Wiccan Exploration

For all you other Wiccan's out there, what brought you into this religion? What is it about Wicca that drew you to it?

This for a discussion about all things Wiccan. Seeing as the other topic is locked.

 

Hmm... could you maybe give some of your own insights into Wicca? Also, I can always reopen the old thread if you'd like .

 

Question: Why do you Wiccans call yourelves "witches" seeing as that there is an instant negative connotation?

 

Do the "trendy Wiccans" annoy you? The ones who watch "Charmed" and "Buffy" and then think that being a witch is all "kewlies!"

-not a Wiccan, but I've had complaints from Wiccan friends about this

 

LeeKenobi: Why do you Wiccans call yourelves "witches" seeing as that there is an instant negative connotation?

Not everyone calles themselves a Witch, some do, some don't. It's a matter of personal choice. I, personally, don't.

Guinastasia: Do the "trendy Wiccans" annoy you? The ones who watch "Charmed" and "Buffy" and then think that being a witch is all "kewlies!"

-not a Wiccan, but I've had complaints from Wiccan friends about this

Er... Well, I love Buffy... Does that make me trendy? I just try to ignore that kind of stuff. It's a pretend show, so I just say they're pretend Wiccans. I try not to get all emotional over that kind of thing.

 

Having Pagan/witch friends (who aren't wiccans) they tend to see the people who watch all that kind of stuff and think that this is the way that witches really work and that it is fun and play and more importantly "the kewlest thing evar!"....as kind of scary and deluded. My friends enjoy those programs, but still manage to keep a good grip on what it really is all about.

One of my very good friends calls these kinds of people "fluffy bunnies" as they tend to just stick to those dodgy books that you can get in your local bookshop (how to be a teenage witch etc).

Kithera

Edit: Clarification

 

Although I don't classify myself as Wiccan in particular I would classify myself as a pagan. What drew me to the pagan religions initial was the history present there. Basic pagan religions can be traced back to very early civilization. Another thing that drew me to the pagan religions was the increasing scientific proof that supports many of the things that many pagans have believed for thousands of years. I've studied religion for as long as I can remember and I'd be happy to contribute to the discusion and anwser questions.

 

Religious wise I'm Wicca, philosopically wise I'm Buddhist, so guess I'm a Wiccan Buddhist. The two go together extremely well.

What drew me to Wicca was its relation to nature. There are no strict definitions regarding the God and Goddess - for instance, my personal belief is that they are symbolic of the universal nature of duality: male/female, positive/negative, Yin/Yang, etc.

As for Buffy and such like, it's fantasy. There are a lot of books available that tap into that angle, but personally, I don't class those as really being about Wicca. Magik is not the main part of the religion.

 

When you get down into studying religions, you find a lot of similarities cross-culturally. Though you have to be careful with 'fake' religions i.e. cults worhsipping space aliens where you send all your money to one guy who lives like a king then you all commit suicide, believeing your Jesus and forcing children to not have contact with the outside world, occult abuse etc.

Anywho, a lot of the edicts like peace with your neighbor, respect others, etc. are found through many religions, it's nearly all the same.

Back to topic, I think I've known Wiccan people, but only the trendy kind I believe.


Mistryl's Paramour

 

I guess I identify with Wiccanism more than I do with any other religion....what got me started? I'd always been into mythology and history, and eventually, I got into the studies of religion. What got me started on Wiccanism(all the particulars) was the aforementioned book TeenWitch. I then read everything I could get my hands on. I don't practice with a coven or anything....does this make me less Wiccan?
as for all the people who come into the religion because they watch Charmed and Buffy...I don't like that what they do reflects on those of us that don't go around publicising it. they call themselves Witches and that they practice "the dark arts." grrr....that makes me mad. I am nineteen, and when people hear that I am into the religion(have been for five years) they say it's because it's trendy....

sorry I'm bitter

 

I'm a christian but I've always studied other belief systems, history, archaeology, medicine and science. As a result I have a modicum of knowledge on many different beliefs, including Wicca. Recently, I had the opportunity to read the Book of Enoch, which surprised me immensely. It was a sacred text found amongst the Dead Sea Scrolls. Several people before the birth of Christ believed the Book of Enoch was part of the holy scriptures, but it was never included in the first bibles or any subsequent bibles or most Torahs, except in places like Ethiopia.

Apparently, all of what I had previously thought were fables and fairy tales, are probably true afterall. Watching an episode of Xena is nearly (I'm not kidding) a historical event. According to the Book of Enoch, giants actually existed, as did half-human/half-animal hybrids - think Sphinx, Centaurs, Sartyrs, etc. And odd animal hybrids - griffons, for example. Angels intermingled with humanity. The story of Merlin's birth may be more fact than fiction. Although these events were purported to have occured before the world deluge (flood).

What drives this point home is the plethora of archaeological evidence to support it - the Sphinx at the Great Pyramid of Egypt, the Winged Human-headed Bulls of Assyria, the Egyptian God hybrids like Horus who was half human/half hawk, etc.

These weren't just fanciful stories made by pagans in Europe. According to the Book of Enoch, they actually were real, the result of angelic beings intermingling and tampering with lifeforms on planet earth. It would appear many ancient civilizations were impacted by this intermingling.

A string of temples or massive constructs were erected around the earth with only a tiny variation of degrees from each other. If you can imagine a line being drawn around the circumference of the earth, these temples or massive constructs were all built nearly on the same line, some are as close as 0 degrees. Easter Island is exactly aligned along a straight line around the center of the Earth, with the Nazca lines, Ollantaytambo , Tassili n'Ajjer and the Great Pyramid of Egypt. Other world wonders that are within one tenth of one degree of this alignment include: Perseopolis, the capital city of ancient Persia; Mohenjo Daro, the ancient capital city of the Indus Valley; Khajuraho, the temple city of the Chandela empire in central India; the Oracle of Zeus-Amon at Siwa; and the lost city of Petra. The Ancient Sumarian city of Ur and Angkor temples in Cambodia and Thailand.

[image=http://futureprometheus.com/word/world2.gif]

We lost alot of valuable archaeological and literary evidence to explain these phenomenon when the Library at Alexandria in Egypt was destroyed by a muslim Caliph, who claimed that if the scrolls in the library didn't bring glory to Allah, they were useless. He then had his men use all that amassed and carefully written information to heat the public baths. Also there's the case of the white limestone casing stones that once covered the Great Pyramid, which supposedly were incredibly smooth and shiny, like polished marble. These stones contained thousands of symbols and glyphs that no one could translate, not even the egyptologists of the time. When an earthquake struck in AD 1356 , one of the white limestone casings was fractured. An Arab sultan in order to rebuild mosques and fortresses in nearby Cairo, removed the white casing stones and used them for reconstruction, as a result all the glyphs were lost. Many believe the Great Pyramid was constructed much earlier than the other pyramids, and was of superior construction to any of the following pyramids. So these stones would've offered us insight to a whole other timeframe on earth.

The Book of Enoch appears to offer some viable answers to that elusive other time.

 

I was brought into Wicca, because I wanted a much more peaceful and positive religion.
I'll post later.

Bright Blessings

 

up....

 

I've just begun to really get into Wicca recently. Since living with my (Christian) parents makes this difficult on the whole and has impeded my interest before, I didn't have the opportunity to really see what it was all about. But now I'm joining online communities and reading what I can until I move out and have a little more freedom regarding this. Knowing anyone else's experiences in Wicca would be really helpful in my path.

~Aanix

 

I was raised a Christian and decided it wasn't for me, not because of Jesus himself, who I believe is one of the most loving, wonderful, divine, God-like men who ever lived, but because the religion is so close-minded, judgmental, and intolerant.

I came to paganism because I believe in the power of Mother Nature, in Mother Earth and Father Sky, in a Great Creator with both male and female counterparts, one who loves us and asks simply that we love each other and take care of the Earth and all its creatures. I am drawn towards the mystic cycles of the Earth, moon, and planets, and thus felt called to celebrate the Sabbats and Esbats. I have not done much spellwork as of yet because I feel my powers are rather weak because I am a novice. I am currently studying different methods of divination and have done some successful Tarot readings.

I believe that everyone has a different path to his/her Great Creator, and this is the one which has worked for me.

And yes, I call myself a witch. The only reason it has negative connotations is due to the 15th-century Catholics in Europe who were intent on spreading their religion and did so by convincing people that those who followed the Old Religions were devil-worshippers.

Following Wicca because of Buffy or Sabrina, because it's "kewl"? It's wrong to follow any spiritual path because it's "kewl". You have to do it because it's right for you.

 

As a person who watches Buffy and Charmed, I just want to say that, although I do realise that many people explore the "trendy" side of paganism because of it, I think that a lot of people can see a positive representaion of witches (even if fanfciful) and that it can bring some to their path. I know that my impressions of Wicca from those shows have been very good, and I think they're presenting Wicca (in concept) as a loving relgion.

Just my two cents on that,

~Aanix

 

"You have to do it because it's right for you."


I always thought you had to do it because you believe it's true.


No offense to anyone in here, but it looks like most people choose Wicca because they don't like the alternatives, or, as has been said, they think it's cool. How do you come to the conclusion that it's true, that magik (sp) actually exists and works, and so on?

 

"I always thought you had to do it because you believe it's true."

You mean literally true? It's all allegorical, based on ancient stories and wisdom passed down through the ages.

IMO, all ancient wisdom and religion basically exists to help a person find their right path in life, be good to fellow man, and also be a wise caretaker.

It all helped bring about civilization.

 

What I mean is that faith and religion are important matters. I don't understand how anyone could just choose something because they like the idea of it.


There are certain truths in this world, some of which must be embraced. Maybe it's just me, but I think we should all strive to find truth, rather than accept "whatever" for the sake of simplicity and attractiveness.

 

Very few truths are absolute, JM201. Most are relative.

All people are different, therefore, people are going to find different paths to the Great Creator. The path that works for you might not work for me (in fact, it doesn't). My truth may be different from your truth.

If you'll study the history of Christianity, you'll find that it is a very new religion and adopted a lot of customs, beliefs, and tenets from other religions (and not just Judaism). If that's the path that works for you, that's fine, but to say that it's the "absolute truth" and the only path anyone should follow is rather naive. Are you assuming that everyone before the year 33 CE went to hell? (Especially considering the term "hell" comes from "Hel", the Norse goddess of the underworld?)

 

No, certainly not, considering I don't believe that everyone who doesn't hear of Jesus or the Bible will go to hell now.


But I do believe that there are absolutes, and I do believe our Creator is Himself absolute. I don't think, therefore, that it's illogical or naive to assume that there is an absolute path leading to Him. It may not be the most attractive idea, but if it's truth, then denying it in favor of something more attractive is folly.

 

You believe we have access to absolute truth? God-like wisdom?

Truth is philosophical. Fact is different. I like facts but they're more obscure and harder to find.

What would you consider absolute truth?

I just don't believe we know. Or we may know parts but not the whole. We may have mistranslated some and not others.

I'm close to an agnostic when it comes to knowing the "word of god".

The bible(s)is an re-telling and revision of many ancient tales, myths, legends, etc. retold in the image of the authors, the hebrews.

 

I believe Jesus is absolute truth.


Even if He is not, I think it's too easy to assume that we can't possibly know God and His ways. I think God would reach down to us rather than let us live out life not really knowing who He is.

 

I would disagree about god. I think it came up with all that "would be", but not necessarily the exact makeup of it all.

In my eyes, the creator does not interfere in our lives.

God created all, but then let it develop.

 

I believe otherwise. Who's right?


I guess we're veering off here. This discussion is probably better suited to the "Who owns Truth?" thread.