Book review: Paganism An Introduction To Earth Centered Religions by River Higginbotham

Most pagan primers jump right into the seasonal calendar, Celtic strands, pentagrams, spell casting and the like. True to form, this offers a judicious overview of the calendar and the general characteristics and essentials of Paganism as the Higginbothams see it interconnectedness and blessedness. To their credit, though, the authors have crafted a very different kind of book, one of great spiritual depth that could be of genuine and lasting service to anyone who is interested in sorting out the whats and whys of belief. Early on, they outline the "big tent" of Paganism that shelters a dozen or more passageways (Wicca, Druidism, Shamanism, Santer?a, etc.), comparing it to Christianity and its popular denominations (Methodist, Roman Catholic, etc.). Throughout, they employ calm and rational prose that seeks not to proselytize as much as to aid discernment, making good on the authors' claim that, "Whether or not you decide to be a Pagan once you finish [the book] is not as important as providing you with tools to help you identify your values and goals." The seven chapters are nicely paced with illustrations, diagrams, visualization exercises, discussion points and journal prompts, all of which can be used by individuals or groups. The authors tackle the charge of Satanism head-on with success, but even more progressively (and clearly) they weave new discoveries in physics into the life fabric of belief and action. The final chapter explores ethics, and similar to the others, serves the broadest common good.

The founders of both a pagan church and the Council for Alternative Spiritual Traditions, the Higginbothams here offer an overview of the belief systems comprising neopaganism. Included in the discussion are Wicca, Shamanism, Asatru, Celtic traditionalism, Druidism, Santeria, Voodoo, and other forms prevalent in paganism today. The authors proceed from central concepts of interconnectedness and blessedness, to a definition of neopaganism and a discussion of personal responsibility for one's beliefs, to concepts of Deity, Satan, the living universe, "magick," and ethics. The format is similar to that of many self-help books, with text, diagrams, discussion questions, and meditation exercises. This clear, rational, and sympathetic introduction to neopaganism for nonpagans will be helpful to all readers interested in exploring their spirituality. This first book by the Higginbothams complements existing introductions, such as Margot Adler's Drawing Down the Moon and Graham Harvey's Contemporary Paganism: Listening People, Speaking Earth, at least one of which libraries should already have. Recommended for public and undergraduate libraries and for religion collections.

This book goes in two directions. First is a very good overview of many of the different groups that are under general Paganism. Explored are the basic philosophies and beliefs of Druids, Wiccans, Asatru, shamanism, magic, general paganism and all the various offshoots. There is a good section on many of the various paths under that 'umbrella'. There are many theories that have given rise to the modern pagan movement that are explored as well. There is discussion on what makes the pagan paths different from other world religions and discusses beliefs and practices as well as myths and misinformation.

The second direction of this book is a basic handbook on the practices of many of the different beliefs. From the Wheel of the Year to connecting with personal Deity to individual responsibility, the book reads as a guide to incorporating many of the philosophies and basic Tenets of these beliefs into your own life. Ethics are also discussed throughout the book and there is a good chapter on Ethics and Personal Responsibility.

The book also has 'aids', or subsections that allow the reader to absorb or digest the material in the book, encouraging the reader to think about the material, add it to their journals for further research, discuss with others or question for themselves. This gives the book more of a handbook feeling.

There are good notes for each chapter, a glossary and an excellent bibliography that allow the reader to pursue those things they may find they want to explore further. There is also an index for easy reference. There is much information in this book that is worth looking over. If you are unfamiliar with Paganism in general, this is a good primer. If you are looking to expand your base of knowledge on Paganism, this book offers a good overview. And if you are looking for a good basic handbook, while there are many specific to the various paths, this book would make a good overall view for those who are looking at the various paths and need a guide or are looking at paganism in general for their path.

Find River Higginbotham's book in amazon.com:
Paganism An Introduction To Earth Centered Religions
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you will need:
fire
rosehips
a red paper heart

Write your name and the name of the person you wish to love you upon the
red paper heart. Build a fire, and when the flames are at their fullest
throw in the rosehips. Concentrate and picture the person in the fire, and
then say:

God and goddess, I appeal to you
From fire's breath and love anew
Roses offered through the flames divine
Take (name of person)'s heart and make it mine!

Hold the paper heart to your heart, and then throw it into the fire. Watch
it burn to ashes, and then close the spell:

God and goddess, your help I seek
To turn aside emotions weak
And help true love bind me to this,
I seal my spell with passion's kiss!

As an ending to this ritual, for love is a dangerous thing to play with,
you might consider adding "and if it is not for the good of all, may my
spell not come to pass."
Blessed be.

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DEALING WITH PSYCHIC ATTACK
Zhahai Stewart

What to do if you think you are being attacked.

1 - Question if it is really either imagination, or coming from within yourself.
Something may be trying to get your attention, but it may not be external, and
by focusing on an external "enemy" you may be missing the point.

2 - Check to see if you are yourself inadvertently sending something out; maybe
someone is just reflecting some energy back! Nothing is gained if you get into
adversarial mode in that case. Many people have been taught that reflecting is
the proper response.

3 - Put up a grounding shield. Ground it out, send it to the Mothr who can
recycle the energy. Grounding is usually taught to every student. If you don't
feel you can be a "conduit" safely, ground it by reflecting it downward to the
Earth; that is a big target and easy to hit. By grounding it out, you are
protecting yourself, yet not being caught up in it.

What not to do.

1 - Figure out who is sending it and counter attack. You might be wrong, and
may be starting a feud. You might be right, but they may not realize that they
are "sending" so you may start a feud or cause unnecessary harm. Even if you are
right, you are escalating a feud, of which we have too many. This is commonly
discussed as a bad idea.

2 - Put up a reflective shield which will return the energy to the sender. This
is commonly discussed as a good idea, but we disagree. We think this is unwise.

For one thing, it is not necessary; if you can make an accurate return
reflection, you can certainly reflect it to Earth instead (where it can be
recycled). There is no reason you should not be able to ground out more energy
than you can accurately reflect to the sender, if viewed properly.

For another, your accuracy in returning it may be less than perfect. You might
hit close but not close enough; if you can't reflect it to earth, you are going
to have trouble reflecting it to an unknown person.

Sometimes this is discussed as if once you return it, the sender will just stop;
because they will awaken to what they are doing, or because the returning energy
will be too much to handle. The thing which is seldom mentioned is that if the
sender (assuming there is one) was consciously attacking, they will likely
already be prepared with their own mirrors, etc. Great, if we put near perfect
mirrors at each end and pump in energy, maybe we can get a psychic laser effect;
guess who is just on the other side of the mirrors to catch the intensified
leakthru?

If they weren't aware of sending, they will probably just assume they are being
attacked and take countermeasures. If they follow the 3 steps above, fine,
nothing is damaged. But many of them will immediately think they have to put up
a defensive mirror, or maybe worse (see below; they may decide to teach you a
lesson for attacking them). Few people naturally respond to perceived attacks
positively (especially if they are in such a bad mood already as to be sending
without even realizing it).

Another serious concern is getting drawn into a unacknowledged feud by your own
weaknesses. It is often agreed that one should reflect back exactly what is
received, without adding anything of one's own. But the same people who
advocate that may use terms implying "returning it with enthusiasm". There
appears to be an easily tapped source of self-righteousness in most people
feeling attacked, and it is _very hard_ not to get drawn into imagining, at some
level, the satisfying effects of the energy going back to the attacker; that
draws one into a "counter-attack" even without realizing it. Grounding it does
not.

Watch for yourself when people are discussing "returning to sender"; see if
there isn't very often a hidden desire for revenge or retribution lurking there
grasping for their "control panel" - and deflecting their normal attempts at
staying centered by claiming to do no more than is "justified". Justified is not
the question; self knowledge and balance are.

There is another thread which shows up often in discussions like these; the need
to "teach the sender a lesson". In some cases, I have even heard this justified
as "protecting the community". This way lies manyі Є рЙь±PRINT D did the Goddess
give you an "agent of threefold return" marshall's badge, that exempts you from
any consequences "because you are just an agent"? That hubris is gonna teach
some hard lessons, but the self appointed marshall may be the major recipient.
It would be a little bit healthier to just shed the self-righteousness and call
it an ego driven feud. "Teaching them a lesson" gets filed under the pitfalls
of righteousness, the ways that one's own weaknesses seduce one.

Also consider, what if despite your initial impression, the negative energy is
really coming from inside, from part of you? Are you going to be better off
"reflecting it back" (maybe with additional conscious or unconscious oomph) or
grounding it? "Gee, I returned it but good, and now they have stepped it up;
the sender really needs a lesson!". That may be more true than you know, bucko.

Notice that nowhere do we say that one has no "right" to put up a reflective
shield; of course one does, and is fully justified. Also, possibly, unwise.
There is a distinction between what one has a "right" to do in "self defense",
and what is wise to get drawn into. Reflecting it is neither necessary, nor
likely to produce positive results, but if _that itself_ is the lesson to be
learned, what can I say? Each chooses their own path, and that is as it should
be. At least if one has considered the above, one should know what they are
stepping into.

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