2) demanding the gods remove the rain-clouds may seem like a good idea at first but keep in mind they are the only thing between you and the sun…

3) only at volusia county ppd does it require two rolls of packing tape and a bag of two dozen balloons to result in four frickin’ balloons taped to a couple of signs that nobody really saw any way.

4) european elder is a glorious, tall, sacred tree.  american elder is a small, poisonous shrub… did they just run out of names when they crossed the ocean, or is there a political message somewhere in that?

5) no, i don’t care what candle corresponds with what element, just light them all, dammit, and let the  gods figure it out later.

6) realizing that this is florida, and our event is held outdoors on a grassy area, perhaps sensible footwear is in order?  there’s an easy mathematical formula for figuring this out… ” (Barefoot/Sandals)*Exposed Foot-Flesh = FIRE  ANT LUNCH. ”

7) i know we had planned for chocolate wine and four varieties of pudding for our cakes and ale ceremony, so how did we end up with blue sugar-juice and plain ‘nilla wafers?!

8) if you’re manning the grill, make sure you actually have something on it when you notice the video camera panning toward you.  flipping air-burgers may seem like a good idea, but the camera tends to pick up those little details…

9) try not to inhale a bug when you’re taking a deep breath in for a chakra chant… it throws off your energy somewhat.

10) just because it says ‘easy-up tent’ on the side, doesn’t necessarily mean its ‘easy-DOWN’ too.  especially when you need a screwdriver bit, a hammer, and a blood-pact with satan to push the damn buttons in.

and a bonus…

11) we underestimated just how dangerous the ketchup and relish situation was, so next year we will be developing a two-hour, online certification program for proper condiment usage.  under no circumstances will anyone who does not successfully complete this course be allowed anywhere near the slap-chop.

many pagan practices, while still employing lightness and darkness as descriptive terminology, have moved past this polarity and seek to base their moral outlook on something more unambiguous and quantifiable.  since it is difficult for typical human beings to measure and observe karmic interaction (none of us are buddhas…)  we need to look at the directly observable effects of our actions – the most visible being the ‘harm’ that results from them.

on the additive side, how far is person x willing to go to achieve their own goals, and how willing / to what degree will person x sacrifice person y’s goals in order to achieve their own. but on the subtractive side, to what degree will person x sacrifice their own goals in order to achieve person y’s. and when conflict occurs, at what point does the balance between sacrifice and achievement tip the moral scale, so to speak.

for now, all that is still a jumble of words floating around my head at the moment. but going back to the dark/light model, the important question is ‘uninfluenced by any other factors, how much potential harm are you willing to do to others in order to get what you want?’ – regardless of whether you actually act on that potential or not. the risk-tolerance toward others is what delineates dark from light in my mind.   and perhaps to a lesser degree, the willingness to either observe or abandon the norms of social etiquette.  within any magickal practice, you’re going to have both light and dark elements, so it is more useful to look for overlapping trends, as opposed to mutually exclusive dualistic extremes.  going back to the dark/light model, the farther from observing social etiquette your practice takes you the ‘darker’ your practice will be perceived by those observing it. go into a public park and ritually sacrifice a cat… vs. go into a public park and pray. its totally subjective based upon the beliefs of the observer, hence its of lesser importance – yet part of being ‘light’ or ‘dark’ is how one’s actions measure up to the standards of those who are judging them; so there must be some correlation between the action and how the action is perceived.

so how does all of this factor into paganism and what we ‘do’ as pagans?  well, on the wiccan side of things there’s that pesky little thing known as the rede that seems to cause quite a bit of controversy… often maligned, misunderstood, and usually taken completely out of context (by wiccans and non-wiccans alike…)  i’ll be taking a closer look at it in an upcoming post.

as always, comments and scathing criticism welcome.
-justin

in the physical realm, we can generally figure out which direction is which by knowing our position relative to the earth, but we can’t really pinpoint the boundaries of the three dimensional space that make up ‘east’, for example.   euclidean geometry is incapable of taking the third dimension into account which is problematic since we all live on a giant, fully 3D oblate spheroid known as the earth.  and even though our ‘circles’ tend to be visualized as 2D geometric shapes, we’re still using language and terminology that applies to rectangles and squares, rather then the somewhat more mathematically complex terminology that would apply to curving bodies.

if we look at it more from a spiritual perspective, however,  it begins to make a little more sense.  the nature of reality of the spiritual realm is much different then that of the physical realm – on the field of potential phenomena (the ‘emptiness’ that embodies all reality – physical, mental, spiritual, transcendent, and beyond) the causes and conditions that give rise to the very rigid and deterministic natural laws that govern the physical realm are  different then those that give rise to spiritual realm.  consequently, different ‘models’ of reality can arise and dissolve simultaneously within the spiritual realm, where only one object can reside in a particular point in spacetime within the physical realm.  this allows for our mental consciousness to conceptualize spiritual reality in multiple ways at the same time.  our ‘circles’ can can also be ‘spheres’, and yet can also have points, and corners, and quarters as if they were rectangles all at the same time.  the effect of this seemingly spiritual chaos is that back on the physical plane, even though we don’t know where exactly ‘east’ ends and ‘south’ begins, we will have general regions whose energetic effects match our intentions and can produce real work within the circle.

but before we figure out what element goes where and why, i think its important to look at why we call elemental energy into our circle to begin with.  what is the point of having earth, air, fire, and water energy within our circle?  we’ve already got our physical reminders of the elements, so isn’t that enough?  short answer is no.  there are actually two reasons why we call in elemental energy into our circle.  the first reason is practical – all things have a mixture of spiritual energies, physical manifestations, mental consciousness, and divine qualities that make up their inherent natures in differing proportions.  the more ‘physical’ a thing is, the lower its vibratory rate.  vibratory rate increases as it becomes more mental – then spiritual – and finally, divine.  with a higher vibratory rate, things become progressively more pure until, ultimately, at the apex of creation, a thing is completely divine, and therefore completely pure.  defilement, on the other hand, tends to spread from the more impure to the less impure, but something remarkable happens between the divide of ‘mental’ and ‘spiritual’ vibratory rates.  the nature of defilement is lower-order energy; it comes in the physical and mental varieties.  but when defilement encounters spiritual energy, the higher-order nature (more specifically, the higher-order methods) of that spiritual energy acts to transform the defilement into a higher-order manifestation of its natural self – thereby purifying the defilement into an undefiled state.  this purifying and transformative effect is a natural quality of spiritual energy.

so how does this relate to the circle?  when we call in elemental energy, we are really calling in the essence of each element.  that essence is the spiritual expression of the element, anchored to the circle by the physical manifestation of the element within (for example, we ‘call in’ the spiritual essence of fire which can manifest in the physical realm because we have actual, physical fire somewhere within the circle).  that spiritual essence of fire embodies all of the purifying qualities of physical fire, but in more concentrated, higher-order form.  because it is spiritual energy, when it encounters defilement (that would be us…) it acts to purify what is defiled into its non-defiled state.  so each of the ‘spiritual’ elements purifies the circle and its inhabitants by raising the vibratory rates of everything within the circle.

the second purpose of quarter calling is devotional in nature.  usually, calling in elemental energy is a prelude to calling in divine energy.  when we work with the gods in circle, we are inviting them into a temple outside of spacetime.  just as with guests in our home, we want to make the temple as inviting, pure, clean, and filled with the things they like as we possibly can.  it is an act of worship to strive to emulate the creative works of the gods – and by presenting the gods with the spiritual ‘building blocks’ from which they themselves created the universe, we are emulating the desire to create in their image; we are presenting the gods the ‘work of their hand’ as it were.  ultimately, quarter calling is an offering to god.

next part is going to look at where we put each element within the circle, and why we do it that way.  any questions or thoughts, leave a comment.

-justin

i believe that the one quality which members of all religions and cultures share is our humanness; and that humanness secures us the right to experience and express our relationship with god in whatever way we determine is best for ourselves – even if the experience is similar to the experience from another culture or religious framework. i believe we have the right to adopt practices and beliefs that work for us, and to reject those that do not, regardless of the time period or tradition from which they originate. i believe we have the right to wear or discard the labels of our choosing, or to refuse to label ourselves or accept the labels imposed by others if that is our choice. ultimately, i believe in religious self-determinism… that we are beholden to no one but ourselves and our gods in developing our spiritual relationships.

but with this level of freedom comes a measure of responsibility. we must work very hard to maintain honesty and integrity within our practice. when we lay claim to a heritage that is not ours, or change elements of established traditions, we must have the fortitude to acknowledge that fact – even if it means that we will be criticized for those choices. just as we have the right to judge the practices and beliefs of others for possible inclusion in our own world-views, other people have the right to judge our actions and words in light of their world-views… and we must accept the fact that those judgments will not always be positive.

and we must be very careful not to misrepresent what we do in our practice as one and the same with the legitimate practices of another group, unless they actually are one and the same.  for example, there is nothing wrong with our practices being ‘inspired by native american shamanistic techniques’ but there is something very wrong with laying claim to practicing authentic native american shamanism if we are not native american (either by birth or by adoption).  there is nothing wrong with our version of eclectic wicca being ‘based on the published material of alexandrian wicca’, but there is something very wrong with claiming that our eclectic wicca is alexandrian wicca if we ourselves are not  alexandrian initiates.  with the freedom of religious self-determination comes the obligation to be scrupulously honest in regards to where our practices and beliefs come from.

but adapting beliefs and practices of others is only one way in which we flesh out our spiritual experience.  we also have the right to create our own expressions of god, and this process is one of direct divine inspiration into our personal lives.

we co-create because that is how godhead expresses itself through us – we create our gods the way our gods wish us to create them. painters paint. sculptors sculpt. desire and talent are gifts. our nature is to use them. reality is shaped by natural law, of which rules and limitations are a part – and we are all bound by such law, whether we acknowledge it or not. faith matters, but trappings are just that… traps. god comes to us, because god is us. but we aren’t the entirety of god, and we are subject to maya and limitations – so there is confusion, and ambiguity, and doubt. this results in searching which leads us back to creation.

i created god once. he is all the potential of mankind that hasn’t been tapped into yet. i named him Orion, after the constellation – because i like to stand under the stars and reach up to heaven while thinking of all the things i aspire to be. right here and now, he matters because *i* matter. but people have been standing under the stars reaching up for as long as there have been people and stars. if it wasn’t me then it would be somebody else; maybe someone a thousand years ago. so everything ‘new’ is ‘old’ again.

-justin

in terms of suffering, though, i do not believe that there is a physical place of fire and brimstone presided over by the very worst that creation has to offer. but, i do believe that because of circumstance and personal choices, many spirits find their way to that experience.

is it all in the mind? yes. but only insofar as everything is all in the mind. and is suffering limited to the stereotypical ‘hell’ that our culture seems so hung up on? i’d have to say no. my fear of hell is boredom… i’ll cut-n-paste my own dante moment below.

but the thing is, hell is impermanent. the conditions that cause the experience burn off eventually (karma is fire) and new conditions flow in (karma is water). and the only constant between hells (whatever flavor one is ‘enjoying’ at the moment) is the illusion that we don’t have the ability to say ‘i’ve had enough. this ends now.’

its funny, though… the same could be said of heaven. a rest in the summerland, or a romp with the angels, or sitting at the feet of an enlightened being; it pauses your spiritual growth (albeit pleasantly), so it too can only be temporary. eventually you have to ‘get back to work’.

so neither heaven, nor hell, nor rebirth is eternal because even the longest lasting cycles have to ‘cycle round’ eventually. and when, finally, at long last we come to the collective decision to stop playing, then the cycle of cycles ends. and presumably a new game begins.

shades of boredom

the shades of boredom (of which there are five) are monochromatically grey. if you were to line them up, one next to another, you would just barely be able to make out a subtle difference in gradation between the first and the last. the leftmost tastes of ash, when you stand too close to a fire and the wind blows in your face. next is the fleeting memory that your conciousness just can’t quite hold onto; it is the malevolent rebellion of the part of your mind that wishes you harm. in the center are three voices, so achingly close to harmony that to listen would bring madness. rightward is the dream of a path, where the scenery never changes and the destination is never reached. and the farthest shade is overwhelming disappointment; knowing that same action brings same result, but being unwilling to break the cycle.

and then you move on. or you don’t. – world keeps spinning either way

-justin

1. education standardization and training opportunities for pagan clergy
2. establishment of higher education facilities and the means of financially supporting them focusing on pagan courses of study
3. emphasis on charitable works and creating real infrastructure that would allow for pagan based organizations that conduct direct-charity activities (not just fundraising).
4. common media presence and informational outlets
5. expansion of pagan culture in the form of art, literature, music, and performance that specializes in pagan interests and pagan values – in essence, moving pagan culture toward being able to stand independently with its own cultural identity.

i’m less concerned with how other people see us (provided our basic human rights and social privileges are being honored as with any other group) and more concerned with how we conduct ourselves, and what impact we, as a group, have upon our environment and communities.

Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, when deeply practicing prajna-paramita, clearly saw that the five skandas are all empty, and was saved from all suffering and distress.

Sariputra, form is no different to emptiness, emptiness no different to form. That which is form is emptiness, that which is emptiness, form.  Sensations, perceptions, impressions, and consciousness are also like this.

Sariputra, all things and phenomena are marked by emptiness; they are neither appearing nor disappearing, neither impure nor pure, neither increasing nor decreasing.  Therefore, in emptiness, no forms, no sensations, perceptions, impressions, or consciousness; no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, mind; no sights, sounds, odors, tastes, objects of touch, objects of mind; no realm of sight and so on up to no realm of consciousness; no ignorance and no end of ignorance, and so on up to no aging and death, and no end of aging and death; no suffering, accumulation, cessation, or path; no wisdom and no attainment.

With nothing to attain, bodhisattvas rely on prajna-paramita, and their minds are without hindrance.  They are without hindrance, and therefore without fear.  Far apart from all confused dreams, they dwell in nirvana.  All buddhas of the past, present and future rely on prajna-paramita, and attain full, complete realization.  Therefore, know that prajna-paramita is the great transcendent mantra, the great bright mantra, the supreme mantra, the unequalled balanced mantra, that can eliminate all suffering, and is real, not false.

So proclaim the prajna-paramita mantra, proclaim the mantra that says:  ‘gate, gate, paragate, parasamgate, bodhi, svaha!’

just a few notes about heart sutra. the idea of emptiness isn’t exactly what we would consider ‘non-existence’ in the conventional sense. after all, its hard to argue that an object has no conventional existence when one can see, hear, smell, taste, touch, and conceptualize the object in question. however, the buddhist doctrine of conditionality, or dependent arising, shows that all phenomena exist as a direct result of certain causes and conditions – absent which, the phenomena cannot exist. because of this, no phenomena has inherent, independent existence… thus, all are inherently empty. the object that can be seen, heard, smelled, tasted, touched, or conceptualized (form) is dependent upon the causes and conditions necessary for that object to arise. since it has no inherent, independent existence, it is empty. yet, clearly something empty must have some sort of existence on some level lest we couldn’t interact or describe it – so when we can ‘go beyond’ this practical contradiction it becomes apparent that that which is empty and that which is formed are one and the same.

sariputra is a person. he is the one receiving the teaching (sutra). avalokiteshvara bodhisattva (pictured to the right) is the ‘hero’ of the story who, through the practice of prajnaparamita meditation, realizes that the five skandas (form, sensation, perception, impulse, and consciousness) are inherently empty.

prajnaparamita is roughly ‘the perfection of wisdom’ – the class of mahayana sutras to which the heart sutra and diamond sutra belong. prajnaparamita is also personified as a goddess in her own right. known as ‘the book who became a goddess’, she is the buddha of transcendental wisdom.

the mantra of prajnaparamita – gate, gate, paragate, parasamgate, bodhi svaha! – is commonly translated as ‘gone, gone, gone beyond, gone altogether beyond, o awakening svaha!. svaha is a ritual phrase used when making offerings into a fire. it has a similar connotation to ‘blessed be’ or ‘it is done’. like all mantra, the gate mantra is a ‘power-phrase’ that helps one connect to universal truth – in this case the perfection of wisdom. the sutra expounds upon what the essence of wisdom is (form [sensation, perception, impulse, and consciousness] is emptiness, emptiness form) and shows its relevance to the human condition (all buddhas attain complete realization through the perfection of wisdom). hence the sutra and the mantra are connected to awakening the buddhanature within.

-justin

the flip-side of being too broad and watered-down with terminology is just as problematic. words evolve in common usage over time. new layers of meaning and new associations become part of the connotation of a word as that word ages and gains a broader user base. denying that a word can change over time and insisting upon very strict or outdated meaning is self-defeating – just as with an overly broad usage, insisting on strict, archaic usage that is no longer commonly recognized also breaks the usefulness of the word.

and so you’ve got the argument over the word ‘wicca’. originally it meant something very specific. over time, with a broadening usage base, the meaning has evolved to include more then what it originally meant. some rail against the evolution of the word and fight tooth and nail to keep its ‘purity’… (those folks are destined for irrelevancy). others take it so far that, to them, everything and the kitchen sink is now wicca… (those folks are destined for perpetual incoherence).

the way i see it, the best path for avoiding either extreme (perhaps the ‘middle way’…)  is to be specific where appropriate. if addressing an audience of wiccans, it is more effective to identify oneself as trad wiccan or eclectic wiccan as opposed to just wiccan. if addressing a group of plumbers, on the other hand, well, maybe using ‘wiccan’ without any clarification is sufficient.

in the states, the early way of looking at things was to consider the terms ‘wicca’ and ‘witchcraft’ as synonymous. so back in the ’70′s groups like the american council of ‘witches’ put out documents like the thirteen principles of ‘wiccan’ belief. that has changed – the terms are no longer used interchangeably. secondly, the idea of btw (british traditional wicca) as used in a contemporary manner serves to provide distinction between the eclectic flavor of wicca and the original forms that were imported across the pond and trace their lines right back to gardner. this makes more sense looking at it from an american point of view… english folk wouldn’t really need this kind of distinction anyway, they would have the cultural reference to distinguish pre- and post- gardnerian witchcraft, where ‘murkans wouldn’t.

so the idea of ‘wicca’ vs. ‘witchcraft’ still rages on, along with the notion that RealWicca™ is limited to the lineaged brit trads.  which can cause a bit of pushback where us eclectics try to dismiss the very idea of lineage within the framework of wicca… to that, i shout ‘SILLINESS!’  lineage is an element of our faith… even if its not an element that we personally incorporate into our practice. for an eclectic wiccan to deny that it bears any relevance to the wiccan experience is just factually incorrect. your history is your history, and like it or not, it is what it is. trying to ‘spin’ your roots more to your liking is one thing… but outright rejecting the very people who created what you are trying to embrace and its earliest forms is counterproductive and dishonest.

(photos are of gerald gardner, doreen valiente, and alex sanders – and them folks are important for every wiccan to know… btw or not.)

-justin

for those who have taken oaths, what are the boundaries of your tradition’s particular oaths? what is acceptable to speak about and what constitutes ‘oathbound’ material? when dialoguing about your practice, how closely do you find yourself coming to that dividing line, and do you find that level of secrecy to unduly limit your communication? also, how do you react to or handle conversations that begin to wander into oathbound territory?

for the non-oathbound (disclaimer: i fit into this category), what are your thoughts when someone brings up ‘sorry, oathbound’ as part of a conversation? in your practice, do you commonly encounter situations where you are limited by others secrecy? and is your status as non-oathbound ethical in nature (ie, do you object to the whole idea of ‘oathbound’ craft itself) or due to circumstances (ie, you simply have not had the opportunity to be a part of an oathbound sect)?

and finally, for both oathbound and non, what value do you place on craft secrecy in general? do you find it to be useful and appropriate, or do you think it to be an outdated model?

if you answer as an oathbound, please mention what trad you belong to as i’m interested in seeing the differences between traditions as to what constitutes secret knowledge.

as someone who is, for all intents and purposes, completely open about my spirituality and my practice, i think the etiquette of interacting with other pagans concerning oathbound material is not something that is usually brought up or thought about. for example, if someone were to ask me what my specific quarter call for north is, i would tell them… it would never occur to me that someone else might be offended that they were asked to discuss what, to them, is obviously something that should not be talked about.

i would hope that someone who is oathbound would realize that i, as a nontrad, am not being pushy or ‘begging for secrets’ when i bring that sort of stuff up for discussion, but…  people are funny that way – and tend to take offense when none is offered.

for me personally, the matter of oathbound material and craft secrecy is an issue of trust.  depending upon how much trust i have with the group in question, i would be hesitant to start along the path as an initiate without knowing what the basic expectations are for later levels. in the back of my mind i would be wondering ‘well… if you’re unwilling to discuss what you actually do at third degree; who you call upon, what your ritual actions are, what the expected behavior is… could it be that i might find those things inappropriate or have some moral conflict with them?’ there’s a whole aspect of trickery that comes with secrecy. examples would include the use of sex magic in ritual, drug use, and calling upon external forces and god-forms.

in terms of secrecy of practice, i think its important to infuse your words and actions with your own meaning – so i can understand why some would be loathe to share that process, however, i would be the first to admit that i am very much influenced by the practices of others. everything from why i perform ritual in the first place, to the exact placement of objects to specific hand gestures and chants is directly influenced by the words, deeds, and thoughts of others who have taught me directly, or even indirectly through their own example or through books. i don’t think our practices spring forth from a vacuum (if they did, in my case, there would be a lot less emphasis on reverence of nature, and a lot more on killing my boss…)

another consideration is the perceived ‘value’ of teachings and practices that are widely shared, versus those that are closely guarded and kept hidden.  can spiritual truth lose its truthfulness just because its well known? do the properties of energy change or diminish when they become more fully understood? at what point does general awareness begin to decrease the inherent value of the information or validity of the practice? and if there is a decrease in ‘value’, wouldn’t that counteract the augmenting effects of egregore (see my post concerning egregore here)?  for example, ceremonialists try to tap into the communal ambient energy associated with the constant repetition of certain rituals (i’m thinking lbrp and star ruby), so wouldn’t a more widely spread understanding of these specific practices benefit all practitioners by strengthening the communal energy of these rites?

when all is said and done, though, my ire at spiritual secrecy isn’t so much directed at things such as protecting participants’ identities or keeping private journals, rather at those who use secrecy for image enhancement or those who feel that they are the protectors of knowledge that they have deemed others just can’t handle.  i don’t feel that such ego-work is beneficial to the craft as a whole, or to the individual who uses it as a crutch.

-justin

so now i’m wondering if its possible that some folks can be ‘hardwired’ for spirituality? that faith, and the exercise thereof is a physical need just as necessary as food, water, and air. i’m willing to entertain the idea that its all due to how certain molecules are aligned and spewing chemicals in my head… although i hope its more than that. i’m also willing to entertain the idea that each person has a ‘true calling’ and for some its spiritual expression… which would assume that there is something doing the calling in the first place.

what prompted this was looking back into past writing and noticing that even during the critical lows, my spirituality has never completely unraveled into the ‘life sucks, there is no god’ temporary atheism – rather i have bottomed out at the ‘life sucks, god doesn’t give a shit’ level. i have never been able to seriously accept the possibility that there is no god and no substance to faith – i don’t understand true atheism, because i haven’t ever really experienced it.

so i’m curious to see how other people react to crises of faith, and is faith an essential need for your well-being or something that ebbs and flows as your life situation changes?

through the looking glass…
-justin