Page 5

   

Myth, Magic and Madness

   


   


   

   Hekate's Temple

For All Your Questions on Things Pagan and Magical

Hekate,
I have recently started studying Paganism - I think I am drawn to the Greek traditions, but feel that it is a bit "light" in some ways. It puzzles me as when I read the mythology I feel that the gods should be much more powerful, more "earthy and dark in some ways than they are portrayed. Yet what I read implies they were superhumans only. Am I right? How do I find out more?
APM

APM,
What an interesting and thought-provoking question - I do not usually hear such questions until much further down the path. You are right - the Greek Pantheon most of us is familiar with is the Hellenic one. It is the result of societal changes and influences upon how people worshipped - as they grew more "civilized", the Greeks left behind many of the traditional forms and watered down those remaining. Elements of the lost religion is glimpsed in stories about the Dyonisian worship. The frenzied Baccae who ripped men and animals to pieces with their bare hands in the madness of their worship of their god. A far cry from the Hellenic Greek ideal of moderation. My recommendation is that you read the old Greek stories - not modernised versions, but the Penguin Classics - straight word for word translation. Also, do some research online in the Classical Antiquities field, seeking epigrams, fragments and archaological evidence from the Pre-Hellenic period. As you get further into it, start reading some of the research papers on Pre-Hellenic religion. It's unlikely that you'll find many websites and books by non-scholars on the topic - it is a specialized field, with little market value for the common public. The other term to look up is cthonic - the cthonic deities or versions of a deity are usually the earlier, older archetype of the god. Let me know how your search goes.

Iphigeneia, Crone of Hekate
   


   

Dear Hekate,
My eldest child - a daughter - is 5 and has started to want to join me in my worship and observances. I am not sure how to go about this - I am solitary in nature, and discovered my own path, so to speak. How do I introduce a child to the metaphysical wonders of my path - I am Celtic in my beliefs. My little girl is very spirited and seems to be gifted with an assertive and compassionate nature - she stands up for the kids who are being picked on - even when the bully is years older than she is. She often brings home wounded animals - all of which trust her even though they tend to bite me. She is challenging too - often telling me I am wrong in the stories I read her - then she finishes the stories as she thinks they should be. This includes the myths I tell her during the Sabbats. Actually most of the stuff to do with my faith.
She has been rearranging my altar lately too. I am a bit nervous about introducing her to my faith formally as I know she will tell me what I "should" be doing.
Christine

Dear Christine,
How exciting - your child is interested in the path you walk. That is such a blessing in today's world where there are so many options. Firstly, relax - everyone finds their own way to the gods. It is possible, from your description, that your daughter is already aware of many aspects of her path, and is actively exploring where it leads. You comment that she is challenging, and even possibly a bit of a 'know-it-all'. Not an easy thing to be facing in a five-year-old, especially in our society where we are raised to see children as needing to be taught. It's possible that your daughter really does know what she's doing - past memory. Have you tried letting her have a semi-free rein? See what happens. Maybe simply involving her as an equal will lend some balance to it all.

I would also strongly advise that you set aside an altar space for her, and set out the rules of respecting your space as you respect hers. Leave her space to her and help her to find items with which to decorate it.

As for the metaphysical nature of religion, leave it be for now. Include her in the rituals you work, read the stories together and see how things go. I would also recommend that the two of you start looking for books on myths together - if she is involved in choosing the stories, she may be more inclined to let you finish them - or at least talk about the reasons why she wants to change the endings. Explain why you do what you do and ask her what she thinks.
Have you had a look at our Library? There are a number of books in there that may help you in this trial, especially: Pagan Parenting: Spiritual, Magical & Emotional Development of the Child, by Kristin Madden, Raising Witches: Teaching the Wiccan Faith to Children, by Ashleen O'Gaea and Circle Round : Raising Children in Goddess Traditions, by Starhawk, Diane Baker, Anne Hill.

Iphigeneia, Crone of Hekate
   

   

Iphigeneia,
I am interested in learning lithomancy - can you explain what it is please and how I get started?
Bill Wolfe

Bill,
Lithomancy? Well, there's a variety of types of lithomancy. Modern methods include using semi-precious gems, placing rather than scattering, and reading by candlelight on a dark cloth - the reflection of the light is an integral part of the divinatory style. I tend to the version using thirteen stones. Similar in style to casting knucklebones, one casually scatters the stones across the ground and then interprets the way in which they fall. The stones are traditionally carefully selected from the environment, are of a similar size and shape (preferably flattened), and smooth. Some people use crystals, other stick to the search and find technique.

The first six stones represent love, life, luck, the home, news and magic. The other seven are astrological (with the implied meanings of the relevant heavenly bodies) - the sun and moon, Mars, Venus, Mercury, Jupiter and Saturn. Scratch, etch or otherwise mark each stone with a symbol representing its meaning. When you scatter them, it really is best to do so outside on the soil. The lie of the land, the grass and leaves and dirt can create intuitive thoughts in your mind that a sterile strip of velvet lacks. To decide which method best suits you, I recommend you check out the local bookstore and flip through some lithomancy texts.

Iphigeneia, Crone of Hekate
   

   
   

   

The Winged Isis relief within the tomb of Seti I.

   

   

   

Witnessing One's Religion
   

   By Axiom

Mention the concept of "witnessing religion" and watch the Pagans boil, flee, or shivel up hoping to find a convenient toadstool beneath which to hide.

And it's likely that every single one of those Pagans will be convinced the religion under discussion is Christianity. After all, we have probably all been victims at some point to either the well-meaning "Let me change your life and save your soul" conversion tactic, or the less salubrious "Hellfire shall char your bones, you filthy maggot-ridden Pagan" battery and assault. One of the great strengths and weaknesses of Christianity is its focus upon witnessing for Christ. Now, I know that any Pagan reading "weakness" knows exactly what I mean by that...and some may also acknowledge understanding of the inherent strengths such a concept may offer. But who among us proudly proclaims their willingness to witness for Ishtar, or Ba'al, or the Green Man, or Isis, or the multitude of deities out there held sacred by us?

Yet we should.

Witnessing one's faith is not about shoving your beliefs down the throats of all and sundry. Rather it's intimately tied to the way you exhibit your spiritual beliefs within your life. How you live your life.

That is where the greatest strength of witnessing is to be found. Of the Christians I know, the ones I most respect and cherish are those who live as their faith dictates. They struggle to be humble, honest, compassionate and empathic - to be Christ-like in all the glorious ways that term can be used, without being loud and obnoxious about their faith. They are a joy to be around, and often the people most likely to be looking after those less-fortunate, but without all the brou-ha-ha so many "charitable Christians" display. Their faith is witnessed in every action they take. And that simple fact is what draws others to be with them and to be like them - and also to respect them, regardless of what common ground may be found or lacking.

The failing of the Christian drive to witness is in the misuse of the concept - it becomes an external thing to do to others, rather than an internal need to emmulate Jesus. And this makes it competitive and impersonal. And downright unpleasant for anyone being witnessed to.

So how does one attain that state of being that makes them a living witness for their faith - without ending up in snowy white robes wandering about to the accompaniment of heavenly choirs and harps? Afterall, I like my Christian friends, but I have no desire to be like them. Some of the strictures of their faith - such as always turning the cheek, for example - don't quite work for me as I meander along my Druidic path. I want to live my faith because I want that confidence and security in my beliefs and myself that my friends display. I want to reach Samhaine (the time I take account of my spiritual achievements and losses) and be satisfied with where I am on my path and where I'm going. I want to be an inspiration to others, the way some people have been to me. And most importantly, I want to raise my children with confidence, faith and joy - things I think will be more successful if I have a solid spiritual basis to work from.

In my desire to attain a similar state to my Christian friends, I should stipulate that I do not want to be angelic or Christ-like! But I think those attributes come from the particular path followed. If one follows Christ, one will end up that way inclined. This is a lesson one needs to remember in the search for the self. By all means read the Bible, but do not use it as a guide to being self-aware. Probably not a warning needed by the average Pagan. But it also applies to the other faiths we read about in our search to understand our beliefs. Think about the deity you most desire to emmulate. Books sacred to that deity and the religion of him/her are the ones wherein you will find the foundation upon which to construct your faith. This should go without saying, but considering the number of Pagans I know who walk a path dictated by their mind rather than their heart, it does need to be pointed out. You will never truely live your faith if it is not the one that sings in your heart.

I am a big supporter of reading about one's faith - and others - to help gain a solid understanding of one's own belief system. But when it comes to the security of self that I am talking about here, books do not have all the answers. To witness my faith, I must have an intimate knowledge and acceptance of my self. I must tear away the veils that conceal who I really am and face myself. True acceptance of the self marks the great spiritual leaders. While I doubt that I shall be a great leader myself - it's not my interest, my path or my calling - I would do well to emmulate those leaders in my search for identity.

When I think of some of the great spiritual people of our world, Buddha leaps to mind. Everything Buddha taught came back to the same basic concept of the self. Not that we should become self-absorbed, selfish beings, but instead that we should strive to become more self-contained. Instead of focusing upon what others want us to do, think we should be, etc, we learn to understand what we truely are, and what we thus are really capable of. By doing so, we cut away the adopted attitudes and thought processes, and are freed from the need to conform. And as a result, our spirituality is also freed.

How many Pagans out there try to perform regular rituals because "it's what I should do - everyone else does"? Or follow a particular path because it's "the closest to what I believe"? Or, my personal favourite, live a structured and totally ordered life of ritual and tradition and lip-service because "the group I belong to says this is how it's done"?

Why?

Why should any of us allow our spiritual selves to be bound up by another's doctrine - or worse, what we think that doctrine is? Isn't that the very reason so many of us left our previous path and came to Paganism? To live a more spiritual, less constrained life? So why chain ourselves up again?

Those chains are what encourage external witnessing - the focus upon controlling others and convincing them to follow where one leads. Casting those chains aside will create Nirvana within this lifetime. The intimate awareness of one's spiritual self, one's relationship with the divine, is only possible when one steps aside from dogma and begins to live one's faith.

Why not start today?

   

""If they are calling on their God against us, though they bear no arms, they still fight us by pursuing us with hostile prayers".
~ The Heathen King Aethelfrith refering to the Christianity of Welsh monks.
   

Inspired by the Winged Isis relief within the tomb of Seti I, this statue is available at Rainbow Crystal.

   

   

History Affecting Us Today: Links of Interest

Finds in 141 tombs add to picture of ancient Macedonia

Giant Panda Skeleton Found in 4,000-Year-Old Tomb

Minor nationality of Russia demands the return of "Princess of Ukok"

Tsunami Uncovers Ancient City in India

Near-Death Experiences

   

Unless otherwise indicated, all photographs are provided by and the property of the person submitting the article. Any artwork, images, photography, poetry, spells, rituals, or other written work displayed in this magazine remains the property of the owner of said work, and all copyrights are to be unheld. Beyond that, this magazine does not lay claim of ownership to any work not created by the magazine, and does not support plagarism or theft. Should you find your work in this magazine incorrectly credited, please contact the Web Designer with details so it can be rectified immediately.
   


   

Are you interested in submitting letters or articles to the Tools of the Trade Division? If so, please read the Submissions Guidelines.
They offer details on deadlines and the staff to contact.

Our Editorial staff are also happy to answer questions.

   

   

   

Editorial Division

Festivals & Holidays

Rituals & Activities

Kitchen Witchery

Tools of the Trade

Archive Page

Calendar of Observances

Submissions Guide

The Library

The FAQ

NEXT PAGE
Pagan Thought Page 6