Pagan/Polytheistic Discussion Thread: By the Gods!

[Wink Wonk We Like Stonks]

There is a good concept called science, I think all people should use it. The more I see other religions, the more I feel happy that I am weak agonstic again.

While I'm not Pagan... Why did you feel the need to come into this thread and start saying people should believe in science?

That's like going into the Christian and Islam thread saying that everyone should believe in science for no reason.

yeah, and it's not like to be religious you have to sign some contract to never open a science textbook in your life or something. religion and science can coexist.

[Nakena]

Often it has been said that the old (pagan) traditions are dead and what not and do not exist anymore but in reconstruction fashion for LARPers etc.

Full stop!

If we are to be assume that those (and other) gods, demons and spirits were an thing, their existence may not necessarily always depend on the existence of a human tradition linked to them. While many are for sure gone, quite a few of those spirits/gods/beings (the japanese just have the catch-all term kami which i will use from now on here) or whatever you want to call them are quite alive!

And if your being is open for them, you can feel their presence in the forests and sometimes even in the cities or at other places. They are everywhere. In some corners more, in others less. It's part of our environment, which is full of lifeforms and beings that influence our life and existence on the micro and macro level but whom we usually cannot perceive (like bacteria or viruses...) and of whom many of us like to be in ignorance! Of course that doesnt makes them go away, and if we being ignorant of those things we cannot grasps with our senses we suffer the consequences.

"Kami" are part of this environment.

Of course, for the one religion which claims to have an absolute monopoly on spirituality and channalizes this all towards it's one deity, they're all "demons"...

[The Emerald Legion]

How I became Pagan was a bit of a long process. Firstly, I was raised Catholic, then my mother had an argument with the local priest and decided to pick up Wicca out of spite. I was interested in Wicca for a bit but frankly the books were more about being a petty conjurer of cheap tricks then they were the sort of thing I was looking for, though I can't say I learned nothing, I definitely didn't take to it.

In the end, I had a few experiences that convinced me the Norse gods are real, and while not omnipresent, are still looking out for us.

[Lady Victory]

While I'm not Pagan... Why did you feel the need to come into this thread and start saying people should believe in science?

That's like going into the Christian and Islam thread saying that everyone should believe in science for no reason.

yeah, and it's not like to be religious you have to sign some contract to never open a science textbook in your life or something. religion and science can coexist.

Not to the anti-theist, unfortunately.

For them anything short of the total annihilation of all religion is unacceptable.

[Parcia]

Depsite what my cringe ass sig says, color me interested.

Tacticle tag inbound.

[Wink Wonk We Like Stonks]

yeah, and it's not like to be religious you have to sign some contract to never open a science textbook in your life or something. religion and science can coexist.

Not to the anti-theist, unfortunately.

For them anything short of the total annihilation of all religion is unacceptable.

an impossible goal. as you'd think people of knowledge or whatever, they'd know that.

[Herzpunkt]

Not to the anti-theist, unfortunately.

For them anything short of the total annihilation of all religion is unacceptable.

an impossible goal. as you'd think people of knowledge or whatever, they'd know that.

Ironic isnt it

[Dakini]

I'm not pagan (or religious at all), but I like the holidays.

I semi-celebrate the solstices, equinoxes as well as Beltane and Samhain because they're fun and marking the seasons seems like as good a reason as any to celebrate.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

I don’t really follow any belief system but when I was around 17-18, I was very interested in Celtic paganism. In the last five years or so I’ve been rather taken with Hinduism, but much like with Celtic paganism in my late teens, the attraction has never morphed into anything else or turned into commitment.

[Herzpunkt]

I don’t really follow any belief system but when I was around 17-18, I was very interested in Celtic paganism. In the last five years or so I’ve been rather taken with Hinduism, but much like with Celtic paganism in my late teens, the attraction has never morphed into anything else or turned into commitment.

Have you tried walking barefoot in the woods? Its a great way to take in nature and in some cases the gods.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

I don’t really follow any belief system but when I was around 17-18, I was very interested in Celtic paganism. In the last five years or so I’ve been rather taken with Hinduism, but much like with Celtic paganism in my late teens, the attraction has never morphed into anything else or turned into commitment.

Have you tried walking barefoot in the woods? Its a great way to take in nature and in some cases the gods.

I recently moved to a suburb so no woods to speak of, but I did that while living in another state. It was nice. Same with touching tree bark.

[Lady Victory]

Where do you people live where the woods are safe to walk barefoot in? Every woodland I've ever seen was so rough and littered with rocks, sticks, and exposed roots any attempt at walking barefoot through them would likely be extremely painful at worst and painstakingly uncomfortable at best.

[Herzpunkt]

Where do you people live where the woods are safe to walk barefoot in? Every woodland I've ever seen was so rough and littered with rocks, sticks, and exposed roots any attempt at walking barefoot through them would likely be extremely painful at worst and painstakingly uncomfortable at best.

California foothills

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

Where do you people live where the woods are safe to walk barefoot in? Every woodland I've ever seen was so rough and littered with rocks, sticks, and exposed roots any attempt at walking barefoot through them would likely be extremely painful at worst and painstakingly uncomfortable at best.

Mossy Northern AR woods.

[Enjuku]

Shamanist here! Particularly Mongolian Shamanism/Tengerism.

I practice Pure Land Buddhism daily, but Buddhism and Tengerism go hand in hand a lot.

Basically, Tengerism is a kind of animism where there are three levels of spirits. The highest are the Tenger, which are like gods. The mid tier are nature spirits. The lowest are souls, which humans have 3 of and animals have 2 of. The whole philosophy of Tengerism is to live in hiimori or "windhorse", which is a form of spiritual balance. Your goal is to cultivate buyanhishig, which is similar to the Buddhist idea of good karma. By respecting nature spirits, animal souls, and giving thanks to the Tenger, you cultivate windhorse. You do this in various ways, ranging from not literring to making offerings at your family shrine or on certain holidays when the stars and moon align.

To answer one of the questions posed previously, I grew up Roman Catholic. Had a lot of traumatic experiences growing up. I dabbled in different religions just out of interest, but I was drawn to shamanism because of its idea that there are spirits everywhere and your life can be balanced by living in harmony with them. I experimented with drumming and shamanic journeys and had some very intense experience with it. I researched what I saw and it lined up with Mongolian language and cosmology. I lost one of my parents around this time, and so my connection with the spirits I encountered was very therapeutic to me and gave me a crutch at a time when I felt very vulnerable.

I'm not a shaman (this is a BIG issue among the shamanic community), but following the Mongolian Shamanist way of doing things has always helped me live life in a way that I feel happy and balanced. So that's why I stick with it. I studied Buddhism later on as an adult because it's extremely difficult to have a communal practice as a Mongolian Shamanist in the West. All the shamanic circles I went to incited different gods, used different methods, etc. Imagine if you went to Church and they started calling upon different gods!

Eventually I found Pure Land Buddhism was the most adaptable to my Shamanic practice. I say nembutsu every morning and end every evening with a prayer to the Tenger. I attend dharma talks every week for that communal experience, and I consult with a shaman with Manchu lineage online once in a while if I ever feel spiritually off. It's not perfect, but it works for me.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

Shamanist here! Particularly Mongolian Shamanism/Tengerism.

I practice Pure Land Buddhism daily, but Buddhism and Tengerism go hand in hand a lot.

Basically, Tengerism is a kind of animism where there are three levels of spirits. The highest are tenger, which are like gods. The mid tier are nature spirits. The lowest are souls, which humans have 3 of and animals have 2 of. The whole philosophy of Tengerism is to live in hiimori or "windhorse", which is a form of spiritual balance. Your goal is to cultivate buyanhishig, which is similar to the Buddhist idea of good karma. By respecting nature spirits, animal souls, and giving thanks too the tenger, you cultivate windhorse. You do this in various ways, ranging from not literring to making offerings at your family shrine or on certain holidays when the stars and moon align.

To answer one of the questions posed previously, I grew up Roman Catholic. Had a lot of traumatic experiences growing up. I dabbled in different religions just out of interest, but I was drawn to shamanism because of its idea that there are spirits everywhere and your life can be balanced by living in harmony with them. I experimented with drumming and shamanic journeys and had some very intense experience with it. I researched what I saw and it lined up with Mongolian language and cosmology. I lost one of my parents around this time, and so my connection with the spirits I encountered was very therapeutic to me and gave me a crutch at a time when I felt very vulnerable.

I'm not a shaman (this is a BIG issue among the shamanic community), but following the Mongolian Shamanist way of doing things has always helped me live life in a way that I feel happy and balanced. So that's why I stick with it. I studied Buddhism later on as an adult because it's extremely difficult to have a communal practice as a Mongolian Shamanist in the West. All the shamanic circles I went to incited different gods, used different methods, etc. Imagine if you went to Church and they started calling upon different gods!

Eventually I found Pure Land Buddhism was the most adaptable to my Shamanic practice. I say nembutsu every morning and end every evening with a prayer too the Tenger. I attend dharma talks every week for that communal experience, and I consult with a shaman with Manchu lineage online once in a while if I ever feel spiritually off. It's not perfect, but it works for me.

Reading about this was interesting. I had never heard of Tengerism. My encounters with Shamanism have always been of the Amerindian variety.

[Herzpunkt]

Shamanist here! Particularly Mongolian Shamanism/Tengerism.

I practice Pure Land Buddhism daily, but Buddhism and Tengerism go hand in hand a lot.

Basically, Tengerism is a kind of animism where there are three levels of spirits. The highest are the Tenger, which are like gods. The mid tier are nature spirits. The lowest are souls, which humans have 3 of and animals have 2 of. The whole philosophy of Tengerism is to live in hiimori or "windhorse", which is a form of spiritual balance. Your goal is to cultivate buyanhishig, which is similar to the Buddhist idea of good karma. By respecting nature spirits, animal souls, and giving thanks to the Tenger, you cultivate windhorse. You do this in various ways, ranging from not literring to making offerings at your family shrine or on certain holidays when the stars and moon align.

To answer one of the questions posed previously, I grew up Roman Catholic. Had a lot of traumatic experiences growing up. I dabbled in different religions just out of interest, but I was drawn to shamanism because of its idea that there are spirits everywhere and your life can be balanced by living in harmony with them. I experimented with drumming and shamanic journeys and had some very intense experience with it. I researched what I saw and it lined up with Mongolian language and cosmology. I lost one of my parents around this time, and so my connection with the spirits I encountered was very therapeutic to me and gave me a crutch at a time when I felt very vulnerable.

I'm not a shaman (this is a BIG issue among the shamanic community), but following the Mongolian Shamanist way of doing things has always helped me live life in a way that I feel happy and balanced. So that's why I stick with it. I studied Buddhism later on as an adult because it's extremely difficult to have a communal practice as a Mongolian Shamanist in the West. All the shamanic circles I went to incited different gods, used different methods, etc. Imagine if you went to Church and they started calling upon different gods!

Eventually I found Pure Land Buddhism was the most adaptable to my Shamanic practice. I say nembutsu every morning and end every evening with a prayer to the Tenger. I attend dharma talks every week for that communal experience, and I consult with a shaman with Manchu lineage online once in a while if I ever feel spiritually off. It's not perfect, but it works for me.

I love it, never talked to someone who followed tengrism

[The Blaatschapen]

So, which god is there for sheep? And how will this god benefit me? What do I need to do?

[Herzpunkt]

So, which god is there for sheep? And how will this god benefit me? What do I need to do?

Pan from Greek Hellenism perhaps

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

So, which god is there for sheep? And how will this god benefit me? What do I need to do?

Sumerian Goddess Duttur comes to mind.

[The Blaatschapen]

So, which god is there for sheep? And how will this god benefit me? What do I need to do?

Pan from Greek Hellenism perhaps

I'll be a pantheist then.

Sounds good to me

[Cateca]

Just noticing, how come there are zero people listing Hinduism on the poll (when I saw it, just now)? It's the third most-followed faith in the world. Just odd to me

[The Blaatschapen]

Just noticing, how come there are zero people listing Hinduism on the poll (when I saw it, just now)? It's the third most-followed faith in the world. Just odd to me

I don't think it qualifies as pagan. And would perhaps be served with its own discussion thread precisely because it is the third most-followed faith in the world.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

Just noticing, how come there are zero people listing Hinduism on the poll (when I saw it, just now)? It's the third most-followed faith in the world. Just odd to me

There may not be many posters who are adherents of it.

[Enjuku]

Reading about this was interesting. I had never heard of Tengerism. My encounters with Shamanism have always been of the Amerindian variety.

They have a lot of similarities! Shamanism is actually a word for indigenous Siberian religion, taken from the Siberian word "saman" for their village's spirit healer. When Europeans encountered this they compared it to Native American medicine men, and thus "Shamanism" was born.

Both Eurasian shamanism and Native American shamanism venerate spirits, emerged in tight-knit nomadic communities, and had a village elder who healed people. They differ in that Eurasian shamanism is more like European paganism: there are gods with big personalities and the shaman essentially does spiritual warfare and exorcises people of bad spirits. Also, Native American religions sometimes don't have a shaman in the Eurasian sense, they just have medicine men who specialize in herbal medicines and such.

One of my issues here in the West is that I'd go to a shamanic circle, and they'd start by invoking the four directions. But they'd use the wrong colors associated with each direction in Mongolian Shamanism. They'd name different gods like Pachamama, etc. They'd bring up spirits I hadn't heard of, make offerings with fruits when I learned certain spirits you only make offerings with meat or milk, etc.

When you expect the spirits you're talking to to be real, it becomes hard to just participate in a ceremony for some spirit you've never met or worshipped before. It's like calling the wrong phone number and asking for a different name. As far as I know, there aren't any specifically Mongolian Shamanist groups in the US.

I love it, never talked to someone who followed tengrism

Thanks!

Ironically, Tengrism is the Turkish version. Tengerism is the Mongol version. Same gods, different names and spelling