divinegrowing

[divinegrowing]

unknown artist | spotted @ chicago pridefest june 22nd, 2025

[divinegrowing]

How Often Should You Cold Plunge?

How Many Times Per Week?

Here you go....

:)

[divinegrowing]

made a post regarding my religious beliefs!

I want to take a moment to explain my spiritual beliefs, not to convince anyone of anything, but to avoid confusion. A lot of what I say, reblog, or reflect on can sound contradictory from the outside. People see references to Jesus, the Quran, Kabbalah, Taoism, Islam, Buddhism, spirit work, or animal soul memory, and understandably ask: “So… what do you actually believe?”

The short answer: I’m a syncretist, a spiritual therian, and someone who doesn’t believe organized religion can carry God’s truth without distorting it. I’ve built my own spiritual path; one that comes from years of personal gnosis, mystical experiences, study, and prayer. It’s not a religion. It’s a relationship with the Divine, in a language that fits my soul.

I believe in God. One Source, Infinite, formless and beyond comprehension. This Being is called by many names: Yahweh, Allah, El, Elohim, Ein Sof, the Tao, the Real. All the Abrahamic religions worship this One, though their views about Him differ. I believe He has sent many messengers, not just one.

I do not believe Jesus is the literal Son of God. To me, Jesus (Yeshua) is a prophet, like Muhammad (PBUH), like Moses, like many others. He was granted miracles by God, given spiritual insight, and brought a message of compassion, justice, and inner transformation. He was not divine in essence, but deeply connected to the Divine.

Similarly, I see Muhammad as a prophet and final lawgiver in the Abrahamic stream. One who restored the pure monotheism of earlier messengers. And I see Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) as an awakened teacher, sent to reveal truths about suffering, impermanence, and liberation. Different times, different languages, same underlying wisdom.

I don’t pick and choose based on aesthetics or convenience. I choose what aligns deeply with my spiritual experience and beliefs. What emerges is a path that blends several systems of faith.

I respect Jesus deeply as a prophet, healer, and revealer of inner truth. I reject the divinization of Jesus and the Trinity. God is One, without equal. I find beauty in the Gnostic Gospels and the writings of Christian mystics who emphasized inner transformation, humility, and direct communion with the Divine. I believe Jesus came not to start a religion, but to awaken hearts.

I resonate with Tawheed—the radical Oneness of God. I deeply admire the discipline and reverence within Islam. Sufi writings (like those of Rumi and Hafiz) helped me fall in love with God. I say La ilaha illallah (“There is no god but God”) in my own prayers.

Kabbalah shaped my entire understanding of how the cosmos is structured. I see God as Ein Sof; the Infinite, and creation as a fractal reflection of that infinity. The idea of Tzimtzum (God contracting to make space for creation) resonates with how I experience divine absence and longing. I don’t claim Jewish identity, but I respect and study its sacred texts with reverence.

The Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path are core tools in my daily life. I strive for mindfulness, compassion, and liberation from ego. I see samsara as real, not just metaphorically, but spiritually. Buddha to me is another teacher in the prophetic lineage, guiding souls through compassion and clarity.

The Tao is another name for the Divine: flowing, formless, and all-encompassing. Taoist texts like the Tao Te Ching teach me how to yield, rest, and return to my nature. I believe the natural world reflects sacred patterns, and that resisting those patterns causes suffering. Wu wei (non-forcing) is not passivity, it’s spiritual alignment.

“As above, so below” is more than a motto; it’s the blueprint of existence. I practice spiritual alchemy: transforming the dense, base experiences of life into light and growth. I believe in correspondences, symbols, archetypes, and layers of reality. Hermetic thought taught me that God is not just transcendent, but immanent in everything.

I have deep reverence for saints and angels. I don’t view them as passive, distant beings, but as active presences who walk with us, whisper to us, and protect us. I venerate and pray to saints; saints are souls who have completed great work, transcended the cycle of self, and now act as intercessors and companions. I believe in guardian angels, as well as the archangels (Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, Uriel). They are not distant bureaucrats, they are radiant intelligences who serve the Divine and speak to us in silence, synchronicity, and shadow. And yes, I work with Santa Muerte, the Holy Death. She is a mother, a protector of the marginalized, a comforter of the suffering. She is not evil. She is not Satanic. She is Death as Love, inevitable, tender, and just. I do not fear her. I honor her.

I identify as a spiritual therian, not because it’s trendy or escapist, but because it’s the most honest way I can describe my soul. My connection to animal spirit is lifelong, visceral, and sacred. It shows up in dreams, instincts, visions, and a deep feeling that part of me remembers something older, other, wilder. Therianthropy isn’t a belief system in itself, but it’s part of my spiritual being. And it influences how I view embodiment, reincarnation, and sacred ecology.

I believe that all major religions began with divine light, but human nature, over time, dimmed that light with control, power, and ego. Every institution is vulnerable to corruption. Every text has been edited. Every doctrine has been debated. I don’t trust middlemen. What I do trust is direct experience, revelation, prayer, inner vision, dreams, intuition. God still speaks. I don’t need a church, a mosque, or a synagogue to hear Him. I just need stillness, honesty, and a willingness to listen.

On another note, as a trans person, I don’t just believe we are valid, I believe we are sacred. I believe trans people are made in the image of God, not despite our transitions, but through them. God’s image is not a fixed statue. It’s a living, dynamic, evolving mystery. And when a trans person walks the path of transition, they are walking a divinely imaginative journey. A sacred unfolding toward their truest self.

To transition, socially, spiritually, physically, or in any form, is not rebellion against nature. It is co-creation with the Divine. God, in Their infinite creativity, made room in this world for beings who move between, beyond, and outside rigid binaries. God imagined us, and called us good.

We are living myths, walking miracles, embodied prayers. Trans existence reveals that identity is not static. The soul is not bound by meat or matter alone. And to become oneself, especially when it defies expectation or cultural norms, is one of the holiest acts I can imagine.

I pray to the One God and to angels and saints. I meditate and practice mindfulness in the Buddhist and Taoist sense. I journal, dream-walk, and explore personal gnosis through visions and symbolic work. I study sacred texts, not to be a scholar, but to understand the voices that came before me. I offer respect to the prophets and teachers of many traditions. I try to live with humility, empathy, and curiosity, knowing I don’t have all the answers, but I am willing to seek them.

My beliefs are complex because reality is complex. I believe the Divine speaks many languages. I believe no single religion has the full map, but each has sacred pieces of the puzzle. To those on similar paths: you are not broken. You are not “wrong” for not fitting into one mold. You’re walking a path carved with intention and soul.

If you’ve ever felt like your faith was too weird, too mixed, or too contradictory, just know you’re not alone. Syncretism is ancient. Personal gnosis is valid, and if God is infinite, it only makes sense that the ways we approach Them would be infinite too.

May your seeking be blessed, and your journey be lit with truth.

A FINAL NOTE ON DEATH:

My cosmology includes both reincarnation and an afterlife. I don’t see them as contradictory. Some souls reincarnate to complete lessons, repay karmic debts, heal wounds, or fulfill vows. We return to balance things, to deepen wisdom, to continue what wasn’t finished. Other souls may move on, to the higher planes, to dwell with the Divine in forms we can’t comprehend.

I believe that after death, we are met by guides, ancestors, and angels. We are shown our life with clarity. We are asked if we are ready to rest, or if we need to return. I don’t believe in eternal damnation. I believe in growth, in correction, in mercy. Even Hell, as I understand it, is not a torture chamber, it’s a place of purification, reckoning, or rebirth.

The afterlife is not one place. It’s a landscape of the soul, a continuum of planes and possibilities. Where we go depends on who we are, and what we carry.

[divinegrowing]

I want to take a moment to explain my spiritual beliefs, not to convince anyone of anything, but to avoid confusion. A lot of what I say, reblog, or reflect on can sound contradictory from the outside. People see references to Jesus, the Quran, Kabbalah, Taoism, Islam, Buddhism, spirit work, or animal soul memory, and understandably ask: “So… what do you actually believe?”

The short answer: I’m a syncretist, a spiritual therian, and someone who doesn’t believe organized religion can carry God’s truth without distorting it. I’ve built my own spiritual path; one that comes from years of personal gnosis, mystical experiences, study, and prayer. It’s not a religion. It’s a relationship with the Divine, in a language that fits my soul.

I believe in God. One Source, Infinite, formless and beyond comprehension. This Being is called by many names: Yahweh, Allah, El, Elohim, Ein Sof, the Tao, the Real. All the Abrahamic religions worship this One, though their views about Him differ. I believe He has sent many messengers, not just one.

I do not believe Jesus is the literal Son of God. To me, Jesus (Yeshua) is a prophet, like Muhammad (PBUH), like Moses, like many others. He was granted miracles by God, given spiritual insight, and brought a message of compassion, justice, and inner transformation. He was not divine in essence, but deeply connected to the Divine.

Similarly, I see Muhammad as a prophet and final lawgiver in the Abrahamic stream. One who restored the pure monotheism of earlier messengers. And I see Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) as an awakened teacher, sent to reveal truths about suffering, impermanence, and liberation. Different times, different languages, same underlying wisdom.

I don’t pick and choose based on aesthetics or convenience. I choose what aligns deeply with my spiritual experience and beliefs. What emerges is a path that blends several systems of faith.

I respect Jesus deeply as a prophet, healer, and revealer of inner truth. I reject the divinization of Jesus and the Trinity. God is One, without equal. I find beauty in the Gnostic Gospels and the writings of Christian mystics who emphasized inner transformation, humility, and direct communion with the Divine. I believe Jesus came not to start a religion, but to awaken hearts.

I resonate with Tawheed; the radical Oneness of God. I deeply admire the discipline and reverence within Islam. Sufi writings (like those of Rumi and Hafiz) helped me fall in love with God. I say La ilaha illallah (“There is no god but God”) in my own prayers.

Kabbalah shaped my entire understanding of how the cosmos is structured. I see God as Ein Sof; the Infinite, and creation as a fractal reflection of that infinity. The idea of Tzimtzum (God contracting to make space for creation) resonates with how I experience divine absence and longing. I don’t claim Jewish identity, but I respect and study its sacred texts with reverence.

The Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path are core tools in my daily life. I strive for mindfulness, compassion, and liberation from ego. I see samsara as real, not just metaphorically, but spiritually. Buddha to me is another teacher in the prophetic lineage, guiding souls through compassion and clarity.

The Tao is another name for the Divine: flowing, formless, and all-encompassing. Taoist texts like the Tao Te Ching teach me how to yield, rest, and return to my nature. I believe the natural world reflects sacred patterns, and that resisting those patterns causes suffering. Wu wei (non-forcing) is not passivity, it’s spiritual alignment.

“As above, so below” is more than a motto, it’s the blueprint of existence. I practice spiritual alchemy: transforming the dense, base experiences of life into light and growth. I believe in correspondences, symbols, archetypes, and layers of reality. Hermetic thought taught me that God is not just transcendent, but immanent in everything.

I have deep reverence for saints and angels. I don’t view them as passive, distant beings, but as active presences who walk with us, whisper to us, and protect us. I venerate and pray to saints; saints are souls who have completed great work, transcended the cycle of self, and now act as intercessors and companions. I believe in guardian angels, as well as the archangels (Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, Uriel). They are not distant bureaucrats, they are radiant intelligences who serve the Divine and speak to us in silence, synchronicity, and shadow. And yes, I work with Santa Muerte, the Holy Death. She is a mother, a protector of the marginalized, a comforter of the suffering. She is not evil. She is not Satanic. She is Death as Love, inevitable, tender, and just. I do not fear her. I honor her.

I identify as a spiritual therian, not because it’s trendy or escapist, but because it’s the most honest way I can describe my soul. My connection to animal spirit is lifelong, visceral, and sacred. It shows up in dreams, instincts, visions, and a deep feeling that part of me remembers something older, other, wilder. Therianthropy isn’t a belief system in itself, but it’s part of my spiritual being. And it influences how I view embodiment, reincarnation, and sacred ecology.

I believe that all major religions began with divine light, but human nature, over time, dimmed that light with control, power, and ego. Every institution is vulnerable to corruption. Every text has been edited. Every doctrine has been debated. I don’t trust middlemen. What I do trust is direct experience, revelation, prayer, inner vision, dreams, intuition. God still speaks. I don’t need a church, a mosque, or a synagogue to hear Him. I just need stillness, honesty, and a willingness to listen.

On another note, as a trans person, I don’t just believe we are valid, I believe we are sacred. I believe trans people are made in the image of God, not despite our transitions, but through them. God’s image is not a fixed statue. It’s a living, dynamic, evolving mystery. And when a trans person walks the path of transition, they are walking a divinely imaginative journey. A sacred unfolding toward their truest self.

To transition, socially, spiritually, physically, or in any form, is not rebellion against nature. It is co-creation with the Divine. God, in Their infinite creativity, made room in this world for beings who move between, beyond, and outside rigid binaries. God imagined us, and called us good.

We are living myths, walking miracles, embodied prayers. Trans existence reveals that identity is not static. The soul is not bound by meat or matter alone. And to become oneself, especially when it defies expectation or cultural norms, is one of the holiest acts I can imagine.

I pray to the One God and to angels and saints. I meditate and practice mindfulness in the Buddhist and Taoist sense. I journal, dream-walk, and explore personal gnosis through visions and symbolic work. I study sacred texts, not to be a scholar, but to understand the voices that came before me. I offer respect to the prophets and teachers of many traditions. I try to live with humility, empathy, and curiosity, knowing I don’t have all the answers, but I am willing to seek them.

My beliefs are complex because reality is complex. I believe the Divine speaks many languages. I believe no single religion has the full map, but each has sacred pieces of the puzzle. To those on similar paths: you are not broken. You are not “wrong” for not fitting into one mold. You’re walking a path carved with intention and soul.

If you’ve ever felt like your faith was too weird, too mixed, or too contradictory, just know you’re not alone. Syncretism is ancient. Personal gnosis is valid, and if God is infinite, it only makes sense that the ways we approach Them would be infinite too.

May your seeking be blessed, and your journey be lit with truth.

A FINAL NOTE ON DEATH:

My cosmology includes both reincarnation and an afterlife. I don’t see them as contradictory. Some souls reincarnate to complete lessons, repay karmic debts, heal wounds, or fulfill vows. We return to balance things, to deepen wisdom, to continue what wasn’t finished. Other souls may move on, to the higher planes, to dwell with the Divine in forms we can’t comprehend.

I believe that after death, we are met by guides, ancestors, and angels. We are shown our life with clarity. We are asked if we are ready to rest, or if we need to return. I don’t believe in eternal damnation. I believe in growth, in correction, in mercy. Even Hell, as I understand it, is not a torture chamber, it’s a place of purification, reckoning, or rebirth.

The afterlife is not one place. It’s a landscape of the soul, a continuum of planes and possibilities. Where we go depends on who we are, and what we carry.

[divinegrowing]

[divinegrowing]

Ancient Jewish marble and prayer book from Bulgaria, from the Jewish historical museum at the Central Sofia Synagogue.

The history of Jews in Bulgarian lands dates back more than 2000 years. The largest part of the Bulgarian Jewish community before the 15th century belonged to the Hellenic (Romaniote) rite. In the center of Plovdiv, the remains of an ancient synagogue from the 3rd century, when the city was under the control of the severians, were recently found. Even the faith of the early Bulgarian Christians was a syncretistic mixture of Christian, Jewish, and pagan beliefs. The monks Cyril and Methodius consulted Jewish scholars in the preparation of their literary work. In the early 12th century Leo Mung, born a Jew and later a pupil of the 11th-century Bulgarian Talmudist Tobiah b. Eliezer, became archbishop of the diocese of Ochrida and Primate of Bulgaria. Tsar Ivan Alexander (1331-1371) married a Jewish girl named Sarah, who took the name Theodora at her baptizing.

[divinegrowing]

Ritual Taoist mask

[divinegrowing]

Jiang Miao — Taoist Trinity and the Self (acrylic on woodboard, with carving, 2024.7.25)

[divinegrowing]

The Spheres, the Heavenly Ones

Tree of Life as shown in “The Moon and Serpent Bumper Book of Magic" by Alan Moore and Steve Moore (2024).

Sun: Higher Self

Moon: Subconscious Self

Earth: Material Self

Mercury: Intellect

Venus: The Heart’s Desire

Mars: The Warrior’s Spirit

Jupiter: Sovereign Will

Saturn: Lord of Time

Da’ath: Abyss of Knowledge and Gateway to Higher Consciousness

Chokmah: Divine Wisdom and Creative Force

Keter: Crown of Divine Unity and Pure Consciousness

Ein Soph: Infinite Light and Boundless Mystery

[divinegrowing]

Diagram of different Trees of Life from "The Assyrian Tree of Life: Tracing the Origins of Jewish Monotheism and Greek Philosophy" by Simo Parpola in Journal of Near Eastern Studies.

[divinegrowing]

"To the Kabbalist, the ultimate paradise is here now, because the Infinite Light is here now.

The focus of Kabbalah is not on serenity. Neither is it on transcendental enlightenment. It provides those as well, but as a means, not as a goal. The goal of Kabbalah is inspired action. Whatever wisdom the Kabbalist gains, whatever state of ecstasy or mystic union to which he or she ascends, the end result will always be an act of beauty in the physical world."

~ Rabbi Tzvi Freeman

[divinegrowing]

'Three Eyed Raven' by Audrey Benjaminsen