i really needed some reassurance, when i first started to adopt paganism i was so delighted with its freedom, it seemed to have few hard fast "rules" and the ones that do exist, are just plain good to live by, but then i started reading stuff on some websites that i found to be very discouraging, like people invalidating others who don't think/practice like they do, you know, that you cant be a "real" this or that unless you do xy and z and have been validated (initiated) by others, it forced me to do a bit of reevaluating and soul searching, i pretty much came to the conclusion that NOBODY has a monopoly on my truth and i have greatly simplified my beliefs, i try to go with what feels right and natural with me and what resonates and makes sense, i have yet to find an accurate "label" for what i believe and how i practice, the closest i can come is agnostic, i mean if the Creator/s turn out to be a giant caterpillar/s (I'm not even convinced the Creator/s takes human form as I'm not terribly impressed with humans) who would i be to say once im dead "nope, send me back, you don't live up to my expectations of God" i know that's a silly example but I'm just saying once I'm dead and see whats on the other side I'm pretty much willing to accept whatever entity created all that is...
Only one hard and fast rule that I follow:
If it harm none, do as you will.
Do as what makes you happy. What make you whole.
There are all kinds of people out there that are going to tell you "THAT'S NOT THE WAY YOU DO THAT!!" I have met sooooooooooooooo many "teachers" since I discovered the internet. I say "teachers" because I believe everyone you meet is in your life to teach you a lesson on your lifes journey. It may not be something we really want to learn, but something we HAVE TO LEARN before we can move on to the next lesson. From Shamans and Shame-ons they will all wander across your path. Listen to your guides they will never lead you wrong.
For me it is real real simple creator=energy. Energy can be in any form.. Everything from caterpillars to flying spaghetti monsters contain energy...
As far as intruding/controlling/manipulating people and their nearly infinite ways to try and make you feel guilty and trap you in their web go. Well this is a family forum......
"If it harm none, do as you will".....Ya I like that...
harm none, if it can be helped. If you can't help it, try to minimise the hurt
be excellent to each other
and something I got from a song's lyrics -
"still the grass grows tall in the dream fields, and after all is said and done the only thing that ever matters is to love and to be loved"
just about every other personal rule I have grows out of those three.
Oh, and one I try to live by (don't often succeed, but I try...) I got from Adam Ant - "ridicule is nothing to be scared of".
as for all the "proper pagans do this" type stuff, well I'm just not interested in their rules dictating my freedom. Same goes for the christians.
I go my own way.
Actually, I have never seen south park! The flying spaghetti thing is some one else on BYC's analogy of "what ever you want to make it." I thought it was nice and abstract to make the point....
So that is from south park? (See I am educated enough in the "current world" to know south park is a TV show..)))
As far as movies go, Contact, trips my trigger. I like the concept of a higher being taking what ever form makes the lower being (us) comfortable. Also the higher being acknowledging their is even higher entities. Gods God... Why not? everything else seems to go much smaller than we can see, and much larger than we can see, so to me it makes sense that their may be even more than we can begin to comprehend on an energy/spirit level..
Often when someone is "browsing" wicca, they are comming from a more organized religion, and they really do expect me to "lay down they law". The idea that you think before you act so you do not inflict harm, they can't seem to get that instead they want me to roll out a whole list of do's and don'ts. Sometimes people are so used to being told what to do/think/say that they feel unmoored without a set of rules.
Sort of like people and food, we all know you should eat healthy foods, and most of us can tell you that means low fat/sodium/sugars but there are companies who make millions a year putting together a list, for people who feel that they need to be told the rules.