So Says the Shaman

By Ray Manzarek

Ok, so intellectually speaking, I have come to terms with the idea of the linear passage of time. After all, I don’t play with The Doors anymore, but The Doors of the 21st Century. I do believe, however, that once an art form reaches its apotheosis, the moment is crystallized... figuratively, I guess: an immortal winged creature is born which day after day eviscerates a placid society, rips out its quivering liver, cleanses, purifies, intensifies. So says the shaman. What shaman, you ask? Shh, relax. You’re so tense. Like a short haircut and a dry-cleaned suit. Asking questions will only prevent your breaking through (to the other side). Just listen, man. All will be made clear shortly.

The shaman is (was, I should say) the spiritual guide for his community. All spiritual feats—moonlight drives, breaking through (to the other side)—were effected through the shaman. He’d speak in secret alphabets and light another cigarette, on the smoky wisps of which would be borne his avian avatar. Magic happens, man, where the elements intersect, where land meets air, water. And so he would fly to the mountains, where earth reaches for heaven, in order to answer the pressing spiritual questions on behalf of his community: what does Narkush, god of the lima bean, have in store for me? When will Oliver Stone make a movie about my life?

Mountains are not only sites of revelation, but of prophecy as well. Take Ummchak for example. Ummchak was a shaman who received a prophesy from Narkush. According to the prophesy, one day a shaman would be born who would start a rock band, write “Shaman’s Blues,” and make esoteric spiritual knowledge available to millions. The prophesy came true; the shaman it spoke of was Jim Morrison and the rock band was The Doors, man. This gave hope to millions, but it meant the end of an ancient profession…and the end of shaman Morrison’s life.


So begins my latest book, The Poet and the Prophesy, an exploration of the possibility that the murderous ghost of the shaman Ummchak was responsible for the death of Jim Morrison. Buy my book. It’s far out.