Where do I go from here?
One of the most common questions we get here is usually the "now what" question--you know what Paganism is in general, you know that you have an interest in a specific pantheon or culture or world view (or that you don't, and you are interested in a more nature-based path) and you find yourself at an impass in terms of figuring out what to do next.
Now what?
Well...there's no right answer to this. But there is a wee bit of guidance available in the form of a book (actually a couple of books, but I really like how one book lays it all out and gives examples, so we are going to talk about that one). So, the book is To Walk a Pagan Path by Alaric Albertsson, which a few of our members list as "recommended newbie reading". IMO, the very best advice of this book is given in the first chapter (and then elaborated on throughout the book). I'm currently blogging a part summary/part review/part commentary on the book, but I'm going to toss out his 7 steps for developing religious traditions.
1. Connecting with Spirit–Albertsson’s first step is to find your connection with the Divine (which is probably one of the best first steps one could suggest in how to live your religion). He offers some practical advice on finding which gods to worship, on finding a pantheon or mythology that appeals to you, perhaps because you've been “called”, or perhaps based upon your heritage, or perhaps just because you've done some reading and picked something that interested you. He then suggests picking a god to make an offering to as the start to building a relationship, and describes the process of making an offering in a a clear and easy to understand way.
2. Creating Sacred Space–After finding one’s connection with Spirit, Albertsson recommends that “your next action should be to establish a place where you can maintain and continue to build that connection” so that “there is some place in your home that is sacred and set aside for your gods” (p 19) (and/or presumably for your ancestors or nature spirits). He suggests that one’s sacred space (for devotion is an altar and that one’s altar should reflect the culture of the deities of worship–“the sacred space you reserve for your gods should be a space where they can rest comfortably” (p 19) before turning to the practical concerns of space itself and how “out” one is as a Pagan, the benefits of outdoor altar space, and of altars dedicated to one’s ancestor.
3. Creating Sacred Time–“If you do nothing with your altar, it is not truly an altar it is merely a table or shelf holding an incense burner, a couple of candles, and perhaps two or thee interesting statues. The activities that take place at that table of shelf–the reverence, the offerings, and the meditation–are what give meaning to your sacred space.” (p 23) Paganism is an religion based in praxis; without practicing, all you have is a shelf of dust collectors. In this section, Albertsson talks about the fact that life happens, and the importance of consistency. Because, as he says, there is always going to be something happening that will let us feel justified in putting it off until the next day. His recommendations include setting aside a specific time for doing this. Practically speaking, that might be during a certain event of your day after you wake up or while you wait for your morning coffee to percolate, or it might be at a specific time each day (in my experience, setting your alarm for this is a good idea). Whether its 5 minutes or 15 or 50 isn’t as important as consistency. And it doesn’t have to be every day–maybe its just once or twice a week. Albertsson’s advice is to pick the smallest time commitment that you can reasonably stick with…if you can’t stick with it, then its not reasonable for your lifestyle. His last advice here regards the interruptions that life brings to even the best laid plans, “When something like this happens, attend to the problem but make your sacred time the next highest priority. If you put it off any longer than necessary, you diminish its worth.”(p 26)
4. Sacralize Daily Activities–Albertsson’s fourth step is to “integrate our spirituality with the rest of our lives” as our spirits are “sustained by the mindful actions you take to sacralize your daily activities” (p 27). He explains his tradition’s “Hal Sidu”, or “holistic tradition” (I call this “artem vitae”, which is Google Latin for “art of living” and my summer sister*** calls it “nuanaarpoq” which is an Inuit word that means something akin to “taking extravagant pleasure in being alive”) as an integration of our spirituality into the everyday of our lives. I won’t spend too much time here, since his third chapter is pretty much dedicated to this idea, except to say that this sacralization might be while you do dishes or take a shower or when you drink your first cup of tea (whether you are interested in Wicca or not, Diane Sylvan’s Circle of One has some great ideas on this topic). Or maybe its mindful eating and before meal prayers, or meditation while swimming laps or while running each morning–you name it. It might also be something specific to your chosen tradition that connects with the culture that your tradition comes from. As Albertsson says, “Any worthwhile pursuit can be a sacred act.” (p 29) As I put it, let every action or our bodies be a prayer of our soul.
6. Observe Holy Tides–The next step is a set of seasonal observances that recognizes the significance of the passage of time through out the year. Albertsson mention a number of possibilities here–following the contemporary Pagan Wheel of the Year, whether in the Wiccan form or some other adapted way, or to celebrate an annual calender from another culture. As he puts it, “The important think is not what calender you follow, but that you consistently observe the hold tides–the holidays of that calender. By doing so you touch the earth, attuning yourself to the seasonal change occurring around you.” (p 32) This is covered more in-depth in the 2nd chapter.
7. Find Your Folk–“Humans, however, are social, tribal creatures, and the overwhelming majority of us are happier when we can share our life experiences with others… Our celebrations, whether secular or spiritual, are more fulfilling when we are joined with others of like mind”(p 32-33). Albertsson takes some time in this next step to talk about the benefit of having some sort of non-solitary practice, whether its is a single family or a formal group–support, advice, assistance, fellowship, and friendship, to name a few. He also offers some practical advice in finding the “right people to enter into such a relationship with” , from the practical–compatibility of beliefs and membership expectations, to the precautionary–that active recruitment of new members can be an indication of something not being on the level. For those where a local community doesn't mesh with their own practice or beliefs, online communities may be an option worth looking into (this is my personal advice, not from the book). While the worship aspect would be difficult, the community aspect–advice, support, assistance, and friendship is not.
(excerpted from my blog, minus most of my commentary and with a few changes to that aren't pertinent unless you are following the entire series of posts)
2. Creating Sacred Space–After finding one’s connection with Spirit, Albertsson recommends that “your next action should be to establish a place where you can maintain and continue to build that connection” so that “there is some place in your home that is sacred and set aside for your gods” (p 19) (and/or presumably for your ancestors or nature spirits). He suggests that one’s sacred space (for devotion is an altar and that one’s altar should reflect the culture of the deities of worship–“the sacred space you reserve for your gods should be a space where they can rest comfortably” (p 19) before turning to the practical concerns of space itself and how “out” one is as a Pagan, the benefits of outdoor altar space, and of altars dedicated to one’s ancestor.
3. Creating Sacred Time–“If you do nothing with your altar, it is not truly an altar it is merely a table or shelf holding an incense burner, a couple of candles, and perhaps two or thee interesting statues. The activities that take place at that table of shelf–the reverence, the offerings, and the meditation–are what give meaning to your sacred space.” (p 23) Paganism is an religion based in praxis; without practicing, all you have is a shelf of dust collectors. In this section, Albertsson talks about the fact that life happens, and the importance of consistency. Because, as he says, there is always going to be something happening that will let us feel justified in putting it off until the next day. His recommendations include setting aside a specific time for doing this. Practically speaking, that might be during a certain event of your day after you wake up or while you wait for your morning coffee to percolate, or it might be at a specific time each day (in my experience, setting your alarm for this is a good idea). Whether its 5 minutes or 15 or 50 isn’t as important as consistency. And it doesn’t have to be every day–maybe its just once or twice a week. Albertsson’s advice is to pick the smallest time commitment that you can reasonably stick with…if you can’t stick with it, then its not reasonable for your lifestyle. His last advice here regards the interruptions that life brings to even the best laid plans, “When something like this happens, attend to the problem but make your sacred time the next highest priority. If you put it off any longer than necessary, you diminish its worth.”(p 26)
4. Sacralize Daily Activities–Albertsson’s fourth step is to “integrate our spirituality with the rest of our lives” as our spirits are “sustained by the mindful actions you take to sacralize your daily activities” (p 27). He explains his tradition’s “Hal Sidu”, or “holistic tradition” (I call this “artem vitae”, which is Google Latin for “art of living” and my summer sister*** calls it “nuanaarpoq” which is an Inuit word that means something akin to “taking extravagant pleasure in being alive”) as an integration of our spirituality into the everyday of our lives. I won’t spend too much time here, since his third chapter is pretty much dedicated to this idea, except to say that this sacralization might be while you do dishes or take a shower or when you drink your first cup of tea (whether you are interested in Wicca or not, Diane Sylvan’s Circle of One has some great ideas on this topic). Or maybe its mindful eating and before meal prayers, or meditation while swimming laps or while running each morning–you name it. It might also be something specific to your chosen tradition that connects with the culture that your tradition comes from. As Albertsson says, “Any worthwhile pursuit can be a sacred act.” (p 29) As I put it, let every action or our bodies be a prayer of our soul.
6. Observe Holy Tides–The next step is a set of seasonal observances that recognizes the significance of the passage of time through out the year. Albertsson mention a number of possibilities here–following the contemporary Pagan Wheel of the Year, whether in the Wiccan form or some other adapted way, or to celebrate an annual calender from another culture. As he puts it, “The important think is not what calender you follow, but that you consistently observe the hold tides–the holidays of that calender. By doing so you touch the earth, attuning yourself to the seasonal change occurring around you.” (p 32) This is covered more in-depth in the 2nd chapter.
7. Find Your Folk–“Humans, however, are social, tribal creatures, and the overwhelming majority of us are happier when we can share our life experiences with others… Our celebrations, whether secular or spiritual, are more fulfilling when we are joined with others of like mind”(p 32-33). Albertsson takes some time in this next step to talk about the benefit of having some sort of non-solitary practice, whether its is a single family or a formal group–support, advice, assistance, fellowship, and friendship, to name a few. He also offers some practical advice in finding the “right people to enter into such a relationship with” , from the practical–compatibility of beliefs and membership expectations, to the precautionary–that active recruitment of new members can be an indication of something not being on the level. For those where a local community doesn't mesh with their own practice or beliefs, online communities may be an option worth looking into (this is my personal advice, not from the book). While the worship aspect would be difficult, the community aspect–advice, support, assistance, and friendship is not.
(excerpted from my blog, minus most of my commentary and with a few changes to that aren't pertinent unless you are following the entire series of posts)
The things to keep in mind here are that 1) there is no one answer and 2) there is no right answer. Pagans are people that are building their own traditions, their own religious experiences. This takes trial and error. My path today looks radically different than it did 10 and 20 years ago. But the key is that change comes organically from experience.
Some other books that I recommend...
The Short-list:
Introduction to Pagan Studies by Barbara Jane Davy (this one is meant to be a text/reference book--there are no exercises, no how-to, etc). This is a good book to have when it comes time to explain Paganism to others.
Paganism: An Introduction to Earth-centered Religions by River and Joyce Higgenbotham
Pagan Paths: A Guide to Wicca, Druidry, Asatru, Shamanism, and Other Pagan Practices by Peter Jennings
The Earth, The Gods and The Soul: A History of Pagan Philosophy from the Iron Age to the 21st Century by Brendan Myers
A World Full of Gods: an Inquiry into Polytheism by John Michael Greer
These 5 books should 1) give you an overview of contemporary Pagansim and its variety of traditions, 2) give you a jumping off start of the most predominant Pagan philosophies and theologies, 3) give you a practical foundation towards finding and creating your own traditions and/or finding the tradition where you might start your own path.
As a sort of expanded list, I'd also add in these guys:
Comparative Mythology by Jaan Puhvell
A Short History of Myth by Karen Armstrong
Walking with the Gods: Modern People Talk About Deities, Faith, and Recreating Ancient Traditions by W. D. Wilkerson
The Deities are Many: A Polytheistic Theology by Jordan D Paper
The Circle Within by Diane Sylvan
Pagan Theology: Paganism as a world religion by Michael York
God Against the Gods: The History of the War Between Monotheism and Polytheism by Jonathan Kirsch
Ritual: A Druid’s Guide to Life, Love & Inspiration by Emma Restall Orr
Deep Ancestors: Practicing the Religion of the Proto-Indo-Europeans by Ceisiwr Serith
The Hollow Bone: A Field Guide to Shamanism by Colleen Deatsman and Sandra Ingerman
The Wakeful World: Animism, Mind, and the Self in Nature by Emma Restall Orr (or Animism: Respecting the Natural World by Graham Harvey)
The Sacred Depths of Nature by Ursula Goodenough
The Wayfinders: Why Ancient Wisdom Matters in the Modern World by Wade Davis
I picked these because they sort of expand on the themes of the previous list, and start branching out a bit into ideas that are found through out the variety of Pagan traditions, from a specific practitioner's or tradition's POV (for example, Emma Restall Orr is a Druid with the OBOD, and *at the time of the writing* Diane Sylvan was a solitary eclectic Wiccan, etc) which might also give you some ideas on traditions or cultures that interest you if you aren't sure. None of them are really introductory books on specific traditions (check our giant book list or the resources page for the tradition you are interested in for that!), but they will expand understanding of different traditions, philosophies, and practices in a way that should point you in the direction of a path that interets you.
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