Beliefs And Practices, What do you do

O'siyo Shadows,
Hmmm according to the defintion of both words, selflessness= having no concern for self and, selfishness=concerned excessively or exclusively with oneself : seeking or concentrating on one's own advantage, pleasure, or well-being without regard for others I honestly can say I don't 'pray' to achieve either I 'pray' and meditate because I know there is 'something' greater than myself, Master Creator if you will that deserves a Ni Ya We (thank you) for all that I have been blessed with.. I guess in some ways one could say I 'pray' because I owe it to the Great Spirit In so many ways for me, 'prayer' is a respect 'thing'..
~~Sty-U

That is meant to be keep in context with the complete statement, it is about death and not prayer alone.

O'siyo Shadows,
Hmmm, then forgive me for I must have misunderstood the question Guess I just answered a question(s) that I saw in your post..you seem to always stimulate one's mind and I enjoy responding to your posts Guess I wouldn't know how to answer the question then because, if you are asking why one prays when close to death?, I can't, as of yet, answer that..or perhaps I am still 'confused' a bit about the question if there indeed was one
In any event I didn't mean to offend nor did I mean to take your post out of context so if I did, sorry
~Hoping this day finds you with much peace and many blessings~
Sty-U

MacAibhistin,

Those are great questions! I think it would be best if you check out "The Book Stop" here in "Special Interests", and go to The Other Corner thread. Everyone's been recommending great books that will answer a lot of your questions, (and bring up some more), but that's the fun of it isn't it?

Hope this helps you! You're with friends here, who really want to help, so don't be afraid to ask more questions.

Dreamer1

Just joined this group so what a good way to introduce the topic of spirituality: For me everyday is a spiritual practice. Morning meditation, and evening meditation are daily "rituals" for me. Being blessed to have family in a Native American culture, as well as "Druidic" septs I have experienced more than some others. My wife and I practice the special pagan holidays that are celebrated in most pagan temples: Mabon, Beltaine....etc. I hope I can help on discussions in the spiritual sense being an armchair theologist/spiritualist, as well as a raised from birth "pagan" not a born-again "pagan"

I'm new here, but I'd like to put in my 2 cents about crystals, swords and knives. Crystals are, or should be, a personal focus device for meditation. The crystal itself has no meaning, but used as a focus can help in the same way a candal flame can. Swords and knives are more of a power symbol for groups with a leader. They serve pretty much the same function as any symbol weilded by a priest, minister or any other authority figure. Just my thoughts on the subject.

Don't take me as an end-all authority on the subject, as I still don't drust my knowledge of the subject enough to truely practice it. However I got curious and began to study wicca, and here is some of what I have found as it pertains to your questions.

Wicca itself is not old. Probably not even a full hundred years old yet. However, it and other neo-pagan beliefs are an attempt to rejuvenate a lot of the old pre-Christian beliefs and truths which have been lost to time over the last two thousand years. The neo-druids would probably represent a closer mapping to what would have been practiced historically, however so much has been lost that nothing will likely ever be true to how they were.

To start to understand Wicca, I feel one should start, study, and end with the following 8 words:

"And ye harm none, do as ye will"

I perticularly like to pay attention to the use of the word 'none' there. It doesn't say 'no others', it says 'none', that includes not doing anything to harm yourself or any other being, be it physically, mentally, or spiritually.

The details beyond this phrase are what I seek to better understand now, myself. I feel I understand the basic symbolism behind such things as the pentacle and the athame, I guess that now I'm asking "What does it really mean to be Wiccan?"

Hopefully now others here can help both of us better answer our questions, although I wonder if that shouldn't become a new thread.

"And ye harm none, do as ye will" A most interesting phrase. It seems simple but really it isn't, in fact, it's probably more restrictive than the entire US penal code and requires far more personal responsibility. It calls for consideration of consequences before acting and living life in a much more deliberate manner than most people are used to. It demands a deep level of thought. If I do thus and so who will be affected and how. Will the balance be positive or negative. Decidedly not a simple philosophy to live by nor an easy one to live up to.

But one that is truley fair to all existance, no one ever said it would be easy. Responsiblity, and deep thought... what can we be thinking... ?!?

Great question Shadows, if I may add a personal lil story here, there have been a couple of times that i have been close to death...I know that I am far from "old" in terms of age, but one time that Iwas close to death isolated in the wilderness I know that in my own heart my prayers took a sense of spiritual awakening....eerily it became almost like what may be referred to as a "shamanic death" I guess becaus I am still here. But
in prayer it started as very selfish VERY selfish, a bargaining if you will that if I can only make it one more hour I promise that I will...as hours passed I felt overcome that mom and dad were both listening to me, and it became very selfless, over time my prayers evolved into a simple thank you. I do not know if weight can be assigned to it just because I feel that just like grief there is a natural progression from disbelief to acceptance.
In both experiences they followed the same patterns as that of the stages of grief: disbelief, bargaining, anger, and acceptance. There was a moment of panic in there somewhere, but I will not admit to that. I count my blessings that I am still alive, and I feel that this has made me closer to the Creator(s). I hope this aides your seeking in knowledge....

Coming close to death can have a profound effect. I had the experience in Nam. I don't recall much of anything after I was hit until I came around in the hospital. I was left with the feeling that I'd wasted so much of my life to that point in selfishness. To say the least, I was a very different person afterwards. Was I touched by the Creator? I can't say with any certainty. I do know I got a second chance and I've tried not to waste it. That was when I realized faith and religion are not the same thing and my priorities changed drastically and I started trying to think what effects my actions and nonactions have on others.

I have much respect for any vet, especially when mom or dad basically slap them and say, "Fool you missed the point, are you listening now." My grandfather was in WWII and he has a lot of stories of close to death...which the funny part is that he only tells me, but anyways he is a Catholic, but let me tell you he prays everyday with the most selflessness I have ever seen....I think he should be a saint.

I had an Uncle that was a Ranger in WW II in the Pacific. He was shot near to pieces and lived with alot of metal in him the rest of his life. His faith was unshakable and he was the kindest man I ever knew in spite of being in constant pain. When he died he honored me greatly. He left me his combat infantry badge and Ranger patch. Along with these in the box was a simple note. All it said was "You've been there, you understand".

Now that it is fall, I end up spending a lot of my weekends in the woods just going for hikes, and I have to say that this is the best time of year to recharge my spiritual battery. 2 years ago a bunch of friends and I walked up a mt. in the Adirondiak park called Iriquois, and since it is not a very technical hike we packed a couple small drums, a pack guitar, tin whistle, and some other small instruments. The greatest spiritual experience of that year was sitting above all the fall foliage, looking down, jamming out some reels and a couple of jigs, just being filled with spirit. I do not know if people on some of the other summits could hear it, but just the thought of music flowing down the mountain...what a feeling. That is the typical practice I like to experience this time of year.

I honour my gods, respect the genius loci and acknowledge my ancestors with offerings, as and when required; I honour the four fire festivals traditionally, and I undertake a personal ritual at the winter and summer solstice; I read as much as I can on history, archaeology, folklore, myth, anthropology and anything else that will illuminate the beliefs of my ancestors and the ancestors of the land on which I live; I regularly undertake meditation and journeywork; I communicate with other on my path and share information (UPG) in order to build on what we already know.

Daily, everything I do, and think is shaped by my beliefs.