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ravenradiodj · 12-03-2004, 04:14 PM

As Aleister Crowley once wrote, "The only thing we can say for sure is that there appears to be such a thing as consciousness."
Ultimately, you have to go with what your heart, head and gut indicate to you is the right spiritual path for you. I believe that if you're spiritually awake, then you're not worried about anyone else's beliefs, because it doesn't matter HOW you get there, as long as we're all headed in the same direction.
Whatever God(s) and/or Goddess(es) you choose to worship, whatever name and face you give to the divine consciousness, whatever belief system and rituals you choose, I believe you have to find your own way. By all means, seek guides and teachers if you wish, but you don't have to have them. If you're honest and devoted and willing to do the work of learning about yourself and all that you perceive around you with openness and without judgment, you will succeed in advancing yourself spiritually, whether you're a Christian in church on Sunday, an Indian seeking a vision on a mountaintop, a Muslim making the Haj, a Wiccan casting a circle and invoking the Great Mother, etc. Whatever tools you choose to use will do, provided you do the work. You WILL get there, or at least closer to there. Because we're all ultimately walking in the same direction.
So choose your path. If you find Christianity to be too dogmatic, or Islam too punitive, or Druidism too flaky, or Judaism too restrictive, or WHATEVER....if it doesn't ring true to you, then find another way, a way that does ring true to you. Use your magnificent brain. Trust your intuition and instincts. Read about every religion you can find, expand your horizons. Most people will tell you, if it feels right, it probably is right, and if it doesn't work out, then pick another path. Choose deities and rituals and customs that you find positive towards your own peace of mind and spiritual development. It doesn't matter if you call the divine by God, Goddess, Allah, Jehovah, Yahweh, Wakan Tanka, Great Spirit, Earth Mother, Cernunnos, Inanna, etc., etc. The point is, you're seeking to awaken the divine within YOU - your own unique higher self that is part of the one great universal divine consciousness that is made up of everything in the universe - you, me, your great grandparents, a rosebush, a gazelle, the clouds, and Neptune, etc.
I chose Paganism as my path for its lack of dogma and hypocrisy, its colorfulness, its history, the simple yet universally applicable Threefold Law, which tells me that everything I do will have consequences for me. In other words, you reap what you sow, what goes around comes around, etc. It's a universal principle that everyone accepts as being true. If you truly believe that, you'll make every effort never to cause harm to another unjustly, and to promote positivity. I chose Paganism for its openness, its connectedness to Mother Earth, its fascinating mythologies, its sense of personal responsibility. I don't believe that anyone can die on a cross for me, or pay for my sins. I have to do all that, I have to answer for these things, to myself and to all of you. I don't believe that anyone deserves eternal reward or punishment, I can't see how 100 or less years or goodness or badness can be fairly rewarded or punished by an eternity of bliss or torment. The universe I see seems to operate on balanced principles - for every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. If I live a selfish, harmful life, then i'll have to pay for it, either in this life or the next. Not all Pagans believe in reincarnation, but I do. Nature renews everything else, why not us? Matter doesn't die, it merely changes form. Energy travels and fluxes, but never ceases to exists. Any Science 101 student knows these things. Why would these rules that apply to all other things not apply to me?
I pray to deities because they serve as symbols, like an alphabet, for accessing and reaching the divine energy essence. It's easier for me to pray to a name and a face and a personality than to try and pray to a nameless invisible energy field. It's easier to talk to Jesus than "Divine Consciousness", because you probably have a mental image of Jesus, a concept of his personality, etc. He seems more REAL to you because of his similiarity to we humans. Similarly, I can more easily tap into the divine by praying to Cernunnos, or Bastet, or Hecate, because with my mind's eye I can visualize them. They seem more REAL to me.
I know this was a long, convoluted post, siblings, and I apologize, but I wanted to try and cover all my personal bases. If you read this far, thanks for listening, hope this helps address the question. Peace to you all, blessed be.....
______________________________________________________________________

Gimme That Old Time Religion - PAGAN FOR LIFE!

12-03-2004, 04:14 PM	#37 (permalink)
ravenradiodj Crazy	As Aleister Crowley once wrote, "The only thing we can say for sure is that there appears to be such a thing as consciousness." Ultimately, you have to go with what your heart, head and gut indicate to you is the right spiritual path for you. I believe that if you're spiritually awake, then you're not worried about anyone else's beliefs, because it doesn't matter HOW you get there, as long as we're all headed in the same direction. Whatever God(s) and/or Goddess(es) you choose to worship, whatever name and face you give to the divine consciousness, whatever belief system and rituals you choose, I believe you have to find your own way. By all means, seek guides and teachers if you wish, but you don't have to have them. If you're honest and devoted and willing to do the work of learning about yourself and all that you perceive around you with openness and without judgment, you will succeed in advancing yourself spiritually, whether you're a Christian in church on Sunday, an Indian seeking a vision on a mountaintop, a Muslim making the Haj, a Wiccan casting a circle and invoking the Great Mother, etc. Whatever tools you choose to use will do, provided you do the work. You WILL get there, or at least closer to there. Because we're all ultimately walking in the same direction. So choose your path. If you find Christianity to be too dogmatic, or Islam too punitive, or Druidism too flaky, or Judaism too restrictive, or WHATEVER....if it doesn't ring true to you, then find another way, a way that does ring true to you. Use your magnificent brain. Trust your intuition and instincts. Read about every religion you can find, expand your horizons. Most people will tell you, if it feels right, it probably is right, and if it doesn't work out, then pick another path. Choose deities and rituals and customs that you find positive towards your own peace of mind and spiritual development. It doesn't matter if you call the divine by God, Goddess, Allah, Jehovah, Yahweh, Wakan Tanka, Great Spirit, Earth Mother, Cernunnos, Inanna, etc., etc. The point is, you're seeking to awaken the divine within YOU - your own unique higher self that is part of the one great universal divine consciousness that is made up of everything in the universe - you, me, your great grandparents, a rosebush, a gazelle, the clouds, and Neptune, etc. I chose Paganism as my path for its lack of dogma and hypocrisy, its colorfulness, its history, the simple yet universally applicable Threefold Law, which tells me that everything I do will have consequences for me. In other words, you reap what you sow, what goes around comes around, etc. It's a universal principle that everyone accepts as being true. If you truly believe that, you'll make every effort never to cause harm to another unjustly, and to promote positivity. I chose Paganism for its openness, its connectedness to Mother Earth, its fascinating mythologies, its sense of personal responsibility. I don't believe that anyone can die on a cross for me, or pay for my sins. I have to do all that, I have to answer for these things, to myself and to all of you. I don't believe that anyone deserves eternal reward or punishment, I can't see how 100 or less years or goodness or badness can be fairly rewarded or punished by an eternity of bliss or torment. The universe I see seems to operate on balanced principles - for every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. If I live a selfish, harmful life, then i'll have to pay for it, either in this life or the next. Not all Pagans believe in reincarnation, but I do. Nature renews everything else, why not us? Matter doesn't die, it merely changes form. Energy travels and fluxes, but never ceases to exists. Any Science 101 student knows these things. Why would these rules that apply to all other things not apply to me? I pray to deities because they serve as symbols, like an alphabet, for accessing and reaching the divine energy essence. It's easier for me to pray to a name and a face and a personality than to try and pray to a nameless invisible energy field. It's easier to talk to Jesus than "Divine Consciousness", because you probably have a mental image of Jesus, a concept of his personality, etc. He seems more REAL to you because of his similiarity to we humans. Similarly, I can more easily tap into the divine by praying to Cernunnos, or Bastet, or Hecate, because with my mind's eye I can visualize them. They seem more REAL to me. I know this was a long, convoluted post, siblings, and I apologize, but I wanted to try and cover all my personal bases. If you read this far, thanks for listening, hope this helps address the question. Peace to you all, blessed be..... ______________________________________________________________________ Gimme That Old Time Religion - PAGAN FOR LIFE!