What do you think?
Rate this book
Dancing the Dream: The Seven Sacred Paths of Human Transformation
Walk the Seven Paths to Spiritual Enlightenment From Jamie Sams, internationally renowned teacher and bestselling author, 'Dancing the Dream' is an exhilarating mix of instruction, guidance, and carefully imparted wisdom drawn from decades of stu
Hardcover
First published May 19, 1998
85 people are currently reading
823 people want to read
About the author
Jamie Sams
30 books109 followersJamie Sams is half French and half American Indian, with ancestors from the Cherokee, Seneca, Choctaw, and Mohawk tribes. She is also a key member of the Wolf Clan Teaching Lodge, retreat leader, and writer on American Indian spirituality, e.g. „Dancing the Dream”, „The 13 Original Clan Mothers”, and (with Twylah Nitsch) „Other Council Fires Were Here Before Ours”.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
September 14, 2007
I read this back in '89-1999 I believe. This book drew me to it in the book store. I was not looking for any book in particular and as I got closer to where it sat on the shelf, I FELT it calling to me! YES ! REALLY! I did not know which book was calling to me, but I outstretched my hand as I passed over several near by...as I passed over this book I felt a sensation deep inside, and it would not let me rest.
I picked up the book and read a bit, but put it back, walked away a little bit and felt this sensation bubble up in me, ''GO BACK GET THAT BOOK!''
Only when I had it in my hands and headed to the check out did the sensation stop! I KNEW I had to read this book!
I do not remember a lot from those years, being I was on Anti-D's and forgot a lot during that time, BUT, I marked in the book I highlighted parts that I believe meant something to me, so this book might hold a key, that helped me travel a road to wellness, I am going to re-read it to see what was in it that I found so interesting!
I will write a review when I finish.
I picked up the book and read a bit, but put it back, walked away a little bit and felt this sensation bubble up in me, ''GO BACK GET THAT BOOK!''
Only when I had it in my hands and headed to the check out did the sensation stop! I KNEW I had to read this book!
I do not remember a lot from those years, being I was on Anti-D's and forgot a lot during that time, BUT, I marked in the book I highlighted parts that I believe meant something to me, so this book might hold a key, that helped me travel a road to wellness, I am going to re-read it to see what was in it that I found so interesting!
I will write a review when I finish.
Want to read
September 16, 2012East why am I here?
South. What is happening?
West. Healing our body, sense of self-esteem
North. We share the wisdom with compassion and love. Being tolerant
Above. Embracing the spirit.
Below. Embracing forces of the natural world.
Kill an ant on your counter is ok but killing one on the driveway is not right.
Within. Full spiritual awareness.
South. What is happening?
West. Healing our body, sense of self-esteem
North. We share the wisdom with compassion and love. Being tolerant
Above. Embracing the spirit.
Below. Embracing forces of the natural world.
Kill an ant on your counter is ok but killing one on the driveway is not right.
Within. Full spiritual awareness.
March 1, 2008
I have learned tons from this book. It is one of the most important to me in my collection.
May 27, 2017
This book is exceptional and I recommend it to all if they want to gain a better spiritual understanding.
May 3, 2016
I first picked up this book when I was 18 years old. Now, the pages are yellowed and marked with age, the spine is worn, the paper jacket torn an tattered. This book has been loved for the wealth of knowledge it holds; treasured like a best friend guiding me through life's trials and challenges; and read over and over again. The teachings have served as a roadmap, helping me to navigate my spiritual path and understand my personal process as I strive everyday to become a clearer, truer version of myself.
July 28, 2011
Dancing the dream is a magnificent book, which opens the sacred route for human transformation. She explains her own journey and warns us about the dangers along the way. I’ve benefited a lot from the book. I’d like to thank to Jamie Sams for this amazing book. Even though I’ll try to apply the sacred medicine wheel as much as I could, I still wish I’d a teacher to help and enlighten me during my journey.
June 12, 2020
a clear guide from the shamanic perspective of why we are on this planet and what we can all do to help the healing process that is screaming out to be heard and attended to. It provided me with several clear pointers too and i feel less stuck nowm lighter and freer. What more can you ask fo a book on spiritual awakening?
June 21, 2015
This book gave me lots of ah-ha moments... I feel bad that I was not able to absorb all it had to offer. I would highly recommend this to anyone seeking to understand the path from another perspective.
May 4, 2011
The paths described here made a lot of sense to me and I could relate to them. I found the book very insightful and it gave me a lot to think about in my goals as a human being.
October 22, 2013
This book was recommended by a good friend. It was both confirming of the path I already was on and affirming of the choices that lay ahead of me.
July 15, 2009
Good book! I just haven't finished it because I'm absorbing the knowledge slowly...
August 8, 2017
A brilliant map of consciousness from an indigenous perspective. This book of Cherokee wisdom should be part of any comprehensive world religions curriculum.
March 21, 2021
Very good, organized exploration of the seven points of the Medicine Wheel.
Very to give the flavor of the book, so I will give a brief excerpt.
Under the heading "You have an invisible savings account" the author writes, "How we invest the energy contained in our decisions affects our account balance. If we wake in the morning feeling blue and decide we will have a rotten day, we have set up the energetic skeleton made of our feelings, attitudes, and beliefs. The day will usually flesh out in the manner in which we believed it would. If we hold a belief that we can share the joy we have inside of us with others, during that day we may find total strangers smiling at us for no apparent reason." and so forth.
All very sensible advice and all presented in a very reasonable, logical way. Accessible language. A bit dry, admittedly. But a good book for when you need a good talking-to from a dear aunt but alas your preferred aunt passed away years ago.... so you make a pot of tea and settle in with this book.
Very to give the flavor of the book, so I will give a brief excerpt.
Under the heading "You have an invisible savings account" the author writes, "How we invest the energy contained in our decisions affects our account balance. If we wake in the morning feeling blue and decide we will have a rotten day, we have set up the energetic skeleton made of our feelings, attitudes, and beliefs. The day will usually flesh out in the manner in which we believed it would. If we hold a belief that we can share the joy we have inside of us with others, during that day we may find total strangers smiling at us for no apparent reason." and so forth.
All very sensible advice and all presented in a very reasonable, logical way. Accessible language. A bit dry, admittedly. But a good book for when you need a good talking-to from a dear aunt but alas your preferred aunt passed away years ago.... so you make a pot of tea and settle in with this book.
June 25, 2023
4.5 This book cleared up a lot of questions I had - especially about dreamwork and the void. It could get to be confusing and I would have loved her wisdom to be grounded with some more examples and storytelling. This is just a personal preference though. She did give a few examples but I can only really understand concepts like these through analogies. But overall, it was a treasure trove of valuable wisdom!
January 24, 2025
My first spirituality book of 2025. This was the first time I've read a Native American approach towards navigating life and the spirit. Jamie has a magical writing style that is not hard to digest when reading information that has a lot of components to it. I like how the book is broken down into chapters that match the dream weave path. You could have this on your shelf for life and revisit each chapter when needed.
December 9, 2021
I loved this book - am reading it for the second time. It reminds me a little of like Carlos Castaneda's books that I read in the 70's but it's way more detailed and a great reminder that reality is multi-dimensional.
September 10, 2017
Muito bom
May 9, 2019
Will refer back to this book many times
August 6, 2025
Profound book on native American spirituality. A lot of information to digest but many elements are applicable in daily life.
September 29, 2025
Decided to read this again after first reading it many years ago. Not my fave tbh. I think a lot of the wording is outdated.
January 17, 2013
Dancing the Dream: The Seven Sacred Paths of Human Transformation by Jamie Sams is a book about trying to find inner peace and strength in the world by using age old Native American secrets. It’s a book that can be inspiring. The book was something of a mix bag of tricks.
This book was gifted to me from an old family friend. It was something that reminds me of her and even more the southwest. Plus it seemed like a good idea to read a self help book every once in a while. I did pick the book a little bit on faith, I just grabbed a book off my To Read shelf at random.
I will say I think Jamie Sams really found enlightenment. She has found grounding and wisdom through the teachings she’s learned over the years. I don’t doubt her credentials and I like how she used her own foibles.
The book is way too theoretical for me to put into action. There are times I’m much more of a goal oriented person who need clear plans. I can’t say I don’t love philosophy because you can’t have a minor in it without enjoying the theoretical ideas. In all honesty, after reading the book I’m still not sure what all the paths really entail. I get that the important things. But to me, some of the paths are not very different from one another. Also more importantly to a goal oriented person, how can you be able to walk on separate paths while at the same time you need paths 1-4 in order to walk on paths 5 through 7?
But another problem was the writing. It was a bit circular and there were times I had no idea what was being said. I hate having to reread stuff a thousand times.
This book was gifted to me from an old family friend. It was something that reminds me of her and even more the southwest. Plus it seemed like a good idea to read a self help book every once in a while. I did pick the book a little bit on faith, I just grabbed a book off my To Read shelf at random.
I will say I think Jamie Sams really found enlightenment. She has found grounding and wisdom through the teachings she’s learned over the years. I don’t doubt her credentials and I like how she used her own foibles.
The book is way too theoretical for me to put into action. There are times I’m much more of a goal oriented person who need clear plans. I can’t say I don’t love philosophy because you can’t have a minor in it without enjoying the theoretical ideas. In all honesty, after reading the book I’m still not sure what all the paths really entail. I get that the important things. But to me, some of the paths are not very different from one another. Also more importantly to a goal oriented person, how can you be able to walk on separate paths while at the same time you need paths 1-4 in order to walk on paths 5 through 7?
But another problem was the writing. It was a bit circular and there were times I had no idea what was being said. I hate having to reread stuff a thousand times.
April 3, 2012
This book was one of the most influential book on my journey with shamanism. I read the book with a group of others as a form of book club. We all would read a chapter once a week and then meet together and discuss the chapter. It made for some very interesting and invigorating discussions.
One of the major issues I got from the book is how important our "Personal Life-Values" are to our happiness and our achievements in our Life. This "Personal Life-Values" is not as simple or as shallow as one may think. It requires some very truthful and some in-depth self-discovery to find our true "Personal Life-Values". However, when we understand our True Life-Values we have a better understanding of what we need in our Life.
Jamie Sams also goes into the "Dark Night of the Soul" that is very enlightening. It is the first that I heard of this phrase and how we can become very melancholy. That these times in our Life are opportunities to grow and not become entrapped by these episodes in our Life.
On a little lighter note. With the book club and meeting once a week to discuss the book I ended up highlighting the whole book. Ever try to find a passage in a book where everything is highlighted? The proper use of highlighting was also a lesson that Jamie Sams taught me...
One of the major issues I got from the book is how important our "Personal Life-Values" are to our happiness and our achievements in our Life. This "Personal Life-Values" is not as simple or as shallow as one may think. It requires some very truthful and some in-depth self-discovery to find our true "Personal Life-Values". However, when we understand our True Life-Values we have a better understanding of what we need in our Life.
Jamie Sams also goes into the "Dark Night of the Soul" that is very enlightening. It is the first that I heard of this phrase and how we can become very melancholy. That these times in our Life are opportunities to grow and not become entrapped by these episodes in our Life.
On a little lighter note. With the book club and meeting once a week to discuss the book I ended up highlighting the whole book. Ever try to find a passage in a book where everything is highlighted? The proper use of highlighting was also a lesson that Jamie Sams taught me...
April 7, 2016
Incredibly beautiful and poetic book. A smooth read for anyone seeking a romantic outlook on feeling completely lost in your life. It all has a purpose. Jamie Sams is a famous writer of the mystic arts for good reason.
February 9, 2008
An interesting take on the "paths" we must traverse in this lifetime. A spiritual journey into one's self.
September 2, 2008
really good!
July 1, 2012
Jamie writes her own poetry and the book starts with her poem
Dancing the Dream - it is lovely
We are all on a journey through life and Jamie's word help guide us along that journey.
Dancing the Dream - it is lovely
We are all on a journey through life and Jamie's word help guide us along that journey.
January 25, 2015
Unique perspective on personal growth refreshinly removed from all the Western "self help" books.
Currently reading
June 4, 2011Jamie Sams is solid in Earth Centered Teaching. I am enjoying her process. I am about 1/4 way thru.
August 14, 2017
Great book so far!
April 27, 2012
This book is a bit dense and more of a personal memoir. There is much wisdom in the book, but I felt it rambled. However, I love to pick her animal cards throughout the years.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews