ellen@ucla-cs.UUCP (12/04/84)
regarding different methods/goals of meditation, prayer, & fasting:
interesting question, i sure hope it opens some interesting
discussion. i will start by saying that there is no entirely
rational way to justify my beliefs, so please no scientific arguments.
there are occultists, magicians who do feel that their methods
are scientific; i don't doubt them, but i'm not one of them.
i don't fast, because i don't believe that punishing the body
is the way to spiritual attainment. certainly correct eating
is important, and using herbs for purification purposes has a
place in my practice. the Buddha was opposed to corporal suffering
as a way to attain buddhahood. i'm not a Buddhist now, but i
think that he was correct here.
i don't pray. as all aspects of the Goddess and the Horned One
are manifest IN each of us, it doesn't seem to me that there is a
reason to pray to some-one/thing OUTside of me. i do use meditation
and ritual to help me focus on spiritual energy within myself
and utilize it.
i have an altar at home. i had one & used it as a meditational
focus long before my pagan awakening, but the forms & symbolism
are more developed now. the images are personally meaningful
to me, not images dictated by someone else, thus much stronger
than an externally determined "right" form.
one can develop one's own rituals; there is a creative element
here! i light candles, the colors of which are quite specific
to my intent, and burn incenses, also carefully chosen. this is
not because i believe that these things will DIRECTLY magically
control or influence situations (tho' there are those who believe
so; let them explain themselves, don't ask me). but i do feel
that it helps me, whether psychologically, subconsciously, or
spiritually.
i read many different types of books not only in occult/mystical/
religious & metaphysical areas, but physics (popularized, i confess),
anthropology, art history, aesthetics, geography (which includes
systems humans have devised for living with (or despite) nature),
psychology, nutrition, philosophy, science fiction, "real literature",
&c. based on these, i determine what ideas & symbols i want to
use. i don't adhere to a rigid doctrine. i may play taped music
or sing, to further guide my meditation or visualization. sometimes
i eat or drink specially selected foods (i know it's not unique
to me), dance or make ritual gestures (also true of other religions;
Balinese Hinduism comes to mind as a contemporary example). thus,
it is a way which feeds ALL my senses and directs them, not a way
which tells me to turn off all or parts of my system, or that some
part of me is bad, evil, nasty. i feel energized & motivated;
i look forward to reasons to celebrate the Goddess and the Horned
One in me, in others, in the world, and in the universe.
sometimes, i pick a particular passage in a book or a poem into
which to project my mind/psyche during the meditation/visualization,
as a place/way to learn something which i might not in a purely
"realistic," "this-world" setting. i also use tarot cards to
guide meditations, or will contemplate a particular lay-out or
reading that i have done. i do not use it as a means to predict
the future (as i said previously, i am agnostic toward psi-phenomena),
but as a way to rethink problems or questions i have. so, i am
not always meditating/focusing on a purely spiritual point, but
may use these sessions to concentrate my energy on a purely
"material" problem, since i do not see these areas as strictly
separate, but as intrinsically, inextricably linked.
these are ways of delving deep into the subconscious, in which
is buried much information, some of which is more than merely
personal, although i would not go so far to state that it is
universal. the images i choose come from many cultures, European,
Native American (North & South), African, South Asian, East Asian,
Southeast Asian. i am working on approaching Middle Eastern images,
which is harder for me as i have some blocks against both my original
Jewish heritage & Islam (patriarchal, patronizing, woman-lowering or
even denigrating) ("thank g_d i was not born a woman."). but there
were cultures in that area long before Moses & Mohammed, vestiges of
which still remain and which have something to teach us. (a passage
in the old T. says, in the original Hebrew or Aramaic (i don't read it,
but a friend of mine who does told me, and she's a devout Jew and not
a feminist), "g_d the MANY-BREASTED," and there is a multiple-breasted
form of the Goddess from the Middle East.)
of course, i study ancient mythology for stories & images, not all
female, but male as well, which reach back before the patriarchal
structures took over and relegated the Goddess to a minimal, a non-
existant, or even an evil role. i do not necessarily subscribe to
the feminist view that at first there was worship only of The Mother,
but she was certainly of PRIMARY importance; since the defacing by
male-primary religions, there are no female divinities or prophets
having leading positions today. (yes, there are some women in high
spiritual places, but as in so many other situations, there are far
more men, & often what women there are have to struggle against a
male-biased structure (women as priests and rabbis(!?)) and the
"great" historical teachers have all been men. during the primacy
of the Goddess, men were not denigrated nor their spirituality
denied. men had access to the Goddess, and were considered her
sons & lovers. the Blessed Virgin Mary, is DEFINITELY an aspect of
the Goddess, but within X-ianity she is only a passive receptacle.
of course, she is being reclaimed, for the story of the virgin who
gives birth to a son who dies a sacrificial death for the sins/failings
of humankind is repeated over and over again in religions all over
the world and is far, far older than X-ianity. and then there's Eve,
the first Mother in the bible, who is reviled as the cause of all
man's woes, and therefore all women are considered to be just like
her. (not MY belief, but promulgated by the Church (which one? just
pick one, any one) for a couple thousand years, and still believed
by some X-ians.) her story is again a very ancient story of the
Goddess manifest, who feeds man the fruit of the tree of knowledge
and of ever-lasting life. what a blessing! but again, the patriarchal
monotheists had to discredit Her by turning her GIFT into a SIN!
(no, i don't mean Sin the fire god of SINai, who appeared to Moses;
after all, he was only one of many goddesses and gods of the Hebrews.)
through my practices, i reaffirm the spiritual validity of the
nature of Woman through the Goddess, and of all her children.
i am also a member of a larger group (in this case, 6 to 8 people)
which meets for special occasions (moons, cross-quarter holidays,
Solstices & Equinoxes, and social get-togethers). it's the first
time i have felt really comfortable joining a group. rituals are
like group meditations. there can be a tremendous amount of very
positive energy generated, focused, and directed. many of our rituals
are for purposes not strictly personal, such as healing the earth
and helping the human race. we also network with other Witches
and Pagans of various "flavors," to share energy and knowledge,
and help each other, especially in the face of religious prejudice
and misunderstanding (hatred and violence is actually more like it).
many different kinds of groups get together for regional, national
and even some international celebrations. viva variety!
viva the Goddess, in ALL her many guises.steiny@scc.UUCP (Don Steiny) (12/05/84)
** > there are no female divinities or prophets > having leading positions today. the author of this line went on to point out that this rule is not absolute. Of interest: "Buddhism had by now [4th century] spread well beyone the frontiers of India, into central AsZJ China, and south-east Asia. In India, the *Mahayana* branch had practically driven out the *Hinayana* except in a few restricted areas. The fifth century saw the coming of a new and curious cult which began with the worship of female deities, associated with the fertility cult; they became the nuculeus of a number of magical rites which in a later form are called Tantricism. Buddhism was influenced by *Tantric* rites, and in the seventh century A.D. a new branch of Buddhism emerged with its centre in eastern India called *Vajrayana* (Thunderbolt Vehical) Buddhism. The *Vajrayana* Buddhists gave female counterparts to the existing male figures of the Buddhist pantheon, and these counterparts were termed Taras (or Saviouresses). The cult of Taras remains prevalent in Nepal and Tibet. A History of India Romila Thapar Penguin Books, 1966 pps 159-160 -- scc!steiny Don Steiny - Personetics @ (408) 425-0382 109 Torrey Pine Terr. Santa Cruz, Calif. 95060 ihnp4!pesnta -\ fortune!idsvax -> scc!steiny ucbvax!twg -/
amra@ihuxj.UUCP (Steven L. Aldrich) (12/06/84)
Ellen, Thanks for a wonderful follow-up to my posting. I am interested to hear more about your beliefs/practices/philosophy(ies) if you wouldn't mind sending them. I am a Zen-Baptist personally but am interested to "listen" to others concerning their beliefs. To me there are numerous cases of religious "harmony" between supposedly opposing religions. I'd like to clarify something though if I may. When I spoke of "Fasting" I was neither condoning nor condemning the practice. I have heard/read about others who do though and was curious to know what they felt about such practices. Also, a person can "Fast" in many different ways, such as going without eating meat for a certain period of time or something of similiar nature. I believe there is some "symbolic" meaning in these practices. I don't personally practice "fasting" or otherwise punish my body either. By and large, I found your posting of great interest and was well worth the time to read! Thanks Again.......... Peace & Best Wishes, Steve Aldrich (ihnp4!ihuxj!amra) P.S. You're the 2nd person to respond to this.