Magick, Wicca, Witchcraft. Each one of these words bring a different opinion to each person from a different background, culture and belief. The most common of these opinions is that these are either fakes or the people who practice it and believe in it should be feared as it is the work of the Devil or Satan.
Lately, continuing on my journey to understand the diversity yet similarities of religion, I have looked into the curious mysteries of Wicca practice and Magick. Contrary to the everyday perception of Witchcraft (most of it provided by religion and fueled by the media, be it a fantasy/fiction novel or a blockbuster movie), I have found that Wicca is a rather, how should I put this, interesting form of belief or if I may be more daring, religion. There are different sorts and forms of practices of Wicca (of which I know nothing deeper than what I have skimmed of the surface) but all these come down to the very basics or respecting all things, seen and unseen, heard and unheard, living and inanimate. Against most people's belief in Magick where it is evil or where someone can produce a fireball out of thin air (not saying that I can prove this is untrue or true), Wicca has its own set of rules or commandments which have to be taken into account because of the consequences of any action taken during the practice of Wicca. Two of the most important ones that I would point out is that there is dire circumstances to casting an evil spell on someone or just a spell (no ill will intended) which affects a person's freewill. The most dire of consequences of all of the spell/rituals cast are the threefold rule. This is where everything that you cast against/for someone will come back to you threefold (eg. cast badluck on someone and it will hit you back three times as worse, cast good luck and it will come back to you three times better). This is very much like Karma or the Christian belief of 'love your neighbours like yourself/do onto others what you would like done to yourself'.
So why do people think that this worshipping of deities,faeries,spirits,elements even trees are evil or to be laughed at or scorned? I cannot say this of other covens practicing other forms of wicca but a research on Natural Magick or White Magick has shown me that this form of Wicca does indeed believe in Archangels and Guardian Angels. Angels of the four corners - doesn't the bible speak of this in revelations? As for the Archangels like Michael, Gabriel, Uriel and the sort, they are spoken of in the bible and there are even more castes of angels and saints in Catholicism. I do understand that the muttering of spells and practicing of rituals may seem a little unnerving to the untrained eye (including myself) but most perceptions of these that have been ingrained into us by Hollywood movies and fanasy novels are that of human sacrifices and orgies and what nots. I stand for the Wiccans in saying that this is NOT true.
Each religion believes that the core of our being is the soul or spirit. Whether we be Christian, Muslim, Buddhist or any other religion, the soul/spirit is an important factor and there is a life after this (whether it be reincarnation or reaching the pure state of being or heaven and hell). If we humans have spirits, what is saying that all forms of life on this planet does not have one? I mean, we bleed, animals bleed, trees don't bleed but if cut the sap runs out which does to an extent sustain their life. We all breathe air, drink water, and eat (whichever way we do that) but all in all we all need each other to sustain life. So why can't we believe that each of these non-human (and to most of us, inferior things) 'things' don't have a spirit/soul/guardian taking care of them? Sometimes I even wonder which one of us are the barbaric animals here, the other inferior animals or us humans? We don't appreciate what is all around us. The creations that God has created alongside us (whichever God it may be in each religion). So why not give some respect to where respect is due? And maybe just a benefit of the doubt that they may have spirits as well.
This is what I believe that Wiccans believe in. They give thanks to the mother earth and to all the beings around them whether they be trees or guardian angels in the four corners of the Earth or even to the elementals provided to us by God or the supreme being/creator. The only reason people fear witches were because people fear the unknown and wicca which has been ongoing even longer than Christianity or I would like to assume any written religion is an unknown to people especially during the middle ages and the 21st century where we all close our minds to what is around us and what has sustained us for so long. It is true that yes, we humans dominate the Earth but do we really control everything? Or does everything else control our existence here? It is the circle of life and we are all starting to forget our place on this plane of existence.
All in all (God this feels like I'm writing a bloody essay/assignment), no matter what we believe in, it gives us a psychological lift in praying/meditating/worshipping/completing spell n rituals and therefore the faith and beliefs no matter how different have the same concept and the same outcome. PEACE OF MIND (not that I have found that yet :P). Of course there will be the extremists out there which pollute society with false beliefs and false ideas about how one practices their own religion but that is a flaw in humans, not a flaw in what the original religion/practice/belief. Look at the Crusades (Christianity), that was all to gain power and conquer more places, the Jihad (Islam) trying to fight for their rights, believing in dying for the cause, the Satanists/Black Magick practicioners/voodoo who try to corrupt what is pure and good to gain power and authority and control over others. These are all examples of corrupt people giving good religions/beliefs a bad name and unfortunately for us humans, these stereotypes are taken very seriously into account and it is hard to shake these off.
In my opinion of all of these, I believe that there is only ONE God, the ONE supreme being who is known to everyone living on Earth by God's many names and forms because we humans are not capable of even picturing this God as we are NOT supreme beings. Mainly creations that are mortal and mortals make mistakes. God may have minions or angels or deities or whatever they are called to help control and oversee God's creations and because of this, each person believes what they want to believe and some have seen and made images of what they have seen of these 'helpers' but my belief is that they are all one and the same and they are all answerable to God and all prayers to whichever idol/God/angel/deity/faerie/archangel/spirit is forwarded to God. So to the people out there who have managed to give these 2 long blogs a read with an open mind and open soul, believe in what you want to believe in as we all have our free will and we are all free to opinions but I have stated my own and I believe that soon, you will find your own answers to your questions as you start your journey of soul searching.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Food for Thought : Religion
Zzzz.. Ahh.. How I wish I could be able to go to sleep every single night without wondering if this week is an insomnia week or a hypersomnia week. The countless sleepless nights of constant thoughts running through my head followed by the countless days and nights where all I do is sleep and dream horrible dreams. Of late, the sleepless nights have not gone to a complete waste. The running thoughts actually have topics of philosophical sense to it. The questions of life as we may put it in simple terms. Last night and all of today (well for the most part where my mind isn't occupied by other thoughts), I have been plagued by the ever curious topic of faith and beliefs.
*I will mention here that my following thoughts and words are of my OWN opinion and it is an OPINION not a FACT so if there are people reading this who are pious I warn you now that you may not like what I have to say. I also state that I am NOT trying to hurt anyone's feelings or talk bad about any religion at all. This is all just my opinion and nothing else. Please do not proceed reading this particular blog if you feel that you may be sensitive to the subject. *
Religion and faith run together in one long parallel line. Without faith, religion cannot exist and without something to believe in, what is faith? Growing up, I followed my mother to church every Friday (in my home town, Friday is a weekend and Sunday is a weekday.. God forbid :P ), joining in the youth group after the morning service, going to church/christian camps, becoming a member of the youth committee and the worship team band.. basically dedicating myself to God Almighty and his son Jesus Christ. The rest of my immediate family, however, were Buddhists, not althogether pious/religious, but nevertheless having an altar at home with, if I am not mistaken (correct me if I'm wrong someone), the Goddess of Mercy (Quan Yin), the God of War?? (not entirely sure) and a few tablets which I presume are the family ancestors (again I apologize for the lack of knowledge on my part - truth be told I used to be really scared of the altar). We celebrate all the known Chinese celebrations and I used to attend the yearly ancestral worship where we visit the graves of our ancestors, clean them, retouch the paints and offer them 'hell money' (as I was told it was translated into English) and food and stuff.
Growing up in this diverse religion family, I began to wonder and question the point of religion in life and the importance of religion to most people (Atheists, I cannot speak for as I have not entirely counted myself as one). So sometime in high school, I began to do a little bit of research here and there into the different religions in Malaysia that I know about (Islam, Christianity [both Catholicism and Protestant - Assemblies of God denomination, I cannot vouch for any other denominations], Buddhism and Hinduism. I do not claim to be an expert on any single religion mentioned above but rather the contrary. I am more of what they call the 'Jack of all trades but the master of none'. I have brushed the surface of all the religions mentioned and probably delved a little more deeply into Theology of Christianity. I would also mention that I had and still have a curiousity about Paganism and Wicca which, I believe, to the Christians and the Muslims are a form of sin as it is widely believed that Satanism falls into one of these categories and the worship of other idols/Gods aren't permitted. This has led me to question once again the true meaning of worship and faith and to delve further into solving this mystery of why each person follows a specific religion and believe in what they are thought.
Now, at the age of 21, I have slowly begun to form my own opinions about this subject and although I have no clear conclusion of the entire subject. I find it at the back of my mind and I still constantly pick at this topic whenever it pops into my mind.
Christianity and Islam both talk about the ONE God, The Almighty God and that there is only THE God to worship and adore and thank for all that we have. Both Christianity and Islam believe that Jesus does exist albeit differently but Jesus is mentioned in Islam as well (believe it or not). In Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God, our Saviour and He died for our sins and rose again and is coming again near the end of days whereas in Islam, Jesus or more commonly known as Nabi Isa is a prophet and only a prophet but he is known to be sinless and pure (which is what is also believed in Christianity). However, in both Christianity and Islam, the ONE God is also known by MANY names (I think 99 for the Muslims, not really sure how many for the Christians) - The Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, The King of Kings, The Lord of Lords, Father in Heaven, etc. etc. (I do not know what the Muslims' names for God is) but all of these names belong to the ONE God. Now, that is entirely believable to have a supreme being in control and because there is one being, different people may use different names for this being.
Now, all the other religions (that I know of excluding Judaism and those that still believe in God albeit slightly differently than Christians - JW and the sort) have different Gods for different things. The God of War, the Goddess of Mercy, The God of Chaos and Destruction etc etc. What makes this so different from Christianity and Islam? In what way does all these different beliefs be so different from the rest that each of them have their own 'name' to the religion?
Let me put it this way, if God has so many names, why not He (or a reverently 'It' as God isn't exactly a male or a female, God is neither male nor female nor is God both and .. oh you get the picture, there isn't a word in English that I can think of to describe it) be known differently? Why can't the same God be known to be a God of War and Goddess of Mercy at the same time? I mean He does have different names doesn't he? All religions (not including Satanism here), preach the practice of good instead of evil whether it be Karma or Sin or any of the sort. At this point, I can hear some say, but God (Christian) proclaims that there be no idol worshipping because He is the one God and is a jealous God! Therefore, the Buddhists and Hindus who worship specific dieties are wrong! (again this is just in layman's terms and I do NOT say they ARE wrong)
Well, this part is where the word Faith comes in. I will put it as easily as I think I can. To believe in anything that cannot be seen, heard or touched can be hard. It takes a considerable amount of faith and strength on one's part to actually believe that God exists much less that there be no specific idol/being that can be depicted as God (Jesus Christ not included because He came to Earth as a Human and therefore having a physical body). Some people just do not have that massive amount of faith needed to actually believe in something that is NOT there (or at least to us lesser beings, cannot be seen, heard or touched) and therefore they turn to making particular images of Gods and Goddesses that they can worship and these images or idols can be SEEN and TOUCHED if not heard. I am touching a very sensitive spot here (even against my thought beliefs as a Christian) when I ask, can all these Gods that each person worships, religion notwithstanding, be the one and the same?? and if not, WHY NOT??
There are people out there in the world who are cynics and atheists and do not believe in certain things because they require proof of existence and possibly scientific proof or a personal experience in the matter before they can believe in the 'supernatural' much less in God. So again I ask, why can't there be just the ONE GOD which is worshipped by every religion, in every shape and form and these only differ because some people need something physical to manifest their faith in?
*I will mention here that my following thoughts and words are of my OWN opinion and it is an OPINION not a FACT so if there are people reading this who are pious I warn you now that you may not like what I have to say. I also state that I am NOT trying to hurt anyone's feelings or talk bad about any religion at all. This is all just my opinion and nothing else. Please do not proceed reading this particular blog if you feel that you may be sensitive to the subject. *
Religion and faith run together in one long parallel line. Without faith, religion cannot exist and without something to believe in, what is faith? Growing up, I followed my mother to church every Friday (in my home town, Friday is a weekend and Sunday is a weekday.. God forbid :P ), joining in the youth group after the morning service, going to church/christian camps, becoming a member of the youth committee and the worship team band.. basically dedicating myself to God Almighty and his son Jesus Christ. The rest of my immediate family, however, were Buddhists, not althogether pious/religious, but nevertheless having an altar at home with, if I am not mistaken (correct me if I'm wrong someone), the Goddess of Mercy (Quan Yin), the God of War?? (not entirely sure) and a few tablets which I presume are the family ancestors (again I apologize for the lack of knowledge on my part - truth be told I used to be really scared of the altar). We celebrate all the known Chinese celebrations and I used to attend the yearly ancestral worship where we visit the graves of our ancestors, clean them, retouch the paints and offer them 'hell money' (as I was told it was translated into English) and food and stuff.
Growing up in this diverse religion family, I began to wonder and question the point of religion in life and the importance of religion to most people (Atheists, I cannot speak for as I have not entirely counted myself as one). So sometime in high school, I began to do a little bit of research here and there into the different religions in Malaysia that I know about (Islam, Christianity [both Catholicism and Protestant - Assemblies of God denomination, I cannot vouch for any other denominations], Buddhism and Hinduism. I do not claim to be an expert on any single religion mentioned above but rather the contrary. I am more of what they call the 'Jack of all trades but the master of none'. I have brushed the surface of all the religions mentioned and probably delved a little more deeply into Theology of Christianity. I would also mention that I had and still have a curiousity about Paganism and Wicca which, I believe, to the Christians and the Muslims are a form of sin as it is widely believed that Satanism falls into one of these categories and the worship of other idols/Gods aren't permitted. This has led me to question once again the true meaning of worship and faith and to delve further into solving this mystery of why each person follows a specific religion and believe in what they are thought.
Now, at the age of 21, I have slowly begun to form my own opinions about this subject and although I have no clear conclusion of the entire subject. I find it at the back of my mind and I still constantly pick at this topic whenever it pops into my mind.
Christianity and Islam both talk about the ONE God, The Almighty God and that there is only THE God to worship and adore and thank for all that we have. Both Christianity and Islam believe that Jesus does exist albeit differently but Jesus is mentioned in Islam as well (believe it or not). In Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God, our Saviour and He died for our sins and rose again and is coming again near the end of days whereas in Islam, Jesus or more commonly known as Nabi Isa is a prophet and only a prophet but he is known to be sinless and pure (which is what is also believed in Christianity). However, in both Christianity and Islam, the ONE God is also known by MANY names (I think 99 for the Muslims, not really sure how many for the Christians) - The Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, The King of Kings, The Lord of Lords, Father in Heaven, etc. etc. (I do not know what the Muslims' names for God is) but all of these names belong to the ONE God. Now, that is entirely believable to have a supreme being in control and because there is one being, different people may use different names for this being.
Now, all the other religions (that I know of excluding Judaism and those that still believe in God albeit slightly differently than Christians - JW and the sort) have different Gods for different things. The God of War, the Goddess of Mercy, The God of Chaos and Destruction etc etc. What makes this so different from Christianity and Islam? In what way does all these different beliefs be so different from the rest that each of them have their own 'name' to the religion?
Let me put it this way, if God has so many names, why not He (or a reverently 'It' as God isn't exactly a male or a female, God is neither male nor female nor is God both and .. oh you get the picture, there isn't a word in English that I can think of to describe it) be known differently? Why can't the same God be known to be a God of War and Goddess of Mercy at the same time? I mean He does have different names doesn't he? All religions (not including Satanism here), preach the practice of good instead of evil whether it be Karma or Sin or any of the sort. At this point, I can hear some say, but God (Christian) proclaims that there be no idol worshipping because He is the one God and is a jealous God! Therefore, the Buddhists and Hindus who worship specific dieties are wrong! (again this is just in layman's terms and I do NOT say they ARE wrong)
Well, this part is where the word Faith comes in. I will put it as easily as I think I can. To believe in anything that cannot be seen, heard or touched can be hard. It takes a considerable amount of faith and strength on one's part to actually believe that God exists much less that there be no specific idol/being that can be depicted as God (Jesus Christ not included because He came to Earth as a Human and therefore having a physical body). Some people just do not have that massive amount of faith needed to actually believe in something that is NOT there (or at least to us lesser beings, cannot be seen, heard or touched) and therefore they turn to making particular images of Gods and Goddesses that they can worship and these images or idols can be SEEN and TOUCHED if not heard. I am touching a very sensitive spot here (even against my thought beliefs as a Christian) when I ask, can all these Gods that each person worships, religion notwithstanding, be the one and the same?? and if not, WHY NOT??
There are people out there in the world who are cynics and atheists and do not believe in certain things because they require proof of existence and possibly scientific proof or a personal experience in the matter before they can believe in the 'supernatural' much less in God. So again I ask, why can't there be just the ONE GOD which is worshipped by every religion, in every shape and form and these only differ because some people need something physical to manifest their faith in?
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
The Journey
Ahh, the soul. The unseen being that is the main cause of our life for without it, we are mainly existing without living. It is our life's journey to search for who we are and what our purpose in life is. Some may think that there is no purpose, we are just living and others may think they have already found their answers.
I myself have taken a step towards this journey we call life. All those memories of the past haunting me till now and events in the present time have sent me spiralling into a deep abyss where a flickering candle light is all I have to light my way. All around me is darkness and the light I have is barely able to hold the darkness at bay. The darkness is nothing that we know in human form. Nothing seen before by anyone. It is blacker than black, darker than the darkest underground tunnel in the darkest night where no stars and moon or artificial light can be seen
This journey I take is mine alone. No one and nothing can come along with me save the candle that is lighting my way and the hope that I will find my way. Sometimes I pass by what I think is a crossroad and I see other flickering candle lights where I cross paths with another soul searcher on his/her journey. Sometimes we travel together, sometimes we just move on. One thing is certain, whatever we see by the light of our candle is for our own eyes to see and no one else's. Every person sees a different view, a different light. No matter how many may travel along the same path or even walk along beside me, we will never see the same things nor will I see the same image twice.
It is my hope that this journey that I have begun to take is not worthless and the obstacles that are in my way will not blow my candle out for I am not equipped with a match or flint or lighter to relight this candle. Only blind faith and hope feeds the candle and I fear that one day, the fuel may run out. But for now, with the first step I take on this journey, I will rely on hope and the strength (from whatever guardian angels that have held me safe in their arms until I stood up and made my first step), to move forward in this dark abyss. Words and sounds do not exist here. Only feelings, thoughts and emotions. Images of things past, things to come and things that are.
Each person will eventually or may have already begun this journey that I am now starting and I hope that this journey will help me eventually find myself/my soul/spirit and then the darkness will be gone and there will only be light. Then, I can finally rest easily in peace knowing that I have found myself.
I myself have taken a step towards this journey we call life. All those memories of the past haunting me till now and events in the present time have sent me spiralling into a deep abyss where a flickering candle light is all I have to light my way. All around me is darkness and the light I have is barely able to hold the darkness at bay. The darkness is nothing that we know in human form. Nothing seen before by anyone. It is blacker than black, darker than the darkest underground tunnel in the darkest night where no stars and moon or artificial light can be seen
This journey I take is mine alone. No one and nothing can come along with me save the candle that is lighting my way and the hope that I will find my way. Sometimes I pass by what I think is a crossroad and I see other flickering candle lights where I cross paths with another soul searcher on his/her journey. Sometimes we travel together, sometimes we just move on. One thing is certain, whatever we see by the light of our candle is for our own eyes to see and no one else's. Every person sees a different view, a different light. No matter how many may travel along the same path or even walk along beside me, we will never see the same things nor will I see the same image twice.
It is my hope that this journey that I have begun to take is not worthless and the obstacles that are in my way will not blow my candle out for I am not equipped with a match or flint or lighter to relight this candle. Only blind faith and hope feeds the candle and I fear that one day, the fuel may run out. But for now, with the first step I take on this journey, I will rely on hope and the strength (from whatever guardian angels that have held me safe in their arms until I stood up and made my first step), to move forward in this dark abyss. Words and sounds do not exist here. Only feelings, thoughts and emotions. Images of things past, things to come and things that are.
Each person will eventually or may have already begun this journey that I am now starting and I hope that this journey will help me eventually find myself/my soul/spirit and then the darkness will be gone and there will only be light. Then, I can finally rest easily in peace knowing that I have found myself.
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