have and hold

[brightlotusmoon]

In response to shadesong in one of her recent posts.

I was raised to believe in faith. I was raised by an atheist mother of Russian/Romanian/Jewish descent and an agnostic father of pure Sicilian descent who both admitted to having witchcraft in their blood. I was raised to believe not in a god, or religion, but the idea of faith. If I wanted to say that lots of gods spoke to me or just one very loud god, that was fine.
My husband believes in faith more strongly than I do. In our shared eclectic-Druid pagan faith, we believe that the divinity we seek is already in us, not in a church or a priest, but in us and in nature and in the universe.

I believe in doing the best thing you can for everyone.
I believe that people are not good or evil, just actions.
I believe in shades of gray.
I believe in working for a greater good, but more importantly for yourself.
I believe that you must love yourself before you can love anyone else, including a deity.
I believe in love.
I believe in trust.
I believe in the universe, the world, nature, humanity, myself, the astral planes, the spirit world, and the inner mind.
I believe.
I just believe.

Brigit says hi, by the way. So do Danu, the Morrigan, Isis, Bast, and Horus. These are my deities that have called me, and yes, I believe in them. They'd still exist even if I didn't, so why not? So says Terry Prachett (and Granny Weatherwax and the wizards of Unseen University).
And Neil Gaiman.

Comments

[galtogien.livejournal.com]

How did you get to know your gods and goddesses?

Can you tell me what Danu is like? Sometimes I feel I would really like to know her, but I don't :] I love the name, the sound of it, and I would like to honour that which is Celtic in me.

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

Danu was my first god to call me. She's a mother goddess. She sees everyone as her children. She is beautiful, kind, caring, compassionate, very loving, and very very strong. She's the one you call on for strength within yourself. She's the pillar you lean on. She's a positive force; if you want to bind someone or stop someone from harming you, don't ask Danu, since she loves everyone. But she will give you the strength and courage to do what you need to do in your heart.

Danu features prominently in my novel and in fact
is the basis for my main character Dana. :)

She hugs me a lot when I need it. Feels like warm tingles all over.

http://www.darkages.com/community/phi/Chult_Danu.html
http://www.orderwhitemoon.org/goddess/Danu.html

[galtogien.livejournal.com]

It's funny, she feels like Sophia (Wisdom) to me, from Gnostic Christianity. Would it be bad to see them as perhaps the same?

Do you know any god or goddess that specifically deals with the earth and animals, such as all of creation, nature spirits, etc? I feel close to this god, but I would like a name, and a label. :] The only ones I have found that correspond with animals also go with hunting, whereas I am looking for something to do with unity with animals, plants, rocks, quite druidic I guess..?

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

Danu does. So do Gaia, who is Greek, and Bast and Isis, who are Egyptian. You would want to look specifically for any mother goddess, which guarantees powers of creation and the All.
Artemis and Demeter, others Greek goddess, deal with animals and the earth, but most just animals and nature. Frigga is a Norse mother goddess of the All. There is Shakti, a Hindu mother goddess, and Nut, an Egyptian/African sky goddess. You could also try Brigit, another favored Celtic and Druidic goddess, who deals with healing.
We also have Eoestre, Celtic goddess of spring, rebirth, fertility and new beginnings. The Christian holiday of Easter and pagan holiday Ostara (spring equinox) are both derived from her name and powers. I'd say the Christians stole the idea from Ostara and Oestre, but I don't wanna sound bitter. ;)

Your best bet would be Danu and Gaia. Danu is a favorite of Druids, actually. I call her Mother of All. Gaia may be Mother Earth and Mother Nature, but I see Danu as more than that.

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

Oh, and go right ahead if you want to equate Sophia with Danu. I don't see why not. I think Danu would be flattered.

If you want to talk to Danu, just meditate easily and quietly, and as you exhale, whisper "Dah-nu" several times. "Danu, I call thee. Danu, I invoke thee, oh Great Mother. Please speak to your child, Mother." She might just hear you.

[galtogien.livejournal.com]

Thankyou so much! You are full of information :] ♥ ♥ ♥

Is the A is Danu as in cAr or cAt?

I think Sophia contacted me because I used to be quite a bit of a fundie Christian and i was more comfortable with a goddess from that perspective. Now I'm breaking free, I am getting very interested in other gods.

Thankyou again! :D

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

As in "Car". As in "market" and "large". Ahhhh.
Please keep me updated on everything. :)

[galtogien.livejournal.com]

Do you mind if I continue talking here? I have a few more questions... I am new to other gods...

I guess my main fear is touching one that will bring more hassle than it's worth. I have heard there are some 'dangerous' ones. Is this fundie propaganda or not? If not, how do I stay ok?

Do you know anything about Freya? I guess I am interested in her because she is said to represent beauty, etc., and she is Scandinavian, so it might help me be comfortable with who I am. I get pretty darn insecure and it'd be nice to be confident with my non-Brazilianess :] Also her name seems to pull at me so I thought there might be something more to it.

How did Dana 'call' you?

I prefer asking someone like you who has had actual experience with these gods and how they feel etc. rather than read the mythology and the facts... hope you don't mind ;] so any information I will drink up like crazy. What are Bast and Isis like? Any others? What advice would you give for someone like me seeing to delve into a bigger pantheon?

I particularly seem to like gods/goddesses that are around my culture/area, Celtic, Nordic, Romany, etc., but I do have a soft spot for Native America and to a lesser extent India. For instance Roman and African gods don't really appeal to me at all. This is ok?

I think I'm done! :d xx

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

No problem! I love discussing this sort of thing.

No, it's not just fundie propaganda (heh). There are several gods that you must take care not to disrespect. If you are going to work with them, you must be prepared to give as much as you can. They can be very demanding. Some such gods are Odin and Kali. Other gods are usually considered "father" gods, or "darker" gods, or gods of death or war -- gods that have a great deal of power as warriors.
Try and avoid calling to them if they make you feel uncomfortable. Stick only with the gods that make you feel safe. Some of us can handle the darker stronger gods, others can't.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freya
http://www.pantheon.org/articles/f/freya.html
In Norse mythology, Freya is the most beautiful goddess. She may be Odin's wife.

Danu called me sort of out of the blue. I was having visions in my dreams of a red-haired woman in a lush field with a river. She was definitely a goddess. She seemed so ancient, so connected to everything. Soon afterwards, I started writing my novel, and I named the main character Dana and gave her red hair. Dana had actually been a character I had created in high school, always seeing her as strong but innocent and nurturing. Later, I learned about Danu and realized that Danu was my matron. During the course of the novel, I created a character named Bridget who is related to Dana, and realized that it was the calling of the goddess Brigit.
Danu comes to me as a soft, gentle humming and tingling sensation across my skin. It feels like a warm, motherly hug.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bast_%28goddess%29
Bast is fun! She is very sensual and sexual. Think of a sleek female shorthair cat, like an Abyssinian, winding around you and purring. She has piercing golden eyes. She called me once I started to come into my sexuality when I was 14, but I didn't understand it at all, so I ignored the call. I just became a serious cat person! Bast is an Egyptian mother goddess and goddess of the moon, femininity (especially lesbians), dreams, and lovers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isis
Isis is the supreme mother goddess in Egypt. She is considered to be the most powerful magician in the world and is a goddess of magick and power and the moon. She also came to me when I was 14 and starting to come into my powers as a witch. My father is also a witch but very subtle about it. He showed me a series of paintings that he had done in the 1970's of the tarot deck, and when he showed the The Magician, I realized that not only was my father The Magician, but I was being touched by something that I knew later was Isis. My representative Tarot cards are The Empress (who is also seen as Isis), The Star, and The Queen Of Cups.
http://www.thelostfound.com/tarot/cards/meanings/tarot.html

The reason there is the number 8 in my username is because it is also the symbol for eternity, the symbol for the magician in the tarot (subconsciously honoring my father) and the symbol for infinity.

Sweetie, you can have any gods you feel are right for you. There is no right or wrong god to have. I'm not Irish or Celtic or Egyptian, but all my gods are from those pantheons. It's fine.

[galtogien.livejournal.com]

Ah, I have realised my big problem here.

As you know I used to be your typical Christian- all other gods are demons. I do not believe that any more, in fact although I believe Christ exists, that Jesus wasn't a historical man, that Christianity was hugely influenced by Egyptian religion, etc. But still, the funny feeling remains. I don't know what I'm asking really. I don't know if there's any way you can give reassurance that I would get into something I can't get out of. That the gods I am not used to are understanding and know I am a beginner and may fail on etiquette. That I have no witchy powers and dislike divination. The only gods I feel comfortable with are 100% 'good' gods... which are pretty few and far between. *makes apprehensive face*

♥

Thankyou so much for talking to me about this though.

Another thing I noticed in your recent post was that your father was a good healer... is this something someone is born as or can acquire? The reason I ask is that the one thing I have yearned for is to be able to heal. Even when I was a Christian I wanted the gift of healing and didn't give a damn for the others (except casting out demons which can be seen as linked). I'd love to be able to heal, I really would..

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

You're right, I can't really give any reassurance except my own experiences. What I can tell you, with absolute certainty and promise, is that if you get into anything that makes you feel uncomfortable, you can get out of it. This isn't like those fundamentalist horror stories about "deals with the devil" or "losing your soul" or anything like that. You can do whatever you wish at anytime no matter what. Just be respectful, that's all.
I know that it is possible for anyone to learn to heal through energy manipulation, like Reiki, quantum touch, crystal healing and color energy healing, which are all variations on the same thing. Some people, however, are naturally born with the ability to tap into the energies naturally. But I always look at it like artistic talent. Anyone can learn how to paint a great painting, write a great poem, or sing a great song. But some people have a natural talent.

[quietpassion.livejournal.com]

Nicely said. :)

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

I thought so. :)

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

It's not intrusive at all. :)

I believe that we come back in many lives, but beforehand, we go through a sort of "waiting period" in an astral plane. Like, we die in one life and we wait twenty years until we are reborn, or a hundred, or a thousand. And I think that we keep being reborn until we have done all we need to do, and then we move on to a higher plane, but I don't know what that is.