowledge and the ancient wisdom. With their help I have found the answers to many questions, including what it is to be a man in the modern world and what my responsibilities are to both myself, the world and my place within it. They are true ambassadors for the teachings of our ancestors and offer us a rich and rewarding journey back to the centre of the self.
Marius Hansson
Mechanical Design Engineer
Over nearly 20 years it has been my privilege to work with Simon Buxton, who is a man of great heart, an enormous knowledge-base of shamanic practice and who understands the need for sacred humour. Indeed, he holds the sacred in trust for all who seek authentic work. Sacred Trust workshops and trainings offers a wealth of gifts to explore, with a faculty of teachers who work with passion and understand the need to help students explore and express their own unique potential. It is without any hesitation that I say: if you’ve found this web-site and want to know more of your spirit, find a language to connect to your ancestors, and dance within the universe – you have been well led. Enjoy!
Maxine Smillie
Acupuncturist
I have undertaken several workshops and courses with The Sacred Trust and each has had a huge influence on my personal transformation, self-realisation, professional training and daily spiritual life. I do not put teachers on pedestals, but I do give credit where it is due, and whilst I have other valuable teaching influences, it is hard for me to imagine what my life would be like if I hadn’t found The Sacred Trust. A One Year Training in Classical Shamanism was my first experience with The Sacred Trust and I was fortunate to be given this introduction and foundation to my shamanic path by Simon Buxton who is immensely dedicated to this work. He walks his talk, holds an impeccable and safe ceremonial space, and imparts teaching and healing in partnership with spirit, with great integrity and exceptional skill. Several years later, I am still in regular contact with around half of the group who are amongst my closest friends.
The Path of Pollen courses have helped me to discover fundamentally who I am as a woman. It has given me a wealth of enriching spiritual practices and tools that have become deeply woven into my life and work, a sisterhood in bodies and spirits that touch me deeply, as well as attracting me to become a beekeeper and unleashing my creative talents. The Teachers are extraordinary and inspiring, disciplined and wild, holding my vulnerability with nurturing guidance. They have made this a powerful, creative, healing, exciting, challenging, intimate, loving and educational journey. The Sacred Trust, by their example, is also pollinating the world with mindful beekeepers, at a time when the importance of this cannot be overstated.
The Shamanic Rites of Chod are a phenomenal tool and together with the Compassionate Depossession Training, has helped me to remove that which is ‘not me’ from my energy field, and clear some highly significant obstacles from my life – a profoundly beneficial service that I can now provide for my clients. Betsy Bergstrom is a wonderful teacher: compassionate and equitable, she openly shares her considerable experience and rare gifts with humility and grace.
To sum up, The Sacred Trust set the highest standards of excellence in teaching, and deliver trainings of the finest caliber and greatest substance. They open the gates into beautiful, sacred lineages and truly magical realms, anchored with authenticity, sensitivity and integrity. If you are drawn to shamanism, then I recommend them whole-heartedly – prepare yourself for an extraordinary, enriching and life-changing journey.
Sue Holmes
Founder, Fire Horse Feng Shui
Thanks for sharing this exquisite work with us this year within the Arte Triptych Melissae training. The changes that have been occurring here in my life, are rapid, dramatic,challenging, beautiful and profound. Integrating the practices into day to day life has been illuminating and energising.
Josey Slater
Yoga Teacher
I returned from the Darkness Visible course about two months ago. To say that I owe my present quality of spiritual life to their work is an understatement. I am now 68, and in my youth I studied with Rina Hands – one of Gurjieff’s final students – and it is with The Sacred Trust that I recognise a similar quality of work. Yes, I felt challenged, but I was also surrounded by care, love and beauty. The one thing that I quickly became aware of was that when Simon Buxton talks there are no unnecessary words – so what was said, was meant – and those words still explode inside my heart today. This journey with them has given me a freedom of spirit that has come from being stretched and enhanced beyond words. My gratitude also goes to the Sacred Trust staff at the beautiful Sacred Trust centre, whose loving hands and voices surrounded me in the darkness with a warmth I only dreamt existed. It was and is a journey much more that I would ever have believed possible.
John Francis
Woodcarver