tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3288389374807674671.post625301752961431241..comments2022-04-01T22:18:28.895+13:00Comments on Hagstone: E is for Elitism, Ego and the EclecticUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3288389374807674671.post-78607224326823305172012-04-01T05:36:54.378+12:002012-04-01T05:36:54.378+12:00Thank you Sanna. Love your response 100%.Thank you Sanna. Love your response 100%.Rótahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05960295699433089856noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3288389374807674671.post-8049236287473307102012-03-16T13:28:53.348+13:002012-03-16T13:28:53.348+13:00Ego means a few different inter-related things in ...Ego means a few different inter-related things in English. It's not always a negative thing... sometimes it just refers to the self. <br /><br />Being denied access to a group isn't always a "less than" thing, which I hoped I'd made clear (but apparently didn't). The idea is that you may not be right *for that group*.<br /><br />The Christians didn't "steal Yule". The Christians celebrated Christmas around the same time as Saturnalia because it was a time of celebration, and being executed by the Romans probably wasn't fun. When they spread North, those who converted to Christianity would have wanted to keep their cultural traditions - and why not? It's their cultural inheritance. It's not like a mass of people came in, killed all the Pagans and took their stuff. It's the same people who were Pagan who became Christian. <br /><br />I'm sorry, I forgot that the palaeo-Pagans were 100% ethical all the time. Oh wait! they weren't. The reason cultures like the Germanics are "open" is because they *were* invaders. Cultures that were shat upon for centuries, like Native American cultures and Celtic cultures, tend to be closed. But just because a culture spread itself wide doesn't mean you get to be a disrespectful cunt, steal all their shit and demean it. OK?<br /><br />I'm not seeing what the difference is between the Christians taking something sacred and saying "this is mine, not yours" and taking the runes and saying "lol they are just like the tarot FOR SOME PEOPLE so you are wrong". What you are doing is very offensive. <br /><br />It's NOT OK to just buy some book from Blum and think you're a runecaster. Not only is it offensive to these sacred Mysteries, but <i>these are actually powerful energies</i>. You could cause damage to yourself or someone else if you fuck around with them without understanding what they are. It's not OK to draw them all over things because you think they're neat and witchy. It's disgusting, and it's what's wrong with Neo-Paganism, and I am ashamed to share a religious umbrella with people who act this way. <br /><br />Keep your bigotry and your disrespect for the sacred from my blog, please, person. You shame yourself.Sannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03887563528046709686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3288389374807674671.post-49472273012361954022012-03-16T01:44:16.413+13:002012-03-16T01:44:16.413+13:00This reminds me very much of some things I've ...This reminds me very much of some things I've been posting in my blog :-D (And my name is Sanna too :-D)<br /><br />But - one of my pet peeves is the use of "ego" and blaming the ego of everything that is wrong with the world... I happen to disagree, but I'm Finnish, and in the Finnish shamanism "ego-self" is the self-esteem, self-image, consciousness... Anyway, I've received "the treatment" too, for different reasons, and one has been my attitude to "ego" and the usage of it in the Spiritual community on-line. <br /><br />I think it's easy to understand how someone who has been denied the access to the group feels slighted and hurt and deemed "less than", and thus also feels being discriminated by people who think they are "better than" - that is, elitists. <br /><br />I have to say that I suppose you'd consider me one of these "ego-driven eclectics". I take what pleases me and what suits my highly egocentric purposes and adjust it to that. Just the way the Christians stole Yule :-D <br />But I have also been told that "that's fine, there's nothing to get bothered about, because what ever anyone else celebrates and how ever they do that is none of my business. It's not like they are taking anything away from me, is it?". I've been told I'm "mean" when I talk about it and other things like that. So - being a magpie is OK. <br /><br />I wouldn't say "whenever someone says: "hey, stop!", he/she's elitist. I'd say it depends on how he/she reacts on me crumbling about how Christians stole Yule... and act accordingly. If one shouldn't bother about magpieing when Christians do it, then you shouldn't bother about magpieing when Pagans do it. If you do, then you're bigoted. But - I can understand that people don't know the difference between the words.<br /><br />I think Christianity is very elitist in it's "everyone is damned (and our way is the only way to save you)" thinking.<br /><br />Germanic cultures are not "you can take what you like, as long as you do so with respect and awareness". They are very much "I see, I like, I take", Just like Romans. They don't care one bit of what YOU like or with what YOU do things. They tend to be rather protective of things they consider theirs while having no respect of what is others'. Talk about elitism and imperialism... Roman empire, the Anglo-saxon empire on which the sun never set, the Third Empire of Nazi Germany... But - I am Finnish, not Germanic, so who am I to say. That's my view from outside, as the victim of the Germanic imperialism.<br /><br />"They're not just pretty symbols, they're not just a writing system, not just the Norse equivalent of the Tarot."<br />Well... actually, they are. To some people. To some people symbols are more than marks, whether appealing or not; to some people writing systems are more than symbols; to some people Tarot is very much more than ANYTHING "just"... and more than runes.<br />And it is ok to use them because you have a book. It is ok to buy a set of runes of any kind and use them. It is ok to regard them as you seem to regard the tarot cards. It is ok to plaster runes all over a glittery ritual knife you own just because you are supposed to have a ritual knife because you like to think of yourself as a witch. Why wouldn't it be ok? <br />Do you really think Oden and the runes won't know the difference?<br /><br />Most people don't have the slightest idea of what is sacred and wouldn't know how to treat something like it is sacred. So - I would say this person treats the sacred things the same way she treats anything else she holds sacred. <br /><br />To me the problem arises when someone REALLY STEALS something ike the Christians have done. They see something appealing and sacred, take it and then say "this is mine, not yours!"Ketutarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17817006362006690145noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3288389374807674671.post-42665861241300624552012-03-10T08:55:57.044+13:002012-03-10T08:55:57.044+13:00I happened to write my post this week on eclectici...I happened to write my post this week on eclecticism too, and I really appreciate your view on it. I consider myself eclectic, for a number of reasons, but I've been doing so for 13 years and am constantly learning and testing new ideas. I haven't encountered many Ego-Driven Eclectics, as you put it, but I suppose that's a good thing! When I do encounter someone new to paganism and witchcraft, I do so with an open mind, for them as well as for me. Every opportunity is an opportunity to learn! <br /><br />Thanks for the post, and how you acknowledge two different types of eclectics.Angelahttp://deararadia.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3288389374807674671.post-40785389488958437002012-03-10T01:51:00.241+13:002012-03-10T01:51:00.241+13:00Thanks very much, I'm glad you liked it! :D I ...Thanks very much, I'm glad you liked it! :D I hope it all makes sense. I wrote it in segments and then filled in the gaps and I think I had to edit it about three times when I realised I'd left sentences half-finished XDSannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03887563528046709686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3288389374807674671.post-20421518778020391482012-03-10T00:16:22.107+13:002012-03-10T00:16:22.107+13:00Very wisely written and many thoughts worth taking...Very wisely written and many thoughts worth taking in consideration. Thank you for sharing!<br /><br /><br />Blessed be!Elena-Mariahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06435017094234470413noreply@blogger.com