I have been doing a lot of spiritual research, thinking about spiritual matters and beliefs, soul searching, etc in the past 6 years. So far this is what I’ve come up with:
I am a blend of pantheism, paganism, and animism. I believe in respecting and revering nature. I believe that the universe is divine. I am in agreement with the philosophy of deep ecology “that the human species is a part of the Earth and not separate from it.” I am also very passionate about animal rights. I don’t worship gods or goddesses but respect others rights and desires to do so. I think that everyone has their own spiritual path to follow. For me, gods and goddesses are symbolic and serve to teach valuable lessons.
I like pantheism because it’s common sense. I’m a deep thinker, and I can’t commit to a certain belief unless there’s evidence, or unless I can really believe it wholeheartedly. I was raised in an evangelical/protestant christian home, but found that I had too many qualms with some central Christian beliefs and couldn’t belief blindly in all it teaches, even though it would have been the easy route to just believe in Jesus and angels and heaven. I had to deal with a lot of disappointment from family members (‘disappointment’ being a huge understatement) and for myself had to get over the fear of “hell” and the ‘devil” that was instilled in me since I was a little girl. But now that I’m over all that, I feel a lot better. I feel that I’ve grown spiritually and I know myself better, as well as feel more rooted to nature and more at home.
Pantheism makes sense to me, and I also like that it isn’t an “organized” religion consisting of ‘priests’ or ‘gurus’ that tell others what to think and do. It also holds true to the morals and beliefs that I already established for myself before I found out about pantheism, in my transition state between spiritual beliefs.
My creativity and imagination makes it hard to be a straight pantheist focused on philosophy and science. This is where paganism fits in, because they are both earth based spiritualities. I like to play with my spirituality and create rituals that make sense to me; whether it be a silent meditation, a song, a piece of art, a mindful observation, etc. This way it is more like a religion to me than a belief system. I also think that celebrating the equinoxes and solstices, and other celebrations of the pagan year are a good idea, because to me, it is equated with nature, life cycles, and our earth.
A central focus of paganism however, is magick. To me, magick is not of importance in my spirituality, but if I say I am a blend of paganism in beliefs, this question must be answered. so how do I view magic(k)? I think the mind is incredibly powerful, and it can influence the world around us. Our perceptions are powerful, and there is scientific evidence that our minds can influence our physical health, so if our minds can create a physical manifestation in our bodies, perhaps they may be also able to influence others, or accomplish other things that may seem “magical”. I also believe in souls, as our life essence,... a life force, maybe a conscious energy that allows the universe as a whole to work together, to live. I think that not only humans, but animals, and plants and trees have souls as well.. they are alive. I cannot explain exactly WHAT these souls are.. no one really knows, other than a large consensus of belief that souls exist, and that they are found in “life”. This is why it is utterly important for me to live my daily life in harmony with nature, with respect for human and animal rights, and practicing sustainable living.
...this summation of my spiritual beliefs as they stand so far does not mean my spiritual searching/journey is over. I think spiritual growth continues throughout ones life, and that I still have a lot to learn.
