| The Pagan Path Long before the birth of religions, temples and dogma, every person understood her relationship with the earth. Most moderns tend to think of connecting with nature like tying a boat to the dock, or nailing a picture to the wall — after the weekend camping trip, back to real life in the city or suburb. But for the ancients, the human animal was one more part of creation, no more separate from mother earth than an arm is separate from its body, and this understanding brought with it profound implications. Many believe that in times when humans lived closer to the earth, relying for sustenance on hunting and gathering, then early agriculture and husbandry, there was a keener awareness of the non-physical, recognition of the unseen forces sharing life on this planet, and an acknowledgment of powers accessible to the seeker or initiate. Daily living, migrations of wild herds, and agriculture were closely tied to the seasons, or what is called the wheel of the year. Seafaring and fishing peoples saw that the phases of the moon exerted a pull on the water, and shepherds learned to expect their animals to give birth when the moon was full. All living creatures paid heed to the still before a hurricane, tree leaves turned upward just before rain, the silence of birds in the presence of a predator, and the quickening of a breeze as a loved one left this life for the next. Those who gave special attention to the ways of the earth became known as shamans, priestesses, medicine men, crones and witches. The tribe or village looked to them for wisdom on where to pitch camp, when to follow a herd, how to find and remove evil intent among its members, how to heal the sick and injured, bring peace to the troubled, and more. While many of these societies still exist throughout the world in places where western civilization has not superseded the local culture, for the most part the wise ones of our village have been displaced by two great forces: modern science and institutionalized religion. Each of these has driven a wedge between mind and spirit, between human and divine, and between humankind and all other life. And they have each taught us that we cannot trust our intuition, or accept evidence of phenomenon which cannot be demonstrated using contemporary academic methods. Institutional religion was already well-entrenched in the ancient world by the time the Romans began to use the Latin word paganus to describe the common folks outside of cities. In fact, a paganus is a “country person.” The country people of the Roman Empire tended to adhere to local deities, nature spirits and their own traditional practices, resisting the great drive of the Empire to unite all with one religion, first with the cult of the emperor, then Sol Invictus, and finally, that of the new martyr-deity, Jesus. -continued |
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