I've been interested in the book Urban Shaman by Serge Kahili King for a long time until today. The writer practices 'huna' which is said to be an ancient Hawaiian tradition, when in actuality it was invented in the 30's and is largely part of the New Age movement.

Despite this, the book has incredible amounts of praise, very profound 5-star reviews on Amazon, and it has been recommended to me multiple times.

I've been wondering how a book that uses a system that has been described by actual Hawaiian shamans as a farce can work and function for so many people. My personal assumption is that the cultural connection doesn't entirely matter, and that because Shamanism is generally so intuitive that the feeling of and the immersion in Otherworlds is more important than how you get there. I would also say that even though Castaneda's work has been subject to large amounts of criticism, it is still frequently recommended due to the feelings it evokes in the reader.

So what is this community's take on Huna, and the book Urban Shaman? I may have just answered my own question but I'd like to get a second opinion from those with more experience.