A while back ago I had a lil rant about the pagan/heathen/witch community and made this list with my friend about some problematic aspects about our craft/faith/practise or what ever you call it to help pepole who are new to it.
Idk if it any of worth or if anyone will bother to read all this but I hope its somehow helpfull for you new ones to this path.
(Pardon my 🇬🇧, im a 🇸🇪)
1. Not every polytheist does magic or has an intrest in it and thats ok.
2. Not every norse heathen knows runes or has to know every Rune and meanings to have a meaningfull relation to the gods and nature.
3. Not every raven is a sign of Odin, sometimes it just means you saw a raven and thats just as good if not better if you ask me.
4. Being able to quote havamal in old norse or know every myth and kenning of the gods is good. But does not mean you have a stronger spirital connection the land and the gods then those who dont know it all. It just means you are good at reading. And that in it self is something you should take pride in.
5. A good acorn and some dirt is just as good if not better than any long ritual with ancient chantings sourounded by a collection of crystals.
6. The pebble you find on a walk can shine just as fine on your altar, as the amethyst that was mined and payed for.
7. Your altar dont have to look Nice, it just need to feel Nice.
8. An offering dont have to be big to work. It just have to mean something.
9. Offering one loaf of bread you baked with your own two hands, is worth more than five loafs you payed somone to bake.
10. Just because a pebble dont have a story, does not mean it never had one. And just because a star has a story, does not mean its a good one.
11. If all nature is holy, that includes the parts you dont like or find nasty. Yes even ticks and spiders, mud and horrnets. No one said you had to like holy things.
12. Your body is a temple yes, but you and only you decides what rites and offerings are right the god within said temple.
13. You can still be a drunk horny ape and be spiritual.
14. No illustration of the gods is more corect or more true to their form.
But then there is no garantee everyone will see who its meant to be. And thats ok.
15. Doing spirtual junk and practise magic or healing does not make you more enlightened...
16. Just because you wrote a book about magic, healing and spiritual matters, does not make it a good book or you a good author.
17. Just because someone you look up to said it, does not make it more right. It just means they said it.
18. Making this list to remind the pagan/witch/heathen community to hummble them selfs does not make me better. Im also doing this to just remind myself. Im not better or wiser than any of you lot.
19. Dont ever expect to have your craft respected if you dont give that same respect back to others.
20. It does not matter how old or big your coven or group is. If it has toxic and harmfull parts that clearly hurt and or make pepole unhappy. Then its ok to criticize it. Age or size does not make it untuchble.
21. If a craft or faith says its all about nature but cant change its ways, then it has clearly missed a very important thing about how nature works.
22. Every rock is an altar and every forest is a temple.
23. For every horn of mead you offer to the gods, you should plant at least one seed.
24. If all in this world has a spirit and is alive, does not mean you cant take space and exist and live in it.
25. Its not about beliving. Its about to experience and to perceive. That if you ask me, is the core of animism and polytheism.
This is true wisdom and insight.
