Reddit reviews Seidways: Shaking, Swaying and Serpent Mysteries

Jan Fries is like my favorite author on these subjects. Check out Seidways

He really does his homework and stays true to the roots of what he's writing about. Doesn't really do fluff or make stuff up, and he at least tells you when he does.

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Raven Kaldera also deserves a mention. While he doesn't have anything specifically about Seidr, his books about Northern-Tradition Shamanism are like no others. He may not stay as true to the historical practices but he treats it more as a living-breathing religion and goes deeeep into his practices.

http://www.northernshamanism.org/books.html

So much of the history behind these practices is completely unknown so its hard to find good, accurate sources. SO many people just make something up and sell it as ancient knowledge. So keep as discerning eye as possible.

Best of luck!

Idk about that sort of thing being exclusive to hyperborean type cultures. It has been observed in the Sami in Finland, to the Voudons of Haiti, to the nomadic San bushmen, and many others. Jan Fries has a book called Seidways which examines shake-induced trance across its implementation in a wide variety of cultures.

Given how common epileptic convulsions (whether an actual affliction or merely manifested for the purpose of altering consciousness) are among shaman-type individuals observed from every corner of the globe, my interpretation of the evidence leads me to believe that no single race or culture can make a viable claim of progenitorship to a technique of consciousness manipulation that has existed since neolithic times, if not of even greater antiquity.

>When I think of shamanism I think of trance and ecstatic dance, and I think of shudders and daemonic-dread, but I think of them as mutually exclusive

You are entitled to the validity of the belief structure surrounding your shamanic initiation, but do be aware that "the mutual exclusion" you speak of is integrated by many other shamans. For example, the Lwa possess not the musicians and priests/esses leading a ritual, but rather the drunk and dancing adherents who have given themselves fully to the magic of the moment. While some cultures would be outright alarmed by this welcomed spiritual possession, the Voudon are able to take advantage of this to make direct contact with superhuman intelligences. The lines separating ecstacy and dread are drawn faint.

There's not much written on the subject as sources are difficult to find, but you might want to check out the book Seidways by Jan Fries.