Questions for People who Work with Deities

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uaya
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Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by uaya »

Hello everyone, I've been researching Spirituality and witchcraft for a while now but still have questions about Deity work. I first started hearing about it as people worshiping or working with old gods and goddesses like Hades or Freya. At first I was confused because I thought they only existed in old mythology. Then I realized that many witches work within different pantheons, and some do not do any deity work. My question for people who do work with deities its 1)How are all of the old gods "real", and to what extent are they "real", 2)How do so many different gods of different cultures still "exist" 3)Do the answers or protection they give come from the witches' own subconscious, or how do they receive clear messages? Sorry if any of this came across as insensitive or mean, I've been atheist my whole life and am confused, thank you!
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by Eleanora »

This is an excellent question I've wondered about myself. Personally I don't really work with deities in the witchy sense, because I see pretty much all deities as personifications of the elemental forces of Nature, and not "real" beings in any way. I don't think the Sun actually cares about me or thinks thoughts in any form, for example,but I still see it as a type of deity, for without the Sun, we'd all be dead. Same goes for water, or wind, or fire, etc.

Personally,when I hear a witch talking about working with Pan or Athena and actually seeing and meeting them like they're real people, I'm pretty skeptical and cautious, because my immediate assumption is that they are either A.) Making it up for grins and chuckles, ala roleplaying; B.) Hallucinating because they're high out of their minds and/or schizophrenic, or finally C.) They're being tricked by a malevolent interdimensional entity that's pretending to be a deity in order to manipulate naive humans. Probably just for grins and chuckles; like how a great many number of little boys enjoy frying ants under a magnifying lens.
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by SpiritTalker »

Ask a group of witches and you’ll get eleventy-seven different views 😃. I don’t do individual deities either but I can get my head around aspects of One-in-many like facets of a diamond. Each facet is individual but there’s still just one gem.

Different cultures have their own name for similar concepts of a god-form that might date back to an older civilization. Earth has seen more than one extinction-level event and survivors would hold on to their god-forms with a tight grip.

And local land features like huge mountains, rivers or wells might give rise to land spirits which become a god, small-g, to a culture inhabiting that location for a very long time.

There are levels of consciousness that either perceive or experience physical manifestations of multi dimensional, non-corporeal spiritual entities of the highest Nature. And some other not so high, just non-corporeal. Big subject. Humans have a faculty of direct knowing.

And it could be that what’s perceived of as gods are terra forming ETs playing with DNA chains & using earth as a lab. Shrug. It’s a matter of belief until there’s evidence of fact.
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by Corbin »

Eleventy-seven is a Conservative estimate, especially as there are many among us with suspicions but who don't entirely care to define the parameters of exactly what deity is at all. The human need to corner off hard definitions, set rigid parameters, neat boxes and frames is as cold iron to elves; an inhospitable place for God's to find a home. It is not the... spirit... with which to approach them at all. Besides, certainty murders possibility.

Spirit is protean.

So if God's don't rock your world, if it's an idea that you find distasteful, choose something else to help and guide you. Archetypes? Spirit guides? Angels? (start a list, see how many you can come up with) ... though I certainly wouldn't care to entirely define many of those 'entities' either...

Hmm...

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Michael Howard wrote: ... religion is an attempt by humanity to classify Divinity in a way the majority can understand. The purpose of the gods is to bring the unknowable down to human scale - to reduce the macrocosm to the microcosm without losing its divine nature. In practice the old gods were personification of natural forces and aspects of the life force - the creative energy that flows through the universe...

I would further suggest that bringing the microcosm down to the macrocosm, to a place where we can enter into a personal relationship
(or connection) with something - where it can effect us and we, in turn (perhaps) can effect it.

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... Pagan deity is never super-natural; existing within nature, as nature, both human and nonhuman nature, the gods are the darkness, the vibrance, the hunger, that we not only witness around us but experience within us. The gods are the cry for justice, the tug of trade, the belly-kick of loss, the bond with the land and with kin that are relayed again and again in the tales of our people and heritage, tales we daily observe in others and feel inside ourselves. The Pagan understanding of deity is therefore not wholly objective; he may acknowledge the existence of any or all gods, but each Pagan’s relationship with his gods is fuelled by his own critically subjective and visceral experience of those forces.

- Emma Restall Orr (Living with honour: a pagan ethics)


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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by Firebird »

Corbin wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2020 8:59 pm Spirit is protean
Spirit is a preteen :surprisedwitch:
(sorry, couldn't resist!)
“There are things known and things unknown and in between are the Doors.”
― Jim Morrison
“All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.”
― RWEmerson
:mrgreen:
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by Black Cloud »

Consider the possibility that our lives as humans are influenced on deep, unconscious levels by various archetypal forces which operate largely in realms beyond the time/space dimension. These timeless archetypes seem to be reflections of deep emotions and beliefs held in the collective consciousness of humanity. They are expressed and explored in our world through individuals and groups who resonate with the various archetypes. Though their form of expression changes and is refined with the passage of time and the evolution of humanity, the core essence of the archetypes seems to have changed little in the recorded history of our planet.

https://www.divinemystery.net/archetypes-consciousness
"People with a high tolerance for boredom can get a lot of thinking done." -Stephen King
“For every woman is at heart a witch.” -Charles Leland
“Men argue, nature acts.” -Voltaire
“Our life is the creation of our mind.” -Buddha
“Any person capable of angering you becomes your master.” -Epictetus
“Facts don’t cease to exist because they are ignored.” -Aldous Huxley
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uaya
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by uaya »

Thank you all for the responses. I'm going to keep reading but essentially I understood that most of you don't work with deities because they are representations of the natural energies or archetypes already present. Or at least that's how I'm interpreting it
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Corbin
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by Corbin »

(cut from a previous thread)

... With the deities that arise, I have found it pays to research them, their stories, their miens and their purview, their poetry and art - both old and modern - and try to tap into their aspect and their energy.

Meanwhile the watched, watches. Force finds form. Like Intuition, once the quiet voice realises it is being sought and heard, it speaks up.

What we can know from researching deities is their masks - but brushing at the patena, you can reach things that are both originative and vital enough to have continuity - like the oral tradition; a story that changes over time but still holds a thread that can lead to its source and an understanding that surpasses knowledge - that of experience...
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by Firebird »

Corbin is very insightful. :flyingwitch:
When he spoke of "their" aspect, that is the thing you look to. What are the stories and myths? How can those apply to your every day life?
I work with the Celtic pantheon in particular, mainly because that is the focus of my group and part of my heritage, But the lessons and strengths can be observed from many different regions who's Gods and Goddesses may have similar "aspects" for living a good life. For instance Loki can be examined when chaos is around. Persephone may reveal the need for time out, rest or working on a shadow and Nuit may be called upon when protection is needed.
The deities didn't just appear out of thin air, they may or may not have been real people at one time who's contributions to life were so significant that their lore was handed down throughout time. That gives strength to their aspect. Others who may not have been real, were still real stories of caution, truth. and the cycle of time etc...
The egregore to each individual deity has been formed already, we can tap into this power source because there are many folks who keep them alive.
Perhaps in a thousand years from now Batman will be considered a God because of his stories and quest for justice...because so many people have given him power already. His egregore is strong.
I believe we have a thread on our superheros....
Bb, Firebird
“There are things known and things unknown and in between are the Doors.”
― Jim Morrison
“All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.”
― RWEmerson
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uaya
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by uaya »

firebirdflys wrote: Thu Jun 25, 2020 1:10 pm Perhaps in a thousand years from now Batman will be considered a God because of his stories and quest for justice...because so many people have given him power already. His egregore is strong.
I believe we have a thread on our superheros....
Bb, Firebird
That makes sense I totally forgot about egregores Thanks!
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uaya
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Re: Questions for People who Work with Deities

Post by uaya »

:D :D

Sorry for bringing this thread back but if you work with deities and are interested in talking about your experience and beliefs more please PM me
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