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 Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:31 pm
Introduction
I call my journal (both physical and digital),
my Book of Winds.
It is, in one part, to honor Zephyrus,
who has let me, in my past searches,
transform him into a thoughtform deity
representing my own conscious
(not on purpose, mind you)
and in another part,
a reference to my own fleeting and airy travels
through different types and practices of paganism,
to find my own path.
I was quite fond of the "30 Days of Paganism",
and I thought it would be particularly helpful
in succinctly and informatively getting
my personal belief system in order.
I would appreciate, for now,
any questions being sent via PM,
simply because it will take me a bit to get things in order.
I am planning to address all questions via PM,
but also to put them here,
so others can see the responses I give.
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:34 pm
1. Beliefs – Why (not) Paganism?
I was raised a Roman Catholic.
I was never much of a fan.
Never resonated very highly with me.
Only in a few instances did I ever really feel a connection
to this nameless God with his strict rules.
I was, for a while, an atheist,
but I knew in the back of my head that I wasn’t okay with the void;
atheism was definitely missing something for me,
and agnosticism seemed like… copping out,
not really understanding myself enough.
So I figured it was more important to take the time
to understand myself and my beliefs.
I can’t really explain why paganism.
It’s because I don’t resonate with any
of the non-pagan religions I know.
And for me, it’s more about working out exactly what I believe
than fitting myself into a religion that doesn’t mean something me.
I’m not looking for “religion” so much as
understanding my personal belief system.
And that just happens to be pagan.
(**Clarification: I use pagan very generally, as the defined “religion that is not Christianity, Judaism or Islam”, though I do extended it to Hinduism and Wicca. Paganism, to me, is a religion that is not one of the Big 4, and it is not Wicca, primarily to enforce the difference between eclectic neo-paganism and Wicca**)
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:37 pm
2. Beliefs – Cosmology
I don’t necessarily believe in any other “worlds”.
There is one universe.
When you die, like Buddhist nirvana, you become one with the universe,
and the universe recycles and absorbs spirit in a never-ending cycle.
Spirits exist in a different plane of our own world,
quite probably the 4th dimension.
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:45 pm
3. Beliefs – Deities
The Universe is the thing I believe most in.
He/She/It is the source of life and the end of it.
He’s like… the Hindu Trinity (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva).
She is like the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
It is all and none and I have no real clue how to call her/him, besides the Universe.
I am definitely a hard polytheist,
with the belief that gods can almost never be separated from their culture
and, in honestly, shouldn't be.
I have a penchant for the Greek pantheon,
but don't particularly see them as needing anything from me,
as I am primarily outside their scope (or, some similar terminology).
I believe these gods exist, but they aren't "mine",
I have no connection to them.
I also believe in spirits.
Spirits that personify or exemplify certain things
and may come into your life to show you or teach you,
but they may not stay long.
I believe that all this (spirits, gods, totems, etc.) are parts of the Universe
and like us, will one day return to the Universe and be one with it.
I am sure that there are gods out there who will show themselves,
possibly later in my life and become important figures,
even patrons, to me.
For now, I will simply continue meditating.
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:48 pm
4. Beliefs – Birth, death and rebirth
It all comes from the Universe.
Your spirit is a part of the universe and it stays with you until you die,
and it is taken back up into the universe.
And then it just becomes a piece of the universe again,
until parts or all of it are placed in something else as its spirit.
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:50 pm
5. Beliefs – Magic, spellcraft, mysticism etc
Magic is not… central to what I believe.
Magic, to me, comes from centering your energies
and asking the Universe for something.
It’s like a combination of the Universe and your energy.
Or, sometimes, just your energy,
centered and focused on something.
It’s always personal and rarely…
demonstrable to others.
“Display” spells are something I don’t believe in,
generally opting for the more…
scientific explanation of those.
There are three kinds of magic,
in my belief.
Magic of Petition: This is the magic performed "in circle",
or whenever you are communing with your gods.
It is asking the Supreme for something.
Magic of Communion: This is the magic one performs
on other people, animals, etc. It is a manner
of communing with the other energies of the universe
in life.
Magic of Person: The magic internal to oneself.
Energy manipulation of the self.
And all that.
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:53 pm
6. Beliefs – The power of prayer/reciprocity
I definitely believe in reciprocity,
but I have some trouble with it.
I do believe you should thank your gods and spirits
and honor them however they wish to be honored.
However, since I am still sort of,
scoping out my beliefs and trying to
understand what the Universe wants from me,
I generally just blurt out rambling thanks
instead of performing anything meaningful.
I believe prayer can be a very emotional and powerful experience.
Other than that, I have no concrete opinion.
Do it when appropriate or you feel its necessary.
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:57 pm
7. Beliefs – Patronage and other deeper relationships
I view the patron god in a very Greek sense,
as I am most drawn to the Greek pantheon.
It’s your mentor, your closest god,
the one who calls you and who resonates most with you.
Therefore, I don’t have one.
The Universe is far more a removed deity than a patron,
or anything I work very closely with
and I see it in a traditionally Abrahamic sense.
The Universe is so utterly alien from humanity that
I will never truly understand it.
I don’t ever expect to be close to the Universe.
I may find other spirits or deities that I form very strong bonds with,
but I have not yet.
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 6:02 pm
8. Beliefs – Holidays
I celebrate secular holidays, secularly.
I do not celebrate sabbats
or esbats or the wheel of the year.
I may, in the future,
decide that I will celebrate certain holidays,
but they will probably just be days
that /I/ feel have certain importance.
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Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 6:04 pm
9. Deity Gender
The Universe is
genderless. Amorphous blob
of alive and dead.
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Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2011 7:58 pm
10. Patrons
Not applicable at the moment.
Zephyrus is,
in a way, my patron,
but only in that he let me,
in my less informed days,
desecrate him by creating a version
of him that is not necessarily accurate.
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Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2011 8:04 pm
11. Pantheon –
(For these posts,
pick a deity or speak of elements of the
patheon, such as tribes or nature spirits, etc.)
So, officially the gods and spirits I believe in?
Hmmm… How I’m going to break this into 4
posts is beyond me. I’ll start with spirits.
Spirits, to me,
are often similar to
minor gods or demigods.
They are generally very specific beings.
They are manifestations
of different aspects of the Universe
and can be called upon
in spells and rituals.
(NOTE: When I say can be called upon, I don't mean it literally. I don't believe spirits are coming around willy-nilly to help people with magic and such. There are more important things they could be doing. They are energies direct from the universe.)
Guardian angels would be guides.
Totem animals or animal guides
would fall under this category,
but Jackal, the god, would not.
Guides are generally temporary,
leading to you more immediate conclusions
than your patron or your gods would.
They can, however, be long-lasting as well,
really depending on your relationship with them
and your relationship with the Universe.
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Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2011 8:05 pm
Reserved
I will be continuing this in the future,
as I answer more questions
and edit what I've previously stated
to better explain my views.
Please, don't post yet!
All questions will be happily answered
via PM
-Rouf
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