Any pagans out there? Actual pagans, not those fucks who claim to cast spells and uses satanic (Christian) imagery...

Any pagans out there? Actual pagans, not those fucks who claim to cast spells and uses satanic (Christian) imagery. I just recently got into it, and so far I've read Voluspa, Vafthruthnismal, and a bit of Havamal, and I'm already more convinced that Nordic Paganism is a better philosophy/religion than any other existing one

I follow most tenets of astruism bc they make sense for acting like a decent human w/o letting everyone walk all over you
and the mythology is pretty cool

I'd have to say bokononism is the best

I have to admit that's where Paganism falls flat, it was developed by a culture of limited resources so it disregards human life to some extent, but other than that I find it gives practical advice and is interesting. I started getting a bit into Buddhism earlier on, but the philosophy of Buddhism is based on inaction

>philosophy of Buddhism is based on inaction
only in some aspects
it also teaches that suffering is almost always a direct result of a person rather than the will of the gods
and the Buddha urges those that would follow him to act in a way that does not cause suffering to others and, if possible, relieves the suffering of others

I don't really count Buddhism as a religion though, because the Buddha himself claimed he wasn't a god, and I've noticed many Asian religions are basically taking a philosopher and Deifying him like with Taosim, much like how if Platoism was decided to be a religion

the havamal is like 30 pages long

how do you only read a bit of it?

I guess that's hypocritical of me though, because I don't literally believe in Pagamism, just the philosophy of it. I still just don't like the passiveness of Buddhism

>Buddha himself claimed he wasn't a god
true
but neither did Muhomud
Buddhism is a reformation of Hinduism
and all of Buddha's sutras pull heavily from Hindu mythology

When I read the stories of myth and whatnot I read through it like any other story, but when I read something like Havamal I only read a bit at a time and try to "meditate" on what I read

I'm a pagan, but a Greek pagan. Ζευς kρατιστος kαι μεγιστος σώσει ημάς παντας

That's another problem I have with Buddhism, I see northern Europe as historically not being tied too close with Christianity, but instead with Paganism, and being of mostly northern European descent I just can't identify very well with Eastern thought

Greco-Roman paganism is much to forgiving of the faults displayed by the heros
yes some are punished for being assholes
but by and large they aren't punished or are rewarded for their duochebaggery, and those that are find redemption not through making right what they have wrong but by fighting against the gods that are punishing them until the gods say "w/e, idgaf"

Green Witch here, I follow Celtic and Native American pantheon in accordance with my ethnic makeup but I'm not some kind of fluffy bunny faggot who runs around waving pendulums around. I only follow the sabbat rituals and shit.

Forgiveness? Redemption? Why are these things important? Fame alone is immortal.

OP here, I'm part Native American, but I can't really say I identify too much with that part of me, but maybe it's just because of how 'unfocused' it is. Different tribes had different beliefs, I've read some on the Pacific West Coast beliefs, and I've been to Ecuador and experienced a shamanistic ritual there (though it was probably more touristy than it would have been otherwise), and the beliefs of those two sides were incredibly different, so I just can't pinpoint where I would start with that

exactly
it focuses so much on immortality through fame (or more often infamy) that it starts justifying being an asshole to everyone you meet
with astruism it is just as important to be a good host and a grateful guest as it is to be a warrior
and then you don't need to be the most badass warrior ever and die of old age simply because no one can kill you (in fact that is a great way to land in Himmelheim rather than Asgard), you just need to fight with all your strength and go down fighting

Yup, actual pagan here. The Eddas are full of layers of meaning and philosophy. Stay away from anyone who takes them literally. I also recommend checking out Maria Kvilhaug/Lady of the Labyrinth. The importance of names and kennings should not be overlooked

Probably would help with knowing your tribe. Shit's different with me, I've got a Native grandmother who observes a few old medicine man traditions and am well acquainted with my ancestry. I'm part Lakota, and part Apache so I had some base stuff to work with. When I was a teenager I got to sweat with some other Lakotas on a Rez while on a service trip. Shit changes you when you really see where you come from.

Follower of Asatru, solo practitioner

I've mostly been following Jackson Crawford when it comes to my information on Paganism, and Varg Vikernes to some extent, but I don't think the latter really has as much a grasp on it than he says. I'll definitely check that out though

Varg is cool and has good ideas sometimes, but most of his stuff is his own. I don't trust anyone that has all the answers. I'm not familiar with Jackson Crawford, but I'll look him up. I think it's best to get a range of ideas/opinions. We can't know exactly what our ancestors thought, and there was never one single way of "believing" among Northern European pagans anyway

Not that guy but any pagans for that matter; it's how followers of Christ did us in.

Jackson Crawford is a professor of the Old Norse language/beliefs with a Youtube channel and writes his own translations of the sagas and whatnot, I've still just started delving into more than just the surface of Paganism and I've been reading one of his books, "The Poetic Edda." And on top of what you said, most of the specific practices and rituals of the Pagans were never recorded because it was mostly Christian antiquarians recording the beliefs long after they faded away, which was a real shame

Yes, but everyone being "the same" only gives an illusion of safety and a loss of freedom
Awesome, I'll definitely be looking him up. It is a shame, but we can always create our own rituals and take influence from the customs and rituals that did survive.

I have to agree, I find religion and spirituality are both personal and subjective. While I admire Christians have taken so much time to document their existence and their ways, it's greatly overshadowed the organic quality and the scope of which it could be as well as how it was.

True, the way we see the Norse gods are different from the way the original followers saw them, so there really is no shame in practicing the customs differently, much how the different sects of Christianity practice their religion differently from their original Catholic roots

I fully agree user
No, there is no shame in practicing in ourown individual way. American Christians are not the same as Middle Eastern ones. "White" Christians by and large still have their pagan customs. It's not a far step to return to our pagan roots, it's just full of pitfals due to our programming as children. I ded agree wesee things very different from our ancestors. I live in a forest and am mostly self-sufficient, but I'm also on Sup Forums on a mobile phone

I just hope to see one day Christians realizing that many of their roots, whether genetic or cultural, don't actually come from Christianity. I can't speak for the rest of the world, but I live in a backwater US town, and here the mindset is you're either Christian, a devil-worshipper, or one of those 'funny Asians.' I would like to discuss more on the topic, but I'm going to bed so I'm not tired for work tomorrow. If you'd like to discuss the topic further, you can email me at [email protected], because I have no real direction with any of this and you seem to have a relatively good grasp on it, and I would like to have some more perspective