Are there any Pagans/Wiccans here

I'm not, I'm just a Jew, but I do employ some Peruvian shamanic techniques in my spiritual work.

Nice to have you here

 

My first experience with occultism was Wiccan with the book "teenage witch" by Silver Ravenwolf when I was around 12-13 years old, though I never followed Wicca myself. My dad bought it for me, and I did a magic ritual/spell or whatever you'd like to call this particular exercise, where two of my friends and I circled a sandbox and put sunglasses on the sand with a dab of sunscreen and recited some words. Within around 45 minutes the sky went from dark and raining to almost completely clear and sunny. I now know that magic has nothing to do with spells and rituals, at least not that kind of magic.

This is what originally sealed my belief in the fact that the physical world isn't all that there is in this universe, though I went through a period of atheism and then Laveyan satanism, followed by theistic satanism before I came to what I am now, a Hermeticist/Rosicrucian, a real Brother of the Rose Cross, not the sect of christianity that is known today since I am not a Christian at all other than respecting Yeshua for the great Master he was. I now know why my religious belief's and the way I felt towards God transitioned in the way that they did and it makes sense on a logical scientific (occult science) way.

 

I am the universe

 

In 3rd grade I got my friends and myself to follow some create your own animal spirit familiar tutorial off a wiccan website at recess...it was the first thing American Online Search brought me when I searched how to do real magic.

thats my extent

 

i just gaze into the future every now and then when im not too sure about something

 

I've been an eclectic pagan for 16 years.

 

What exactly is an eclectic pagan? Do you worship a specific pantheon of gods, or do you pick and choose from several pantheons? No gods at all maybe? Explain your beliefs to me a bit. I'm intrigued. You too Crystalfaerie

I've always said if I ever decided to follow a pagan path the old Irish gods/goddesses would resonate with me the most. Irish mythology is EPIC!

 

Yeah, I guess I am an eclectic pagan. I watch the phases of the moon quite a bit and I've collected witchcraft books for a while now. I've always had a fascination for a pentagram and its funny looking back how important a symbol it has been to me. I've cast spells before, and have been surprised at the results. I've also played around with ouija boards quite a bit, something I will never do again.

A few years ago I got quite close to what I could only but describe as a coven. I left once I discovered the practicing of black magic and experienced some really weird stuff.

Your intent is the most important part of any spell casting, and that intent should be pure. You should also always perform a protection spell before you start and a cleansing spell once you are done. White sage is particularly good.

 

I basically worship a Mother and a Father, Morrigan & Lugh. I tend to be femme oriented in things, but I try to keep them balanced. Over the years, I've kind of peiced together my own beliefs & practices, as I felt like a lot of things "didn't fit". Now I've got a custom plaid blankie of beliefs and it works for me. I also do some tributes to Ishtar on occassion, but for the most part, I tend to stick to things Celtic and Germanic.

 

Pretty cool, thanks for sharing

If I'm remembering my Irish deities correctly, Morrigan is the triple goddess, right?

 

Yes, The Morrigan is often portrayed as a triple goddess.
She's a warrior mother, She is associated with freedom, prophecy, warriors and death/rebirth. She sometimes appears in the form of a raven or wolf. She is generally considered a war deity comparable with Valkyries although her association with cattle also suggests a role connected with fertility, wealth, and the land.

 

Lately I've been very interested in wiccan & the occult. Does anyone know where I should start?

 

i never really understood it. but almost every girl i've dated were into it

i wonder why its more of a girl thing?

 

belive it or not the best book i have found for beginers the pagan/wiccan for dummys give all the info you need in a way to understand.

im a pagan/wiccan marry meet and blessed be

 

I think it has to do with the fact that most other religions are patriarchal in nature. The only major religions I can think of who have anything to say, at all, about a Mother Goddess is Mormonism and mystical Judaism, and even then Mormons aren't supposed to pray or talk to her at all.

Chassidic Judaism, my faith, deals with Her a bit. But She is inseparable from God and is more just His "feminine" traits: mercy, kindness, beauty, etc. But She is not seen as separate from Him, because They are One.

If you look back through history, the earliest religions were always fertility cults, and as such were matriarchal. Then, with the advent of Zoroastrianism, the world slipped into a patriarchal set of beliefs, which we have not completely emerged from yet.

 

This is a good page to start:
A Pagan Primer -- For Those New to Paganism (The Cauldron: A Pagan Forum)

Expect to do a lot of research before making a decision, and remember that it's okay to adapt and evolve.

 

Yeah, I feel like it usually is a girl thing.