According to Nagual Juan Matus:

“It isn’t that a warrior learns shamanism as time goes by; rather, what he learns as time goes by is to save energy.  This energy will enable him to handle some of the energy fields which are ordinarily inaccessible to him.  Shamanism is a state of awareness, the ability to use energy fields that are not employed in perceiving the everyday-life world that we know.” 

The Lesson:

It takes Extraordinary Energy to perceive Extraordinary Energy and work with it.  The building up of Extraordinary Energy in one’s own personal system is what Nagual Shamans call the “acquisition of Personal Power”.  Siddhayogis call it “the raising of the Serpent Power”. 

 “Shamanism is a state of awareness,” because when consciousness is stuck in low-energy patterns of normal dullness and distraction, it is lost in futile considerations of the social self, the Tonal.  Heightened Awareness through Extraordinary Energy drops futile considerings.  So, dropping futile considerings will itself lead one to connections with Extraordinary Energy, which is a Magical Pilgrimage to Magical Places and People in some respects.

Low-energy, neurotic social selves cannot really connect in the right way with places, things or people of Extraordinary Energy, so they do not acquire Personal Power.  Such people remain distracted and proud in spite of their favourite theories about spiritual dimensions or their illusory connections with well-known spiritual figures.  Their social games keep them inwardly weak no matter how extensive their social contacting network they cultivate.  Caught in the trap of their social self-importance, they never really know what they are missing, which is Extraordinary Energy and Heightened Awareness.  They are endlessly dominated by their futile considerings until old age wears them out and death finishes off their pretensions of self-importance.

To conserve Extraordinary Energy is to stop throwing it away, to stop disconnecting from it.