Retrieving the Soul

An interview with Sandra Ingerman

L.M.: In her celebrated poem “The Summer Day” Mary Oliver writes, “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” Tell me, how did you find your direction—your path?

Sandra: I grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and although I lived in a city I felt so connected to nature. I loved life and the Earth! I came home from school every day and sang to a tree outside of my house, to the birds, and then to the moon at night.

I always had a spiritual connection not just to nature but also with the invisible realms that are spoken about in the practice of shamanism. At the age of seven I was hit by lightning, and when I regained consciousness I returned with a heightened spiritual awareness.

When I was twenty I had an exquisite and classic Near Death Experience when I drowned while swimming in the ocean. Throughout my late teens I entered into a wealth of numinous states that led me to experience Source, unity, unconditional joy, peace, and love.

As a child I felt fully empowe…