One’s Way
To summarize briefly the pagan way of seeing the world, I would note once more that by placing “Spirit” and the “Absolute” outside the scope of the world’s description (not by ignoring or denying them), values familiar to those raised in Christianity (Islam, Judaism) — such as “spiritual growth” and “self-improvement” — are also set aside.
Note that these values are precisely set aside; they are not emphasized. By replacing these abstract and often misleading concepts — prone to fostering megalomania — with the notion of a living cosmos, of the Gods who inhabit and shape it and who possess a distinctly concrete character and a will that they do not impose on people (a pagan would never call someone “a slave of God”), but whose will manifests in the world flow, we simultaneously accept as the highest values one’s own path, one’s place in the world, and we gain the incomparable right — to be oneself.
Harmony with oneself and with the surrounding world — that is what the pagan seeks. He does not spend his time dwelling on his “sinfulness” or hoping for forgiveness. Paganism is unfamiliar with the concept of “sin,” but it knows the concept of “ritual purity.” The fundamental difference is in how it’s dealt with — sin is forgiven (or not forgiven) by a deity or its priest. Impurity is removed by purification — a personal active act that does not depend on anyone’s favor or on having money to buy an indulgence (in the form of a candle or a small slip of paper offered in church). Whether one’s sins are forgiven, one can know for certain only after death, whereas one knows whether one is pure constantly (provided one is honest with oneself).
Written very brightly, cleanly and precisely.
With respect to your Path,
Mira Lada Rod Yana
Resonates with my thoughts. I used to think that there was a lot of pride in my thoughts, but it is not so; you think the same, for which I am very grateful.
Your path begins with honesty with yourself. Without properly cleansing, power will not accumulate. And if power does not accumulate, it means it goes to support the distractor. The more distractors there are, or the stronger the distractor in the operator’s Myth, the weaker the realization power of the operator’s Myth.
Xorosho pishete.
Nedavno pro4itala Posox putnika i Kibalion – slozhilos mnenie, podobnoe Vashemu. A segodnja nashla statju o otre4enii ot Xristianskogo egregora, vrode i logi4naja, i pravilnaja, no gusja kozha naskakivaet.
Mne kazhetsja, 4to Xristianstvo (drugaja religija) eto prosto nadstrojka jazy4estva, kotoraja bez fundamenta (harmonii, sovesti… i drugix obwe4elove4eskix ka4estv) nezhiznesposobna.
IMXO
The wording comparing spirituality in the Christian and Orthodox traditions laid on my Soul. Thank you.
I do not understand what makes a person’s individuality… Is it in the way of action or in thinking or in something else? Everyone can think exactly the same way as another; everyone can have dozens of different ways of thinking in their consciousness, opposite interpretations of events, and multiple possible developments of these events. If a person could act only one-sidedly, say, the individuality of one is that he is cruel, he will always be cruel, then one could say he is individual. But what if I can be both cruel and peaceful, cheerful and sad, what if I do not feel any difference in whether I shout rudeness at someone or whisper compliments to him; for me, it really doesn’t matter what I do, everything is perceived technically, that is to shout, I just need to raise my voice, and that’s all the difference, and I cannot grasp the thread of my individuality that whispers somewhere the action that belongs to me. How then to understand where I am. And regarding the path, it is a dark forest altogether; no one will ever understand how to go until they have walked a significant amount of the path, so what to do, go by touch? The same question applies to practice, yes, if you are talented from birth, say, for dreaming, then it is clear that this is what you need to engage in, but if you have not manifested yourself in any and in the process of practice understand that you can do everything, but each requires equal amounts of work, then where here is the individual path? Thank you in advance for your answer.
Individuality is the way consciousness reacts to internal and external changes. Different individualities can act alike, but the deep motives, hue, and tone of these actions are still unique. Individuality is a unique way of perception, a way of functioning of consciousness, defining the set of connections and associative chains in this consciousness; consequently, individual Path is a unique way of constructing actions and events aimed at ensuring the maximum saturation of consciousness, the maximum completeness of its operation.
Can I share something? Individuality in our perception. If we put aside smart words and terms. You brew coffee and eat, for example, an éclair. The way YOU feel the taste is something that no one else will feel. Everyone will say it is delicious and sweet, but NOT in the same way. Similar and identical are completely different concepts. But the way someone else feels the taste of éclairs is something that no one will feel, not even you. In more serious areas, the situation is the same. You can do what your neighbor does, but the deep reason will differ. Plus, we often differ in our dreams. Many inventions exist thanks to the unique vision and unique actions of a certain individual. As for the path. You will understand what to practice when you realize yourself as a unique being. And every moment of your life, you will see as exceptional and unique. After all, even if the action you take is repeated many times, the inner feelings will already be different.
I walk the Path with a staff carved
with Runes, wrapped in a blue,
tattered cloak at times,
Kari-The Northern Wind sings its song
to the lonely traveler.
Along the yellow road, in worn shoes, a girl named Nata-with-scars-on-her-arms went, Alice-the-mad, first-fairytale-Kate, went Jennifer-supposedly-made-of-flutes. The girl had a lot of names, and a bunch of titles-regalias, and, dusty, her shoulder bag always clung to the grip with every step she took. The girl walked through the forest, east and south, north, west, and after making a huge detour, always returned, dragging her rifle, to the road of dusty yellow bricks. The girl’s life was like a war. The Woodman sits, and the Scarecrow is long imprisoned. Toto has died. The Cowardly Lion has run away, became completely brazen from bravery. But she did not know how to sit and wait. Well, yes. Not to leave, and especially not to run away. She stumbles, stubbornly insists, gets drunk and remembers – ‘Ellie…’ Who needs Emerald citadels? Who needs brains and hearts as a result? Who needs courage? The road wears down boots. And winds and bends, and twists, and wriggles. The road leads. And Ellie walks. Fires. (c) Archet
Has God forgiven my sins?
I have carried their burden for twenty years…
Now my steps are light
And the sadness has faded in memory.
I know the heaviness of the bonds of guilt
And the cold call of eternal darkness.
On the edge, sobering to pain, silence
I locked the door to the darkness.
And maybe He Himself sent the trials?
And brought me to the edge, to the cliff,
And tempered me in the fire, like steel,
Taught to eradicate the strain in the soul.
I do not know if He has forgiven my sins?
Maybe there was nothing to forgive,
And that’s why my steps are now light
Through the darkness, without fear of losing my way.