John Paul Fischbach, an elegant man wrapped in a traditional American Indian striped blanket, stands in front of the imposing stone complexes in the dry desert landscape of Chaco Canyon. John Paul introduces himself and explains how he became a shaman by accident and discovered his talent for site whispering and connecting with people who once lived in a particular area. In 2012, John Paul started a journey to places which were confounding archaeologists as well as challenging his own beliefs. This series takes us to eight of those ancient sites where we spend two weeks with a team, exploring and investigating their mysteries.

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John Paul draws a medicine wheel of the four directions in the desert sand, and introduces our team for this Chaco Canyon episode. An archaeologist stands in the East ready to examine the history and theories of this site. An architect specialising in ancient construction techniques stands in the south, curious to explore how these sites were constructed and why. A Hopi wisdom keeper stands in the West ready to share oral traditions and legends that pertain to what the team uncovers. John Paul describes and then performs cleansing rituals to ask permission from the ancient guardians and elders to be here.

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The team members look around the first site, Pueblo Bonito, which features over 700 rooms and more than 30 of the round ceremonial chambers dug into the earth that are called ‘kivas’. The archaeologist believes from past excavations that the houses were built by the Anasazi people between 850 and 1200CE (AD) and who left them suddenly in the 1300s. There are many mysteries here: why build a city in a desert, why so many kivas, what happened in the kivas and why did these people disappear so suddenly? The architect shows us the complex mechanics of these constructions, pointing out rooms without windows and walls in mid-air with openings that are designed to link with astrological alignments that he will measure when there is a clear night sky. Our wisdom keeper says the Hopi tribe are descendants of the Anasazi, and tells us about the ant people who were important in this city. We also learn about the Kachina gods who interacted with the Anasazi.

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As John Paul tunes in to find a spirit, he explains that his process is like tuning on a radio. Sometimes he connects with a specific guide for the site or it might be just an everyday person. Once he makes contact, he will invite the team to ask questions.

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During previous experiences at the site, John Paul connected with a host from the time who related that Chaco Canyon was a spiritual resort where people paid to ask for favours from the local gods, the Kachinas. He learned that the buildings were like hotels. Assuming that a similar contact will be established, the architect asks about the rooms without windows and learn that they were the 'cheap' rooms with no views. Continuing communication with the guide could reveal answers to the team members’ many questions. For example, the cavities around the kivas were to receive offerings to the Gods and a performance being put on by a shaman connecting with the corn god was partly for entertainment and partly practical as a vehicle for asking for favours, good health and good fortune. Why was the site located here? Because this is the point closest to where the Kachinas live underground. And why did all this activity stop suddenly? Because the cultural impetus ran out of steam, similar to places that go out of fashion.

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The team visits the largest kiva of the entire Chaco complex, Casa Rinconada, where the archaeologist identifies many astrological alignments. John Paul from prior connections is able describe his connection with two shamans who were conducting more ceremonies for the crowd. The architect is eager to determine the audience capacity of this kiva. The archaeologist wants to analyse past findings and the architect plans to measure rooms and passages to discover whether any physical evidence supports John Paul’s insight that the complex functioned as a hotel. The wisdom keeper will consult elders from other tribes to find other legends about Chaco Canyon.

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Of the many structures at Chaco Canyon, a smaller set of buildings called Pueblo del Arroyo is particularly intriguing. The archaeologist confirms these buildings were built around the same time, so why have a complex of 300 rooms and 17 kivas close to, but not part of, the main Chaco Canyon? John Paul’s previous contact told him this was the training place for the shamans and it was located away from the main strip so the mysteries weren’t revealed to the tourists. Additional information that was imparted was that the double-layered walls around the main kiva stopped uncontrolled energies erupting because it could take time for the apprentice shamans to learn how to control the Kachinas. Aspiring shamans were admitted if they could hold an energetic connection between the upper and lower worlds. If they could, they aligned with specific Kachinas and learned how to build relationships and manage the Gods’ powerful energy.  Most training happened in winter, as show time was in the warmer months.

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After two weeks of investigating and camping on site the team have developed new theories and more complete understandings of these ancient ruins.  The members of the team take their original places on the Medicine wheel and share where they started on this journey and where they are now in their understanding of who built these architectural wonders and why. At the north of the wheel John Paul thanks the ancient Anasazi spirits for sharing their secrets and wisdom.