I've already made a topic about what I call my New Age Perception so I'm going to link to it instead of explaining it again.

Have Switched To My 'New Age' Perception

Today is May Day so I switched over to "New Age Perception". It's like I'm aware of the planet as a living entity. I also have an inner image of the Venus of Willendorf. This is just one of several Venus Figurines from the Upper Paleolithic period. Nobody knows what the figururines meant to the people who made them but modern Goddess worshippers have adopted the Willendorf figure as a symbol of the Great Mother Goddess. My unconscious mind decided to use it as well. It's not something I'd have consciously chosen, however, because I think it's grotesque.

I had a related experience when I visited the Anglican Shrine Of Our Lady Of Walsingham. When I was in the Church and Holy House I was aware of a powerful female presence but she was far older than Christianity.

So what does it all mean? I think we can safely say that the human brain can move in mysterious ways.

How does it relate to religion? When Christians say they feel their God's presence or whatever I'm guessing they have experiences similar to my own. There are two major differences between us, though.

1: The Christian's unconscious mind draws on Christian mythology. Mine draws on pagan mythology.

2: The Christian believes that his/her God is an objective reality 'out there'. I interpret my own experiences as being purely subjective.

Finally, what does the Great Mother mean to me as a symbol? She's not a fluffy mother because she's Nature which is anything but fluffy. If I ever did convert to Goddess worship I wouldn't have to struggle with the problem of a loving parent who does horrible things to her children.

From someone who was pagan, the deity most often associated with the earth as a living entity is Gaea/Gaia.

I believe when someone states that a divine, godly presence is felt, it is simply that individual's mind misinterpreting the way that the body is responding to stimuli created by what it experiences. For instance, sometimes listening to music or a speech to which one is particularly atuned can create a profound well of emotion in an individual, and that is why theists listening to the music/speech claim to feel god when they are actually substituting a natural bodily experience for the divine.

(May 1, 2014 at 8:48 am)Kitanetos Wrote: From someone who was pagan, the deity most often associated with the earth as a living entity is Gaea/Gaia.

This is a page from Goddess Gift Net. At the bottom it says -

Quote:Venus of Willendorf: Neolithic. Great-breasted Nurturer. Willendorf Goddess represents Gaia, Mother Earth, and Mothering in all her raw and fertile splendor.

This is a modern belief, of course, because nobody knows what the figurine represented to the person who made it. It's likely that people in the Upper Paleolithic period had developed a concept of an Earth goddess but we have no idea what they would have called her because they didn't leave any written records.

There is no mystery as to why my unconscious mind chose this symbol. I already knew that some modern pagans think that the Venus of Willendorf is Gaia.

(May 1, 2014 at 8:48 am)Kitanetos Wrote: I believe when someone states that a divine, godly presence is felt, it is simply that individual's mind misinterpreting the way that the body is responding to stimuli created by what it experiences. For instance, sometimes listening to music or a speech to which one is particularly atuned can create a profound well of emotion in an individual, and that is why theists listening to the music/speech claim to feel god when they are actually substituting a natural bodily experience for the divine.

Neuroscience is showing that there's more to it than that. The transcript of God On The Brain is a good introduction to this line of research.

(May 1, 2014 at 9:34 am)Confused Ape Wrote: Neuroscience is showing that there's more to it than that. The transcript of God On The Brain is a good introduction to this line of research.

That is something with which I am somewhat familiar. I have seen similar articles where it has been mentioned. It is quite possible that religious belief is a veritable disorder; in which case, it could very well be with us forever.

Well I'd say that makes us brothers (or sisters) from the same mother.

Bless you for not jumping from the subjective to the objective. On an unconscious level our own minds are living mysteries. I haven't felt worshipful towards it in a while but that is mostly because of my own business and neglect. I remain always appreciative and respectful toward that which is greater than and inclusive of my conscious mind. It is always a source of wonder. So long as you don't jump from that to a bible of some sort I don't see any issue.

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Oh and thanks for the link. I missed your earlier thread. Looks like you have read some Jung and I can, unfortunately, appreciate the bit about arthritis flaring up. I go on working in the garden regardless and probably will until I can't.

Have you read any of James Hillman's work? I particularly liked "Re-visioning Psychology".

All of this new Age Divine goddess garbage is getting on my nerves and I am a pagan and by pagan I mean of the non-fluffy variety. If you wanna be pagan start destroying mother nature like actual pagans did and begin making blood sacrifices with animals and worship giant rocks. Wait, I think I just described Islam.
Allah is real, atheism false and goddess worshipers moronic. That is all

(May 1, 2014 at 10:36 am)Shaykh al-Kabir Shair Abdulrab Wrote: Allah is real, atheism false and goddess worshipers moronic. That is all

Allah is fake, atheism is reality, and goddess worshippers are more peaceful than Muslims. That is all.

(May 1, 2014 at 9:41 am)Kitanetos Wrote: That is something with which I am somewhat familiar. I have seen similar articles where it has been mentioned. It is quite possible that religious belief is a veritable disorder; in which case, it could very well be with us forever.

Nobody knows why humans evolved to have religious belief. Evolutionary Psychology Of Religion lists some ideas and there's also a link to Psychology Of Religion which takes a different approach.

It could be that religious belief was useful in the dim and distant past and our brains haven't caught up with the fact that it's not so useful in the 21st century.

(May 1, 2014 at 9:52 am)whateverist Wrote: So long as you don't jump from that to a bible of some sort I don't see any issue.

I don't think I'm likely to jump to some sort of bible at my age. I'm 65.

(May 1, 2014 at 10:36 am)Shaykh al-Kabir Shair Abdulrab Wrote: All of this new Age Divine goddess garbage is getting on my nerves and I am a pagan and by pagan I mean of the non-fluffy variety. If you wanna be pagan start destroying mother nature like actual pagans did and begin making blood sacrifices with animals and worship giant rocks.

You forgot about human sacrifices.

I'm not going to start worshipping Gaia just because my brain produced this experience. As far as deities go, however, there's no problem with trying to reconcile the idea of a loving parent with awful things happening to faithful worshippers. Disease and natural disasters happen to the just and unjust as well as sunrises and rain.

(May 1, 2014 at 10:36 am)Shaykh al-Kabir Shair Abdulrab Wrote: All of this new Age Divine goddess garbage is getting on my nerves and I am a pagan and by pagan I mean of the non-fluffy variety.

Depending on the perspective espoused, it can get on my nerves too. And that is okay of course. The world doesn't have to align itself in a way that meets with my approval. I'll leave intolerance to the people who are really good at it, to those who believe they have the Truth and everyone else is simply incorrect. How about you, Shaykh? Is there something you need other people to do or to be so that they will be worthy of you? (Of course the world doesn't really give a shit.)

(May 1, 2014 at 5:10 pm)whateverist Wrote: Depending on the perspective espoused, it can get on my nerves too. And that is okay of course. The world doesn't have to align itself in a way that meets with my approval.

The world will never meet to anybody's approval because our approval means little. Sadly religious people delude themselves into thinking that they are actually important and that their opinions matter

Quote: I'll leave intolerance to the people who are really good at it,

You mean Muslims and Christians right? . Intolerance, stupidity, bigotry, dishonesty and amorality should be synonymous with any Abrahamic faith if you know what I'm sayin'.

Quote: to those who believe they have the Truth and everyone else is simply incorrect.

I like how rambling religious buffoons love professing their religion to be true when it cannot hold up to any scrutiny.

Quote:How about you, Shaykh? Is there something you need other people to do or to be so that they will be worthy of you? (Of course the world doesn't really give a shit.)

Nothing is worthy of me. I am entirely insignificant and my existence is short and meaningless in comparison to not only others but also to Lord Xenu(kidding ). I myself am just a slave of Allah and I have no say in how the world runs or what others do.