Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 24

What have you inherited from your ancestors?

This is a big question and I honestly had some difficulty figuring out where to start. I am the descendant of heroes and people who were born to rule. While some would scoff at this statement, I could produce a genealogy chart going back 14 generations where the noble blood is proven, and the heroes are scattered along the path like gemstones. As I was growing up, I was told about my illustrious ancestors. I was shown that genealogy chart as my grandmother traced the line back farther. I was shown pictures of people that we had photos of. In many ways, I grew up surrounded by the love of the lines that birthed me and my ancestors were familiar people to me.

When I look at the life I am leading today, I see the reverence for those who came before me as a very visible thread going back through the lineage. I see pride there as well. (In some of us, it was pride to the point of foolishness but it was still there.) I have inherited a level of relentlessness that some have declared intimidating. I suppose that comes with the warrior stock in my lineage. My love of knowledge and thirst for wisdom is very much a product of the educators that I am descendant from. I suspect it goes back farther then that, though it gets difficult to trace it back.

Aside from these personality traits, I can point at the actions of respect for my ancestors as part of my inheritance. While a shrine was not formally kept, pictures of all members of the family that we had access to were in my grandparents house and all of the children knew who they were. The hoarding of books and the celebration of the wisdom therein is a comparatively recent phenomena in my lineage (from about when books became easier to acquire in history).

The willingness and action to stand up for what we deem as right and just has been present for as far back as we can trace it. This manifests in different ways for each generation. In the Revolutionary War era, my ancestor Joseph Knight fought in the war for the revolution because he believed in the cause and that it was the correct thing to do. I have people who fought on both sides of the Civil War (US) that sincerely believed they were standing up for what was right. And then there is my great-grandfather's generation, who so vehemently opposed the actions of the Weimar Republic and the budding trends of antisemitic policy that he left his nation of birth to emigrate to the United States (coming from a family that started off financially relatively comfortable). He left towards the beginning of the Weimar Republic. I am sure that I have people who fought on either side of World War I. In my grandfather's generation, I am related to a hero who fought in the Battle of the Bulge, amongst others less well known. My brother continued this warrior heritage and served in the USMC for a period of time.

The more peaceable elements of my heritage lends themselves towards actions to care for the community I am in (because a great deal of charity and social activism is present) and actions to care for the environment (because I come from farmers who know how vitally important the health of the environment is). I also have ancestors who were people of deep faith. My paternal grandfather's grandfather was a renowned minister in the hinterlands of Michigan. The theme of building a rich spiritual life and keeping one's faith in their actions is perhaps as frequent in my ancestors as heroism, if not more so.

All of these things are traits and behaviors that I treasure. Partly because it forms a vital part of who I am and partly because they are the best of what my ancestors have handed down to me and what I keep in sacred trust for my children. It is my hope that this continues forward but if it happens that the line ends with my sons' generation, I sincerely believe it will end well because of the values that we have cherished and the deeds that we will have done.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Questions no. 22 & 23

What customs are associates with home and family in your tradition?

Some of the customs seem a little odd to people who visit me. I always strive to do my best to be hospitable to my guests. Among the things that I do, I always offer them food and drink. Some people think this is merely being a good hostess but it goes deeper then that. When the weather is inclement, I am prepared to give my guests what I have accessible in my home to provide them with warmth, shelter, and respite from the elements. When my guests are distraught or experiencing difficulty, I feel honor bound to give them what aid I can. This is not simply a case of being compassionate but rather, it is a duty that comes with my being mistress of my home.

I always work to make sure that there is at least one additional portion left from any meal that I prepare so that I can provide for any who come through my door. I feel duty bound to render aid to any who are struggling on the property that I live upon, when it is within my means to do so. As the lady of the house, I am bound to be gracious, helpful, and hospitable to any who come to my door, even people whom I despise. This is because hospitality is sacred. It forges and reinforces the bonds that keep society functioning.

I strive to keep my home tidy for more reasons then the fact that it is hygienic and practical. In maintaining a home that is at the very least orderly, I drive away malevolent influences that would take up residence in the chaos. It is for this reason that I keep a broom at my door. It drives away unwelcome visitors upon many different levels. I also keep a weapon at the door (an ash stave that is seasoned and a poplar stave that is not yet seasoned). I feel that I am the first line of defense of my home and that I am the doorwarder, in addition to the mistress of the house.

I keep a shrine for the beloved dead and regularly give offerings to them. It is placed in a prominent spot in my home to keep their presence with us. I make a point of using items that have been passed down through the family to keep those links to the past alive. This is because I feel that I am responsible for making sure that the line does not die out in memory, for the genetics part was looking dicey for a little while there. I keep up family traditions in the effort to pass on the wisdom of my ancestors to my children and to keep them alive in my actions. This is why I share old family jokes and keep little 'superstitions' going.

When did it dawn on you that the gods are real?

Honestly, it has never entered my mind that the gods were not real. Even when I found myself in a position where I was seriously challenging my beliefs, I have always known that the gods existed. It was very confusing to be a polytheist in a community of monotheists and I found it difficult to carry on conversations about faith with my peers when I was young. But, I have felt the influence of the gods in my life for as long as I have had the capacity to be aware of them, which started at a very young age.

Most 4 year olds don't think about the big questions of religion. It never occurred to me to question the validity of my experiences until I was older, but even then I questioned my ability to perceive the true nature of the situation rather then the cause of it. It was humbling and mildly disturbing when I learned that other people didn't have the experiences of the gods that I did. To learn that most people can not hear when the gods speak or that they didn't have moments when their awareness was flooded with something so completely different from what they were presently immersed in, it jarred me. That was when I started to question my perception.

It has taken me years to recover from that experience but there are times, like when I am severely depressed, that I question myself terribly. I struggle with accepting that the gods accept me as I am. I also struggle with the idea that the people around me do so as well. I have some major self confidence issues that I am still working on resolving (both at the direction of the gods and at the urging of my mental health providers).

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 20 & 21

Does your religion help you be a better human being?

I can say with all certainty that it does. When I find myself struggling to choose what is the proper action to take, what is the most compassionate of my choices, or what is the kindest of paths to follow, my faith guides me. It motivates me to assist others and to see the goodness in them. It encourages me to be an optimist, especially when life is at its hardest. My religion helps me to be courageous when I am struggling with terror. It helps me to be self reliant, but also willing to accept help when I am in need of it.

Most of all, my religion helps me along the path to self knowledge and self actualization. It encourages me to continue my quest to know the truth of the world and to be a force for positive change. I can see how I could do all these things on my own but my religion assists me in these actions and helps me to teach these positive things to my children. And I am firmly of the mind that I am here to leave the world a better place then it was when I was born, even if it is in some small way.

Have you ever had dreams or visions sent by the gods?

In a word, yes. At one point, someone described me as unhinged, but in a good way. God-bothered is a phrase that gets thrown around on a semi-regular basis. I have such dreams and visions on a regular basis. Some have brought me great comfort and others have challenged me significantly. And still others have confused me and left me wondering what their meaning might be.

Sometimes, I grow afraid of how much I am 'in tune' with the psychic elements of the world. I engage in reality testing to an almost vicious extent. I carefully examine my psychic input and probe its validity often. Some would say that I doubt this but it is less a case of doubt and more a matter of making certain that what I experience is truly psychic phenomena rather then wish fulfillment or signs of mental illness.

Having experienced psychosis, there is a distinct difference in tone and content between what is illness and what is truly psychic insight. At the same time, I struggle with times where I question the validity of my experiences. These lapses of faith usually come when I am in the midst of deep depression and my faith in myself has been severely shaken. I have no words for how thankful I am that the depression lifts and I find myself more fully able to believe in what I experience.

It is my goal to cultivate my faith in myself and what I experience so that even when I am in the grips of deep depression and the unhealthy thinking that comes with it, I will still be able to keep some semblance of that faith. It is, however, an ongoing task that takes a great deal of effort.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 19

How do you incorporate movement into your worship?

Moving meditation is probably the most common aspect of movement that I incorporate into how I worship. When the weather is warm and tolerable, I like to use walking meditation. When I am not able to go out for a walk, I strive to make my daily activities prayerful. This takes a significant amount of mental effort to remain both in a prayerful mindset and to be focused on my task at hand.

Some activities lend themselves to being prayerful better then others. I find that spinning (as in the act of making thread/yarn with a spindle) is very well attuned to this. I'm not yet at the point of having a similar sense in knitting, though I am beginning to experience it with crochet. Tasks that I can, to some extent, do on 'autopilot' serve well as something to help me quiet the mental noise of my anxiety and illness and frees up my mental energy to focus on other tasks.

A goal that I have for this calendar year is to become more physically active. Part of the reasoning for this goal is because I wish to be healthier. Another part of this reasoning is that physical health and activities that help me stay 'embodied' and focused on the sensations of being within my body are something that Freyr wants me to work on. Exercise and building up my physical health is a good way to do this.

Small physical movements, such passing prayer beads through my fingers, are a great deal like spinning. They work to quiet the mind because they are repetitive and they are active enough to keep me focused. While some people find that yoga or martial arts are great for entering into an altered state of consciousness, I'm not really in the physical shape for that level of activity, yet.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 18

What does fertility mean to you?

 The term fertility is defined as:

1.the state or quality of being fertile.

2.Biology. the ability to produce offspring; power of reproduction:

the amazing fertility of rabbits.

3.the birthrate of a population.

4.(of soil) the capacity to supply nutrients in proper amounts for plant growth when other factors are favorable.  (From Dictionary.com)

It colloquially has come to be associated with a state of increase or the ability to produce something (fertile imagination is the first example that comes to mind). Fertility has a lot of emotions tied to it and a lot of spiritual energy attached to it. Deities that are involved with fertility are commonly considered to be benevolent towards man, but I find that to be a case of observer bias. Fertility, as I understand it, extends from the traditional dictates of the definition to the creation of wealth and beyond. Fertility is, in my understanding, creation.


People frequently think of fertility as a positive thing and something that is desirable in their lives. People who are seeking to have children are usually the first ones that we think of when we touch upon the idea of fertility. But this potent spiritual force of generation is equally important to farmers who provide us with food, to anyone who produces goods, and bankers who keep our economic systems functional. When you seek to create something, fertility is what you are attempting to invoke.

Fertility, however, is not strictly a good thing. It can lead to overproduction. Situations where there is an overpopulation of deer, for example, lead to devastating ecological effects on a region and eventually starvation in the deer population. All of this came about because, among other factors, fertility. It is the same force that leads to the proliferation of dangerous technologies by way of fertile minds, fertile hands, and fertile economic conditions. Sometimes, it is better to seek to limit fertility or to seek to render something infertile.

It is my opinion that infertility falls under the same purview as fertility. While modern pagans romanticize fertility and view infertility as a tragedy to be remedied, I think that our ancestors understood the necessity for it. I'm somewhat new to being an active follower of a fertility deity (and I'm not entirely sure that follower is the best term but it's what I can come up with right now) but I don't think that my intuition is wrong on this front. I've seen the effects of excessive fertility in one area are on an ecosystem. And those effects are not pretty, they're actually fairly horrific to be honest.

I've felt the pain of struggling with fertility. As someone who had difficulty conceiving and carrying children, I have known the anguish of the prospect that I could not bear my own child. (And the agony of losing children due to miscarriage.) I try to take a pragmatic approach to fertility, which doesn't always work well with emotions. The qualities of generation that are embodied in fertility must be balanced by the rest of the system or it results in the destruction of the system as a whole. Somewhere, that balance comes from the inability to produce. While I understand the necessity of this, it doesn't make it easier.

Fertility, however, is not a 'feel good' thing. A lot of people want to paint it as such and that is really doing a disservice to this force of nature. People don't generally say that a stone being hard is good or bad with out context, but you find many who do that with fertility. So, I guess my position on fertility is that it is a double edged sword. It is something that one should invoke with caution and care because it is a force that has a mind of its own. Once you set something in motion, it will keep moving in what ever direction it is naturally inclined to move.

Fertility is like pushing a boulder. It may move in the direction you want it to, but it is going to have an impact on the entire area. If you're lucky, your impact is relatively controlled and localized, so that you don't disrupt the entire system. If you're really lucky, then your push of that proverbial boulder is something that encourages the welfare of the entire system. But, if you're not lucky, then you're going to create a problem somewhere down the line with your action, quite likely one you never would have anticipated.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 17

What qualities should a leader in your tradition possess?

1. Honor & Integrity

A leader in my faith tradition should be a person who holds to a high standard of behavior. They should be a person who is honorable in their actions. As an honorable person, they should respect and uphold the freedoms and rights of all life. They should keep their word when it is given and strive to do their best in all dealings.


2. Discernment

The ability to tell the difference between what is from the gods and what is created within the hearts and minds of humanity is very important. The ability to determine what is just versus what is considered to be proper by the prevailing social mores of where they are located is equally vital.

3. Wisdom

With discernment, deep intelligence and comprehension is necessary. This may manifest as a great deal of scholarly knowledge or it may manifest as a keen understanding of how things work on a more practical level. In either case, the wisdom to know when to act and when not to act is very important. There are times where one must keep their own counsel and others when they should reach out to the community around them.

4. Willingness to Learn

Along with wisdom, a leader in my faith tradition should have a willingness to learn. It is my firm belief that a living faith adapts and grows with its adherents. This requires the leaders of that faith to learn, grow, and change so that they may continue to lead adequately. Failure to do so serves only to limit the faith to a specific set of circumstances of a given time. As life progresses away from those circumstances and that point in time, the faith that does not grow and change becomes irrelevant.

5. Compassion & Mercy

Compassion and mercy are two things that we are called to by Dea. I think it something that is also encouraged by the other gods that I follow. Building relationships with the rest of the world, we find that compassion brings us to greater understanding. This is something that creates a harmonious world and one that is beneficial to people who practice the same faith that I do. In Filianism or Déanism, this state of harmony is called thamë. It is my understanding that thamë is the same as building frith between people and the world. Frith is preferable to conflict and unwholesome strife. (There is strife that is healthful and encourages us to grow.)

Mercy is the extension of compassion to those who are in need. It is something that should be given with out strings or conditions. It is a gift and a blessing. I think that the extension of mercy to those who are in need is perhaps one of the higher callings of humanity. That is, however, my personal opinion.


6. Clear sense of justice

Justice is that which brings the world back into a thamelic state. It is my understanding that we are called to address the evils of the world that humanity continues to perpetrate by all gods. While the path to justice is different for each case, I think that the gods want to see it done. A leader in my faith tradition should have a clear understanding of what is just so that they might guide others in their actions. This may include some form of social activism. It may be ancestor work and spiritual efforts to correct the harm that has been done by our predecessors. In either case, justice must be kept at the forefront of practice because it is a major part of being compassionate towards the world.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 16

What devotional goals have you set for yourself?

My devotional goals intersect heavily with my life goals, to be honest. First among them is to obtain a greater degree of health in body and mind. This may seem like an odd devotional goal but among the things that Freyr and Loki agree on is that I need to take charge of my health and well being. As such, I am working hard to manage my disability and my general health more effectively. It has its ups and downs, but for the most part I think I can say that it is probably the hardest of all my devotional goals.

Secondly, I aim to make daily prayer and devotional activities a priority. This can get a bit tricky between the challenges of being a stay at home mom and my efforts to start a career in writing. Fortunately, the gods are willing to let me develop this at my own pace. The challenge of balancing daily devotional acts (burning candles and incense, for example) with household maintenance when I am struggling due to my disability is rather difficult. Some days, I can hit all the targets on my list and do a little bit more. Most days, something falls by the wayside. The trick is prioritizing what I do and getting it done in that order. Because if I don't do that, important things (like paying the power bill) get forgotten.

The holidays make this extra difficult because I have the additional stress of managing out family social calendar, the acquisition and distribution of gifts, and compensating for the effects of the holiday excitement on my children's behavior. Again, prioritizing is a hugely important thing. Loki keeps poking me with proverbial sticks to remember to utilize the FLYLady techniques of household management. Sometimes, I have a period of time where I can manage things fairly well with out additional assistance. Then I become unwell or I get overburdened by what is going on and I find myself scrambling to keep my head above proverbial water. I found FLYLady to be a huge help, as long as I remember to keep it up.

My third devotional goal is to get back into the habit of making things for the gods. Last year, I made several shawls for the gods. I want to do this again and make a few more things. I have no idea what I am going to do with these things. I was going to sell them on Etsy but nothing took root there. I realized that Etsy wasn't going to be a viable option for me so I've got a small pile of shawls that are sitting in my project room waiting for homes.

My fourth devotional goal is to engage in more domestic arts that tie me to my foremothers. If I can manage it next year, I am going to learn how to do some canning. My Mother-in-law is talking about setting up a small garden for our household. While some flowers are definitely going to be planted, I am hoping to possibly grow some tomatoes and a few other vegetables. In doing the gardening (which I'm also going to attempt with some containers at home too), I will be connecting with my forefathers as well. (I come from a long line of farmers one the paternal side of the line.)

My fifth and final devotional goal is to continue my devotional writing. There are two books that I'm slowly accumulating material for and hopefully will get at least one of them done by next spring. There is this blog, which I hope to be making a bit more lively after the holidays have passed. It seems like much of my planning for this blog keeps getting eaten by off-line activities. This frustrates me mightily.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 15

What methods does your tradition employ for protection and warding off malign influences?

My big occult subjects of study are divination, necromancy, and protection magic. Honestly, I have no idea where to begin my answer to this question. There are so many different ways to approach this question. I suppose I should start with the simplest of the methods. That is prayer to the gods and angels for protection. (The angel/janya Vikhë is the one to whom I would pray if I were addressing angels.) In addition to praying to the gods and angelic beings for protection, I call upon my spiritual companions for their aid.

I suppose if you were being technical, you could say that when I call to my spiritual companions for aid, it is prayer. It feels different for me from addressing deities or angels. The best way to describe it is the spiritual companions are closer to me then most of the deities or the angels. Generally, I tend to save prayer as a final resort. That, however, is because I tend to be somewhat... thick headed and contrary when I encounter difficulties and try to bulldoze my way through it. I've been told it is one of my more endearing qualities, though I'm pretty sure that the gods have regularly facepalmed over it.

If I have reason to believe that someone or something has cast some sort of malign spell towards myself or my family, my first solution is to perform what I call a hex breaking. This is where I take three dried thorns and burn them. Sometimes I grind them into a powder so that they burn more rapidly. The choice as to if I will grind them into powder or not depends on how quickly I want my counterspell to manifest. Usually, I find that my existing defensive measures are enough of a buffer between myself and the malevolent spell that I don't need to go with a fast response. If I didn't have access to dried thorns, I would use three sharp slivers of wood. I'll talk in more detail about the hex breaking spell at another time.

I also would use a spell that reflects the malevolent spell back to the sender. I like mirror spells but sometimes they are difficult to do with small children around. I can't exactly have small glass baubles laying about where my kids can pick them up and run around the house with them. The mirror spell that I use most of the time requires one mirror and I can use it for a brief time before putting it away (obviously after cleansing and grounding the mirror). I do have one that I use which involves multiple mirrors. This one serves not only to redirect the spell but confuse the initial target of the spell, thus making the counter spell work to direct the main thrust of the harmful spell aside from me and then back to the sender. It packs a bit less 'punch' then the other mirror spell I use. It is, however, a very effective spell and works to make the chances of a second sending of a curse less likely.

I have a lot of other counter spells that I use but those two are the ones that I apply most of the time.That, however is not where the basis of my protection from malevolent spells and influences lie. The best defense is preparation for a possible harmful or malevolent incident. About my home, I have several protection spells that I refer to as 'wards' that take the spiritual energy that is cast at them and sinks it into the earth, dissipates it into the sky, reflects it back to the caster, or absorbs it and becomes stronger. In addition to the wards, I have magical energy sinks located at various points around my home that will ground any energy that is directed at them. Those energy sinks lie along the path of entrances into my home. I also have barriers placed across the entrances. Some are physical (like the row of cacti and houseplants on my window sills) and others are spiritual (iron across the threshold).

I have spiritual protection spells woven about my person and amulets that I wear that are enchanted for the purposes of protection (and preventing anxiety attacks). Obviously, wearing a holy symbol of one's faith can be a protective amulet if one's faith is sufficiently strong. It is one's faith that makes amulets and spells most effective. If you believe that the spell will work, then it will work better then if you don't believe it will. My protection spells, which I refer to as 'shields' are much like my wards. They have more layers to them then my wards and between them is something that I call the 'minefield'. Just as one can receive psychic input, one can transmit it.

My 'minefield' is woven with spiritual ties to my traumatic memories. When my spiritual attacker trips one of my 'mines' the traumatic memory is projected at them. I feel the sensation like a bit of energy leaving me in the direction of my spiritual attacker. I have yet to have someone progress past the first layer of my shields and minefield combination. This leads me to believe that it is an effective use of some very bad experiences in my life. Someone who has different experiences can lay different 'mines' about themselves. It could be crippling sensations of fear or a vivid experience of pain. Some negative emotion or experience can be used to dissuade someone from pushing further against your shields.

Now, obviously, there are elements to my spiritual defenses that I am not sharing for the reason that I do not want some wit to decide to test them. When sharing things like magical defenses with others, it is wise to keep some element up your sleeve with all but those whom you trust the most. Don't bandy about that you have built something like the spectral version of Fort Knox around yourself. Don't go looking for a 'witch war' to prove yourself in. It's like knowing a martial art. You don't advertise that you know it to prevent people from attacking you because they can or out of curiosity.

Also, like knowing a martial art, it is good to practice and regularly hone your skills. It means doing regular spiritual maintenance on your wards and shields. It means renewing the spells you cast to deflect malevolence and keeping in regular contact with your spiritual allies. Aside from keeping a healthy relationship with them, it makes it easier for you to call upon them in a crisis.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Questions No. 13 & 14

Have you ever found it difficult to uphold your end of a bargain with the gods?

Yes, I have and on a fairly regular basis. My disabilities get in the way of my devotional activities so much that I have times where I am tempted to just give up. I am thankful that the gods are patient with me. I have learned to negotiate time frames that are more friendly to what I am able to do. Sometimes, however, I find that I just can't do what I've agreed to.

It is a horrible, sickening feeling to fail. It has, on occasion, spawned a depressive episode or deepened on that I was in. I am careful not to promise more then what I can accomplish, but sometimes I over estimate what I can do. So far, the number of incidents where I have done that have been few and the one who has been hardest on me for the screw up has been myself. (It is a very odd experience to have a deity that you've just let down telling you to stop being so hard on yourself.)

What role does mystery play in your tradition?

There are so many things that can fall under the descriptor of 'mystery' that I've sort of lost count. The dichotomy of having a semi-monotheistic deity and a (seemingly) laundry list of deities from another pantheon in my life is one huge mystery right there. I can't say that the monotheists who follow my Lady are wrong but I can not say that the polytheists are wrong. One of the central tenants of my personal experience is that all gods are valid. How does that work? I have no flipping idea. But, everything I've experienced and seen points to that.

Within that context, I have the mysteries of Filianism to consider. Dea is three persons and one god. It is much like the trinitarian beliefs of Christianity. (With some obvious differences, like the deity in question is female, and some less obvious ones.) The angelic beings (also known as janyati) are not only eminations of Dea's presence but masks that she might wear to communicate with us. For this reason, she is described by some as having seven aspects that correspond with the seven archangels.

Another mystery of Filianism that is in my life is that of the sacred mythos of the Daughter. Because of the distance between all of existence and the Mother, the Daughter is born to bridge that gap and she does so through her life, death, and resurrection. There's a bit more to the story then that, but that is the core of it. There is no 'original sin' within this faith system, but rather a spiraling path that moves outward from the Dea and then back towards her, by way of the Daughter.

Outside of the mysteries of Filianism and the seemingly paradoxical faith in both a monotheistic faith system and a polytheistic one, there is Schrodinger's Loki (and Baldur, Hod, and various others). Loki is both bound and free. Baldur is both alive and in Hela's hall. The list goes on. Now, some may ask, what of Ragnarok? Well, it is yet to come, happening, and already happened all at the same time. It's part of that whole 'everything is true' with respect to religion thing.

I don't know how it works. So far, the gods have given me no indication that I am incorrect in this understanding. I'm pretty sure that they'll reveal to me what I need to know as time progresses. Gods are within and outside of time. That is a mystery. As a being that is bound by time, I have no possible way of comprehending things like what a god's perspective on the world is. It's like trying to see in three dimensions when we only have the capacity to see in two.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 12

What sort of festivals, memorials, or seasonable observances do you keep through out the year?

I honor early spring, when crocuses and other early spring plants come up. This is around the time of Imboleg/Luciad. I honor the goddess Brigid, whom I have had a long standing relationship with. For this celebration of light, I will bless the candles I have (including the electric ones). I am planning on introducing my children to the idea of Bride's Bed and making something sweet of the day as well.

On the 19th of February, I observe Moura Eve. I try to finish up whatever devotional tasks I have left to do for the spiritual year. If I am preparing a special project to do during the 'season' of Moura, I spend some time Moura Eve to get it ready. On the first day of Moura, I do a modified fast. While my taboo and my health concerns do not permit a full fast, I abstain from intoxicants and sweets this day. Generally, I keep the abstinence from sweets until the equinox.

The day that I get a reprieve is mid-Moura (March 5/4). This is a day where the restrictions of Moura are lifted to give believers a much needed rest from the austerity. Moura is a time of discipline, sacrifice, and purification. Mid-Moura is, in my mind, a quick breather so that we have the focus to continue on towards the end of this period that is often equated to the Christian Lent.

The last day of the spiritual year is Kala (March 19/19). Kala is a day of mourning for the Daughter. For in the mythos, Kala is the day that the Daughter dies. I cover my icons of the Daughter. It is my plan that for Kala and Hiatus, I will have a special headcovering that I wear only for that time (and times of mourning). It is still in the planning stages, but it is a goal that I'm working towards. I am also seriously considering fashioning a piece of mourning jewelery that I can wear during this period. Oh, I forgot to mention, but I also extinguish the candle that I have lit for Dea at this time.

Hiatus is the time between Kala and the vernal equinox (Eastre). Within the filianic faith, this is a time outside of time. Thus, I am under a taboo not to consider future events. It is considered a time when all worlds have ended. One of the things I meditate on during this period is Ragnarok. I abstain from doing divination during this period because I don't want to accidentally reach forward in time. It is a bit harder then it seems to think only of the present. I also try to spend Hiatus doing no unnecessary work. This means, I make my meal plans before Kala and put by what I need so that I can focus on each day in turn.

In late March, I observe the beginning of the agricultural year. While I haven't a plough to charm, I invoke Freyr's blessing over my meager garden and my gardening tools. I also ask him to bless my household with prosperity and health through the growing season. This is also Eastre, the day of the resurrection of the Daughter. I uncover my icons of the Daughter and put the cloths away into storage for next year. I will also ritually relight Dea's candle. I give my children sweets and do what I can to make the day pleasant.

On the first of May, I observe the exaltation of the Daughter. I also make something of a nod towards Beltaine. Having spent most of my spiritual life observing that holy day, I still feel a pull towards it. It is a day of fertility and great blessings. The summer solstice, I observe the feast of Rosa Mundi and Litha. I fall more heavily upon Rosa Mundi's side of the ledger. In either case, I focus upon celebrating the very essence of being alive. Following this, comes the first of the harvests.

When the first crops are harvested around here, I observe and give thanks for it. It usually happens around the time of Chelanya/Lughnassadh. I celebrate and give thanks as the harvest season progresses. When the autumnal equinox comes, I observe Cuivanya/Mabon. This is another, fuller harvest festival. For me, Chelanya is a celebration of the labor of taking in the harvest. Cuivanya is the celebration of the fruits of the harvest.

Tamala/Samhain comes next. It is a time where I focus upon my ancestors and those who have come before me. I also meditate upon Deam Mysterium. She who is the prime source and the destroyer of all existence is sometimes difficult for me to contemplate. But I strive to do so anyways because I feel it is important that all three aspects of Dea be honored. I also consider this to be the final of the harvest festivals (as this is when, in ancient times, the herds were culled). Through out all the harvest festivals, I meditate upon Freyr's sacrifice. It is particularly hard at Tamala because there is so many reminders of death around me.

I have begun to celebrate Advent (11/28-12/25) because I am finding it something that buoys my spirits during the darkness of winter. I also celebrate the winter solstice as Mother's Night/Yule. On the 25th of December is Nativity. My celebration of Nativity and Yule are much like most people's celebrations of Christmas. Except, I keep the celebration going between Yule and Nativity. This is the only time of year that I will play 'holiday' music. At the beginning of Advent, I start to put my decorations for the season. I have them all up around the time of the feast of Conception.

After Nativity, comes Sai Herthe's day. Sai Herthe is the angel of the home. I spend a bit of extra effort on cleaning up the house for this day and generally do my best to focus on the domestic aspects of my life. This sort of extends itself to Epiphany (which is also Distaff Day). On Eipiphany, I have a day of rest and celebration. This means my crock pot gets used and I avoid housework (which is hopefully completed from the previous few days of work).

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 11

What blocks to devotion have you had to overcome?

This is a painful subject for me. The biggest stumbling block for me is my disability. I have depressive episodes with crippling self-doubt and delusions of worthlessness. The utter despair that I feel when I am in that state keeps me from doing any of my devotional activities. Some days, it is a struggle to even get enough energy to be up, dressed, and putting the kids on the bus to school. Sadly, those days happen on a regular basis.

As you may have witnessed in my posting habits, there are weeks where I am unable to post. My writing in this blog is a devotional activity but sometimes life circumstances get in the way of it. Other times, I desire to write but I simply can not find the words. Of the two, I think the latter is the most miserable of experiences. It has on occasion moved me to tears.

I am exhorted by Freyr to maintain my physical health. This is perhaps just as hard, if not harder, then being active in my devotions when I am laboring under delusions of worthlessness. My social phobia has me just this side of housebound. It turns going out to go walking into a torturous experience because I am constantly struggling with the fear that someone is going to assault me. Exercising indoors is somewhat problematic because of the state of the apartment most of the time or small children deciding that is when they want to climb on me or demand my attention.

And then there is the element that is a crossroads between mental and physical health that is a particularly agonizing struggle for me when depressed. In my youth, I was borderline anorexic. I have struggled with this since elementary school. Making sure that I eat on a regular basis and that what I eat is healthy for me is very difficult. I think it is part of the reason why I am under the taboo to eat pork when it is offered, whereas many other people are under taboo to abstain from certain foods.

The other block I have to my devotional life is my responsibilities as a wife and mother. In a perfect world, I would be able to attend to all three seamlessly and with equal fervor. Unfortunately, it is too exhausting to even begin to attempt that. Having to juggle parenthood and my marriage with my spiritual life, I sometimes drop a ball. More often then not, it is the spiritual one. It is part of the reason why I haven't participated in formal worship in over a year.

I'd like to involve my children in my spiritual life but it is a tricky thing. Where I live, I don't have the luxury of a collection of like minded neighbors who would help me with their spiritual education. Sadly, there's a fair amount of hostility in my neighborhood towards people who are not Christian. This makes me fearful and pushes me to do my best to keep my beliefs as quiet as possible offline. Being the only pagan in the neighborhood is kinda scary. Add little people who are dependent on you for their welfare, and it becomes down right terrifying.

There are things I feel called to do that I don't dare attempt outside of my home because of the confluence of my illness born paranoia and social pressure. I feel called to veil in a style reminiscent to how Catholic nuns do. It is, however, something that I can't do with out getting suspicious looks if not harassment. People have a hard enough time with my wearing scarves in a tichel format. On the rare time I dare to wear one in the style most frequently known as hijab, I have encountered prejudice. I fear that such prejudice could lead to a physical altercation, thus I don't do it.

I wish that the blocks to devotion were things I could easily resolve. Sadly, they're a combination of neurochemical problems and social pressures that I can't change. Or the infamous lack of time in the course of the day.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 10

Have you encountered any obstacles as a result of your tradition?

 Oh boy, where do I start with this one? I have been a practicing witch since I was in junior high (now known as middle school, I suppose I'm getting old now). When I was younger, I was harassed. I was physically assaulted by my peers for it. I was verbally harassed to the point where I feared for my well being. At one point, a rumor became so vicious that I had students at the local college asking me (when I was 16) if I performed sexual acts for money.

When I was at college (an all women's Catholic university), I found a degree of acceptance that boggled my mind. While there was some nastiness that I encountered as one of the two openly pagan people on campus, it all came from students. The staff and instructors at the university were all exceptionally professional and even helped me in my efforts to deepen my understanding of my own faith. I owe a great deal to the School Sisters of Notre Dame and I believe I will always hold them in high regard. While there was the risk that I could have been deemed as behaving in a manner unbecoming of a student and been invited to leave, this never arose in any situations I was in. Campus ministry actually encouraged myself and the other pagan (who happened to be my best friend shortly after we met) to publicly practice our faiths and educate others about our beliefs.

I have had some members of my extended family take hostile positions with respect to my differences in matters of faith. At one point, I was told that my beliefs made me morally as suspect as abusive parents. Fortunately, this happened before I had children and there was no nonsense like a phone call to the department of social services over it. I don't talk to that relative except on the rare occasion we happen to be in the same area. Even then, I keep the topics on things like the weather. This attitude, however, was the reason why my Beloved and I had a civil ceremony when we got married rather then a handfasting. (And that was an adventure and a half of nonsense that I still wince when I think about it.)

Since I have been covering my head for religious reasons, I have encountered some friction from my neighbors. The ones who are immediately about me are tolerant but the ones in the larger community have had some unpleasant things to say. I confess with some disappointment, that I have refrained from wearing my scarves in certain styles because of the Islamophobic comments that have been made. While no one has physically threatened myself or my family, the memories of what I endured when I was younger makes me shy away from dealing people of that variety.

I have had people in local businesses become quite cold towards me when they see my pentacle. I don't wear it as much as I did in the past because I am concerned about people causing problems for my children over it. It has lead me to very carefully consider the question of religious jewelry for my sons. While I hope that their peers are more interested in if they are going to play with them rather then what religion they practice, I can not say the same for the adults around us.

Because we live in a relatively 'conservative' neighborhood in the hinterlands of Western New York, I take a cautious approach to who and how I discuss matters of faith off-line. It is not unknown for people who do not fit the white, Anglo-Saxon, protestant mold to be subject to considerable social pressure. The folks who are Catholic seem to get less pressure then non-Christians because they are Christian. (Though some of my neighbors take the attitude that they are sub-par Christians because they're not of a given protestant sect.) I suspect that it would be easier to be openly pagan in the city because of the element of anonymity that comes with such a large press of people.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 9

How does your tradition handle wrathful, savage, or destructive deities?

This is a question that I come at from two different approaches because of the fact that I practice a blended faith. Generally, I give the more savage and destructive deities fairly wide berth in my practices. It is a case of if I don't attract their attention, I find my life tends to go more smoothly. There are times, however, that the deities that I do work with will fall on the destructive, wrathful, or savage side of the ledger. (One of my patron deities is Loki, the Norse god of Chaos. He has his destructive times, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. If they are, they're trying to sell you something.)

When I encounter wrathful deities, my first approach is to question if anything I have done has caused their anger. I strive to clarify the reason for their wrath and do my best to learn what I might be able to do to rectify the problem. Deities don't walk around pissed off for no reason. Some of them may be more cranky then others but genuine anger/wrath usually happens for a reason. I work to learn what that reason is and then attempt to find a solution. I basically approach it the same way as I would if I encountered a person who was angry.

Savage deities are a particularly thorny challenge. (Yes, I just made a rune pun right there. I'll wait while you throw produce in various stages of decay.) I work to stay on their 'good' side. I'll give them offerings when it is asked for/demanded, if it is in my capacity to do so. When I am unable to give them offerings, I strive to negotiate some alternative that is fitting. It is however a hard thing to negotiate with a deity that may view you like a hungry person views a juicy steak. I find it is best to approach the situation as you would in handling a wild animal that has taken an interest in you.

Don't make any sudden movements, because they might pounce. Don't show fear, because they might pounce. And for the love of everything holy, make a point of doing what you can to be as inoffensive as possible. In some cases, that may mean running up the proverbial white flag and taking a submissive stance. In others, it may mean being prepared to do what you can to defend yourself. Mind you defending yourself from a deity is hard as fuck and you won't be successful 95% of the time. However, if they see that you are willing to take on that challenge, they might back off and give you enough room to maneuver yourself into a more favorable position. Because you have turned into the mouse that roared, which makes you briefly become something other then prey.

Destructive deities, I find, are different from wrathful and savage ones. Well, they might have more in common with the savages ones then the wrathful ones. I treat it like I would in dealing with a natural disaster. I have a proverbial bug out plan in place to ride out the worst of what I can imagine being thrown at me. I make preparations for the possibility that said deity might turn wrathful and I may need to make reparations. I do what I can to prepare for the potential that said deity will take an interest in me and be around for an extended period of time. Most of all, I do my best not to take the destructive business personally. Because, like a forest fire, the destructive deities don't generally care if I'm in their path when they're going somewhere. So, I do what I can to stay out of their way.

When they do take an interest in me, I attempt to divine why that is and what they're trying to teach me. Sometimes it is a case of remembering to stay down after getting my butt kicked. In other cases, there is something that needs removed out of my life/sphere of influence and no matter how much I may kick and scream, I can't prevent it. I try to accept that destruction is the flip side of creation. Some days it is easier to keep that in mind then others.

There are times where I will give offerings in the hopes that the destructive, savage, or wrathful deities will leave me and mine alone. It's been a hit or miss situation on that one. Sometimes they'll take the offering as intended and let us be. Others, they completely ignore it and do whatever they had planned to begin with. And then there are the times where it has the unintended consequence of attracting their attention. When I manage that last one, I basically apologize for wasting their time and hunker down to bear what ever they're going to do. Fortunately, the apology for wasting their time has gone over fairly smoothly thus far. Of course, my mentioning it now might have just jinxed that lucky streak.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 8

What methods of altering consciousness does your tradition have?

The most commonly used method is that of hypnotic trance induction. Along with the fairly basic hypnotic trance induction, I have used chanting, rocking back and forth, and rhythmic movement (such as passing a set of prayer beads through my fingers). Most commonly, I use a few different techniques at the same time. Generally, my altered consciousness states are used in meditation.

I don't do as much spellcraft as I did before. I have found that my uses for spellcraft have become more specialized then what they were in the past. I do, however, spend time in an altered state of consciousness listening for the gods and what they might have to impart to me on a given day. The habitual entrance of a trance state has made it easier for me to achieve it. I have developed a set of visual and tactile cues that 'drop' me into a trance state.

Certain scents do this to me as well. These are listed below. There seems to be some sort of established history of these scents inducing trance state. I don't know if this is due to the scent itself or if it is due to the very strong correlation between the scent and trance priming the mind for the state. While I'd like to try using some herbal methods of trance induction, concerns about how they would react with my medications has stopped me. (And that herb that people like to talk about inducing trance, I start wheezing when I get around the stuff so even if it were legal I wouldn't have that option.)

Scents that induce trance for me:

• Sandalwood
• Frankincense
• Myrrh
• Dragon's blood
• Pine 
• Cedar

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 7

What offerings do you make in your tradition and why?

The offerings that I make fall just about everywhere on the spectrum. The ones I give to Dea are those of works, flowers, and devotional writing. (This blog is amongst my devotional writings for Dea's sake.) Those I give to the Norse deities range much wider. For Freyr, I give my writing and personal energy. The writing is something he has requested of me and the personal energy is something that has felt correct to give intuitively. Loki asks for random things and when they are within my capacity to give them to him, I do. I give Odin regular offerings of hard liquor, which he seems to approve of and enjoy.


I am still building my relationships with the other Æsir, Vanir, and Jotnar. As these deities (and yes, I am one of those scandalous people who consider the Jotnar deities in their own right) make requests of offerings, I will do my best to provide them. Some of my offerings that I give fall in line with some traditional ones, like Odin's hard liquor or Dea's flowers. These are my recognition of traditional practices that have come before me.

Others are my filling the requests of the gods (such as Loki's regular morning cup of coffee, recently it has been a demitasse of espresso). I have found that several of my offerings resonate with those of other modern followers of these gods. (The shared PG¹ of many of Loki's followers is that he enjoys coffee, to continue my earlier example.) It leads me to believe that these offerings are something that are not only requested of myself but perhaps many, many other followers and will eventually become accepted as a modern standard offering.

The third reason for giving offerings is because I have a desire to give the gods gifts to express my esteem and devotion. The things that currently fall under this heading is the semi-regular offering of incense for Odin, random crocheted prayer items for various gods, and devotional writing for Dea. The way I see it, the gods have given me so much good in my life, I am obligated to some extent to give gifts back to them. I am also someone who firmly believes in giving gifts to those people in my life who I care for. This also extends to the gods.

On occasion, I do give votive offerings. They are generally given at the time of the request. The offering is presented with a written request of the gods which I also say aloud. Ideally, I would burn the slips of paper that the requests are written on after they have been filled. My living situation doesn't allow for me to do so, thus I destroy them by hand and put them into my recycling.

And there are the offerings that I give as a continuation of how I was 'raised' within the pagan world. At harvest time, I give a portion of the first fruits of my harvest to the gods. I regularly burn candles for the gods as well. When I have it, I will give offerings of bread and wine to them also. All of this reflects the Wiccan tradition that I was trained in. The gods seem to approve of these offerings, thus I continue to give them on a regular basis.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
1. PG stands for personal gnosis.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 6

What does it feel like when one receives inspiration from the gods?

 Ecstasy just is not a strong enough word for it. It feels as though I am drowning in light. It feels as though I am caught in a roaring river and getting carried away by the irresistible force. It is like listening to the most perfect strain of music ever fashioned played flawlessly by the greatest of performers to have ever lived.

I am failing to express this sensation. It is like looking into the Sun, though curiously painless and you do not come away injured. When moved to speak, I feel it heavy on my tongue like honey and it pours out my mouth like water. It is like when you encounter something so beautiful and awe-full that you are moved to weep before it.

The description of the 'touch' of the gods as being like fire is also adequate. It burns away everything else from your senses leaving only that sensation there for you to focus on. And you can not help but focus on it because it is utterly entrancing. Paradoxical descriptions and heavy poetry are all weak ways to describe it. Unfortunately, feeble words are all we have for this because nothing in this world is like it. There are moments that begin to echo something of the qualities it has but they're nothing more then an echo of it.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 5

If you could travel anywhere on pilgrimage, where would it be and why?

This is a question that I honestly have no idea how to answer. A part of me says I would be delighted to go to Uppsala and to walk that sacred ground. Another part of me says I should visit the modern shrine to Freyr that I read about a few years ago where they keep horses in his honor. (It is odd that I clearly recall reading about this place and now I can not find their webpage. I hope that they are still about that business as the world needs more holy places recognized for the various religions in it.)

And then there are the countless holy sites associated with the various manifestations of Dea. The idea of visiting places like Lourdes where the Blessed Mother has been seen sounds very tempting to me as well. A part of me fancies that it would be a lovely thing to catch even an echo of that glorious moment. The idea of going to these places and walking the ground, getting some kind of attachment to the place sounds quite pleasing to me.

More likely, however, I would go visit the places where my family came from. I feel a deep sense of importance to knowing where I come from. Part of this comes out of the fact that I was raised with a good deal of pride in my heritage. Part of this also comes from the fact that I walk with one foot in this world and one foot in the other. Going to places that allow me to learn more of those who came before me makes it easier for me to work with the dead.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question No. 4

What are some ways you communicate with the gods?

This is an interesting question. As Rumi wrote, There are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the ground; there are a thousand ways to go home again. The essence of this quote is that there are many, many ways to pray and establish your relationship with the Divine. As an amateur artist, I use my artwork as a vehicle to communicate with the gods. More often, I pray while I am doing crochet, but I have made devotional paintings as well. As I am working on a piece, I meditate upon what I wish to communicate to the gods and work to incorporate the essence of the prayer into what I am crafting.

I will speak or write down my prayers as well. Some of this comes out in prose, like what I pen in my prayer journals. (I keep three. One for Freyr, one for Loki, and one for Dea. Loki is the one who got me started writing in the journals on a daily basis.) The tone of my prose prayers come out more like letters to the gods. Usually, they are expressions of gratitude and what things are presently on my mind. Frequently, my prayer journals read like letters to dear friends where I share things that I feel are important and of strong emotional influence on my life.

There are times, however, where my prayers come out in more poetic language. The prayers to Dea are most frequently in blank verse poetry. It was from these prayers that I assembled my little book. My spontaneous spoken prayers tend to be blank verse couplets, though there have been times where I accidentally used some complicated rhyming schemes. (It's made things a wee bit frustrating to later record when I can't recall exactly what I said at the time.)

I also do my best to make my daily activities prayerful ones. I was inspired to do this upon reading the autobiographical writings of St. Thérèse of Lisieux where she spoke of her Little Way. I strive to take even the least of my actions and dedicate them to the gods. Some days, this is very difficult to do. Distractions and emotional tumult that comes with bipolar disorder makes it very hard to remain so focused on the Divine. The hardest of all the tasks that I attempt in honor of the gods is forgiving myself of my all to human flaws and resisting the effects of my illnesses.

When I am not actively engaged in prayer, I find a measure of comfort and communion with the gods by way of reading and listening to the works of others. I am especially moved by those of the Beguines and St. Hildegarde of Bingen. It seems odd that the works of medieval Christian women are what speak strongest to me, but their comprehension of divine love rings so very true for me. It becomes a passive means by which I might open myself to the gods and align myself with their will.

In many ways, that is the goal of my prayer life. While I do not seek to renounce the world, for it is filled with wonders and I firmly believe that only a small population of the world is called to renounce it for purely spiritual pursuits. I seek, however, to bring myself into greater alignment with the gods because in every instance I have attempted to do so, good things have come into my life. In my effort to clarify my place with the gods and my role in the world, I depend heavily upon prayer and meditation. I suppose one could say that this is the fruit of my fascination with medieval European culture. What ever the cause of it, these things form the core of my spiritual life and are the means by which I express myself to the gods.

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question # 3

How have the gods helped you in times of violent upheaval and adversity?

In many ways, this question is an expansion upon what I have previously written. I wish I could say that the adversity that I describe in that post was the extent of what I could relate as to how the gods have helped me but my life is not blessed in that fashion. As I look back over the years, I find myself at something of a loss for where to start the list of incidents that the gods have helped me. I think it is better to give the common themes of how their help has manifested in my life.

During times of psychological illness, the gods have been the constant source of hope and encouragement. Loki has been especially helpful to me over the last five years. He arranges happy accidents where I have just the right thing land in my lap, even in the darkest of times. Flamehair has also been very active in my dreams and via psychic activity, giving me advice and encouragement when I am at my best or worst. When things are especially bad, he has gone so far as to giving me direct messages by way of chance encounters, which looking back I realize they weren't as 'chance' as I thought they were.

A good example of this was during one of my recent depressive episodes. In the grips of powerful despair, I found myself seriously considering giving up my dream of making a living as an author. I even found myself considering giving up on my blogs and journal writing. Not three days after I was considering this, I was out washing laundry. I stopped in the store next door to purchase a beverage when I very nearly ran into a man wearing a shirt that struck me like a blow to the gut. The text on his black shirt was in white and a very large font, something that I could not possibly miss. It read "Are you really thinking about giving up on your dreams?" It was a powerful reminder that the depressive episode was temporary and that letting it drive me away from my life long dreams and passion for writing was a terrible decision to make.

During times of physical illness, the gods have mitigated the extent of my illness and in one instance, I honestly believe prevented me from dying. I was pregnant with my eldest son and I had been having what I thought was problems with bad gas pains from shortly before the pregnancy test came back positive. Assuming that these 'gas pains' were just a symptom of pregnancy like the nausea of morning sickness, I didn't pay it any mind. Then, one day before I went into work I was in terrible pain to the point where I couldn't stand upright. We rushed to the doctor who then sent me on to the hospital. It was determined that I had appendicitis. Things happened in such a fashion that I had surgery to take my appendix out. It was highly inflamed and signs indicated that I had been dealing with appendicitis for months before it reached a crisis point.

When my husband and I faced difficulties that threatened the integrity of our family, the gods helped to mitigate the impact of the events. I also firmly believe that it was by way of the gods that the positive things that came out of that period of time came in to our lives. While much can be said for the support systems we had in place from our extended family, a good deal of the situation was in the hands of others who could have just as easily made decisions that would have devastated my household. It is my belief that the gods swayed those people to make decisions in our favor.

In all three varieties of adversity, the gods have provided us with opportunities to make good of the situation, endure the difficulties, and aid to lessen the severity of the troubles we face. I think that they prevent a good deal of trouble from coming to our doorstep as well. From narrowly escaping disastrous car accidents to having just the emergency funds arrive when we need them, I believe that the gods take an active part in helping us avoid just as much trouble as they help us endure it. 

Devotional Polytheist Meme Question: 2

How does your tradition increase the power and flow of blessings?

Prayers and petitions to the Divine for the increase of blessings is a frequent part of practices in my faith. Votive offerings are made to the gods with the request of their aid in matters. Prayers and offerings, however, should not be given only in times of need. This would be like calling on someone who you are associated with only when you wanted something from them. Eventually, the person will get sick of this treatment and stop responding to you. The same holds true with the gods, in my experience.

As such, I make prayer and devotional activities a daily thing. With two small children, I can not do anything too lavish most of the time. I keep a prayer journal wherein I talk with the gods about the things going on in my life and that which I appreciate. Gratitude and a conscious expression of it is a big way to increase the blessings one has in their life. I try to make sure that every note in my prayer journal is including at least one thing that I am thankful for.

I also work to appreciate the 'mundane' blessings that I have in my life. The ability to see the good in what we have around us right now makes it easier to see the good that comes to us unexpectedly. I work to maintain an optimistic and hopeful approach to life, which is very difficult to do when in the grips of depressive episodes or highly stressful life events. This optimism and hopefulness is a powerful way to draw positive things to you. By reorienting your mental state to one that is focused on the blessings you have, you draw greater blessings to you.