A Shamanic Reflection on Service, Moderation, and Reciprocity

In shamanic teachings, we are reminded again and again of a simple truth:

“The universe reminds us to give than we take, but never at the cost of balance.”

This teaching is not a commandment. It is a remembrance—a way of living in right relationship with all that exists.

Does the night need the light more or does the light need the darkness more? We are called into the darkness to shine light on all possibilities that are unseen by those who suffer in the darkness.

From the smallest granule of dirt beneath our feet to the vast intelligence of the stars above us, life survives through exchange. Nothing exists in isolation. Nothing takes without giving something back. Rivers flow because they are fed, and in their movement, they nourish everything they touch.

As shamanic practitioners, we are taught that stewardship is a sacred duty. We are caretakers of balance—for the land, the people, the ancestors, the future, and the unseen worlds. Yet this responsibility does not belong only to shamans.

It belongs to anyone who is alive.

The moment you were given breath, you were entrusted with power—the power to influence, to soften, to heal, to disrupt, to protect, to uplift. The Great Creator did not place you here by accident. You were given a life because your presence matters.

The question is not whether you have power.

The question is:What are you doing with it?

Acts of Service as a Way of Living

Service does not need ceremony or recognition. It does not need titles, robes, or spiritual language. Often, it looks quiet. Ordinary. Human.

Service may be listening without fixing. Showing up without being asked. Offering kindness when it would be easier to withdraw. Choosing integrity when no one is watching.

Service, in its purest form, is the act of offering yourself in a way that restores harmony—rather than creating depletion.

And this is where moderation becomes medicine.

To give endlessly while abandoning your own spirit is not service—it is imbalance. And to take endlessly without offering yourself back to life slowly numbs the soul.

So we ask gently:

• Where in your life are you giving in ways that feel nourishing?

• Where are you giving out of obligation rather than love?

• Where are you taking without awareness?

• Where are you withholding, even when you have more than enough?

These questions are not accusations. They are invitations.

Giving Without Losing Yourself

One of the great misunderstandings about service is the belief that it requires self-sacrifice to the point of emptiness. Shamanic wisdom teaches the opposite.

True giving fills you with life.

It leaves you feeling expanded, purposeful, and connected. When your giving leaves you resentful, exhausted, or unseen, something is out of alignment—not with your worth, but with your boundaries.

Ask yourself:

• What do I give that feels honest to who I am?

• What do I offer that only I can offer?

• Where does my presence alone create value?

There are acts of kindness and love that cannot be fulfilled without your lived experience, your voice, your way of seeing the world. That is why you are here.

You do not need to give everything.

You are asked to give authentically.

Moderation: The Quiet Wisdom of Balance

In nature, excess always seeks correction. Fires that burn too long consume themselves. Rivers that flood without rhythm reshape the land. Even the sun rises and sets—it does not remain in the sky endlessly.

Moderation is not limitation.

It is intelligence.

Living in moderation asks us to notice:

• Am I consuming more than I contribute?

• Am I contributing more than I replenish?

• Am I aware of the impact of my choices—on myself, on others, on the world around me?

Balance is not fixed. It shifts. It breathes. It changes from season to season, and sometimes from day to day.

And often, awareness alone begins to restore harmony.

A Quiet Invitation

This teaching does not ask you to do more.

It asks you to notice more.

Notice where gratitude already lives in your life. Notice where humility flows easily—and where it may be absent. Notice whether your giving comes from love or from habit. Notice whether your taking is conscious or unconscious.

And perhaps, after reading this, a quiet question remains—not spoken aloud, not judged, just felt:

Am I truly giving back to life… or am I mostly taking?

There is no punishment in the answer. Only possibility.

Because the moment awareness arrives, choice becomes available. And choice is where destiny begins to shift.

You were given life because you are capable of change.

You were given power because your way of living influences others.

And every act of service—no matter how small—ripples far beyond what you can see.

May your giving be joyful.

May your taking be conscious.

May your life be an offering that leaves the world more balanced than you found it.

Reciprocity

Giving and receiving are not fixed roles—they are a living balance that shifts daily. There are seasons when you must receive more in order to survive, heal, or learn. And there are seasons when, having been nourished, it becomes your turn to give more than you take. With honest reflection, one might quietly ask: If I have received deeply, would it now make sense to offer deeply in return? This is reciprocity—the sacred awareness that life is always in conversation, and balance is restored when we listen and respond in kind

~Apu Mamma Aku