How Do You Know If You're Pagan?

Well, if you’re asking yourself this you’re probably feeling some kind of connection towards paganism. 

Many Pagans will tell you they have always felt that connection and as they became more involved, they just knew.

We know by doing.

Pagan beliefs, opinions, ideas and thoughts are realized through practice, discussion, learning and simply by the results of living Paganism.

To learn more about Paganism visit the Pagan Federation and Pagan Dawn: 

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What are some of the signs?

Are you awed by nature?

If you are connected to the power of nature – the ocean, storms, waterfalls, the sun and moon and stars… you may be a closet pagan. 

Pagans are free spirits, and they rarely believe things at face value. 

We struggle to follow rules and we question everything we are told. 

The change of seasons and moon phases are almost sacred to you.

There's a sense of connection with the natural world.  

The Wheel of the Year, the cycles of the seasons, of the moon, our lives, they are all connected, and they are part of who we are.

Paganism is not a stale set of beliefs carved in stone.  

It’s a living set of beliefs and they evolve as our knowledge grows.

Paganism is not based in fear.

Pagans center our beliefs around nature.

The Old Religion is the magic of the Earth itself.

It is the essence which binds all things together.

Paganism is a big umbrella and we suggest you take a look and see what speaks to you.

If you feel drawn to Paganism, then it's speaking to you.

Are the Spiritual but not Religious People Attracted to Paganism?

Yes, we've heard it over and over again, "I'm spiritual not religious."

While it may seem so overused, we understand it, we get it.

Critics however feel that this "spiritual-but-not-religious" movement is nonsense.

They feel Pagans who are claiming they have a deeper, more profound understanding about the world we live in are only deluding themselves and should be sitting in a church somewhere.

The critics believe that being a Pagan offers no positive understanding or explanation of belief in any shape or form.

It is believed that unless you have rules and regulations combined with dogma you can't possibly be spiritual.

When we see the increasing number of younger people coming into Paganism, trying to escape the bleak judgements of religion, it's easy to understand why they have had enough of teachings that are dominated by hatred, bigotry and guilt.

Paganism, with the ancient festivals, rituals and belief of a self empowered individual is a real escape from the soulless, stressed-out, non-spiritual traditions of religion.

Paganism honors feminine spirituality, why? Because we are all connected with nature.

In the standard religious world there is little room for the feminine. 

Women have fared very badly in religions throughout history.

Most religions have been run by men, who have suppressed women.

Religions have decided the rights of women, owning property, being able to speak up in the church, even women’s procreation.

All spiritual people (women and men) seek to elevate themselves, maybe with a higher power, but definitely with a higher self. 

While most religions guarantee the path to a spiritual and rewarding destination, keep in mind it was men who invented religion and along with that, a lot of religious baggage.

Somewhere there is a rule that we must rely on a male deity to get things done, if we give ourselves over in worship we are somehow more spiritual.

Pagans, at least our brand of Paganism, teaches getting things done is a do it yourself job, that's because the power always has been within you.

All you have to do is develop the confidence that's inside and channel your own solutions.

As you spend more time understanding nature you begin to realize the answers to many of life’s questions are right there.

For us that is spirituality.

But if a person believes they are helpless and have to ask their higher power to fix things for them (let go, let God) they remain weak and that may be religious, but it isn't very spiritual.

While critics say that paganism lacks understanding and philosophical teachings, we say it's the simplicity of Paganism that makes it beautiful and available to all.

Beliefs don't have to be complicated, threatening or contradictory to be true, we like simple.

How wonderful to be spiritual and to believe in yourself and without all the religious hoopla.

Why We Don’t Watch The News

All day long,  24 hours a day, millions of people all over the world are watching, listening or reading the news. 

They have convinced themselves that all this news will help them be more informed, of what we don't know, but just better informed.

The Pagan Kitchen has decided that the media is dumbing us down, telling us what they think is important, expecting us to numbly follow.

Actually, what they broadcast 24 hours a day is a negative influence on our emotional and physical well-being and none of it will change our lives for the better.

We ask, "Have you ever heard at least one piece of the news that helped you feel more confident, more secure or more positive about yourself?"

You're not alone if you can't think of any.

Most news stories have little to do with us, they are usually pointless, void of anything positive or informative.

The media are also masters of misinformation as you can see from the photo below.

 

The Pagan Kitchen has come to the conclusion that every time you watch or read the news, you’re filling your mind with fear, lies, anxiety and negativity and that is only going to lower your vibrations and happiness.

By watching horrible events that we have no control over, we suffer.

We become depressed, anxious and fearful.

As that suffering festers we become angry, pessimistic and frustrated, because we can do nothing to make a difference. 

As we sit and watch the news showing the same horror over and over, It makes us feel powerless and helpless. 

Paganism is about self empowerment, it's reconnecting with nature so we can reconnect with ourselves.

You can't do any of that glued to the bombardment of the media, that includes the social media as well.

Someone once said "Don’t watch the news. If there’s anything you need to know, someone will call you and tell you about it.''

The point is: big media news is irrelevant to you. 

But people seem unable to recognize what's relevant, it's much easier to identify what's sensational and outrageous.

These repetitive news stories don't even scratch the surface of a deeper world. 

These stories will not help you understand the world or yourself.

Self discovery is below the surface of a deeper world. 

Knowing who you are is more important than the media trying to manipulate and define us.

UPDATE: Obsessively watching the news can make you mentally and physically sick

Just another reason we hardly watch the news, it can be very bad for your health, according to a new study from researchers at Texas Tech University.

They found that people who obsessively follow the news are more likely to suffer from both physical and mental health problems, including anxiety and stress.

Those who constantly check the latest headlines end up with “significantly greater physical ill-being” than those who tune in less often, according to the findings. 

Obsessing with the news has a negative impact on people’s personal lives, leaving them feeling powerless and distressed about global events including the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and climate change.

Witnessing these events unfold in the news can bring about a constant state of high alert in some people, kicking their surveillance motives into overdrive and making the world seem like a dark and dangerous place,” says Bryan McLaughlin, associate professor of advertising at the College of Media and Communication at Texas Tech University, in a media release.

Sun Day and The Sabbath

Wicca, Witchcraft or Paganism?

Questions we are asked a lot are "what exactly is a Pagan?"

"What about the differences between Pagans, Wicca and Witchcraft?"

We really like Patti Wigington's explanation sorting all this out. She has nearly thirty years of experience in studying modern Pagan belief systems. She works as an educator in the Pagan community, and in 2008, formed her own group, Clan of the Stone Circle.

Read the following by Patti:

"There is a great deal of debate among the Pagan community about whether or not Wicca is truly the same form of Witchcraft that the ancients practiced. Regardless, many people use the terms Wicca and Witchcraft interchangeably. Paganism is an umbrella term used to apply to a number of different earth-based faiths.

Wicca falls under that heading, although not all Pagans are Wiccan. So, in a nutshell, here's what's going on. All Wiccans are witches, but not all witches are Wiccans. All Wiccans are Pagans, but not all Pagans are Wiccans. Finally, some witches are Pagans, but some are not - and some Pagans practice witchcraft, while others choose not to."  READ MORE

Paganism

Paganism-The Path of Self Discovery

Being a Pagan is self empowering, life-affirming, it changes the entire playing field.

We focus on what is sacred (and that is nature) and avoid the bombardment of negative news, useless media gossip and what everyone else is doing.

You can just feel the amazing energy not only within the coven, but within ourselves as well.

It guides us to be better people, more respectful, responsible, positive, and it's life empowering.

Learning about oneself and who and what you are is what it's all about for the Pagan community.

Our circle is about understanding, discovery, our purpose and having some fun along the way.

Once we realize that we are nature and we reconnect with nature, we are then able to reconnect with ourselves.

Paganism has no founder, no worldly leaders, no prophets, no messiahs, and no saints.

We do not worship a saviour, we look for individual spiritual enlightenment, and responsibility.

The practice of Paganism goes down a path of self-discovery, and the discovery of one's own journey.

We also advise people that each individual must follow his or her own path, having the integrity, honesty and loyalty; to treat nature as sacred, and to love and respect all forms of life. 

We believe people are searching because they feel a spiritual void in their lives, and are searching for something meaningful, something with purpose, maybe something with magic.

Yes, we believe in magic.

Magic is everywhere: you just need to look for it. 

Just planting seeds in a garden you'll see nature's magic.

Nature speaks to us, it has the answers, just listen.

By letting go of the everyday noise and embracing the power nature, your life will instantly be enriched because you'll see the world and yourself differently.

There is no complicated or confusing comprehensive solution when searching for answers. In reality, it’s often just paying attention to nature as it speaks to us.

By doing so we stay grounded with the energies of the earth and begin to learn who we are.

Paganism Nature Based Spirituality

Paganism Sets You Free

Paganism

There is definitely a rise of interest in witchcraft and magic and it is revealing the state of society.

Practices such as crystal work, astrology, tarot, and charms offer tools of empowerment for people who want to take more control of their lives.

To give you an idea,  on average there were 1,600 Google monthly searches for how to make moon water, 4,400 searches for how to charge crystals, 22,200 for crystal healing, and 9,900 for how to manifest over the last year in the UK. 

What Is A Pagan Anyway?

Paganism translates literally as "country dweller" and is the umbrella term for the polytheistic pre Christian religious and magic paths. 

Paganism is a general term and many Witches, Shamans, Druids and Wiccans can and do identify as Pagan.

However it is possible to follow any of these individual paths without being considered to be a Pagan. 

Witchcraft in particular is a secular path and many witches do not like being associated with Paganism due to its connection with deity. 

Paganism has no single defined belief system and as such many different paths and traditions are celebrated within the Pagan culture.

The most commonly held beliefs held include worship of dual or multiple deities and an emphasis and affinity with nature and the natural world. 

Modern Pagans follow in the footsteps of their pre Christian ancestors and observe ritual and practise believed to have been adopted by Pagans of old.

A good example of this would be the observance of the wheel of the year using the change of seasons as inspiration for magical and spiritual work. 

Many modern Pagans celebrate the eight sabbats which, although not strictly derived from olden times, do mark the seasonal changes our ancestors would have observed. 

Modern Scientific, Theosophic and Philosophical thinking are incorporated into NeoPaganism, blending ancient wisdom with modern thought.

A modern Pagan seeks to interpret the wisdom of ancestors within a modern lifestyle. 

For example a modern Pagan is likely to be less reliant on the land but will still look to bring the influence of changing nature into everything they do. 

Harvest time for the Pagans of old would have been about physically reaping the grain from the land but for the modern Pagan it is a time to reflect on a more metaphorical interpretation of reaping what has been sown in relation to their own lives.

The traditions inherent in mythology play a big part in the practise of the modern Pagan. 

In Europe the Celtic and Norse mythologies are perhaps the most closely linked to Paganism though many pantheons including Greek, Egyptian and African are worshipped by modern Pagans. 

The choice of pantheon is often connected to personal history but Neo Pagans often choose deities to whom they feel a spiritual rather than a historical connection. 

In the modern world with the easy exchange of information, Pagans have more 
freedom to explore their own spiritual leanings and it is not unusual to find an individual worshipping deities from a different part of the world to their own.

Paganism often suffers a bad press for alleged associations with Occultism, Satanic worship and Dark Magic. 

None of these are elements of Paganism. 

Satanism in particular is not a Pagan path as Satanism (depending on the tradition) is either an Athiest or a Monotheistic faith. 

Neither fits with the multi Gods of Old and NeoPaganism.

Paganism can also be defined more widely as any religious path not following the Christian Bible. 

This is unsurprisingly more of a Christian definition than one widely accepted by the Pagan communities.

Christmas, A Pagan Tradition

Below, a 1920 news clipping:

From the Witch Way Blog, we have this:

THE CHRISTMAS TREE

In pagan tradition, namely the Germanic paths which celebrate Jul or Jol (pronounced like Yule or Yole), trees were seen as being inhabited by the gods. 

Because of this, they often brought a tree into their home during the winter season to keep their god(s) warm and protected. 

This tradition spread with immigration throughout time. 

It actually wasn’t until the turn of the century that Christmas trees began to take root as a holiday tradition due to vast popularity.

HOLLY, IVY, EVERGREEN, PINE, & MISTLETOE

There are many myths surrounding these winter plants in paganism. 

In Norse mythology, Frigga’s son Baldur is poisoned by mistletoe (thanks to the mischievous Loki), but then resurrected by Odin. 

Frigga then declares mistletoe a symbol of love (not death). In other myths, namely British and Celtic, the Holly and Oak King battle during the winter and the Holly King is defeated (then rises again at Beltane). Holly and ivy were also widely used during the Roman Saturnalia celebrations as well. There are many more, but you get the gist!

LIGHTS & YULE LOG

Pagans cannot rightly lay a claim on “lights” or “candles,” but candles have certainly played their part in winter rituals for thousands of years. 

Many religions place value on light in darkness during this cold time of year. 

Because our ancestors heavily depended on the sun to grow their crops, the fear of darkness and the long dark days certainly held great weight to them.

Yule logs are a massively popular symbol among several pagan paths. 

It stems back to the whole “Christmas tree” as being a tree inhabited by the gods. 

Largely, the Yule log is recognized as being derived from Germanic pagan traditions, but it’s widely practiced these days. 

The burning of the Yule log symbolizes the return of the Sun God.

Various Christmas traditions have pagan origins to them.

GIFTS & SANTA CLAUS

Gift giving during this time is a very pagan rooted tradition. 

In many paths, there are gods whom travel around gifting children with candies or presents during this time. Many historians suspect Santa Claus is a mixture of Saint Nicholas (Christian bishop in 4th century Turkey) and the Norse god, Odin, and his mighty horse, Sleipnir (sound suspiciously like a reindeer).

Being a Pagan in Ireland

The word “pagan” carries many preconceived descriptions.

Pagans throughout history were condemned as heretics and persecuted.

But the pagan community in Ireland is larger than many people might realise. Morgane Stereden Lahidji (above photo) and a small group of pagan students have been gathering signatures for the establishment of a pagan society on campus. 
They are now set to be granted provisional recognition from the Central Societies Committee (CSC).

Originally from Paris, is among the youngest of her fellow pagan students, who she says are mostly PhD candidates. 
Her devotion to paganism, and commitment to establishing a space on campus for pagan students has led to the formation of Trinity’s newest society.

Lahidji wants to create a space where pagans can gather and talk among one another and recreate this culture”. 
This seems to speak to a society in which pagans feel excluded: “It is still quite a great taboo.”

It must, then, at times, be difficult being a pagan in Irish society. Lahidji says, “it depends a lot on your own luck, the sort of family you were born in. On an institutional level, it’s not too bad. 
But you can see that we don’t have any recognition whatsoever, and on a cultural level, there’s a lot of defiance.”

Lahidji was surprised at how positive a reaction she and her fellow pagan students received in Trinity. In the process of talking to students and trying to get signatures for the creation of a pagan society, Lahidji’s own conception of what the society was changed. 

Initially, they felt the purpose of the society would be to “set a space for people who are already confirmed pagans, just so they could talk about things that they are not free to talk about elsewhere. But it’s actually more than that.” 
She says lots of students with no previous interest in paganism want to learn. 
If the Pagan Society are ever assigned a room, one of the first things she would do is “invest in a few bookshelves and get a study space going”. 
Newcomers can expect the society to be “totally welcome” to people who know nothing about paganism and just want to learn more. 
Her dream for the pagan society is “a place where someone can just pass by and ask a question”.

What does it mean, then, to be a pagan in the 21st century? Lahidji describes the word “pagan” as a “bit of an umbrella word for basically any spirituality before the dominance of monotheism”. This includes everything from the ancient Greek pantheon, the Roman pantheon to the old Celtic religion. 
In this part of the world, at least, the latter seems to form much of the basis of the everyday practises of paganism. 
The festivals Lahidji celebrates include Samhain, the basis of what we would know as Halloween, the winter solstice, Yule at Christmas time and Imbolc. 
For the founders of the new society, Imbolc in particular has a special significance. 
Celebrated in Christianity as St. Brigid’s Day, Imbolc marked the day on which a pagan society learned they were likely to receive provisional recognition from the CSC.

For Lahidji, the effect that paganism has had on her life is undeniable. 
Her personal beliefs are what she describes as “eclectic”. 
She has taken from many different beliefs and formed her own “patchwork”. 
Her spirituality has transformed her life. She says that through paganism, “I just discovered myself, it’s just as simple as that. 
I rediscovered the world and everything in it."

Trinity News

You can check out DU Pagan Society on Facebook.

Census to list pagans for the first time in Scotland

Pagans have long been regarded as devil worshippers, but Scotland’s Pagans are finally gaining official recognition.

Paganism, which honors nature as sacred, were strong in the British Isles for thousands of years before being displaced by Christianity.

The growing popularity of modern versions of paganism, particularly among the young, means that it will appear — for the first time — in the 2021 census for Scotland.

Even though the religion question of the census is voluntary, the addition of Paganism has important consequences. 

With the Pagan option it increases visibility as a faith community.

It shows the community the growth of Paganism.