Jump to content
Join the Unexplained Mysteries community today! It's free and setting up an account only takes a moment.
- Sign In or Create Account -

Pagan Practices 101


Simbi Laveau

Recommended Posts

It's the same with any other deity, I think. If I particularly liked the story and tales told about Kali or Ganesha, I would light a candle to them. It's sort of like lighting a candle after a loved one has died. It's not always because their spirit is still around, it is to honor their memory. Their is no pantheon or religion that is more correct than another, and if you were a witch and wanted a shrine to St. Michel, there would be nothing wrong with that. Or if you want to strictly study and practice with Egyptian deities, that is perfectly okay too. I just don't like people being judging or other people's magic, which is why I could never practice with a coven because everyone in a coven has to pretty much have the same beliefs or you get people debating over who is more right.

I have no problem with black magic or blood magic. If you want to add blood to your spell, do it, but always use your own blood. I've offered blood to Lilith plenty of times and it was always my own, given willingly. I really just think that people can do whatever the hell they want. There is supposed to be freedom of religion in America, and if someone wants to dance around naked under the full moon then they can. It doesn't hurt other people.

Well,you must be careful with black magick . I do not do black art spells ,but once in a while,.....I will modify one for a purpose .

Using black spells,can have repercussions,and my karma ,is such that ,I must be careful . Past life stuff I think .

Blood magick ,I don't even get why people get so freaked out about it ,unless of course you're draining things to do it.

Using your own blood can also have issues,if an entity is involved .

You can bind yourself to it ......so ,I tread lightly in these areas .

I generally will just use justice spells for retribution .

And I do full rituals to Kali Ganesh Tara and Lakshmi .

With the coconut and rose water and the mantra .

I actually find it very soothing to chant mantras .

Lakshmis is very long.Doing it 108 times is very intense.

I will post one of my favorites for you .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm still interested to know how it's possible to combine witchcraft with Christianity, given the Bible's prohibitions against such practice... would you be so kind as to explain for me?

*nods*

If a Christian ,has a leaning in this direction,they understand that God,could not give a crap about a book,written a millenia after the death of his alleged son,where they stories were mutated and bastardize ,to the point 3/4s of it ,may not even be correct anymore.

The church has all this power,and wants control . So they pound the book into your head.

It's irrelevant .

The way I look at it,and this is personal to me,and I took a huge flaming for this on LiveJournal years ago,in a non wiccan community..

But,it all comes from one place.

Who knows how old the story really is .

God couldn't care less how you say "hello",to him,as long as you say hello .

If you understand this,that's more than half the battle.

So,people who combine the two,see no issue with it .

Any one religion ,that claims to be the best,or the "correct" one,is so arrogant ,that there is bound to be hypocrisy at every turn .

Some people become disillusioned with their own faith,and look elsewhere for answers.

Edited by Simbi Laveau
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm still interested to know how it's possible to combine witchcraft with Christianity, given the Bible's prohibitions against such practice... would you be so kind as to explain for me?

The story of Jesus,may just be gossip,mutated over centuries .

There are some similiarities between Jesus and ganesh ?

http://www.scribd.com/doc/16533061/Comparison-of-the-Lives-of-Horus-and-Jesus-Coincidence

It's not on this page,but Horus and Jesus were both also carpenters by trade .

http://www.indiadivine.org/audarya/hinduism-forum/201842-similarities-between-jesus-ganesha.html

Edited by Simbi Laveau
Link to comment
Share on other sites

*nods*

If a Christian ,has a leaning in this direction,they understand that God,could not give a crap about a book,written a millenia after the death of his alleged son,where they stories were mutated and bastardize ,to the point 3/4s of it ,may not even be correct anymore.

The church has all this power,and wants control . So they pound the book into your head.

It's irrelevant .

The way I look at it,and this is personal to me,and I took a huge flaming for this on LiveJournal years ago,in a non wiccan community..

But,it all comes from one place.

Who knows how old the story really is .

God couldn't care less how you say "hello",to him,as long as you say hello .

If you understand this,that's more than half the battle.

So,people who combine the two,see no issue with it .

Any one religion ,that claims to be the best,or the "correct" one,is so arrogant ,that there is bound to be hypocrisy at every turn .

Some people become disillusioned with their own faith,and look elsewhere for answers.

I see... But, if the Bible is out with the rubbish heap, then why retain the Christian part, i.e., believing that Jesus of Nazareth was the son of God? I mean, if one concludes that the Bible is basically a fabrication, or at best a distorted version, then why does the Jesus bit seem to apply more than, say, the witchcraft-is-evil bit?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The story of Jesus,may just be gossip,mutated over centuries .

There are some similiarities between Jesus and ganesh ?

http://www.scribd.co...sus-Coincidence

It's not on this page,but Horus and Jesus were both also carpenters by trade .

There are some intriguing similarities. I've been astonished myself at the resemblance Jesus has with Gautama Buddha or the ancient god Mithras. You might have a look at that if you haven't already.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are some intriguing similarities. I've been astonished myself at the resemblance Jesus has with Gautama Buddha or the ancient god Mithras. You might have a look at that if you haven't already.

Yes,I've seen some of it .

It's all one big happy family in reality .

It's like different cultures ,look at it thru a different prism at a different angle.

The more enlightened a religion ,the more they understand this.

As for combining ,when you come from say a very religious household,I think its hard to give up what has been pounded into your head.

They need to keep part of what is comfortable to them .

Whatever works I say .

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes,I've seen some of it .

It's all one big happy family in reality .

It's like different cultures ,look at it thru a different prism at a different angle.

The more enlightened a religion ,the more they understand this.

As for combining ,when you come from say a very religious household,I think its hard to give up what has been pounded into your head.

They need to keep part of what is comfortable to them .

Whatever works I say .

Indeed. I sort of figured.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Indeed. I sort of figured.

Part of it may also be guilt ?,catholic guilt ,Jewish guilt ,they are the worst ,so they keep part of their faith ,to keep from feeling as if they are betraying their devout Irish mum .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well,you must be careful with black magick . I do not do black art spells ,but once in a while,.....I will modify one for a purpose .

Using black spells,can have repercussions,and my karma ,is such that ,I must be careful . Past life stuff I think .

Blood magick ,I don't even get why people get so freaked out about it ,unless of course you're draining things to do it.

Using your own blood can also have issues,if an entity is involved .

You can bind yourself to it ......so ,I tread lightly in these areas .

I generally will just use justice spells for retribution .

I feel like if I'm upset at someone or something enough to go out of my way to curse them, then I am completely okay with taking the responsibility for what comes back to me. I think that is generally a good rule of thumb for anyone who wants to perform black magic. If you are adult enough to accept what comes back to and you are okay with that, then do your black magic. For example, I hexed someone once and I ended up with pneumonia a week later. Was it a direct result of cursing this person? Maybe, maybe not, but because I felt like this person deserved that curse, I was okay with the repercussions of it. I feel like like in general should be like that- you want to go out and do [x, y, z] ? Okay, then can you accept the responsibility of what may happen as a result? It almost feels like a certain kind of maturity to approach life and the craft like that.

Also, I would NEVER bind an entity to me, ever. Even if it was a dead relative I'd never bind them to me. That is just asking for something bad, because it is incredibly hard to break that bind. I feel like if the entity is particularly associated with death/blood/the color red, then there is no problem, but you should never do it as a way of binding. Never never never.

Edited by Hellcat009
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Part of it may also be guilt ?,catholic guilt ,Jewish guilt ,they are the worst ,so they keep part of their faith ,to keep from feeling as if they are betraying their devout Irish mum .

Very probable.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is my favorite Shiva mantra.

I have a CD of awesome mantras. I forget the name of it now,but its so pretty . I listen to it in the car .

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I feel like if I'm upset at someone or something enough to go out of my way to curse them, then I am completely okay with taking the responsibility for what comes back to me. I think that is generally a good rule of thumb for anyone who wants to perform black magic. If you are adult enough to accept what comes back to and you are okay with that, then do your black magic. For example, I hexed someone once and I ended up with pneumonia a week later. Was it a direct result of cursing this person? Maybe, maybe not, but because I felt like this person deserved that curse, I was okay with the repercussions of it. I feel like like in general should be like that- you want to go out and do [x, y, z] ? Okay, then can you accept the responsibility of what may happen as a result? It almost feels like a certain kind of maturity to approach life and the craft like that.

Also, I would NEVER bind an entity to me, ever. Even if it was a dead relative I'd never bind them to me. That is just asking for something bad, because it is incredibly hard to break that bind. I feel like if the entity is particularly associated with death/blood/the color red, then there is no problem, but you should never do it as a way of binding. Never never never.

Well I'm not saying to purposely bind something to you,but with blood magick,it can happen as an inadvertent result .

And I learned early on,if I did stuff I just wanted to do,without thought to consequences ,it came back at me POW .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[media=]

[/media]

This is my favorite Shiva mantra.

I have a CD of awesome mantras. I forget the name of it now,but its so pretty . I listen to it in the car .

Ah, yes, Shiva Mahamrityunjaya is a lovely mantra.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well I'm not saying to purposely bind something to you,but with blood magick,it can happen as an inadvertent result .

And I learned early on,if I did stuff I just wanted to do,without thought to consequences ,it came back at me POW .

I admit I'm intrigued, though I'm not Wiccan or whatever. What is blood magick, and what is binding? My curiosity is peaked.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I admit I'm intrigued, though I'm not Wiccan or whatever. What is blood magick, and what is binding? My curiosity is peaked.

Most likely, Wiccans don't practice blood magic, since blood magic can sometimes be seen as harmful and Wiccan's are against harming anyone or anything, and you don't have to be Wiccan to practice the craft. Anyways, to put it simply, blood magic is any kind of spell or ritual that uses blood, preferably the blood the the caster. It's a pretty old tradition- think of the Aztec's sacfiricing people to their gods and you have blood magic. Since blood is thought of as being your life force, using it with your spells is said to make the magic really, really powerful.

Binding is when you tie someone or something to you spiritually. If you were to bind a living person to you in blood, they would always have a spiritual connection to you. If you bind a spirit to you it generally means that they can't leave you and you can't leave them until the bond is broken. Breaking the bond can be really hard, which is why I don't recommend doing it.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Most likely, Wiccans don't practice blood magic, since blood magic can sometimes be seen as harmful and Wiccan's are against harming anyone or anything, and you don't have to be Wiccan to practice the craft. Anyways, to put it simply, blood magic is any kind of spell or ritual that uses blood, preferably the blood the the caster. It's a pretty old tradition- think of the Aztec's sacfiricing people to their gods and you have blood magic. Since blood is thought of as being your life force, using it with your spells is said to make the magic really, really powerful.

Binding is when you tie someone or something to you spiritually. If you were to bind a living person to you in blood, they would always have a spiritual connection to you. If you bind a spirit to you it generally means that they can't leave you and you can't leave them until the bond is broken. Breaking the bond can be really hard, which is why I don't recommend doing it.

Ah, I see. I think I understand. So binding is potentially comparable to the Shinto/Taoist concept of sealing, no?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How does one become a shaman in the modern world?

I should think it would be rather difficult, I'm sorry to say, Zara. If I remember right, shamanic practice typically involves a shaman inheriting all of the wisdom and practice of his craft directly from his predecessor or master. So... unless you know a shaman already that would be willing to teach you, I don't see it as terribly likely that it will be possible. But I suppose it's always worth a try!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

How does one become a shaman in the modern world?

Most people are born shamans or they have shamans in the family. Modern day has nothing to do with becoming a shaman- most of the traditions are pretty much the same as they have been. You are born a shaman and then during a period of your life you are gravely ill and almost dying and you are reborn after you realize your calling as a shaman. That's as far as my understanding goes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Such an utter crock of crap.

Even in ny,we don't do that.

You show up at the meeting place,and unless the ritual calls for cakes and ale,we don't bother.

We usually only brought food for Lakshmi and Ganesh rituals we do,which arent even wiccan.

The only reason to be in a coven ,is the added energy of many people .

We used to meet,set up ,cast a circle ,do our thing ,break it all down,go for dinner somewhere .

Did they take money from you ? As some covens do that .

My my, that was rude. Like I say everyone does it different. I have been to many rituals in different circles and festivals. This pretty much standard fair. Never been to NYC I don't know what y'all are doing there. Maybe you would like to explain. I won't tell you it is crap, even if I think it is. Like I say it depends on the tradition. You as you said aren't doing Wiccan. Money was ever taken. (How much money have you spent on crap you think you need to appease a god?) There wasn't anyone making money off it, that is for sure. Sometimes money was given to off set costs. I was taught Correllian Wicca. I think it is a Scottish type.

We did some powerful magic in our coven. Things happened beyond normal experience. You have to get together a lot and practice to do high magic in a coven. You all have to be on the same page, which is purpose of the ritual. Since we fasted before ritual sometimes we needed a little something at end to finish. (I collapsed during a ritual one time.) The Cake and Ale part is also a part of the bonding. In the end how you ritual is unimportant, it what you do to focus as a single entity. I still have bond between some of the members that can't be broken. We are more than family. Unfortunately we had a warlock (oath breaker) in our coven and some bad stuff went down.

Now I am part of an eclectic circle, we no longer do high magic. My public rituals are not Wiccan, so they have some elements of this, but for the most part they are a sharing of artistic energy. Most of what we do is self improvement. We do potluck after rituals, we are out in the woods. We are a nature based path after all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Most people are born shamans or they have shamans in the family. Modern day has nothing to do with becoming a shaman- most of the traditions are pretty much the same as they have been. You are born a shaman and then during a period of your life you are gravely ill and almost dying and you are reborn after you realize your calling as a shaman. That's as far as my understanding goes.

Hm, the closest I've been to death is mentally. I don't think that counts haha :) Can you tell me a little more about what they actually do?

I should think it would be rather difficult, I'm sorry to say, Zara. If I remember right, shamanic practice typically involves a shaman inheriting all of the wisdom and practice of his craft directly from his predecessor or master. So... unless you know a shaman already that would be willing to teach you, I don't see it as terribly likely that it will be possible. But I suppose it's always worth a try!

I don't know any shamans D: There's no website for shaman meetups in my local area!

Haha I did just think of "Local shamans want you" advertisements in place of "Horny single russian girls want you." My my, that would be hilarious.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

For me it is the people and the Earth. The ritual prepares you mentally and helps you focus. For me deities are irrelevant. Some people like to use them, I don't. My greatest power is the universe and since I am the universe, I am my greatest power.

Both .The Samhain ritual is huge,and with everyone singing and dancing in the circle,the space begins to vibrate with power .

All of our energies combined,in calling to the god and goddess .It's exhilarating .

I love the songs and chants. They have always seemed so familiar to me,as if I have known them all my life.

Thankye both, that iswhat I had felt but I never got very deep into the practice. I find it really interesting that a group of humans together, focused on a common goal can actually change the feeling in the air. I've experienced it a couple of times, but mostly haven't had a group of people available who were both interested and whom I felt were trustworthy (unlike the crazy people I'd dabbled with previously, who were manipulative, theives and liars, ugh!) I'd love to have that opportunity again, I bet it is amazing with sincere and caring people.

Indeed, while Santeria and Voodoo are forms of Christopaganism, the orixas and spirits of those traditions are not demons. That sounds more like mainstream Christian bs to me to think those traditions have anything to do with demons.

Oh yes... my own family was a great example. They considered buddhists, hindus, witches, etc to be evil. They thought buddha was a false god (they clearly didn't understand anything about his teachings) and any kind of witchcraft was satanism, in their minds. Once my grandfather showed me some book that had pretty much every symbol used by every other religion or group, with descriptions of why the symbols were evil. As I recall, the book included the yin yang, peace sign, ohm, certain celtic knots, anything that looked like a goat or skull, etc. At the time (I was a teenager and still rather indoctrinated) it terrified me.

I'm still interested to know how it's possible to combine witchcraft with Christianity, given the Bible's prohibitions against such practice... would you be so kind as to explain for me?

At it's core, Christian just means follower of Christ. I believe that a person can follow / understand his words without taking the remainder of the bible into account. I personally feel it makes more sense that way, as to me the old testament is nothing more than a collection of stories and Jewish laws. As far as Jesus being the son of god, I think that is no more or less than the rest of us, and that because he was speaking primarily to the Jews, he was putting it into a context they could understand. To me, that understanding of Christ doesn't clash at all with witchcraft.

That's how I consider myself buddhist, pagan and christian all at once, though I never call myself christian as the term has waaaaaay to many assumptions tied to it that I do not adhere to.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hm, the closest I've been to death is mentally. I don't think that counts haha :) Can you tell me a little more about what they actually do?

Shamanism varies by the regions in which it arose, are you thinking of a specific type? Usually I tend to think of Native Americans when I hear it, but there are practices all over the world that are also considered shamanism. It's usually very tribal, of course :)

Shamans interact with the spirit world, and can guide their people based on what they learn from the spirits. They are also supposed to be able to heal a persons illnesses by mending their soul.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Shamanism varies by the regions in which it arose, are you thinking of a specific type? Usually I tend to think of Native Americans when I hear it, but there are practices all over the world that are also considered shamanism. It's usually very tribal, of course :)

Shamans interact with the spirit world, and can guide their people based on what they learn from the spirits. They are also supposed to be able to heal a persons illnesses by mending their soul.

How do they do it different to other shamans? I do think of them too :)

How do they interact with that world? Oh I have so many questions!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.