Smells and Bells

In David Abram's The Spell of the Sensuous  he defines magic, or the 6th sense as human being's ability to connect with nature by shifting their consciousness. Abrams suggests that the ecological dimension of experience is often overlooked and labeled as "superhuman" experiences by Western researchers. He claims that what might appear "superhuman" is actually the very authentic connection that human beings can cultivate with nature. Therefore the mysteries of nature can be explored by people who let their consciousness move more freely beyond the boundaries of society and out into the natural world. Abram explains that indigenous cultures often have shamans, healers, or magicians who live on the edge of the village. The reason for this is that these individuals have chosen to function as the bridge between human society and the forces of nature. He writes that what defines a shaman is "the ability to readily slip out of the perceptual boundaries that

"..their lights flickering like the stars, some drifting up to join the clusters of stars overhead, others, like graceful meteors slipping down from above to join the constellations underfoot..." (4). David Abram, the author of The Spell of the Sensuous, notes that in our Western mentality we tend to define the spirit as something that is define in contrast to matter or "flesh" but that for the majority of indigenous cultures "spirits" are "primarily those modes of intelligence or awareness that do not posses a human form" (13). I believe that if Abram were to describe what the sixth sense is he would describe it as a hypersensitivity and awareness of the spirits of the world. He believes that everyone has this sixth sense but that, especially those is western society, do not open themselves up to all that surrounds them. Someone who he might say has perfected the art of the sixth sense are indigenous shamans. Abram defines a shaman:     &quo