Pagan/Polytheistic Discussion Thread: By the Gods!

[Herzpunkt]

The return of their ancient gods would be a breath of fresh air

I wouldn’t mind seeing a resurgence of the worship to Bastet. Then again, I like cats so I’m sure I’m biased.

Purrrrfect

[Herzpunkt]

Good day everyone, may your gods bless you

[Suriyanakhon]

Zoroastrianism has seen some converts in Northern Iraq but has suffered from discrimination by authorities.

It would be grand to see the Ahuras worshiped again in the Middle East like they used to be.

[Herzpunkt]

Zoroastrianism has seen some converts in Northern Iraq but has suffered from discrimination by authorities.

It would be grand to see the Ahuras worshiped again in the Middle East like they used to be.

This is awsome, look at him, he looks happy. Unfortunatley the treatment of Pagans is terrible and especially ignored in the middle east.

[Dratonis]

so,,, discussion question or whatever since there's none in the op:
what lead you to [insert polytheistic religion here]?

may or may not put my answer here at some other time

I am still figuring out my belief, but I guess I follow my own one. The thought of a "god" scares me, so I believe in multiple deities that can help you through life if you do something that benefits others, benefits you while not hurting others or praises the deities in a way which doesn't hurt you or others.

I don't believe in morally "good" and "bad" things either as I believe the interpretation of those words can have different terms associated with them depending on each and every person. The "norms" is just the interpretation of the majority in my opinion.

To be honest, I've had some problems (and still have) figuring out who or what I believe in after I stopped being a Christian.

If you don't mind me asking, why exactly did you stop being a Christian?

[Nakena]

Mind you the omnipotence abrahamic monotheism idea is fake. And theres a simple way how to recognize that, namely that it explicitly forbidden to worship other gods, do magick or anything. Or even have sex outside of marriage.

The idea behind that is really when you think about it, the total monopoly of any form of human spirituality, sexuality and ultimately life itself. Everything has to be dedicated to, or sanctioned by the monotheist abrahamic god specifically.

And under no circumstances you are allowed to go to any competition.

Go figure.

huh. now that you say it, the abrahamic god does seem awfully jealous of nonexistent deities...

Yes. It really makes one think doesnt it? ^^

[Dratonis]

I'd like to know about the gods of the british isles, as that's where my ancestors are from and I've had trouble finding information about them.

[Herzpunkt]

I'd like to know about the gods of the british isles, as that's where my ancestors are from and I've had trouble finding information about them.

That depends

If your English ala Anglo-Saxon you would share gods with other Germanics (Odin, Thor, Tyr etc)

If your of Celtic stock(who were technically the original inhabitants of Britain) you would be looking at a different set of gods along with Druidism

Generally, Scotland and Ireland are Celtic and England is Germanic

[Suriyanakhon]

I'd like to know about the gods of the british isles, as that's where my ancestors are from and I've had trouble finding information about them.

That's mostly because Christianization unfortunately destroyed a lot of the information we have about the religious practices of the ancient Celts, and most of what we do have are Euhemerized accounts (i.e Lebor Gabála Érenn, Mabinogion, etc.) by Christian scholars which depict Celtic deities as ancient heroes and magicians rather than divine beings for the most part. We're aware that the characters from these works were originally deities because their names etymologically correspond to gods worshiped in Roman Britain and Gaul such as Lugh to Lugus, Nuada to Nodens, etc. but other than that, we don't really have any concrete ideas about how the British Celts worshiped or conceptualized them.

While it's not perfect, we do have quite a bit of Irish literary material such as the Ulster Cycle, Tochmarc Étaíne, etc. if you're interested in that.

[Herzpunkt]

I'd like to know about the gods of the british isles, as that's where my ancestors are from and I've had trouble finding information about them.

You can find some sources, not much

And you can always go by their roman names if you want

Their is nothing stoping you from creating your own rituals etc etc of worship, just remember that like other pagan faiths its nature orientated. And look into druidism, it was big with celtic pagans.

[Suriyanakhon]

Their is nothing stoping you from creating your own rituals etc etc of worship, just remember that like other pagan faiths its nature orientated. And look into druidism, it was big with celtic pagans.

Do we really have any evidence that Celtic religious practices were nature oriented though? It's been forever since I've read Celto-Germanic mythos but I don't remember anything particularly reverent of nature (not saying it doesn't exist).

[Herzpunkt]

Their is nothing stoping you from creating your own rituals etc etc of worship, just remember that like other pagan faiths its nature orientated. And look into druidism, it was big with celtic pagans.

Do we really have any evidence that Celtic religious practices were nature oriented though? It's been forever since I've read Celto-Germanic mythos but I don't remember anything particularly reverent of nature (not saying it doesn't exist).

Well we do know that Druidism was a very important aspect of it, so it's logical to assume that nature holds a special significance, even more so than probably other pagan faiths.

I can't be 100% sure though.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

Do we really have any evidence that Celtic religious practices were nature oriented though? It's been forever since I've read Celto-Germanic mythos but I don't remember anything particularly reverent of nature (not saying it doesn't exist).

Well we do know that Druidism was a very important aspect of it, so it's logical to assume that nature holds a special significance, even more so than probably other pagan faiths.

I can't be 100% sure though.

Druids were very concerned with the natural world, so yes. Many, but not all, of their practices were nature oriented. Although there’s scant knowledge about them.

In fact, it’s believed that the word “Druid” comes from the Irish-Gaelic “doire”, which means “oak tree”, a tree of high importance to Druidism.

[Lady Victory]

Zoroastrianism has seen some converts in Northern Iraq but has suffered from discrimination by authorities.

It would be grand to see the Ahuras worshiped again in the Middle East like they used to be.

I unironically approve of this because Zoroastrianism is based af. If I wasn't already a Christian then Zoroastrianism would be my second choice. Very cool religion.

[Nakena]

Zoroastrianism has seen some converts in Northern Iraq but has suffered from discrimination by authorities.

It would be grand to see the Ahuras worshiped again in the Middle East like they used to be.

I unironically approve of this because Zoroastrianism is based af. If I wasn't already a Christian then Zoroastrianism would be my second choice. Very cool religion.

Theres also Manichaeism which combines both and even has some elements from buddhism.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

I unironically approve of this because Zoroastrianism is based af. If I wasn't already a Christian then Zoroastrianism would be my second choice. Very cool religion.

Theres also Manichaeism which combines the best of both and even has some elements from buddhism.

Is Manichaeism practiced still at all? I’m curious. I know there’s such a thing as Druidry, a modern practice based off Druidism.

[Lady Victory]

I unironically approve of this because Zoroastrianism is based af. If I wasn't already a Christian then Zoroastrianism would be my second choice. Very cool religion.

Theres also Manichaeism which combines both and even has some elements from buddhism.

Ah, yes, Manichaeism. The original New Age.

[Suriyanakhon]

Do we really have any evidence that Celtic religious practices were nature oriented though? It's been forever since I've read Celto-Germanic mythos but I don't remember anything particularly reverent of nature (not saying it doesn't exist).

Well we do know that Druidism was a very important aspect of it, so it's logical to assume that nature holds a special significance, even more so than probably other pagan faiths.

I can't be 100% sure though.

Most of what I'm aware of about druids is that they were magicians and priests, but nothing about nature being particularly special to them. They might have had sacred trees, similar to the Germanic tribes, but there's a difference between a divine tree (which a deity happens to be living in) and an ordinary tree or natural phenomenon. I'm not sure we can say with much certainty that they were nature-oriented.

Zoroastrianism has seen some converts in Northern Iraq but has suffered from discrimination by authorities.

It would be grand to see the Ahuras worshiped again in the Middle East like they used to be.

I unironically approve of this because Zoroastrianism is based af. If I wasn't already a Christian then Zoroastrianism would be my second choice. Very cool religion.

Unfortunately it can be pretty hard to explore because a lot of Zoroastrians (mostly the Parsis) are against religious conversion and even exclude half-Parsi children from being Zoroastrian if their mother married outside the community.

[Nakena]

Theres also Manichaeism which combines both and even has some elements from buddhism.

Ah, yes, Manichaeism. The original New Age.

So basically you think it's New Age trash? Is what what you say?

[Lady Victory]

Well we do know that Druidism was a very important aspect of it, so it's logical to assume that nature holds a special significance, even more so than probably other pagan faiths.

I can't be 100% sure though.

Most of what I'm aware of about druids is that they were magicians and priests, but nothing about nature being particularly special to them. They might have had sacred trees, similar to the Germanic tribes, but there's a difference between a divine tree (which a deity happens to be living in) and an ordinary tree or natural phenomenon. I'm not sure we can say with much certainty that they were nature-oriented.

I unironically approve of this because Zoroastrianism is based af. If I wasn't already a Christian then Zoroastrianism would be my second choice. Very cool religion.

Unfortunately it can be pretty hard to explore because a lot of Zoroastrians (mostly the Parsis) are against religious conversion and even exclude half-Parsi children from being Zoroastrian if their mother married outside the community.

Yeah, I heard about that. Excluding converts is a great way to ensure your religion inevitably dies out.

[Suriyanakhon]

Theres also Manichaeism which combines both and even has some elements from buddhism.

Ah, yes, Manichaeism. The original New Age.

That's... not what that word means.

[Lady Victory]

Ah, yes, Manichaeism. The original New Age.

So basically you think it's New Age trash? Is what what you say?

Not quite. I'm cracking jokes, mostly.

My issue with it is it's main things are mostly gnosticism and syncretism so I can't really see it as a serious religious tradition for that reason. Nothing necessarily wrong with syncretism, but gnosticism isn't something I can take seriously.

If that's what you believe, then all power to you.

[Lady Victory]

Ah, yes, Manichaeism. The original New Age.

That's... not what that word means.

I know, I'm joshing.

[Suriyanakhon]

In Myanmar, many spirit mediums (nat kadaw) are attacking the military dictatorship and asserting that the nats are opposed to them. Spirit worship is still prominent in rural Myanmar but is often attacked by Buddhist nationalist monks & nuns as superstitious and un-Buddhist.

"Nats do not want military rule," insisted Achaintan Man Gay Oo, 48. "They also want the release of Mother Suu."

It has become apparent to the mediums that the spirits are "unhappy" with the sudden end to Myanmar's nascent democracy, the 48-year-old told AFP.

"Their withered faces show the hints of their dissatisfaction," she added.

[Nakena]

So basically you think it's New Age trash? Is what what you say?

Not quite. I'm cracking jokes, mostly.

My issue with it is it's main things are mostly gnosticism and syncretism so I can't really see it as a serious religious tradition for that reason. Nothing necessarily wrong with syncretism, but gnosticism isn't something I can take seriously.

If that's what you believe, then all power to you.

No. I am not into it but I am sympathic to gnosticism. It's probably the only form of "christianity" (if it can be even called that) thats theologically acceptable to me.