The Pagan View thru the eyes of RavenHarte
Going Green on the Pagan Path
Green. To those of nature-based spiritualities, it's not just a color. Green is the grass spreading lushly across mother earth, the leaves just beginning to unfurl, the bushes that have reminded us through the dark time that life always renews, and of course the most beautiful of Gaia’s waters. Green is the cloak of the Druid, or the magic of witches who work with the flora and fauna, as well as the blessed Emerald Isle itself. It is also the shining jewel of the heart chakra, which connects all people, and the glowing sephiroth of Netzach, the sphere of beauty and the loves of filia, eros, and agape. Green is an energy that pulls at our heartstrings, and shows us where we connect to each other, the earth and the Divine. Is it any wonder that the movement to cleanup the earth is Green? Click for more....
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Living in Peace on the Pagan Path
How do we cultivate a climate of peace? It’s obvious that the masses want it. Go into any clothing or accessories store of late and you will feel thrown back into the 60's with the myriad day-glow colored peace signs and symbols of love. Our society is SICK TO DEATH of war, of anger, of the energy it’s taking us to keep up this big bully attitude when none of us really wanted to be the big bully anyway. So how do we change that? Well, Gandhi says that “we must be the change we want to see in the world”. So the first step is you…. Me….. all of us. In Wiccan traditions there is a poem called “The Charge of the Goddess” by Doreen Valiente which contains a profound line: “If that which thou seekest thou not findest within thee, thou will never find it without thee”. This means to me in this context that if you don’t already have the peace you seek within you, you can’t possible see it outside of you, can’t cultivate it from others, can’t bring it about in the world. One cannot give what they don’t already have.
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Why "bad" things happen from the Pagan Path
“Why is this happening to me?” This is a question I am actually amazed that I hear as often as I do amidst people of my own spirituality – one that believes in the idea of karma, the “Three-fold Law” and/or work on Self. Usually this comes from an individual who as been working diligently on Self, living fully their chosen spirituality, attending ceremonies, correcting relationship mistakes, doing “everything right” and then something happens; they lose their job, or someone gets a grave illness, or their relationship ends, or worse someone dies. “Why me?” they ask. My first inclination is always to want to say “because that which doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.” I never do of course. Its not helpful to say that when a person is drowning in their own fear and pain, but for me it’s the truest statement I could make to them. I believe we are the sum of our experiences. Look back on your life, look at every “horrible” moment in it and then see what changed for you right then. What decision did you make, or not? What people came into or left your life because of that issue? How did your steps from that incident create the life you are living now? This is often how I begin the process in getting myself through those moments in life. I tell myself “this too shall pass” and know with all my heart that on the other side of tragedy, I will be able to look back and see the whys. I think about the tragedies of the past and how better able I am to handle the NOW because of the THEN, and that gives me the resolve that I will prevail. Click for more....
Generosity on the Pagan Path
‘Tis the season of generosity and altruism. The one time of year we as a collective human spirit consciously shift focus on the giving to others. Why do we do it? Because giving makes us feel good. Whether we are giving a present to someone, or food to the hungry, helping a friend move or just offering a tired cashier a warm hello and a smile, by our sharing of something we have, we feel better. We feel connected. We feel hopeful. Not hopes that something will come in return usually, but rather a hope that the feeling will spread. Human nature drives us to want to make connections to other people. We want to be close, we want to form bonds, and we want to be of help. The problem is the more a society’s technology increases, the less emphasis that society places on its social connections. So as an advanced technological society, we as Americans forget for most of the year how much we want to be connected. We forget how much other people matter to us. We forget how much we need others, and therefore forget how much others might need US too. Then the holiday season falls upon us, a time to reconnect, take stock in our lives, and be thankful for what we have, which I think is the key to generosity. Click for more....
The Shelter on a Pagan Path
This is an amazing time to live, a tumultuous time, a scary time even, but an amazing one. As a female in our society, if I weren’t living in THIS country, during THESE times, I couldn’t be who I am right now. I couldn’t be an “out of the broom closet” Pagan female, let alone a Priestess and leader in my spiritual community. In fact, even in this same country at this same time, I couldn’t be who I am if it wasn’t for constant and scary change – change both in our country and populace, AND change in myself. Click for more....
The Tenets of The Pagan Path
Is there something that stands out to you that people "outside" of your tradition misunderstand about your tradition. If so, please set us straight.
Where do I even begin? There are MANY misconceptions regarding the Pagan spiritualities. Here are the ones that come to mind right away. Click for more....
Where do I even begin? There are MANY misconceptions regarding the Pagan spiritualities. Here are the ones that come to mind right away. Click for more....
Welcome - getting to know me, RavenHarte, and my view along The Pagan Path
What is the goal of your spiritual practice? Do you consider this the goal of life?
The goal of my spiritual practice is to continually find new ways of consciously evolving my own soul, while staying connected with the Divine within and without.Click for more....
The goal of my spiritual practice is to continually find new ways of consciously evolving my own soul, while staying connected with the Divine within and without.Click for more....