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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What do the Jivaro do so that newborns can see their guardians?
(a) They take the babies on a journey through the wilderness.
(b) They give the infants a light hallucinogen.
(c) They prick an infant's left thumb.
(d) They sing songs about guardian animal spirits.

2. In what form will an apprentice shaman see an animal upon entering Lowerworld during the power restoration exercise?
(a) Always as a totem or charm.
(b) Either living or made of stone, wood, or another substance.
(c) In a hunting stance.
(d) A nearly transparent form.

3. Often, a patient already has the following with a returned power animal:
(a) A pre-determined destiny.
(b) An unusual connection.
(c) An agreement.
(d) A spiritual bridge.

4. What do negative big dreams carry, according to the author?
(a) Irrelevant information.
(b) Important messages.
(c) Excessive burdens.
(d) Bad karma.

5. According to Jivaro tradition, a shaman must seek out a guardian spirit how often?
(a) On an empty stomach.
(b) At least every two weeks.
(c) During a full moon.
(d) No more than once a month.

6. Where can a shaman go to retrieve a lost power animal?
(a) The Otherworld.
(b) The Higherworld.
(c) The Lowerworld.
(d) The Powerworld.

7. Harner repeatedly emphasizes that not all shamanic experiences involve drugs and instead rely on what?
(a) Drumming, chanting, singing, and symbolism.
(b) Storytelling, praying, and daydreaming.
(c) Jumping, eating, and dreaming.
(d) Meditating, fasting, running, and self-deprivation.

8. On the guided power restoration journey that involves descending down a tunnel, the author cautions against encountering:
(a) Weeping female spirits.
(b) Male spirits with weapons.
(c) Large predators with exposed teeth.
(d) Ominously voracious non-mammals.

9. Why does Harner state that it doesn't matter whether the animal that has appeared is fierce or gentle?
(a) As sources of power, guardians do not harm the possessor.
(b) Guardians are bound by oath to never harm humans.
(c) The animal is merely a projection of the participant's imagination.
(d) The animal's qualities reflect the inner needs of the shaman.

10. How do power animals reveal themselves and their special powers?
(a) By singing a coded song understandable only to shamans.
(b) Either by a ghostly apparition or through blinding light.
(c) By playing on the recipient's childhood fears.
(d) Either by speaking or by appearing in an abnormal way.

11. When first communicating with a guardian spirit animal, what does the author recommend novices do before engaging in detailed conversations?
(a) Ask the spirit for permission to speak.
(b) Avoid eye contact so that the animal doesn't flee.
(c) Master simple yes-no questions.
(d) Listen to make sure the animal is ready to talk.

12. Harner writes in Chapter 5 that power helps a person resist or dispel what?
(a) Low energy.
(b) Disease.
(c) Curses.
(d) Malignant thoughts.

13. In some traditions, how is a quartz crystal recharged?
(a) Leaving it out in an intense thunderstorm.
(b) Through a three-day ceremony of incense burning and constant chanting.
(c) Cleansing in the ocean or a spring, then left out in the sun on the solstice.
(d) Asking a power animal to dance with it in Lowerworld.

14. When the shaman has a question, the guardian spirit animal may answer it by:
(a) Tapping with its foot or fin once for no and twice for yes.
(b) Shaking a rattle at different rates depending on the answer.
(c) Entering the shaman's mind and communicating answers telepathically.
(d) Leading the shaman on a journey of experiences that ultimately answer that question.

15. A shocked power animal may do what?
(a) Grow ill and die.
(b) Shut down and refuse to communicate.
(c) Leave the person permanently.
(d) Attack its person.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to Harner, what are "big dreams?"

2. Among the Coastal Salish, animals that become human are called what?

3. Does a guardian spirit have the freedom to leave or stay at will?

4. What is the most famous method of acquiring a guardian animal spirit?

5. Most cultures believe that a shaman can have how many guardian animals at a time?

(see the answer keys)

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