Italian Shamanism

Italy was a territory where many cultures co-existed in the pre-Roman era: Etruscans, Illyrians, Celts, Samnites, etc. … and these peoples had their beliefs and rituals which transformed or went extinct over time. What we call “Italian” may not even be Italian but only denotes the territory of provenance called Italy nowadays. In any case, geography changed so many times over the millennia that it is also difficult to truly define something as autochthonous without a timeframe because people travelled and exchanged - as happens today.

It makes sense that Italy, like Siberia and South America, has an Ancient Tradition albeit forgotten and nicknamed “folk magic” during the Inquisition. I’m not sure we are aware of how brutal and terrifying the witch hunts were for all those women and men who practised the ancient arts, mostly for the benefit of a community. Whoever managed to survive had to blend in so well for the hunt-men to believe they’d eradicated the Old Ways. So most women, if not all, applied syncretism: goddesses and gods took Catholic names and faces accepted by the church. Yet. One lineage survived and passed on the original formulas and rites alongside their syncretisms. This proves the presence of the cult of the Mother Goddess, as ancient as perhaps mankind itself, in the Mediterranean.

Michela Chiarelli is the 7th generation Priestess and Shaman of matrilineal descent, in her family, the gene manifested in and the title was passed onto women only. Michela is the last because, one, she has two boys, and two, it is not known whether more hereditary Priestesses (who still practice devotionally) are present on the territory - we are yet to encounter them. Michela was also born with second sight and gifted with extraordinary channelling abilities. She was initiated by the four Elements first, and subsequently by Nana Mallow (Nonna Malva, her grandmother), and later too by women who lived in different parts of Italy and even Greece and who were Priestesses and Keepers of specific magic and skills.

Way before the Goddess went mainstream and everyone claimed to be Her devotee… In secrecy, in silence, with modesty and respect, Nana Mallow was already praying, and Michela had encounters with Ishtar at the age of 9. Still, Italy, and the Mediterranean region in general, seems to be living in a sort of amnesia and denial at a public level - recognising Our Lady as the only woman figure in religion and describing her solely as passive and saintly. I won’t write here about how it influences women to have only such a model of reference.

Most of what’s been written on Italian Shamanism comes from interpretations of usually non-Italian people - mostly men - drawn from the slight exposure they had to Italian witchcraft. The irony is that for women like Nana Mallow, being called a witch was an insult. She didn’t have a name, in fact, she never even called herself Shaman… she went by her name, at the most Priestess: the essence of the role doesn’t change, and perhaps society hasn’t managed to grasp it despite the multiple names given to the Masters of the Magic and Healing Arts.

IN HER GENIUS brings you books written by Michela Chiarelli, who draws knowledge from firsthand experience and the hereditary baggage of a caste of natural mages. We publish her new books and translations of those she published in Italy over 15 years. We also publish her channelled artwork and oracles, making her a uniquely talented artist.