Everything Under the Moon

I think to could be dealt with as "happiness," the notion of doubt. Am I, or am I not [insert word]... someone said he was a palaver. barker. :wink2:

are you using that word "palaver" as a noun or a verb? because neither make much sense.
BB, FF

This thread really struck a chord with me. For many years I was spiritually crippled by doubts and nay-saying from myself and other people. And yet I always came back around to wanting to do the thing I was doubting. I've journaled about it extensively, done umpteen divinations about it, and have managed to get past it for the most part at a rather glacial pace of evolution (there are always new things to doubt and throw under the beady gaze of critical analysis though I've found - I think it's just the way my mind works and it won't settle til I've looked at the thing from all angles and written careful notes, spreadsheets and such about it ha ha!)

Something I've found helpful however is to put a question I'm finding very difficult in my journal and then put it away and try to think of something else for a bit, or go for a walk, whatever. It's amazing how often an answer (or at least part of a one) will just come into my head, and it will help me get a little further forward anyway. Another thing is a Tarot deck I have called the Alchemy England deck which always shakes me out of an over-doubtful state of mind.The Heirophant in particular is a good antidote to doubt if it's gone too toxic and is starting to get in my way, as if to say "Are you just going to contemplate this damn thing til you're dead, or are you going to give it a try and see where it takes you?!" It always gives me the kick I need!

doubt -> conviction -> grace

I think this progression is something that all witches do know.

In fact, I am adamant that the unforgiving earth is only there to support the unconditional love of the forgiven true universe. In the true universe, one is not about to be self-forgotten as wrong, but rather - this is the doubt - to self-sustain as though permanently entitled to justice. Do you feel me? Well you do, what you do, what you do...

...Well...I may be a minority here when I say I don't believe Deities to be real flesh and blood (or energetic) sentient beings. ...I believe they are alive, in a sense, but I don't believe they're intelligent, sentient, self-aware entities of any kind, so I've found it's way easier for me to understand, relate with, and believe in the God and Goddess.

From what I understand, ancient pagans themselves had the same worldview; they may have written stories about their deities, but they all knew that they were mere personifications of much more divine forces of Nature.

Primitive humans saw the mighty waves crashing against the surf; the lightning splitting the sky, and volcanoes spewing forth fire and brimstone from the bowels of the Earth. In order to help make sense of and alleviate fears of these awesome forces, they decided to prescribe to each a deity; a God or Goddess. A deity that was in charge of streams, a deity that was in charge of the wind, etc. As the years passed, there became less deities in favor of the deities that were the most important; a God of the all-important Hunt for example. Back then hunting was a big deal during the winter, and most of the animals hunted had horns or antlers, so humanity imagined the God of Hunting as also being horned, thus was eventually born the Horned God of Hunting; a personification of a basic survivalist idea. It stood to reason that that if their were animals to be hunted then there must also be fertility for those animals, so eventually a Goddess of Nature and Fertility was used in conjunction with the Horned God of Hunting. It's thought that the Goddess of Nature reigns during the summer time, and the God of Hunting reigns during the winter time, but as with all things in life and all it's dualism, both the God and Goddess are a part of each other's "lives".

As time went on, wonderful stories were told of these allegorical personifications of nature. They helped pass the time, and helped get the children to sleep (and in the case of the scarier stories, it helped prevent the children from running off and getting mauled by a lion, or a tiger, or a bear; oh my! lol).

So...if you're trying to "work with a deity" and don't hear any response back, rest assured that's quite normal, because the deities aren't actually "real" in the sense that many seem to speak about them. If something DOES show up or starts talking to you, I'd be very very cautious of it, because I'm of the belief that whatever it is, it is NOT a god or goddess, and could quite possibly be a negative interdimensional being that's trying to prey on any perceived naivety in me, trying to trick me into thinking it's divine when really all it wants is my life-force lmao. XD

My suggestion: If you really need to get closer to deity, take up the hobby of Primitive Technology; head out into the woods and see how far you can get using only the elements of nature to sustain yourself. Live in harmony with Nature, and remind yourself once again that you are neither above or below it, but one with it, and a part of it, like any other maple leaf or roaring beast.

Oh...but seeing physical deities in dreams is perfectly fine lol. (It's when you see them as solid forms in real life while you are AWAKE that you should be a little worried lol). I've interacted with a Gaia-Like being in the Dreamspace as well as a cheerful Pan-Like creature in my dreams (seen a big red fiery demonic looking being once too that took me on an un-official tour of the underworld once too...that was a weird dream....more on that in a different thread lol.

But dreams are your own; based upon your experiences in the Waking world. Consequently if you indulge your conscious mind with stories of Mythology and Folkore, (LOVE it lol), then your subconscious mind will inevitably have dreams regarding those characters, and it can make for some pretty interesting dreams that can seem very real and vivid after mastering the art of Lucid Dreaming. XD

But make no mistake; this doesn't necessarily mean that the deities learned about are sentient lifeforms that speak perfect, fluent English in REAL LIFE lmao. It just means you've been doing a lot of reading and have a fantastic imagination. More than that though, your Higher Self will often choose these representations of deity in order to teach you something,or comfort you, or inspire you. Your higher self is just another name for the Superconscious Mind.

Everyone's brain works on three different levels, and it's best to imagine it like a car: The Conscious Mind is YOU, you're driving the car down the highway. The Subconscious Mind is the obnoxious little kid bouncing around in the back-seat, talking to you non-stop because she sees everything because she doesn't have to focus on the road like you do, the Conscious Mind. Hence, you often have to tune that little twerp out, but once in a while she may throw some good points your way, and also towards your Superconscious.

Your Superconscious Mind is like the wise old woman sitting in the passenger seat next to you. She's pretty mellow, and doesn't have a lot to say, but may occasionally point towards an old '50s diner and tell you, "Hey, let's pull over there for a bite to eat." only for you to discover upon walking inside that there's an old friend in the diner you haven't spoken with for years but have been wanting to get back in touch with. :wink2:

...Well...I may be a minority here when I say I don't believe Deities to be real flesh and blood (or energetic) sentient beings. ...I believe they are alive, in a sense, but I don't believe they're intelligent, sentient, self-aware entities of any kind, so I've found it's way easier for me to understand, relate with, and believe in the God and Goddess. ...

Hmm, maybe your concept is not such a minority belief as you might think. I’ve perceived a divine-field since I was a kid although I didn’t have a vocabulary to say it, and also have experienced deity as being comprised of all minds at once (the we of us), & as a separate-from-me other & manifest Being. I’ve had these different awarenesses coincide simultaneously as though The Presence shape-shifts as I move from one consciousness level to another in nano seconds. Each is a slightly different perspective of the same thing but seen from a different position. My perception is a result of the position I occupy at the moment in which I yield to the Divine. So for me a condition of continuous flux is normal. Trying to confine it into one form over another is exhausting. It doesn’t wish to go there — something like holding down balloons - pop ups happen. There’s probably a brain chemical that causes shifts in consciousness and perception of the invisible realities, stirred by a kundalini energy burst up the spine. But it doesn’t really matter, does it? The Divine just is & doesn’t conform to us, we conform to the Divine.

Reminds me of an interesting book I read; "The Divine Matrix: Bridging Time, Space, Miracles and Belief". It's kind of like a scientific take on spirituality lol. Really resonated with me.

Oh boy, Divine Matrix is in my to be read stack. It should be fun.

Oh boy, Divine Matrix is in my to be read stack. It should be fun.

For sure.

Oh, come to think of it, studying science, chemistry, biology, physics, and quantum mechanics are all great ways of overcoming doubt as well. First time something weird and unexplained happened to me I was all over it trying to dissect it and figure out how it was possible. The years long journey led me to witchcraft as hilarious as it may sound; hence I've come to see much of science and much of magic as one and the same.

"Miracle Mastery" by David DeBold is another fascinating read.