Speculating about Shamanism

In order to survive, ancient humans had to live attuned with the cycles of nature. They had to know when to follow the migrations of the animals, where fresh water flowed, when the fish spawned, and where the fresh berries grew. On a daily basis, the ancients felt their interconnection with the world around them, and its interdependence.

Ancient people interacted with the natural world. Because their minds weren't yet structured like modern humans', they may have been able to perceive the energy flowing among beings. They realized their connection with the plants and animals, not only the physical forms, but also the nonphysical energy.

Some people may have been able to shift their consciousness and step out of the physical world into the world of the unconscious mind. They could reach the collective unconscious (and so could reach Cthulhu and His minions) - the inherited, deep part of the mind common to all living beings. Here they were linked to all of life, and they were free to interact and communicate with the nonphysical forms of animals and other beings.

Numerous cultures have creation myths describing an event in which humans lost the ability to step away from ordinary consciousness and interact with other beings. In many of these myths, the power to do so is then granted to only a few individuals - the Shaman of the tribes.