“1. Call the shaman to see if he or she is at home and available for you to visit for a little bit. If the shaman says yes, then hang up and go over there right away. Finding a local Hmong shaman would be easiest – and the only way to find a local Hmong shaman is to ask around the Hmong community. No, there are no listings on the internet.”

“2. When going over, prepare some incense sticks wrapped in joss paper (found at some Asian stores) as shown below. This will be a gift to the shamans spirits and must be placed right away at the altar when visiting.”

“3. Then ask the shaman, “Please, I would like you to ua neeb for xyz person.” Tradition dictates that if you’re the one sick, then a close family member should ask for you, but if you absolutely have no one to help you out, then you can ask a shaman yourself for help.”

“4. The shaman will ask what it will be for, what kind of sickness does this person have, et cetera. Just answer as honestly and plainly as possible. There may be continued small talk. You can set a date up together that is mutually convenient to both parties, but often you, who is asking, will want it done sooner so that the person who is sick will get better quicker. Ua neeb usually takes half a day to a whole day so people often do it on a weekend day.”

“5. As you’re getting ready to leave, pay your respects. If you’re female, then you would leave it on a note of “Thank you for your help, I know you’re tired, but you have to help me.” If you’re male, then you would say “Alright, thank you for helping,” and then do a Hmong-style bow at the shaman’s altar by going down on hands and knees and quickly getting up with hands cupped in an offering of thanks.”





Sources

• ​http://airwanderer.wordpress.com/2010/03/17/how-to-ask-a-hmong-shaman-to-ua-neeb/​