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    Newbie in desprate need for advise

    My experiences: What I have established:
    Through about a yearlong of meditations I have been able to establish certain things to be true.


    Questions:And most important question. What do I do now? What is the next step in becoming a pagan?
    Thank you for listening to me rant. All advise is welcomes but please, no negative comments.

    #2
    Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

    I can't really do this thread much justice from my phone but I feel I have to make a start, at least. In fact, as a start, there shouldn't be *any* negative comments in this SAFE zone - but cautionary notes, opposing views/beliefs, and whatnot shouldn't be considered 'negative' either. And that's where I want to start...

    I don't consider your very first exposure to Paganism to be anywhere near the norm. While it is, certainly, true that a great many pagans may share some of the same beliefs, I feel it's a far safer bet to say that the hodge-podge of Amy, Tim and Jes' belief systems are just one tiny little image, on a world stage. That is to say, don't worry about trying to fit into their world view. Develop your own, instead.

    That's where this can be great fun, in my opinion, since it involves, basically, tracking down information on anything and everything that interests you. For me, that was book after book, after book. I rather love to read, though. I also spent a great deal of time looking into meditations and thought exercises, with others and by myself, and taking a ton of notes. (This was decades ago, now, when I was fresh out of high school and still practicing halfway decent research techniques.)

    Through all of that I started finding things that just, really sort of resonated with me. Little bits of mythologies that seemed far too true to simply disregard as Old Myths. Once I started getting a feel for some of the things I felt to be true I was able to narrow down where I wanted to look into next.

    A fair example of that is that my take on reincarnation has way too many loose ends, questions with no answers. On that same note, along with both Norse mythologies and Native American traditions, I found animals to be significant along my path. Totem animals, spirit guides, or whatnot.

    So, as I moved forward with curiosity, I sort of fell into my beliefs. It was only years later that I had to put a name to it, or explain certain discrepancies and deviations from the dogmas I had stolen some few ideas from. But it fit, it answered what I had come to find, it made perfect sense to me. And to hell with what other people kept saying were the 'proper' methods and understandings.

    Now, to that end, I have no trouble with cautioning you on accepting what some may say is a bad choice. Like with Hecate. Tarot. Whatever. Sure, there's things you'll want to know beforehand, like is there any water, even, in that swimming pool you're about to dive into, but that's the whole point of dipping your toe in there. Learn about what you're in to. Find out if it's nice and comfy or if it really is painful and scary at the bottom. Explore, enjoy and enrich. Pretty much.

    The last thing I wanna for sure mention is what to do now, in becoming pagan. Personally, I don't think one becomes a pagan. Maybe become a better pagan, but since even the term pagan is so vague and almost meaningless, in terms of what someone believes, it's tough to become better, too. What you do now is up to you, honestly. There are so many places you can start, whole mythologies, individual gods and/or goddesses, fanciful rituals or traditions, or just, even, neutral-seeming avenues like healing, chakras, third eye stuff, reincarnation and all. Whatever pleases you to look for, browse, inquire, think about, meditate on or play with.

    With so many folks here having such varied beliefs there's always something to find interesting. The trick, really, is to bring it to the surface.




    "Reason is not automatic. Those who deny it cannot be conquered by it." - Ayn Rand

    "Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth." - Marcus Aurelius

    "The very ink with which history is written is merely fluid prejudice." - Mark Twain

    "The only gossip I'm interested in is things from the Weekly World News - 'Woman's bra bursts, 11 injured'. That kind of thing." - Johnny Depp


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      #3
      Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

      Hi Kara, For what it is worth, below is what I can offer on the questions you ask.



      In my opinion, it is important to always question and analyze the information. Wherever you go, there you are, and nothing is entering your conscious mind without passing through the filter of you.

      With my need for freedom in how I approach Paganism? Is it a religion I should consider?

      As Chain stated, "Pagan" can mean a lot of different things, and it probably should not be thought of as a religion, though some religions would be considered pagan.

      And most important question. What do I do now? What is the next step in becoming a pagan?

      Maybe considering what it meant by the term "Pagan." There are a number of threads at this forum regarding what a religion is as well as what paganism is. The best thing you can do for yourself is to be true to who you are; don't worry about the label that will be applied to you, just be "you." Find your own truth, and you will know it because it will harmonize with your being effortlessly.

      "No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical." -- Niels Bohr

      Comment


        #4
        Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        Can someone be human while also being a different spiritual/mythical creature?
        There is an entire subculture filled with people who believe that they are somehow not entirely human. It's known as 'Otherkin' when it's non-animal creatures and 'Therian/Therianthrope' when it's animals. Then there is the Furry community, but that's a bit different and not quite what we're talking about here.

        Personally, I'm a bit ambiguous about this concept. I have known a number of people who claim to be Therian and/or Otherkin... a few of whom were close friends. But there are a great many people in those communities who are difficult to take seriously. It's also one of those concepts that has unfortunately been hijacked by superficial people jumping on a bandwagon because it sounds cool and profound. That makes it difficult to sort out what may be legitimate and what is just grandiose posing and attention grabbing.

        Now, I'm Northern Tradition and we have a well documented tradition of hamrammr (being able to shapechange) and beserkrgang (going into a sort of primal battle-state that may or may not involve shapechanging or embracing internal therian-sides). Some believe this supports the idea of being Otherkin and/or Therian. Others don't. We also have a tradition of our deities meddling around with human bloodlines, thereby putting some non-human qualities into people.

        Personally, I believe that our hame (astral body) transcends species and so you can't be a turtle spirit in a human body. As a person who works intimately with animals and animal spirits and guides, there is far too much about that which makes no sense to me. I think that many Otherkin or Therians are actually tapping into either past life memories, animal guides, traits from god-meddling, subconscious 'parts' (where you separate aspects of yourself out into a sort of different identity, like 'angry me' and 'happy me' and 'me that I try to pretend doesn't exist') or simple escapism.

        But that's just my opinion. No one can prove any of this one way or the other.

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        What is a creation god or goddess? What is their role in your life? How do you know who it is?
        In the sense that your friends were talking about? I have absolutely no idea. I've never heard the term in that context before.

        Normally, a 'creation god' is a deity who was in charge of creating some aspect of a cosmology.

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        How do you remove a block on your third eye?
        There are a number of ways. But usually there's not a block there for no reason. And usually it's best to let these things come undone naturally as you increase your skills and experience. Forcibly removing something that the mind and body has put there (usually as a protectant or filtering agent) can have unwanted consequences.

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        What is circle? How is it important? What are its functions?
        Most neo-pagan practices that use Circles in magick and ritual use them for two main functions. First to delineate sacred space, which is a space where the energy is different to normal everyday space. And secondly as a barrier... to keep unwanted energies out and wanted energies in. There is a lot more to Circles, but that's their core purpose boiled down in a nutshell. Not everyone uses them. Not everyone needs them.

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        What are harmful to me and what aren’t?
        I don't really understand this question.

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        I have a lot of doubts when I’m doing meditations whether or not the information I am receiving is correct. Sometimes the info just feels forced and that it isn’t correct. Is it really part of my imagination? Should real divine advice feel like this? If this is so, how do I fix this so I no long have inner doubts about my intuition?
        This is a natural and relatively healthy thing to be feeling, at least as far as I'm concerned. Discernment is one of the hardest things to learn in magickal practice and it's important to always keep a healthy dose of skepticism around. Not everything that you hear in meditation is legitimate. Not every spirit who claims a gods' name is actually a god. Blindly believing everything that you are told during meditation is a good way to get yourself either deluded, or in trouble.

        The first thing that I recommend that people new to these paths do is learn how to ground, center and shield. The second thing is how to meditate without 'opening yourself up to communication with... whatever'. Opening yourself up is a terrible idea for a newbie, especially if you don't have good foundational skills (ground, center, shield).

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        In a meditation, what does a god feel like? How their presence is different from a spirit guides?
        That depends on the god and the person who they are communicating with. Unfortunately there is no easy answer to this question, because we are all different and we all interface with deities and guides differently.

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        With my need for freedom in how I approach Paganism? Is it a religion I should consider?
        Only you can answer this question. Paganism isn't a religion, but more like a group of religions. It's a general direction, not a path in itself.

        Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
        And most important question. What do I do now? What is the next step in becoming a pagan?


        I recommend reading. Actual books rather than websites and blogs. Books provide context and a linear progression that you can't get off a website. The good ones also provide framework and exercises upon which to start building a practice. Read as many books as you can get your hands on, on as many different topics as you are interested in. Then use the internet to research each concept and idea further. Over the years you start to build up your own bank of experience and knowledge... that's when the discernment part starts to get easier.

        Comment


          #5
          Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

          Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
          Questions:
          Can someone be human while also being a different spiritual/mythical creature?
          Theoretically, many things are possible. My issue with it is normally that if a dragon, angel, fairy noble, etc decides to put on a skinsuit and play at being mortal then they probably have a **** good reason for it and they've got the power, intelligence and will to accomplish great and terrible things. Show me a really exceptional individual claiming to be something else and we'll talk. Show me a particularly angsty teenager with neither great accomplishment nor great ambition to their name and well

          angsty teenager

          What is a creation god or goddess? What is their role in your life? How do you know who it is?
          a god or goddess with critical involvement in the creation reality or a significant portion of there-of, I deal with them about as much as any other Power

          How do you remove a block on your third eye?
          slowly and carefully

          What is circle? How is it important? What are its functions?
          Rae'ya answered this pretty well

          Everything is harmful. Sunlight is harmful if handled wrong (any who care to argue this point are invited to stare at the noon-day sun full on without eye protection for 6 hours and then come tell me how their eyes are). Certain things might be more likely to cause harm but this question would better if made more specific.

          I'm not the best person to answer these so I'll leave them alone.

          With my need for freedom in how I approach Paganism? Is it a religion I should consider?
          It's an option (okay, it's a legion of barely related options) and you should generally consider all options.

          And most important question. What do I do now? What is the next step in becoming a pagan?
          research probably, tons and tons of research. If there's a specific path that you're interested in then there's probably someone around who can suggest some good books or sites. Best of luck and welcome aboard.
          life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

          Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

          "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

          John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

          "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

          Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


          Comment


            #6
            Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

            I know its the S.A.F.E. zone but this isn't targeted at you as this isn't your fault.

            But to me those people are dishing you a crock of !@#$ and you deserve better than that as a new pagan. Good news is you got some experience with what the 'odder' side of the community can be like.

            Research a lot, and enjoy the journey. good luck.
            White and Red 'till I'm cold and dead.
            sigpic
            In Days of yore,
            From Britain's shore
            Wolfe the dauntless hero came
            And planted firm Britannia's flag
            On Canada's fair domain.
            Here may it wave,
            Our boast, our pride
            And joined in love together,
            The thistle, shamrock, rose entwined,
            The Maple Leaf Forever.

            Comment


              #7
              Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

              Originally posted by Doc_Holliday View Post
              I know its the S.A.F.E. zone but this isn't targeted at you as this isn't your fault.

              But to me those people are dishing you a crock of !@#$ and you deserve better than that as a new pagan. Good news is you got some experience with what the 'odder' side of the community can be like.

              Research a lot, and enjoy the journey. good luck.
              I'm inclined to agree with Doc. Here's the thing,

              let's temporarily accept all the more fantastical elements of paganism. An angry were would be a particularly bothersome issue for most people. However, we aren't normal, we're otherkin of great and terrible power. Now do I watch my friend go shout at were while waving a sword around or do I as a dragon, barbecue the mangy mutt and and add him to my dinner menu? That's just one issue that I have with the story presented to you, Kara. Even if you accept fantastical elements of reality, those elements will behave in some form of coherent manner. A lycan generally doesn't like being on the dinner menu and a dragon is more than capable of making lycan steaks soo...
              life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

              Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

              "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

              John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

              "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

              Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


              Comment


                #8
                Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

                IMHO, your friends are entertaining themselves by being overly dramatic because they have a newbie for an audience.

                You are no more likely to get into trouble as a new pagan than you would be as a new Catholic, or a new Jew, or a new Buddhist. If you let your mind run wild with the juju aspects, your mind will let you, and you'll get confused and/or disoriented.

                You may find that you have an animal spirit. You may take this as either a literal spirit that is somehow another you, or it may be a symbolic other self. You may flop back and forth between the interpretations as you go along. Nobody really knows, so you'll have to figure it out for yourself.

                A patron god/goddess is the same thing. Maybe an external god/goddess has picked you, maybe you picked it, or maybe it is all symbolic. I have a patron god and goddess, and I'm an atheist... so go figure.

                Again, you'll have to figure it out based on your own experiences.

                For a lot of people - but not all - one of the main attractions is that YOU are the one who explores and discovers.

                Have fun with it, and fear not. Evil spirits aren't after your ass.

                Unless you want them to be.
                Every moment of a life is a horrible tragedy, a slapstick comedy, dark nihilism, golden illumination, or nothing at all; depending on how we write the story we tell ourselves.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

                  Wow, Thank you guys so much for your advice! Even though it’s been a year since this initial event happened I still had a lot of lingering questions. Reading your responses have given me a lot of clarity, thank you. However I still have a few questions.

                  Is Anubis a dark deity? If so, Can someone honor a dark deity without having a dark personality?
                  What are some good beginner pagan books? Any that you guys especially liked and would recommended?
                  I read somewhere that you have to create your own spells, rituals and prayers. Yet other sites and books I’ve looked at gave me spells, rituals and prayers. This confuses me. Do pagan create their own spells, rituals and prayers or do we find spells, rituals and prayers to use? And if we do create our own, is there a process or method to it?

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

                    Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
                    Wow, Thank you guys so much for your advice! Even though it’s been a year since this initial event happened I still had a lot of lingering questions. Reading your responses have given me a lot of clarity, thank you. However I still have a few questions.

                    Is Anubis a dark deity? If so, Can someone honor a dark deity without having a dark personality?
                    What are some good beginner pagan books? Any that you guys especially liked and would recommended?
                    I read somewhere that you have to create your own spells, rituals and prayers. Yet other sites and books I’ve looked at gave me spells, rituals and prayers. This confuses me. Do pagan create their own spells, rituals and prayers or do we find spells, rituals and prayers to use? And if we do create our own, is there a process or method to it?
                    Define dark. I enjoy bright and shiny imagery. Always have but there's a popular misconception that Light = peace and love. This preconception is at best an oversimplification and at worst willful self delusion. Apollo casually slaughtered people who insulted his mother. The LoH has sent angels to kill as often as brings tidings of good fortune and Lady Justice holds a sword. There are similar misconceptions about what people like to call Dark. So tell us what you mean by Dark and we'll have better comments.

                    Past that, you can worship whomever you please. If a deity isn't interested then they either won't reply or they'll shove you in the direction of someone they feel more suited for you but you possess free will. At the end, the choice is always yours.
                    life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

                    Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

                    "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

                    John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

                    "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

                    Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


                    Comment


                      #11
                      Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

                      Originally posted by MaskedOne View Post
                      Define dark. I enjoy bright and shiny imagery. Always have but there's a popular misconception that Light = peace and love. This preconception is at best an oversimplification and at worst willful self delusion. Apollo casually slaughtered people who insulted his mother. The LoH has sent angels to kill as often as brings tidings of good fortune and Lady Justice holds a sword. There are similar misconceptions about what people like to call Dark. So tell us what you mean by Dark and we'll have better comments.
                      Well back in my experience section with Jes, Tim and Amy, I mentioned being interested in Hekate but Tim told me to stay far away from a Dark goddess.I honestly don't know exactly what they meant by Dark and I was just applying the word they were used. However both Anubis and Hekate are psychopomps so I guess that what they meant by Dark. And it would be dangerous to be involved with a god that has negative connotations surrounding it, especially for a newbie. So perhaps a better formed question would be Is it a good idea for someone very new to paganism to accept a death god into their life?

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

                        Ahh, okay:

                        Then my advice is much easier

                        step 1) purge any directives regarding who to honor given by those three from your mind with fire and sword

                        step 2) do some research into the tales of Hecate and Anubis (we have both Hellenic and Kemetic pagans on the board who can probably give pointers, I'm not either and those two fall outside my general knowledge of mythology)

                        step 3) if you like what you see, reach out to them. If you don't like what you see, move on.

                        Make your decisions based on what you see regarding a given divinity, not a given role. There are forces that I won't willingly approach with a 10 foot pole but that other people get along with great. If you look into a Power's mythology and think "Good heavens, I want to hurt this bastard." I advise against reaching out to them. By contrast, if your thought is more along the lines of, "I've got to meet them." Meet them. A divinity is more than the role they play, each has it's own approach to a given role and interpretation of how to interact with reality.

                        - - - Updated - - -

                        This

                        is a link about Hekate from one of the sites that Hellenics more commonly reference
                        life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

                        Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

                        "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

                        John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

                        "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

                        Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

                          Just going to add a brief thing here.
                          It puzzles me that Tim and Amy consider Hekate a "dark" (whatever that is) Goddess but not Freya. In my experience (and this is just mine, take it for no more than it is worth, and certainly not as gospel) Freya has an extremely nasty side to her. She is far from a fluffy goddess.
                          But then that should be expected in my opinion, she's associated with love and lust, and love is just about the most vicious motivators around.
                          Warning: The above post may contain traces of sarcasm.

                          An apostrophe is the difference between a business that knows its shit, and a business that knows it's shit.

                          "Why is every object we don't understand always called a thing?" (McCoy. Star Trek: The Moive Picture)

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

                            I just got to this thread... personally I think Amy, Jes and Tim are a bunch of fools who are trying to pretend to know a lot more than they do. Their entire approach seems to be built upon trying to impress and hector you. So let's put them - as others have suggested - to one side.

                            I did a video on paganism here : http://youtu.be/YUb9J0sBau4 that you might find useful, and there are also quite a few other videos on my channel that you might find useful.

                            With regard to finding a deity, remember that they come to teach. So think of them as a teacher - what sort of teacher would you like?

                            In my experience, gods will often come to us, rather than the other way around. But there is a massive range of beliefs - and don't let others claim to be superior. Just go and get on with your spiritual path and enjoy it.
                            www.thewolfenhowlepress.com


                            Phantom Turnips never die.... they just get stewed occasionally....

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Re: Newbie in desprate need for advise

                              Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
                              Is Anubis a dark deity?
                              As MaskedOne said, this largely depends on your (or their) definition of 'dark'. And honestly, from what you've described it sounds to me like these people are not the sort of people you want to be using as role models or sources of information.

                              Anubis is a cthonic deity and a psychopomp. Cthonic deities are Underworld deities who also tend to have influence over things like death, dying, decay, magick, curses and things that superficial fluffy white lighters prefer to pretend that their deities have nothing to do with. The reality is that there are a great many deities who are not considered 'dark' who have influence over the same things, and there are Underworld deities who have nothing at all to do with 'dark' things. A lot of mainstream deities have been whitewashed, while others have been unfairly devilised. MoonRaven mentioned Freyja, and she's a very good example of a whitewashed deity. Lots of people focus on her Vanadis role, where she focuses largely on love, lust and fertility, and forget about her role as an Asynjur, where she is a war goddess and harvests a third of those who die in battle. They also forget that part of the whole 'fertility of the land' thing includes death and decay.

                              When people start throwing around 'dark' as a negative descriptor for deities, I switch off. It's a good indicator that they don't really know what they are talking about and are only regurgitating mainstream neo-pagan prejudice. I work almost exclusively with deities who are given that 'dark' descriptor, and I've yet to lose my soul, start sacrificing babies or be possessed by a 'demon' lol

                              Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
                              If so, Can someone honor a dark deity without having a dark personality?
                              Yes. If you met me on the street you would never guess that I'm a Demonolator who is sworn to a Norse deity who's job it is to decide when people die, who also happens to get along very well with deities who are keepers of the dead and who are known for smiting their enemies with death and disease. lol. You'd also never guess that I use blood in my magick on a regular basis and that I'm not opposed to a well placed curse when warranted.

                              I don't have a 'dark' personality. I'm cynical, snarky, impatient and condescending... but people usually put that down to 'big fat meanie' rather than 'dark'. However, it is true that certain personalities are often drawn to cthonic and death deities... some subcultures simply lend themselves very nicely to the imagery. My experience is, though, that the people who are attracted to the imagery are not necessarily the people who are actually doing the up close and personal work with said deities. Sometimes, yes. Sometimes they are what we call 'dark special snowflakes' who just pick up a deity because they think it's cool and edgy and 'dark'.

                              Originally posted by Kara Tam View Post
                              What are some good beginner pagan books? Any that you guys especially liked and would recommended?
                              Personally I like Christopher Penczak for beginners. I know that's a bit controversial, because he's a little bit fluffy, is a soft polytheist and shamelessly appropriates all sorts of things for his version of neo-Wicca... but I challenge anyone to show me a Wicca 101 author who DOESN'T do those things. The first two books of 'Temple of Witchcraft' series are very good ground level books, with lots of exercises and lessons to teach you the basics laid out in an easy to follow year-long program. You can ignore the rest of that series... but the first two are quite good.

                              I think that creating your own ritual is a slightly more advanced technique and is not something that everyone can do straight off the bat. I pretty much always created my own, but that's because I'm that sort of personality anyway. I personally think that a beginner shouldn't be forced to create their own or feel guilty for not creating their own if that is difficult for them.

                              A pre-created spell or ritual WILL work if you put the effort into it. The trick is that ritual is a way to key into our own subconscious, so pre-created ones will not always resonate with us in ways that one that we have created ourselves automatically does. I tend to believe that if a pre-created ritual speaks to you and you feel that it is relevant and suitable, then it will work for you. Yes, you should eventually get to a point where you are creating your own, but it is perfectly okay to borrow from others while you find your feet. At the end of the day, it is YOU that makes a spell or ritual work... the ritual is just the vehicle that lets you do it.

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