Hi everyone! After a much longer wait than I initially intended, I have finally finished my book on herb associations, and have uploaded a PDF version to both ko-fi and Google Drive. Furthermore, if you're interested in a fully formatted version that is suitable for book-binding, I have added a $2 listing for that as well. If you're not into that, no worries! I am absolutely fine just providing it for free.
I decided to create this project after finding myself largely dissatisfied by the information available on the mass market--often being Wicca leaning or at least heavily influenced. I decided I wanted to create a (mostly) non-denominational, secular, baneful magic friendly resource guide. Because I largely sourced from other practitioners or the internet, I wanted to provide this for free, as the information is not inherently my intellectual property. The reason why I do have a paid version is purely for the effort I went through, and only if you feel like supporting me.
Again, this book is NOT my intellectual property, and this information is readily available online, I just decided to put all of it in one place.
KO-FI (FREE)
KO-FI (PRINTABLE)
GOOGLE DRIVE
If there are ANY issues with obtaining the file, please reach out to me here or at [email protected] and I will fix it ASAP
Does anyone have academic analysis of the Rune Poems? I am trying to understand them from as many perspectives as possible and I would love to see more academic breakdowns of them.
hi y'all, while i'm working on my book in the background, i thought id write up something real quick that has been on my mind for a while.
i know there will be a lot of differences of opinion on this matter, and i'm more than willing to have a conversation about it! i wanted to just share what being an eclectic pagan means to me, but i'm in no way trying to set some sort of precedent or create rules around this concept. i do think there are better ways to go about things than others, but at the end of the day, there are much better sources for information on this topic than me. i’ll provide some links below.
Cultural Appropriation vs Appreciation
Cultural Appropriation 101
WHAT IS ECLECTIC PAGANISM?
Wikipedia defines it as follows: "[...] where practitioners blend paganism with aspects of other religions or philosophies, including the blending of separate pagan traditions."
However you feel about Wikipedia, I feel like this is a good enough introduction to the concept. But I still think it would be pertinent to create my own definition, weaving in some of my personal opinions and practices.
ECLECTIC PAGANISM: a religion consisting of modern polytheistic or pantheistic practitioners that adapt personal praxis to multiple cultures, traditions, or belief systems.
Why not use the term “pagan” in my definition? Well, I've noticed that "pagan" has become too often synonymous with cultural erasure. Sorting Hellenic polytheists and Norse polytheists under one umbrella term feels irresponsible and disrespectful to not only the practitioners, but also the cultures their religion hails from.
How does this differ from omnism (belief in many or all religions)? From syncretism (blending of two religious frameworks, often because of cultural blending)?
Well, that largely depends on the individual, but I can give at least a little insight. I am an omnist. I am also an eclectic pagan. I am an eclectic pagan because I am an omnist, but not the other way around. It is definitely possible (and I know this because I've seen it) for an omnist to be a reconstructionist (someone who attempts, to the best of their ability to worship exactly how it was done in antiquity) or a revivalist (reviving and adapting ancient frameworks for modern praxis).
Syncretism is very common when looking back across history, considering how ideas and culture were transferred through emigration, trade, and domination. Meaning, syncretism is a word often meant to refer to blending of culture that has already happened, before the days of the internet and global politics. Take Greco-Egyptian polytheism, for example, a syncretic tradition with its own gods and legends that arose (largely) because of political control over and trade with Egypt in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Of course, that isn't to say that worship couldn't adapt and change on its own. Local cults were a thing for a reason, but that's a somewhat separate topic.
Anyways, eclectic paganism. Eclectic paganism is neither of these things because A) omnism is more of a philosophical belief, rather than a religion in its own right, and B) syncretism is an action, not, again, a religion.
There's something else I feel needs to be said. Being an eclectic pagan is not an excuse to bastardize religions and cultures that are not your own. It is not an excuse to scoop up what you like and dump the rest. It is not an excuse to slap a pseudo-evangelical Christian label onto a community with a rich artistic, linguistic, political, or historical identity.
That is to say: you cannot practice a religion completely separate from the pre-existing cultural framework.
In fact, some days being an eclectic pagan looks more like reconstructionism for me than it does anything else. As a Hellenic polytheist, I've read the PGM, I've read the Theogony, I've read the hymns, the Iliad, and the Odyssey. Hell, I've read dissertations and scholarly articles so long it would have most people bleeding from their eyes. But I did that so I knew what was required of me to be respectful and honor the living and dead Greek people. I did that so I knew the history and background of the worship and magic I engaged with.
WHY DID I CHOOSE ECLECTIC PAGANISM?
Okay, forgive this side tangent for a bit before I get to the “how,” because I want to keep the framework I set up in the title.
For background: I grew up in a staunchly atheist family, with non-denominational Christian grandparents. I've been dragged to Church maybe three times in my life, and my parents threw somewhat of a fit each time. My Dad is very strict with me and my brothers on this topic, and entertains no discussion of ghosts, magic, religion, or spiritual beliefs. He calls my tarot cards "bullshit," is very openly critical of religious folks, and trashes modern witchcraft like all hell.
Due to that and my raging authority problems, I have never felt comfortable listening to or obeying the rules or guidance of any religious figure. When I discovered witchcraft and paganism (it happened at the same time, which is why I group them), I had quite the conniption about it. It took me months to even justify my beliefs to myself, and I'm no closer to being fully open about my religion to many of my friends and family than I was at the very beginning.
At the end of the day, my beliefs and praxis are private; they're for me, not anyone else. In the beginning, when I had no community or any idea that so many people like me existed, I convinced myself I had to make it all up on my own. I hadn't even heard the term Hellenic Polytheism before I stepped foot into tumblr, I just knew I worshipped the Greek gods. And yeah, maybe it's a little embarrassing to admit that I was like that for as long as I was, but I try not to feel ashamed of things I can no longer control.
When I found the HelPol and wider pagan community here on tumblr, I immediately knew I wanted nothing to do with Wicca, with strict reconstructionism, or, god forbid, Greek and Roman philosophy. I've always hated listening to the rules set out for me by men dead for my age a hundred times over, whether that be the Constitution, the Bible, or Plato. But I also knew I had to be respectful of the culture, now that I had a better picture of what that looked like.
So, with much trial and much error, I did as much due diligence as was possible to get to know Ancient Greece, the Ancient Greek religion, and modern practitioners.
And what I discovered? It's not easy to do both.
HOW CAN I BE A "GOOD" ECLECTIC PAGAN?
Well, first of all, dispose of any notion that you should be doing anything for that purpose at all.
The Purpose, and in fact the only reason at all, you should choose eclectic paganism, is because you've tried every other option and still felt unfulfilled. And even then, eclecticism may not be the right choice for many people.
Right now, I'm working on researching Irish folk magic and polytheistic beliefs. It would be, under no circumstances, acceptable to warp or change the traditions of a culture already so close to being destroyed by Christianization and time as it is. It would be inappropriate to blend it with Greek/Roman/etc. practices (unless I’m willing to dive into historical syncretism), and should be kept entirely separate.
In fact, in being an eclectic pagan, my day to day looks a lot more like juggling multiple clay balls, not smashing them altogether in some gross amalgamation. So again I must reiterate that practices within a certain cultural framework should never be removed from that background, and to do so would be extremely offensive to everyone alive or dead.
Because all too often does that become rewriting, then cleansing, then dictating the rules for a culture that still exists. The moment your tone turns from one of "this is how I do things for me," to "this is how I think everyone should practice!" you need to put your phone down and lie face down in a lake until you wake the fuck up.
Take Diana for example. Diana isn’t a divine feminine archetype from a duotheistic Wicca, she is a goddess from a real, living, breathing, group of people, and fucking with that is frankly disgusting.
But at the end of the day, I’m still here asking myself whether I’m doing things “right.” I question whether I should be spending more time researching Greek history than pointing my sights in a new direction every other month.
And maybe it is a little ambitious for me to try to research literally everything I can about so many different people and practices, but I’m doing my best. I think it’s my responsibility to be as comprehensive as possible, and I’m just really interested in these topics anyways.
HOW DO I JUGGLE ALL OF THAT?
Well, y’know, it’s not super easy or straight forward.
What I tend to do, most of the time, is dedicate one day to one project. One day will be researching Ancient Greek necromancy, the next early English folklore, the next pre-Christian Irish polytheism. It keeps me entertained (as I have raging ADHD), and satisfies my unending craving for knowledge.
I won’t go on to create a list of “closed practices,” as I feel that’s largely reductive, but what I can do is recommend you always research the origins of a practice, and become familiar with what descendants are telling modern practitioners. For example, there are plenty of resources from indigenous sources online about the usage of white sage and the misusage of the term “smudging.” They should first and foremost be the people you turn to, NOT just some random white guy online (including me).
I can’t for the life of me find the post on here talking about the usage of sage that was written from an Indigenous American perspective, but if I do I’ll come back and link it here.
creating an altar to yourself: an exercise in manifestation and passive control
recently my best friend told me about a change he made to his personal practice that completely revolutionized the way he felt fortune flowed for him. i've seen people talk about creating an egregore of themselves or their alter ego, but this approach is uniquely secular and occurred completely detached from this online space.
and what was it he did? well, he created an altar to himself.
and i know what that sounds like, but hear me out. this isn't so much an altar of worship or reverence--at least not in the way we think about those things--it's a passive spell that runs in the background, an act of self-care for his past self, boosting his self-confidence for his current self, and manifesting the person he wants to become.
WHAT IS AN ALTAR TO THE SELF?
This temple can be created from a very wide variety of items, but most often includes things that are meaningful or attractive to the person. For me, this includes crystals, trinkets, bones, flowers and herbs, pictures or drawings, sigils, and salt or ash. My friend also has a little statue that represents him, self-affirmations, and a devotional jar of beads in his.
I was introduced to this idea as not just something to help improve my self-confidence, but also as a way of shaping my future self. Each crystal will have its own meaning or trait that I'm is hoping to embody, and I can move them closer or further away depending on what I need more in the moment.
And even if you didn't care for a spell like this, from a psychology standpoint, this absolutely seems like it could be a productive exercise--especially if you're a more visual person.
HOW TO MAKE THE ALTAR
For this I'll introduce two different methods, one that I employed, and one that my friend employed.
My method:
Start with your favorite color(s) and maybe even an aesthetic (like cottage-core, dark academia, etc.)
Choose items that represent those colors or aesthetics, for me this would be green, pink, or purple crystals, naturey trinkets, and drawings that combine the two
Include things of great importance to you, even if they don't fit in the aesthetic, and try to make them look right
Arrange everything in a visually appealing way (I'll give some examples of this later)
But what my friend did was kind of the opposite, building the altar from the top down with things that were important to him, and just making it look good from there.
You've probably noticed that I make a big deal about the visual appearance of this altar, which is on purpose. I believe that it is of great importance this altar is appealing to you, since it's supposed to represent you, and it's supposed to represent your interests. If you don't really care as much about things being artistic or aesthetic, that's okay! As long as you can look at it and go, "Yeah, that's the vibe, that's what I want for myself," then you've done it right.
You can also add things like sigils, salt, or ash for an added layer of protection or a "boost" to the magic aspect, which I've added to mine. I also really like bones and don't have anywhere else to put them, so I add those, and I'll throw in some lavender to the salt since that's my favorite herb to use in workings.
WHY CREATE AN ALTAR?
Have you ever felt tired of being subservient to the whims of some external force, of waiting for things to happen rather than getting to decide that for yourself? If you do, this might be for you.
And it's not that this is supposed to snub or push aside worship of actual deities (I mean it can but it doesn't have to), but add to it. Think about it, most of us already have a self-care routine, something sacred to us, that we may even dedicate to our gods. All this altar is meant to do is add to that, to create a holiness to self-love and self-care.
The ultimate purpose of this exercise is to manifest the things you want in life, to design your future self, and combat the helplessness many of us feel when things start to change. It's meant to feed your energy, to form a conduit between you and something physical (which is helpful for those of us that dissociate often).
It is not meant to feed some heretical "fuck you" to the gods or the universe, rather give these forces a framework or "checklist" of things you want. At the end of the day, this is more similar to a spell than making yourself a deity that you want other people to worship.
this sounds counterintuitive but something that helps me understand other religions with less documentation is actually studying christianity
NOW✋i need to get nitpicky here
in this context i mean religion as a human phenomenon. as a thing humans do and organize and participate in. i'm not viewing it as the "correct" way to interact with gods. you have to be impartial here bc we're studying the people right now, not the gods. gods can be there, but we're studying all the ways people act about it
anyways, studying christianity helps to break you out of the idea that religion is the single way this large group of people interacted with gods for centuries AND you get to see all the different perspectives and practices that were thought of as "correct" but were also commonly argued. you see all the splits and changes in religion. all the reinterpretations of the same words or actions over time.
and if you were raised christian or raised around christian's, you see the humanity that builds religion. no religion is infallible because the gods did not make the religion, humans did. our fickleness and passions and mistakes are fingerprinted all over every religious tradition and line of thinking.
AAAAAANNNDDDDDDD. ☝️and. you learn the function of religious traditions. whether that be a spiritual significance or a symbolic one or just something that brings comfort even if the people don't believe the tradition does anything metaphysically.
and you can try it and experience some of them yourself. (highly recommend praying a rosary if you haven't already, even the hail marys alone have calmed me down immediately, and i can feel Mary's presence even without being catholic)
you can see the different ideas and perspectives of god. different beliefs on what god likes and dislikes. different beliefs of how god wants to interact with humans. and even beliefs about god that are not reflected in practice.
AND. you can see religious arguments and changes and splits happen in real time. you can watch catholic arguments on tiktok. there's a whole thing about vatican 2 right now among young new catholic converts. you can listen to living anglicans, catholics, pentecostals, lutherans, episcopalians, today. (there's more than just evangelicals and catholics)
you can watch well recorded documents and living examples of human dynamics play out. and you can look at older religions with more critical thinking. abusive widespread cults that look holy and sacred at first glance are not just a christian thing. traditions that are based off human bias and mainstream culture more than the divine are not just a christian thing. that's a human thing. every religion is going to have that. history books are not always an instruction manual. they are just a recording of things that humans did at different times. and we fuck up all the damn time
so if you are want insight on whatever religion you're learning about, try looking christianity.
and good news christian's are fucking everywhere. like freud. and plastic. here are some places where i learned a lot about christians which helped me understand religion in general
good news is they are all over history so if ur in college and have to take a history elective, you will find christians. my intro to fine arts elective also taught me about catholic beliefs via what they put effort into creating. statues, buildings, doors even, were all ways to reflect biblical figures, religious authorities, bible stories, and literally heaven itself. even the golden backgrounds of some catholic paintings reflected a religious belief. also. of course. the iconoclasm (there was period where ppl thought all the art was too self indulgent and prideful so they started destroying the art. as we can see this belief has changed once again😭)
or you can go with ur anglican aunt to church one day. or watch a video about orthodox christianity.
information about christian's is all over so sometimes all you need to do is just perk your ears up a little more. very accessible religion to learn about
u just gotta be careful bc as we know cults are VERY common in christianity bc it's a big ass religion so of course a big religion can fit more cults inside it. (i mean spiritual spaces also have lots of cults. cults are just everywhere) keep ur wits about you.
actually i'll drop my art textbook w all the catholics while i'm here. it's: Gardners Art Through the Ages: A Concise Western History. 4th Edition. by Fred S Kleiner.
and the history one was: The Making of the West, Volume 1. i can only find the title bc it was a rental book and this is all i could find about it in the moment
and i'm taking a class on the history of christianity as an elective soon!!!!! so i'll get even more christian gossip to use for my spooky evil pagan devil worshipping purposes😈heh.......
and if i said all my studying of religion has actually served more as ancestor work to help me connect with people living and dead than with the gods.......and that the gods have repeatedly kept me from doing things the "right" way bc it made it harder for me personally to connect and just made me overthink (it can def help some people).................if i said that...........
my phone always autocorrects the plural of christian to christian's just ignore it i give up omfg
