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Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Underlying Beliefs Of Pagans

Underlying Beliefs Of Pagans Cover I am not presumptuous enough to believe that these should be everyone's beliefs, nor am I egotistical enough to believe that these beliefs are mine alone. However, they are mine. I have formed these beliefs as an individual from the experiences in my life.

Life:

Life is fleeting, enjoy it.

Death:

Sooner or later I will die. My body will decompose and become part of something else.

Afterlife:

I do not believe in an afterlife. I have never lived with this soul before, and I will never live with this soul again. This realization makes every life a bit more precious, and life in general more special. I love this life, it is the only one I have.

Individuality:

You are the final say as to what is right or wrong for yourself. You play a direct role to the situations you find yourself in. Try to be aware of what you are doing, and why you are doing it as often as possible.

The World:

We are part of this Earth, made from the minerals of this Earth, nourished by this Earth, and set into motion with the power provided to us from the Sun.

God/Gods/Goddesses:

The culmination of everything is just that... Powerful, moving, and with patterns. We are all in this together. We are individuals, but we come from the same source, and we are set into motion by the same energy. We have nourished, and we will nourish others ourselves. Just as my two hands are separate, and still part of me as a whole, each of us are separate, and part of the world as a whole. Call it what you will. It is this connection, and the realization of this connection with everything, that I call "God". Different aspects of these connections and interactions are given different names, faces and attributes. To contemplate the entirety of everything all at once is too much for my head to handle.

Is there a greater Consciousness that guides us, helps us, etc? It could be... And in fact, we could be a part of it. Just as the individual brain cells in my head are not aware that they make up and influence my consciousness, we each could make up a mind larger than we can imagine, and we might never know it.

Magick:

It works for some people, and for some people it does not. How does it work? I really don't know. From my experience, belief, trust, purpose, situation, and individuality all have a role to play in the effectiveness of Magick. Sometimes this is because the will of the individual helps a thing to happen (a very powerful tool, and not to be underestimated), and sometimes not. Skills such as Divination may or may not be part of this. These skills may draw on some other form of energy, or perhaps they could be tapping into the greater consciousness suggested above. The bottom line is that this seems to be a problem similar to the origin of the world. I don't think anyone knows, and I can't think of a way to really find out. So, until I'm given reason, I'm not going to worry about it too much. There are so many other Things That I can learn that I can know.

Ritual:

Some people need it, some people don't. I'm not a regular practitioner of Rituals, mostly because I don't feel a need for them. This could change over time.

Helping:

Making others happy is a very good way to make oneself happy. If you're ever feeling down, do yourself a favor and do something nice for someone else.

Love:

Try to meet a new person with an open heart and an open mind. Each individual is unique, and it is unfair to stereotype them. This is extremely difficult, however, since the mind is designed to organize and categorize as best it can to make use of lessons learned. If someone wrongs you, forgive, but do not forget.

Sex:

Some animals mate for life, some don't. I feel that sex should be something between two individuals who care deeply for each other (Not necessarily married, mind you), and who trust each other immensely. The rational part of my mind believes this largely because of the life-changing circumstances that sex can have and all of the potential disasters that can occur from a sexual relationship. The emotional part of my mind believes this, because that's how I feel before, during, and after sex. But this is just me.

Free eBooks (Can Be Downloaded):

Anonymous - The Trinity Is It Christian Or Pagan
Robert Leo Odom - Sunday Sacredness In Roman Paganism
Lau Soon Wah - The Powerful And Deadly Spells Of The Javanese
Mindy Macleod - Bandrunir In Icelandic Sagas
Devi Spring - The Emerging Indo Pagans