An Introduction to Journeying Between Realms

There comes a moment on the spiritual path when we begin to realise that life is far more mysterious, sacred, and alive than what can be seen with the physical eyes alone. We start to sense that beyond the visible world there are deeper layers of reality quietly waiting for us to remember them. In shamanic practice, these unseen dimensions are often referred to as non ordinary reality, and one of the most beautiful and accessible ways of understanding them is through the sacred map of the three shamanic worlds.

This understanding of the Lower World, Middle World, and Upper World has deeply shaped my own spiritual path and practice, and I want to lovingly acknowledge Sandra Ingerman as one of my great teachers in this realm of work. Her teachings on shamanic journeying, direct revelation, and relationship with compassionate helping spirits have been profoundly influential in the way I understand and experience the unseen worlds. This post is inspired in part by her wisdom and by the way she has helped so many people reconnect with the sacred through journey, spirit, and healing.

In contemporary shamanic journeying, the three worlds are not simply viewed as abstract concepts or symbolic metaphors.

They are approached as living spiritual realms that can be entered through prayer, intention, rhythm, and altered states of consciousness. Through practices such as drumming, rattling, meditation, and sacred journeying, many people begin to access these spaces in a direct and personal way.

Rather than relying only on theory or belief, this path invites us into direct experience. It asks us not only to think about spirit, but to encounter it.

Shamanic journeying as a way of entering non ordinary reality to receive healing, wisdom, guidance, and connection with helping spirits. That is one of the reasons this path can feel so deeply transformative. It is rooted not just in ideas, but in relationship.

The Lower World is often the first realm many people journey to, and despite its name, it is not understood as a place of evil or punishment. In the style of journeying taught by contemporary shamanic teachers, the Lower World is often experienced as a place of beauty, support, grounding, and deep spiritual connection. It may appear as a cave, a forest, a tunnel in the earth, a root system, an ancient landscape, or a hidden natural realm that feels both mystical and deeply familiar. This is often the realm where people first encounter a power animal or compassionate helping spirit in animal form.

The Lower World carries the medicine of instinct, embodiment, ancient memory, and soul remembrance. It often feels close to the bones of life itself. There is something deeply restorative about this realm because it reconnects us with what is primal, wise, and rooted within us. It reminds us that healing does not always come through striving upward. Sometimes it comes through going deeper, becoming still, and remembering what has always lived beneath the surface. In many journeying traditions, the Lower World becomes a place of protection, restoration, and reconnection with the sacred intelligence of life.

The Middle World is the realm we already inhabit in our everyday lives. It is the Earth, the body, the land, the seasons, the seen world around us. Yet from a shamanic perspective, this world is not merely physical. It is alive with spirit. The Middle World is where we encounter the sacred through the natural world, through omens, through ancestors, through place, through the pulse of the living Earth itself. It is where spirit and ordinary life meet.

Middle World is the earthly realm where we come to learn, grow, and evolve. It is the place of human experience, but it is also a place of energetic and spiritual reality. Because of this, the Middle World is often approached with greater discernment in journeying work. Not everything encountered here is necessarily a compassionate helping spirit, which is why spiritual boundaries, protection, and a strong relationship with one’s allies are so important. Yet when approached with respect, this realm can become a profound teacher. It reminds us that the sacred is not somewhere else. It is here, woven through the ordinary, waiting to be noticed.

The Upper World is often experienced as a luminous spiritual realm associated with wisdom, guidance, higher perspective, and evolved spiritual teachers. This realm is frequently described as a place where one may encounter a teacher in human form, an ancestor of great wisdom, or a benevolent spiritual presence who offers insight and healing. In journeying experiences, the Upper World may appear as celestial landscapes, radiant temples, mountains, clouds, stars, or spaces of light that feel almost beyond language.

There is often a feeling of grace and sacred expansion in the Upper World. It can bring a sense of being lovingly held within something far greater than the personal self. This realm often supports us in seeing the bigger picture of our path, our healing, and our soul’s unfolding. It can offer comfort, perspective, and a reminder that divine guidance is available when we approach with humility and sincerity. The Upper World is a place of compassionate spiritual guidance and revelation, and for many journeyers it becomes a source of clarity, reassurance, and profound spiritual support.

What makes the three worlds so powerful is that they are not just categories of spiritual theory. They are realms of relationship. This is one of the teachings I have received most deeply through Sandra Ingerman’s work. The true medicine of shamanic journeying is not in chasing spiritual experiences for their own sake. It is in learning how to build a sincere and respectful relationship with the helping spirits who guide, protect, and walk beside us.

Over time, journeying becomes less about trying to “see something impressive” and more about learning how to listen, trust, receive, and deepen into sacred connection.

The three worlds each offer their own medicine.

The Lower World may bring grounding, instinctive wisdom, and healing support.

The Middle World may teach us how to walk in sacred relationship with the Earth and the seen world around us.

The Upper World may offer insight, revelation, and compassionate guidance from beyond ordinary awareness. Together, they form a sacred map of spiritual connection and direct revelation.

At the same time, it is important to hold this understanding with integrity and respect.

The familiar model of the Lower, Middle, and Upper Worlds is widely used in contemporary shamanic journeying, especially in modern spiritual teaching, but it should not be spoken about as though every Indigenous tradition everywhere shares the exact same cosmology. Shamanic traditions are incredibly diverse and rooted in distinct lands, cultures, and lineages. This framework is best understood as a meaningful and powerful spiritual map for journeying, not as a universal doctrine that belongs equally to all traditions.

Ultimately, the three shamanic worlds invite us back into relationship with mystery. They remind us that spirit is not far away. Healing is not far away. Wisdom is not far away. The unseen worlds are not closed to us. Through sacred journeying, prayer, rhythm, and intention, we begin to remember what the soul has always known. That there is more to life than what we can see. That guidance is available. That spirit still speaks. And that the path of healing is often also the path of remembering.

For me, this sacred work has been shaped by many threads, but I give heartfelt honour to Sandra Ingerman as one of my great teachers in helping me understand the power, beauty, and healing potential of journeying between the worlds. Her teachings have opened doors for so many, and her influence lives gently and powerfully within the way I walk this path today.

Sources & Inspiration

This article was written in reverence to the contemporary teachings of Sandra Ingerman, whose work on shamanic journeying, helping spirits, and direct revelation has been a meaningful influence on my path and practice.

Recommended reading and inspiration

Awakening to the Spirit World by Sandra Ingerman and Hank Wesselman

Shamanic Journeying: A Beginner’s Guide by Sandra Ingerman

Shamanic Meditations by Sandra Ingerman

Sandra Ingerman’s teachings on journeying and non ordinary reality via her official website