Pagan Blog Project: I is for Wabi-sabi

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2013PBP, imperfect, pagan blog project, wabi sabi

Nothing lasts.
Nothing is finished.
Nothing is perfect.

Pared down to its barest essence, wabi-sabi is the Japanese art of finding beauty in imperfection and profundity in nature, of accepting the natural cycle of growth, decay, and death. It’s simple, slow, and uncluttered-and it reveres authenticity above all. Wabi-sabi is flea markets, not warehouse stores; aged wood, not Pergo; rice paper, not glass. It celebrates cracks and crevices and all the other marks that time, weather, and loving use leave behind. It reminds us that we are all but transient beings on this planet-that our bodies as well as the material world around us are in the process of returning to the dust from which we came. Through wabi-sabi, we learn to embrace liver spots, rust, and frayed edges, and the march of time they represent.

~Tadao Ando

this has been a catch-up post for the pagan blog project!

I never knew that my personal aesthetic had a name.  Indeed, it doesn’t…in the English language (lots of words don’t).  I like the old, the broken, the unfinished.

Impermanent, incomplete, imperfect…these are the three hallmarks of the Japanese aesthetic, wabi-sabi*.  There is a certain grace, an eloquent beauty in these things.   I think that, too often in our societies we think that everything needs to be finished, it needs to be perfect, and it needs to last forever.  That we need to make an immortal mark on the world, because we, ourselves are so very mortal.

I think we need to take a step back and start jotting down notes from Nature.  When is Nature finished?  When has Nature ever been perfect or permanent?  The entire cosmos itself is a work in progress, with nothing standing still.  Evolution is an entire process of good enough for survival and better enough than the other guy–all of our bodily systems are flawed in their design.**  In an ecosystem, there is always something going on–even in a so-called climax community, disturbances occur (fire, flood, falling trees in a storm) causing changes in biodiversity, some of which are necessary for life to continue (fire, for example, is a critical part of forest and prairie health).

We need to change our paradigm.  We need to reject our idolization of the unchanging monoliths of modern culture in favor of the work in progress, the thing with an end, that which has flaw.

*The BBC (channel 4) did a program called “In Search of Wabi Sabi” a while back.retty good–if you aren’t familiar with the concept, you should check it out.

**By design, I do not mean that they are designed/have a designer (ugh, shades of creationism), but design as in bauplan, body plan, how they exist…

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Pagan Blog Project: Places need Witches

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2013PBP, genus loci, loving where you live, pagan blog project, Spiritual Bioregionalism

this has been a catch-up post for the pagan blog project!

I was all set to write about “Doing What Works” (aka Pragmatism), but I got sidelined by kismet when I browsed through my blogroll this morning…

Now, places, of course, need priestesses and priests. Places need Witches. Places need Druids, and Magicians, and Heathens who practice the old ways of honor, and home, and hearth. Places need magic and places need listening attention. Places need people who live within, and can help to turn, the Wheel of the Year.

~Hecate Demeter, in her ongoing blog-story “A Place Without a Witch”

If you don’t follow her (you should) and if you haven’t read this particular series of posts (your really ought to), you can find all of them (in reverse order, so find Chapter 1 and start there) here.

Places need people that see the Nature in nature, that find the Divine in the Soil and the Sun and the Sky and the Sea.  Places need people that worship Gods of those Places, of those Powers, particularly as we become more technological, and more removed from Place.  Places need Pagans, particularly earth-based Pagans that know what it means to stick your hands in the dirt and actually get dirty.  Places need people that aren’t afraid to get sweaty and mosquito bit and to teach their children to do the same.  Places need us to get up off our collective asses and ya know, get shit done.  (And I thought this wasn’t going to be about pragmatism after all, lol…)

Places need us to do what works.  And what works isn’t the current paradigm.  Places need us to learn about them, to learn about their history, to learn about their present, to hear and see and feel what they need to be restored to their glory in a way that we can all co-exist sustainably.  Places need us to spend our time and our energy in them, to play in them, to work in them, to live in them.  Places need us to give a shit and to minimize our footprint so that Places can recover from our apathy, our ignorance, our deliberate pilfering for convenience. Places don’t need this for themselves, without us, they would go back to being places…changed, to be sure, but still a Place.

We need Places.  We need them to feed us, to clean our water, to clothe us.  We need them to shelter us, to enrich us.  We need Places to Root ourselves, to expand our minds and stretch our branches.  We need Places to exist, to co-exist, to pray, to rest, to sing, to love, to hope, to dream, to create, to write, to mourn, to teach us to be human.  

Places need witches, but witches need Places even more.  And not just witches.

People need Places.  Whether they are Pagan or not.  But, since (most) Pagans (tend to be) are closer to Places than not, Pagans need to lead the way to caring for their Places.  Lead the way by example and action, not just words on a screen or in the air.

Its just pragmatic.

 

Pagan Blog Project: O is for Offering

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2013PBP, offerings, pagan blog project

this has been a catch-up post for the pagan blog project!

When I started thinking about this topic, I was reminded of this post I read last winter–its an interesting perspective.  Personally, I don’t think any one person (or even group of people) has the only legitimate rationale for a specific practice or belief–though, as I’m familiar with the author, I’m not surprised by the opinion or the manner in which it was stated.  

As someone that doesn’t necessarily believe that the gods are “actual, living beings, beings that are self-willed with active agency” (to quote the link above), I still make offerings.  I make them because they are my sacrifice, my symbol of humility to those powers and forces that are greater than my tiny and cosmically insignificant self.  I make offerings  as a sacrifice to those powers that are represented by the symbols of godhood (whether or not they are actually gods), and I do it with just as much seriousness and belief as someone that does believe that the gods are “actual, living beings, beings that are self-willed with active agency.”  I don’t really care why or how someone else decides to make an offering to the gods (or to anything else for that matter), nor do I feel that I am in a position to know what is actually in their mind and their heart as a result of their experiences to judge them for “doing it wrong” .  

With that in mind…lets talk about offerings.

An offering is a gift.  More specifically, its a sacrifice given ceremonially as a method of worship (though this word is a whole debate unto itself as well). While there are probably lots of ways that one could think about a sacrifice, I like these two.–as something that is given up, and as something that is made sacred by the act of offering it to the gods.   While I pretty much have a routine to making offerings at this point in my practice, when I started out (or, I suppose if I would change it up and add someone new), I tried to think about whom the offering would made to, the context in which it was being made, the physical offering (as a noun) item, and the physical offering (as a verb) action.

Considering the offering recipient–What deity or deities are you making an offering to?  What are they the god of? Do you already have an established relationship with this deity?  What are traditional offerings from mythology/lore?  If unknown, what symbols are associated with this deity?

Considering the reason for the offering–Are you seeking to curry favor or ask for something in return?  Is this an offering of thanksgiving, or of adoration and devotion?  Are you seeking to make an acquaintance or a connection with a particular deity?

Considering what to offer—What offerings have traditionally been given to them?  Have you made offerings to them before?  How were they received?  Do you feel compelled to leave any less traditional offerings, and if so, how do you think they will be received? Is the offering going to be food stuff?  Is it something you can even get ahold of or make to offer?  And, for a practical consideration, is it something that is either damaging to the environment or to one’s health (allergies, etc can be a factor–I was once at a ritual that involved burning herbs in a fire as an offering, in which someone was allergic to the particular herb and ended up having a dreadful asthma attack)?

Considering the act of offering–How do you plan to make the offering?  Is it a solitary action, or a group one? Indoors, outdoors, in a shrine, at an altar, in a sacred spot?  Is it going to be left in a public place, or in a secluded one, or is it a privately owned place?  What sort of offering will be left behind (whether it be somewhere in urban, wild, or in between)?  If the offering is a consumable, what are you going to do with it afterwards (if its being left outside, will it interfere with wildlife)?

Some people prefer to just improvise and go with their intuition.  I’m down with that, some of the best rituals are improvised and intuitive, and making an offering is certainly a religious ritual.  I’ve seen and done some beautiful impromptu offerings.  

But.

I’ve seen some very poorly thought out offerings as well.  In addition to the aforementioned burning of allergenic herbs as part of a group offering, I’ve seen an offering made via balloon (I’m not entirely sure whom it was make to, why, or what was offered)…which is pretty much just pollution, not to mention (living by the beach) a good way to kill marine life.  While I’m sure that the offering (I’ve also heard of spells and other rituals involving balloon releases) was probably planned with sincerity and good intentions, I’m fairly sure that “Endangered Sea Turtle Killer” was not the way in which the individual wanted to get the attention of whatever spirit or deity they were making an offering to.  One rather popular method of offering involves leaving out food as an offering–its traditional and its functional, but practically speaking, one ends up feeding wild animals as well, and there are plenty of reasons why this isn’t a good idea (there are also some lovely alternatives to this practice that I’ve come across, which will might make a nice post for another day if I ever get to it again).

When I make an offering (whether it is improvised or not), I try to make sure that it:

• Is not food (or if it is food, it will be consumed by people or made indoors or will be done in such a way that it does not interfere with the local wildlife).
• Is quickly biodegradable (particularly if being left outdoors) or recyclable (or that it isn’t a *thing* at all) and isn’t likely to be perceived as litter
• Is valuable to myself (if its something cheap or effortless for me, why on earth would it be a good offering?) or is something that took time, effort, and energy to craft (actually, crafts made of natural products that can be used by nature are one of my favorite offerings)
• Is respectful of the land where it being offered and the cultures that have made that landbase their home  (for me, this means alcohol is not an acceptable outdoor offering)
• Is likely to be received well by whomever it is being offered too–I like to start with myth, lore, or tradition (I consider these to be a starting point, not an ending point!), but I’m not adverse to UPG

There seem to be a couple of “schools of thought” regarding offerings…I’ve seen some people say that you should give what you feel is right for the deity, others that you should give what is indicated as preferred for that particular deity as stated in their mythology.  I’ve seen some people say that money is a worthy offering, or something that is purchased, because it represents time and effort…while others would vehemently disagree. Personally, I think that flat-out work itself is a fantastic offering, one that seems to be preferred by my genus loci (trail clearing, planting, beach clean-up, etc), but I know several people that would cry foul at that idea.

All this squabbling seems much ado about nothing to me.  Offerings are as individual as we are, and as our relationship and experience of divinity is.

What about you,  what do you offer?  How you you make an offering?  Do you have a preferred offering?  To whom do you offer?

Pagan Blog Project: Magic is Mystery

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2013PBP, magic is mystery, pagan blog project

Magic is the Mystery of our interaction with Nature and with the Cosmos to coax the manifestation of what is in our heart with the will of our minds and the actions of our bodies.

~yours truly

Magic is a mystery.

Think about it for a second. Let it roll off your tongue and rattle around in your brain for a minute or two. Magic is a mystery.

There are several definitions for the word mystery, and most of them somehow describe what magic *is* (however it is that one might define magic, which is what makes this phrase so apt). Mystery can alternately mean “an unexplained or inexplicable event, phenomenon, etc”, “ skills, lore, or practices that are peculiar to a particular activity or group and are regarded as the special province of initiates”, “a religious truth that is incomprehensible to reason and knowable only through divine revelation” and (though it is no longer used in this way) as a trade, occupation, craft of guild of such persons.

…forget the ‘a’ this time, and capitalize the M in ‘mystery’ in your head this time.  Say it again, but first close your eyes and take a deep breath.  Exhale.  Feel the words.

Magic is Mystery.

When you do a spell–when you release a tendril of energy out into the universe to manifest your will, does the exact mechanism of how it works really matter?  Whether it was brought to you by divine will, or by the power of nature tilted towards your desires, or by sheer dumb luck coaxed in your direction, or random coincidence, or the machinations of a quantum universe, or pure psychological placebo?  I mean really, does it matter?

YMMV, but I tend to say “No, not really.”  I care, at the end of the day, that I can drift away into blissful slumber instead of worrying away into the wee hours about something out of my control.  I care, at the end of the day, that I have done something–I have used the tools at my disposal to take an action.  Magic is a toolbox full of tools with which we can achieve agency* in those instances where agency could not ordinarily and mundanely be achieved (or when ordinary and mundane need some help).

I care, at the end of the day (or maybe a week or so later) that it worked*.

I think, what is more important, is the Mystery of magic.  I’m a big fan of knowing how things work, of dissecting the mechanisms that makes things function in the world around me.  Its a big part of why I have a degree in biology.  But…but.  There are sometimes when the end result is more important than the mechanism.  There are times when we cannot concretely observe a phenomenon.  I’ve been a witch for too long to doubt the veracity of my experiences just because I can’t explain them.  And, to be quite honest, I don’t think that I need an explanation for the mechanism of my experiences for them to have value.**

It is the Mystery of magic that makes it…well, magical.  I think, in this world of technology, information, knowledge, the idea of controlling and precision of everything we think or do or say, in this world of politically correct niceties, we are too bound to the idea that there are things we can’t know, that we can’t explain, and that that is okay.  It is okay to do things without proof, to do things that can’t be explained, to do things that others think are silly or superfluous or downright crazy/stupid/whatever!

I believe in Mystery, because I have experienced it through magic.  I don’t know how it works, I don’t know (or care) if its all in my head or guided by outside influences, and I don’t care if other people think its foolish.  

Magic is Mystery!

Notes:

*And maybe it didn’t work (but usually it does).
**I’m not saying that there is no value, intellectually, or in developing one’s practice, into exploring the possibilities of mechanisms for magic (or for that matter, what gods are/are not, etc)…just that, ultimately, what matters is that magic is working for you (or that your gods are fine with how you worship them, etc)
…I borrowed some bits from the following old posts of mine: Thoughts on Correspondences, Scientific Prag-Magic-tism, and Defining Magic

this has been a post for the Pagan Blog Project

Pagan Blog Project: My Locus

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2013PBP, bioregionalism, genius loci, pagan blog project, spirit of place, Spiritual Bioregionalism

I’ve written a time or twenty about where I live, and about its importance in my Paganism.  While the reality and the reasoning is nuanced and complicated, at its most simple–my land is (part of) my pantheon.  As my land is my pantheon, it is only logical that I know its history, its mythology, its characteristics, and its other inhabitants.  A nicely succinct guide for getting to know one’s land comes in the form of an old post from Sarah Lawless @ Witch of Forest Grove (she’s recently moved her blog, but all of her old posts are still there) on creating a profile for one’s genius loci.

(maps in this image provided from google maps)

You might recognize the word locus (plural, loci) from mathematics.  Mathematically, it references a point or set of points whose coordinates fulfill a single equation or condition.  But, before mathematicians co-opted the word for their own use, it was a term adopted from Latin meaning a location, place, spot, or position.  The word locus can also refer to a center of activity or focus of attention.

So, this is my locus.  Where the Chesapeake Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean.  As a geological feature, the Bay is only about 3000 years, formed by melting glaciers during the last ice age.  In the past million years, this is the fourth bay that has formed at this location in this manner.  The Bay is one the largest estuary in North America, and is constantly changing with the forces of wind and water.  The Bay is home to over 2500 species and its watershed is home over 14 million people.  Its natural and human history is fascinating, and the two are relentlessly intertwined (and have been since humans first came to this place).

My locus, as a place, is the center of my (religious) activity and the focus of my (spiritual) attentions.  I gather water from the mouth of the bay to make my own ritual salt, I use the shells and sand and rocks and branches and vines from the beach and the woods and the waterways to make my own tools and decor, and I gather edible and medicinal and magical plants from here when and where I can.  When I meditate, it is often to the sound of the waves and the pull of the tides.  I see the gods in the Ocean, and the Bay, in the Beach, in the Tide, in the Woods–in the genius loci, or spirits of this place.