Thursday, August 30, 2012
Long time no type
It's been quite a while since I last posted anything and only a few things seemed to change. I have been tasked by the gods to start the cult of freya, so to speak. Sounds crazy, but she wants her name spread and religions like Wicca are taking off like crazy. She wants the magic she once practiced to be spread out and practice across the world like Wicca is starting to. I'll update more info later
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Pagan Medicine
We all get sick, and we know it sucks! I'm sick right now and I have a few thoughts that have been trickling through my head my options for treating it. Like many other pagans, my options lean me toward homeopathic remedies as well maybe some chakra healing. The thought of taking some medicine front he drug store with ingredients you don't know doesn't exactly appealing and I am certainly sympathetic to them, I see a problem with this mentality.
I personally take the stuff over the counter AND the natural alternatives on top as long as it won't respond adversely. I fear that those who avoid modern medicine are needlessly suffering. If we as pagans step back and only use natural methods of healing then we will be stepping back into a world of more sickness than before when survival rate and life span weren't nearly as high.
We should be so thankful that we have modern medicine that can fight the common cold and the flu when so many die every year without that medicine that some of us now take for granted.
So the point is, while it is nice to use more natural alternatives don't neglect modern medicine when you need it.
LOVE YOU!
I personally take the stuff over the counter AND the natural alternatives on top as long as it won't respond adversely. I fear that those who avoid modern medicine are needlessly suffering. If we as pagans step back and only use natural methods of healing then we will be stepping back into a world of more sickness than before when survival rate and life span weren't nearly as high.
We should be so thankful that we have modern medicine that can fight the common cold and the flu when so many die every year without that medicine that some of us now take for granted.
So the point is, while it is nice to use more natural alternatives don't neglect modern medicine when you need it.
LOVE YOU!
Hey Newbies-
It may be harsh but when it comes to studying paganism, if you have been reading or practicing for under a year, you don't REALLY know as much as you think you do. You may know a lot, you may be extremely studious and know more out of a book than others but without the wisdom of years, your knowledge should just incubate for a later time.
That was a very difficult concept for me to accept years ago. I thought since I had spent a year of my life reading article after article, book after book, that I knew it all...However, we are all learning and in one year you are just a baby. Right now, I feel like a teenager in my knowledge. I know I don't know everything, despite that I know a lot, and I'm always eagar to learn more. I also ask my elders questions.
Questions are very important for both the young and the old, for the young they can expand and learn from the knowledge of their elder and the elders have to reflect on a smaller, more intimate scale. Under two years, you avoid guiding others unless it's showing them what you have built up to but try to remember that even if you know more than another newbie, you are still new yourself and should act accordingly.
On a harsher note, at no point (in my view) should you create a coven of newbies and call yourself the priest/ess if you don't truly understand what that entitles. It's one thing to create a coven of complete equals with some more knowledgeable than the others to spread the wealth of knowledge, it's another when you are assigning ranking that normally takes years of study to acquire should you join a more legitimate coven.
More specifically, when taking on the responsibility of a priest/ess, you have certain obligations that you should familiarize yourself with such as Devotion rituals, coming-of-age, initiations of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and etc. degree.
Let me go on to state that the idea within Wicca that you are your own priest/ess is one thing as a solitary but if you want my opinion, I don't like the idea of being your own priest or priestess because it leads to the idea in beginners that they can lead others because only the God and Goddess need to legitimize you which then you become a force of impression on the masses and providing knowledge to those not far behind you can lead to a chain of misinformation which is a growing problem in out pagan community today as well as the fluffy bunny problem as a tie in.
With time and training working your way up to priest status through the several degrees you gain patience, are more calm, and more humble about your knowledge.
So newbies out there- take your time, there's no rush. You'd be surprised what you can learn from others who have gone down your same path. Enjoy being a student and absorbing knowledge.
That was a very difficult concept for me to accept years ago. I thought since I had spent a year of my life reading article after article, book after book, that I knew it all...However, we are all learning and in one year you are just a baby. Right now, I feel like a teenager in my knowledge. I know I don't know everything, despite that I know a lot, and I'm always eagar to learn more. I also ask my elders questions.
Questions are very important for both the young and the old, for the young they can expand and learn from the knowledge of their elder and the elders have to reflect on a smaller, more intimate scale. Under two years, you avoid guiding others unless it's showing them what you have built up to but try to remember that even if you know more than another newbie, you are still new yourself and should act accordingly.
On a harsher note, at no point (in my view) should you create a coven of newbies and call yourself the priest/ess if you don't truly understand what that entitles. It's one thing to create a coven of complete equals with some more knowledgeable than the others to spread the wealth of knowledge, it's another when you are assigning ranking that normally takes years of study to acquire should you join a more legitimate coven.
More specifically, when taking on the responsibility of a priest/ess, you have certain obligations that you should familiarize yourself with such as Devotion rituals, coming-of-age, initiations of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and etc. degree.
Let me go on to state that the idea within Wicca that you are your own priest/ess is one thing as a solitary but if you want my opinion, I don't like the idea of being your own priest or priestess because it leads to the idea in beginners that they can lead others because only the God and Goddess need to legitimize you which then you become a force of impression on the masses and providing knowledge to those not far behind you can lead to a chain of misinformation which is a growing problem in out pagan community today as well as the fluffy bunny problem as a tie in.
With time and training working your way up to priest status through the several degrees you gain patience, are more calm, and more humble about your knowledge.
So newbies out there- take your time, there's no rush. You'd be surprised what you can learn from others who have gone down your same path. Enjoy being a student and absorbing knowledge.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
*I've got a CHECKLIST!! *
This post should actually be of importance so I can stop writing this list out at some point. This is is for future brainstorming for future blog topics and well as my agenda for several months:
1: Analyze word useage between pagan vs Neopagan? Maybe we need a new word?
2: Starting from the basics again:
-Wicca
-Eclectic
-Druidry
- Kitchen Witch/ Green Witch
- Kemetic
- Asatru
-Chaos/ Discordian
- Hellenism
Etc.....
3: Analyze problems within each branch
4:Define what a reputable source is and how to figure that out
5: Build library list of good sources (under my own bias of course)
6: How to fix pagan problems.
7: etc.... More to come later.
1: Analyze word useage between pagan vs Neopagan? Maybe we need a new word?
2: Starting from the basics again:
-Wicca
-Eclectic
-Druidry
- Kitchen Witch/ Green Witch
- Kemetic
- Asatru
-Chaos/ Discordian
- Hellenism
Etc.....
3: Analyze problems within each branch
4:Define what a reputable source is and how to figure that out
5: Build library list of good sources (under my own bias of course)
6: How to fix pagan problems.
7: etc.... More to come later.
organic hype
A common stereotype within pagan groups today are gung ho one going all natural and organic foods. Just as with every other stereotype, there is grain of truth in everything. Pagans, despite that, are still people and will buy what they can afford. Lets be completely honest, if I wasn't a broke ass college student, I would love to buy more organic and all natural foods. I'm sure the same would apply to others, pagan or not, if you can afford it chances are you will buy it. Eating all natural and organic seem to be the Fad now and no longer are seen as odd when they bring reusable bags to the store...Some even require it! So fear not, my brothers and sisters, you blend in just fine but remember that your budget should come first, and eating healthy means eating enough. If you think all natural and organic is the only way to go, sit back and look at the world around you. It'll be ok.
How the elements affect others
On rainy days, like the one I had at work, I can't help but appreciate the force of the weather. Others don't generally don't care for such a dreary atmosphere but frankly, I adore it! Especially with a cup of hot chocolate :D
I quite enjoyed the looks on my co workers faces when I said that I was going to run out in the rain and that I'd be right back. I feel at ease when I'm under a downpour of rain and water and it soothes the skin and for me, my soul.
One might wonder if that has anything to do with the fact that I correspond with water and I identify that as my element. I wonder, does Earth love the vast openness of the land, or the lush spring vegetation?
Does a fire element get a shiver down their spine at the destructive force of a volcano?
Do Air elements get the urge to sing with the wind?
Better yet, why is it so easy to categorize people by elements? Are they more entwined with out being than we actual think about?
Perhaps what it comes down to is that the elements are in each and everyone of us and just like a cat is addicted to catnip, we can't refuse that little part of our nature that comes out.
Hail.
See Y'all later
I quite enjoyed the looks on my co workers faces when I said that I was going to run out in the rain and that I'd be right back. I feel at ease when I'm under a downpour of rain and water and it soothes the skin and for me, my soul.
One might wonder if that has anything to do with the fact that I correspond with water and I identify that as my element. I wonder, does Earth love the vast openness of the land, or the lush spring vegetation?
Does a fire element get a shiver down their spine at the destructive force of a volcano?
Do Air elements get the urge to sing with the wind?
Better yet, why is it so easy to categorize people by elements? Are they more entwined with out being than we actual think about?
Perhaps what it comes down to is that the elements are in each and everyone of us and just like a cat is addicted to catnip, we can't refuse that little part of our nature that comes out.
Hail.
See Y'all later
Warning for ahead
Before I go on I would like to state that I'm about to dump several things I've written on paper and are now typing them in my blog for the world. All of these were written when I was sleep deprived and bored at work so give me a break ;D
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Debate in Religion
I find this world funny in some ways. I love to debate. I love walking into a room and shoving a case in their face that makes them flip their lid. I'll cite evidence, and give rebuttals to my opponents case. However, I hate when people debate religion in the same way. I know it's kinda silly, but stay with me here for a moment.
Religion is supposed to be an intimate and humble thing, and if I have learned anything about debate, is that very rarely does anyone admit they are wrong. The bible has been interpreted many different ways since it's creation and yet people out there still will cite a translation of a sentence of an entire section and call it fact. Religion is not fact. I repeat this, religion is not fact. If religion was fact, we wouldn't need science. In the opposite corner, science cannot explain the conundrum of various topics like religion can.
Despite what I said before, personal truths do exist. For me, Odin, Freya, and several other Gods and Goddesses have spoken to me, but I can't claim what they said as absolute truth, and fact. I always try my best to be careful in how I say things when it comes to religion, because it is supposed to be a personal and humble action. Instead of telling someone, "God said to me that your hair needs to be cut", I would say something like "When I sat down, God passed a suggestion to me, for you, about cutting your hair. You don't need to and what I say isn't truth, only you can make that choice in the end, but perhaps there is a reason why I was told about your hair." I would say something along those lines. The power should always remain in the individual when it comes to making a decision as well. Maybe, that's my Wiccan side popping up from years ago, but I don't like telling people what to do and what is right or wrong.
Actually, when I do bring up a debate about religion (because I'm stupid) I like to pull off a sneaky task. Instead of arguing about what is right or wrong, I use the knowledge I do have and ask questions. People are a lot less aggressive when you ask them questions and you learn THEIR PERSONAL TRUTHS. Sorry to my friends out their who disagree, but even if you know your religion inside and out, how you interpret it will be different from the next. Accept it.
----
Deviating a little from before, but not by far, is my dislike for people who wish to debate something you said about religion in passing. Despite my love for arguing and how aggressive I can get, I like to be nurturing and loving when I bring out my pagan side. I separate my personality from each other. Unfortunately, when I bring up a problem, I see in the very small community of pagans, and all someone wants to to is debate with a condescending tone, my feathers get ruffled. Please, people, show some kindness if you don't understand why someone is doing something. Don't treat them like they are stupid. Save that for court rooms, debate rounds, and sometimes special times with family and friends.
My personal thought is that the best truths are the ones you figure out yourself, instead of grabbing them from everyone else around you.
Don't have much else to say so,
Hail to the Gods!
Blessed Be
or however you may say it
Have a good day world. :)
Religion is supposed to be an intimate and humble thing, and if I have learned anything about debate, is that very rarely does anyone admit they are wrong. The bible has been interpreted many different ways since it's creation and yet people out there still will cite a translation of a sentence of an entire section and call it fact. Religion is not fact. I repeat this, religion is not fact. If religion was fact, we wouldn't need science. In the opposite corner, science cannot explain the conundrum of various topics like religion can.
Despite what I said before, personal truths do exist. For me, Odin, Freya, and several other Gods and Goddesses have spoken to me, but I can't claim what they said as absolute truth, and fact. I always try my best to be careful in how I say things when it comes to religion, because it is supposed to be a personal and humble action. Instead of telling someone, "God said to me that your hair needs to be cut", I would say something like "When I sat down, God passed a suggestion to me, for you, about cutting your hair. You don't need to and what I say isn't truth, only you can make that choice in the end, but perhaps there is a reason why I was told about your hair." I would say something along those lines. The power should always remain in the individual when it comes to making a decision as well. Maybe, that's my Wiccan side popping up from years ago, but I don't like telling people what to do and what is right or wrong.
Actually, when I do bring up a debate about religion (because I'm stupid) I like to pull off a sneaky task. Instead of arguing about what is right or wrong, I use the knowledge I do have and ask questions. People are a lot less aggressive when you ask them questions and you learn THEIR PERSONAL TRUTHS. Sorry to my friends out their who disagree, but even if you know your religion inside and out, how you interpret it will be different from the next. Accept it.
----
Deviating a little from before, but not by far, is my dislike for people who wish to debate something you said about religion in passing. Despite my love for arguing and how aggressive I can get, I like to be nurturing and loving when I bring out my pagan side. I separate my personality from each other. Unfortunately, when I bring up a problem, I see in the very small community of pagans, and all someone wants to to is debate with a condescending tone, my feathers get ruffled. Please, people, show some kindness if you don't understand why someone is doing something. Don't treat them like they are stupid. Save that for court rooms, debate rounds, and sometimes special times with family and friends.
My personal thought is that the best truths are the ones you figure out yourself, instead of grabbing them from everyone else around you.
Don't have much else to say so,
Hail to the Gods!
Blessed Be
or however you may say it
Have a good day world. :)
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Starting out
I have learned much in 7-8 years, and that is nothing can be entirely explained about the universe. No matter what someone thinks to be the Ultimate Truth, we must all come to terms with the fact that we, as humans, can only speculate on our coming into existance.
I don't know what, exactly, brought me to the pagan path...perhaps rebellion? No, that isn't quite right, I was in a state of questioning the world and I seemed to get satisfaction when getting introduced to the world of Wicca. One of my best friends at the time had introduced me to it through her mom...who is now a Baptist Christian funnily enough. She was my only person of true understanding as I grew up but due to so many dramas and her unreliability, I basically worked alone. I never quite trusted forums on the internet and I wasn't sure who was actually posting. Face-to-face is always more preferable, however, since I always had skeptic parents behind me (better than having parents trying to kick me out though) I never could get the help I needed to learn more and integrate myself into the world of being a pagan.
That being said, the books I did get a hold of were my Bibles, and in my youth I believed most of what I read to be truth. It wasn't until I was in the middle of High School that I had a rude awakening while learning a new terminology. A Fluffy Bunny. Looking back on it now, I most definitely was, but I had no clue what that was. I lived up to a very common problem in pagan communities today with ignorance that Wicca was all light, love, and not hurting others no matter what. Because of the nature of that problem, many within the pagan community today have turned a blind eye not wanting to deal with the ignorance of youth. So I wonder, how do you fix a problem such as this? Due to all the various branches a pagan can fall under, we have a hard enough time uniting together, as well as dealing with the prejudice of the outside, not-understanding world. There needs to be a better system of teachers available, ones who don't mind driving for free to a local bookstore who can educate the youth. Granted, it's not a perfect system, and security issues arise, but in a world like this- problems can occur from walking down a street.
I'm trying to find the answers to my world, I've even found comfort within the reconstuctionist pagan path of Asatru, but I am still feeling a little lost. Many who currently follow Asatru, or Odinism give a bad name in favor of the gods and use this path as an excuse for Racism. It's hard to follow a path that is tainted with political slander between those who think it's ok to mix Wicca and Asatru and accept anyone into their fold, to people who can't understand why someone not of Germanic blood would want to practice, to the far extreme of only allowing white Germanic followers and criticize or hold prejudice against those who aren't like them. This contrasts what I originally learned of peace, love, and acceptance, which I still hold deeply in my heart.
At this stage in my life I am constantly around others are either Wiccan, or Eclectic which can prove to be a problem because I know this well, you do things that feel right, but when you are working on a reconstuctionist path, you try to do what you can like the past, and because Asatru actually has quite a bit to base off of, I try to follow 'their' ways the best I can which can be hard for my wonder friends to understand. I can't hope to understand the will of my Gods if I don't know their stories and the practices today that is supported by the Asatru/ Odinist community, hence why I tent to be such a stickler and sometimes won't want to join in the eclectic celebrations. It's not that I think myself, or my gods better, not at all, but it's more like I can't bear to include other gods into my practice with others when I've just got the tip of the iceburg with my gods and I'm craving to hear their will.
I've actually noticed this about myself, and I've been told this by other pagans in my life before, but I tend to be more religious than others when it comes to Paganism. I just care so passionately! When I settle in later in life and I've studied a lot more I would love to organize my own pagan group, that focuses on integrate teaching for all paths, almost like a teacher group so they can go out and teach the youth that get brought in our world without support. Unlikely that it would work, but a girl can dream, right? If a group of pagans well versed in many paths appear in the world as a uniting force, I'm sure that more support can be rallied for acceptance of our faiths. Conferences could be made regular and creating common ground would be easier. Of course, everyone would have their specialty, but wouldn't a pagan teachers school sound wonderful? Full of academia and research of people's native lands and certification so people can look them up and be sure of it's accreditation instead of such and such is a high priest/priestess of some unknown clan from ???
I'm pretty much ranted out at the moment but keep tuning in for more if you like this! :)
I don't know what, exactly, brought me to the pagan path...perhaps rebellion? No, that isn't quite right, I was in a state of questioning the world and I seemed to get satisfaction when getting introduced to the world of Wicca. One of my best friends at the time had introduced me to it through her mom...who is now a Baptist Christian funnily enough. She was my only person of true understanding as I grew up but due to so many dramas and her unreliability, I basically worked alone. I never quite trusted forums on the internet and I wasn't sure who was actually posting. Face-to-face is always more preferable, however, since I always had skeptic parents behind me (better than having parents trying to kick me out though) I never could get the help I needed to learn more and integrate myself into the world of being a pagan.
That being said, the books I did get a hold of were my Bibles, and in my youth I believed most of what I read to be truth. It wasn't until I was in the middle of High School that I had a rude awakening while learning a new terminology. A Fluffy Bunny. Looking back on it now, I most definitely was, but I had no clue what that was. I lived up to a very common problem in pagan communities today with ignorance that Wicca was all light, love, and not hurting others no matter what. Because of the nature of that problem, many within the pagan community today have turned a blind eye not wanting to deal with the ignorance of youth. So I wonder, how do you fix a problem such as this? Due to all the various branches a pagan can fall under, we have a hard enough time uniting together, as well as dealing with the prejudice of the outside, not-understanding world. There needs to be a better system of teachers available, ones who don't mind driving for free to a local bookstore who can educate the youth. Granted, it's not a perfect system, and security issues arise, but in a world like this- problems can occur from walking down a street.
I'm trying to find the answers to my world, I've even found comfort within the reconstuctionist pagan path of Asatru, but I am still feeling a little lost. Many who currently follow Asatru, or Odinism give a bad name in favor of the gods and use this path as an excuse for Racism. It's hard to follow a path that is tainted with political slander between those who think it's ok to mix Wicca and Asatru and accept anyone into their fold, to people who can't understand why someone not of Germanic blood would want to practice, to the far extreme of only allowing white Germanic followers and criticize or hold prejudice against those who aren't like them. This contrasts what I originally learned of peace, love, and acceptance, which I still hold deeply in my heart.
At this stage in my life I am constantly around others are either Wiccan, or Eclectic which can prove to be a problem because I know this well, you do things that feel right, but when you are working on a reconstuctionist path, you try to do what you can like the past, and because Asatru actually has quite a bit to base off of, I try to follow 'their' ways the best I can which can be hard for my wonder friends to understand. I can't hope to understand the will of my Gods if I don't know their stories and the practices today that is supported by the Asatru/ Odinist community, hence why I tent to be such a stickler and sometimes won't want to join in the eclectic celebrations. It's not that I think myself, or my gods better, not at all, but it's more like I can't bear to include other gods into my practice with others when I've just got the tip of the iceburg with my gods and I'm craving to hear their will.
I've actually noticed this about myself, and I've been told this by other pagans in my life before, but I tend to be more religious than others when it comes to Paganism. I just care so passionately! When I settle in later in life and I've studied a lot more I would love to organize my own pagan group, that focuses on integrate teaching for all paths, almost like a teacher group so they can go out and teach the youth that get brought in our world without support. Unlikely that it would work, but a girl can dream, right? If a group of pagans well versed in many paths appear in the world as a uniting force, I'm sure that more support can be rallied for acceptance of our faiths. Conferences could be made regular and creating common ground would be easier. Of course, everyone would have their specialty, but wouldn't a pagan teachers school sound wonderful? Full of academia and research of people's native lands and certification so people can look them up and be sure of it's accreditation instead of such and such is a high priest/priestess of some unknown clan from ???
I'm pretty much ranted out at the moment but keep tuning in for more if you like this! :)
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