#atheopaganism

[booksandwitchery]

Demystifying Energy in Witchcraft

Throughout my life I've heard the word "energy" used, viewed and treated in the spiritual sphere as some ethereal, supernatural force. I even saw a TikTok the other day claiming that secular and atheist witches do not believe in energy work. I'm not sure where this treatment of the term "energy" started, but it likely has a lot to do with some more "woo" practices like Reiki and crystal healing.

I think we need to remove this stigma from the term "energy" in the Craft because 1) energy is an objectively real, observable material and 2) the benefits of working with and understanding energy shouldn't be packaged and branded as a medium for the "mystics only" club. This was something really meaningful that I took from Psychic Witch, where Mat Auryn explains energy in more scientifically observable terms.

Rather than defining energy as a mystical force, he explains that reality is, in fact, entirely composed of energy. The majority of us don't really think about reality this way, but anyone who has taken a physics class can tell you that this is a fact. Reality is energy--this is not a mystical perspective; it is a fact of the laws of physics. The scientific method has shown us that even things that appear solid, (diamonds, skeletons, my coffee mug, for example) are merely energies vibrating at a slower rate. Everything is made of particles perpetually in motion.

Still with me? Okay, so--Auryn breaks this down further by stating that the five senses are just various ways that we perceive energy. So in a sense, we are achieving a rudimentary form of energy work just by perceiving the world around us. Put in this context, many other animals are superior to humans with certain types of energy work (I wonder if this is part of why animals are so sacred to us witches). Dolphins and bats can legitimately use echolocation to experience sound waves as a form of sight. Indeed, we humans are far from the top of the totem pole when it comes to energy perception--it's almost as if humans were not created to rule over the rest of the earth (such a crazy concept).

Some examples of energy that our bodies cannot perceive include magnetic fields, radiation, wireless signals, and ultraviolet light.

What I'm trying to say is that Auryn's book really helped me to think of energy in terms of empirical reality, and reinforced my (somewhat) recent realization that magick is a valid, observably effective tool that can be used to achieve the changes we want.

[fox4brains]

hi fellas so i forgot to update yall but i confirmed my harbor seal theriotype 😈 i also discovered that im atheopagan aka atheistic pagan and a green and sea witch (yes that relates to my therianthropy, also if any psychological therian witches have any tips to connect to ur theriotypes pls lmk :D)

[rainsandrains]

hm i am very strongly considering changing my icon and generally dropping the term "atheopaganism"

i've no ill will towards the atheopagan community, and mark green seems like a good guy with some good ideas, but i can't help feeling uncomfortable at having the label i use for something as personal as my spirituality/worldview tied so intrinsically to one man and to one small community.

i might stick to "naturalistic pagan" from now on.

[swirley1618]

[thestars-aremycanvas]

What is Dianic Wicca?

[hylozoic-atheopagan]

What is Hylozoic-Atheopaganism?

Hylozoic-Atheopaganism is a constantly evolving, science-based yet spiritual, branch of paganism where the core beliefs are that there is no god, spirits exist, and that everything is connected.

Hylozoic comes from the Ancient Greek words:

ὕλη (hyle, “wood, matter”) and ζωή (zoē, “life”)

Hylozoism is a philosophical doctrine where all Matter is alive and unified with life or spiritual activity. Typically, in this theory, all types of matter participate in something known as the World Soul. This word was coined by English Plantonist philosopher Ralph Cudworth in 1678.

Atheo comes from the Ancient Greek word:

ἄθεος (átheos, “godless, without a god”)

Paganism is a religion that is non-Christian or pre-Christian that typically involves some sort of nature worship or respect for the Earth.

Atheopaganism is another spiritual belief on it’s own coined by Mark Green. It is a naturalistic pagan religious path founded in 2009. The belief in itself is athiest, but it embraces pagan practices to increase happiness individually and in society. It has Four Sacred Pillars and 13 Priciples that it’s followers practice. Mark Green states that they do not believe in gods or the supernatural.

Hylozoic-Atheopaganism is not related to Atheopaganism, as we believe that spirits exist, but it is similar. The spiritual path entails not believing in a god, which is the atheo part of it, but we do believe in the supernatural. We believe that everything is connected in one way or another—that we are part of the Earth and Universe. We believe we need to respect the Earth, and we believe knowledge is valuable, so we want to constantly learn about the world around us. Due to this, Hylozoic Atheopaganism is bendable and changes with information. It is also up for interpretation and open. As long as you believe in the core beliefs, you can call yourself a hylozoic atheopagan.

[asocial-squash]

My Practice

just as an overview of how I practice atheopaganism:

I take a lot of inspiration from paganism in its focus on nature and the seasons. I think there's a lot of beauty and "magic" in the real, tangible things around us. I loosely follow the wheel of the year as part of this.

I don't follow any existing pantheon or deities, but I do like to "worship" personified ideas of the Sun and Moon. I use them as symbols to represent values I like to incorporate into my life and occaisionally "pray" to them as a way to process things. I chose these figures because I appreciate that they are real things in our universe that have an observable, studied and proven affect on the Earth. I might apply some spiritual ideas to them, but these are inspired by the real things they do such as warm the Earth or move the tides, as well as common methaphorical ideas used in literature. I might make an entire post just on how I personally symbolize the Sun and Moon.

I enjoy doing "magic" as metaphorical rituals. I don't really do these kinds of rituals often, but I really like using them to work through things, direct my energy, and just have a fun outlet. Basically I enjoy witchcraft from an aesthetic perspective. I'm trying to incorporate more small bits of "witchcraft" into my day-to-day life.

While I take some inspiration from Mark Green's blog on atheopaganism, I mostly do my own things and consider my religion from a very individualistic perspective. I've taken the 13 principles and 4 pillars that he defined and build from there. That's what I appreciate most about atheopaganism, it's essentially whatever you need or want it to be for you.

Overall, I'm pretty passive in the way I practice religion and don't really like strict structure. I enjoy doing rituals like witchcraft for the personal and therapeutic fulfillment and using symbols of spirituality within a fictional narrative. I am very much eclectic in my approach to everything.

[thesunandmoonandtrees]

hello!

now that i've graduated college, i'm excited to have a lot more time and energy devoted to observing atheopagan practices. i've been kind of casually observing for about two years, but haven't had the time or resources to really invest in it until now! currently planning a late harvest/fall equinox dinner with corn, squash, pumpkin, apple, etc. ingredients and i'm super excited!

i've spent four years away from the east coast for school and i am so thrilled to be back somewhere there are real seasons (looking at you, southern california). within the past week the weather has gotten chilly and rainy and perhaps in a few weeks i'll get tired of it, but for now i'm just reminded of the magic of fall i experienced as a kid growing up on the east coast and i couldn't be more excited to be in cold weather again.

would love to follow some other atheopagans/naturalistic pagans, hence the creation of this blog (there are other similar sects i'm sure, but i'm not familiar with the names)!

xx

[alexthepleb]

Another video about Naturalistic Paganism! :)

[booksandwitchery]

Greetings and Life Update

I really miss being on here and talking to you all! I hope everyone on Witchblr is doing well and enjoying the season.

I want to say that I have been undergoing a bit of a career change and that's why I haven't been on here as much. I have transitioned from being a librarian to...dun dun dun...a historical archivist! In February, I accepted a new position at SCV Historical Society. When I was in grad school I had no idea that museum archival work was even in the cards for me. It's crazy how much can change in just a year. This was emotionally difficult for me because I was so attached to the library and the work I was doing there. The commute, however, was slowly killing me and I didn't feel like I was being challenged. I took the new job because my intuition was firmly telling me it was the right thing to do, but it was not an easy decision.

Now that I am (more or less) adjusted to the new position and sleep schedule, I'm excited to be more active on here because everything witchcraft makes me feel at home. I'd also like to give a quick update on where I'm at on my path:

As with a lot of secular witches, I had a phase of reading about Chaos Magick and finding ways to adapt this model to my own life and practice. The idea of creating servitors and working with archetypal deities really resonated with me. I'm now reading a book called Why Woo-Woo Works: The Surprising Science Behind Meditation, Reiki, Crystals, and Other Alternative Practices by David R. Hamilton Ph.D. It really helps solidify for the reader why all religions/spiritual practices tend to work for people (at least some extent). The book pairs well with Chaos Magick and witchcraft in general because the author highlights the importance of belief in achieving your goals, getting results, living a better life, etc. He also cites a startling amount of scientific studies and lists them in the references at the end of the book (for skeptics like me that want to be sure that the author isn't stretching the truth or taking any liberties with explaining the results of the experiments).

Next--over the winter holiday, I was gifted a shitload of calligraphy supplies for some reason. So I've started to get into calligraphy and various ink colors and pens. Naturally this calligraphy hobby really has me obsessed with color magic and ink magic (I still don't know if ink magic is a thing, but it should be).

Between work and all the craziness of life, I've also been steadily working on a master list of personal correspondences. I started on paper, but soon transitioned over to a digital list because it really is a living, iterative document that can change from day-to-day. For this I've been using the whiteboard feature on Canva, and I've also been working on some other stuff on there that really deserves its own post.

I also have way too many witchcraft books to read; it's really intimidating at this point. If you have any tips on how to set up a reading schedule or reading priority list, let me know. Actually if you have any advice on how to keep up a reading habit while also keeping up with everything else, please please please throw it my way.

I've got so much to say! I could go on and on. It's good to be back.

[rainsandrains]

in all honesty, i'm having a hard time with my atheopaganism. it's nearly hallows, and my focus is still set up for spring - i was here (in cambridge) until july, then i went home (to my parents' house) until the start of october, and although i've been back for about two weeks i still haven't touched my focus except to put my two spiritual notebooks back on it. i have hardly engaged with any of the things i consider spiritual practices.

the last time i was in cambridge, i was extremely unhappy. i was still in limbo regarding issues with my phd, i was having issues with my relationship to certain close friends, and i was, to put it bluntly, bordering on suicidal. i then went through hell for two weeks in july, and spent all of august recovering from that. i finally got good news about my phd and in september i started studying again, and i managed to make a tiny bit of progress with another personal goal i won't talk about here in case it's triggering to people. i engaged in my first proper full moon ritual, and managed to keep the promise i made to myself that night - a certain set of tasks for an entire lunar cycle. things were looking up. and then i came back to cambridge, to the place where so much went wrong and where i had felt so so bad, and it all fell apart again. i relapsed into a very bad coping mechanism and haven't yet had the energy to feel bad about it. i'm struggling to enjoy my main hobby because the choir is full of new people and because i'm tired and drained.

so no wonder the whole "connecting to the natural world" thing has fallen away. i'm just trying to get through the days, get my work done, and not snap at the poor freshers who haven't done anything wrong. i don't feel guilty about abandoning my practice. but i do feel like i'm lacking something. i do feel sad, and regretful, that i'm not feeling connected to the world.

and, for some reason, when i feel this way (and when i feel low and lonely in general), i've recently (as in over the last year or so) found myself drawn to polytheism. i know that gods aren't real. but i wish they were. i find myself... playing pretend, for lack of a better word. talking to apollo and lighting a candle i imagine he'd like, and then catching myself and feeling stupid. when i have to sing christian music with my choir, i think "khaire apollon, if you want to take any of this music as an offering, even though it's about the wrong god on paper, feel free. your presence would be appreciated" - because i feel so isolated even in that space, and because i need something overtly pagan to counteract the icky feeling christianity gives me. i know plenty of naturalistic pagans engage with deity as myth, as story, as metaphor... but i want it to be more than metaphor. but it isn't, and it never will be. i need to find a new way to engage with these ideas, something that fills the emotional void but that aligns with my naturalist worldview. i never think about apollo this way when i'm at my parents' house, probably because i'm less lonely than here where i live alone. maybe i need to spend more time with my friends, but it's cambridge, they're so busy all the time...

i don't know. i may well delete this post - i've never rambled so personally on this blog before, and it's not really in line with my original intention that this would be for reference and inspiration. but i'm stuck, and frustrated, and struggling, and i don't have anyone irl i can talk to about it because i don't know any other naturalistic pagans irl. only a couple of people even know i'm pagan, and while both are open-minded and kind about it neither of them are remotely similar (one is my college chaplain, and the other is a friend who is jewish - both lovely, neither likely to be on the same page as me about naturalism).

[witch-chi]

hi, my name is witchchi!

this is a sideblog, my main is fembrie which is radfem centered

i'm 21 and south asian

i'm interested in atheopaganism but i'm still very much a baby witch

i'll be using this blog as a virtual BoS where i gather information, explore rituals, and post what i have learned about atheopaganism!

[hylozoic-atheopagan]

Angel Numbers

I like to believe that as humans we see patterns and our biological systems use these patterns to warn us of things. We’re far more in tune with the world and universe than we think, we just need to take the time to practice recognising it.

We and the earth are one in the same. Everything is connected in one way or another. Angel numbers are a good example of that. Our brain recognises these things and tries to warn us..

[asocial-squash]

Introduction

my name is Pumpkin and I have loosely identified as atheopagan for a few years now. I've struggled to incorporate this identity and/or practice into my daily life when I just don't have the time, access, or motivation to do actual rituals often. I have ADHD, building habits is just difficult. I think one benefit to faith-based religions is that you don't necessarily have to do anything for that religion to exist within you and your life. It is possible to just believe and still consider yourself religious. Where a religion like atheopaganism pretty much relies on actions to fully exist within your life. But I want to make it a bigger part of my life, so I made this blog in order to reflect on how atheopaganism is present in my day-to-day experiences and hopefully encourage myself to stay motivated in this goal.

as a disclaimer: I was raised christian. I have never connected with faith or appreciated a lot of the ideas that were taught to me in church growing up. However, while I do not have great experiences with or trust in organized religion, I recognize the benefits and comfort in those kinds of practices. And I find it personally important to remain respectful and appreciative towards other people's faiths despite my own doubts. I do not want to promote any hostility towards anyone's religion or faith, and I will only discuss my own experiences and ideas which are open to change and grow and are not meant to be dismissive of others' experiences and ideas. I am an atheist, but I do not claim to understand the universe better than someone with faith. I do not believe in magic but I do not intend to belittle witches that do.

I don't really expect anyone to find or follow this blog, it is primarily to promote my personal engagement in atheopaganism as a religion. But if you do, you are very welcome to follow whatever rambly posts I make and add to the conversation if you want to

[alexthepleb]

The latest video from the Atheopagan society!