#PRACTICE RELIGION THATS THE TERM

[devotedlystrangewizard]

i would like to personally ask god why he decided we needed 25 different forms of christianity and, more importantly, why they all kept fighting and caused like 90% of the history i have to know for my final history exam.

[episyn]

if I had a nickel for every time I considered converting to judaism i'd have 3 nickels. it isn't a lot but it's weird it happened thrice. same with buddhism except its only twice

[yanderefarm]

yandere cultist but its omegaverse

cw; religion, cults, yandere themes, omegaverse

ill post the introduction for him later too. ive had this idea for a minute i thought it was fun. u always see yandere cult leaders wheres the yandere followers who act the way they do because they're following what they were told. wheres the yandere cultists who have been convinced that you're their chosen soulmate and will do anything to prove it to you.

also i got the dominant thing from a yaoi manhwa i dropped i don't remember what it was called but im sure this trope isn't original to the verse i just put my own spin on it

you're what's called a "dominant" alpha, it's not anything to do with your role in the bedroom and more the strength of your traits. rut inhibitors and scent blockers have no effect on you while you struggle with interest in typical omegas. but because of the rarity of the condition it wasn't often taught about in schools. trying to find a "dominant" omega on normal dating apps was practically impossible.

that's why you turned to more conservative dating apps. less likely to find people who thought dominant omegas meant strap ons and muzzles and more likely to find people who thought the term dominant omega was a sin. while you don't agree with them an omega is a whole lot easier to reason with.

thats how you met him. he was a beautiful boy with long blue hair and lovely floral dresses. all his pictures were either clearly church pictures or candid shots of him working on a farm. all you really needed to see was the marked off dominant omega trait at this point but him being a cutie was a bonus.

you checked to make sure he was what he said he was and then you two hit it off immediately. he was shy but he used the cutest emojis, lots of hearts and sparkles. you found yourself talking to him every second of every day, completely enamored by the sweetheart he was.

so when you asked if you could finally go on a date in person you were surprised to find your stark differences reared their head. you had to meet his dad before you could go on a date. sure. he's made it no secret that he's a sheltered religious boy. the comment he also added about ensuring his purity was intact was unneeded but you could get past it. he's a good person.

he's a good person who happens to live in the same Happy Homes compound you had just watched a video essay about. you were surprised... and horrified. still as creepy as the place was you were too attached to him at this point to just abandon him here. if he couldn't be convinced to leave that's one thing but you hadn't even tried yet.

his family was warm and welcoming, a few uncomfortable comments and his eldest brother wouldn't stop glaring at you but that's not unique to them. it was a relatively normal farm house surrounded by identical farm houses. what could go wrong?

you had dinner with them and they even invited you to church with them. you knew you weren't about to be convinced to join the cult so you agreed. his father let you borrow some nice clothes and you ended up taking your boyfriend, his mother, and one of his sisters in your car.

the sermon was. boring. nothing uniquely offensive that you wouldn't find in any conservative religious church. the surprising part came with the announcements. the pastor, a beta dressed in white ushered your boyfriend and 4 other omegas onto the stage.

he talked about a plan, a calling each of them had from god. they were each supposed to bring wayward alphas to the church to join them in the house of god. yeah, you could get the gist and before you could even try to stand up one of the other boyfriends did so. he was talking about how this was bullshit and he didn't buy into this crazy crap. and then he collapsed. you watched as 2 others joined him in either death or unconsciousness.

the pastor ushered you onto the stage and your boyfriend's brother dragged you up by the arms. your heart was pounding in your ears and the lights above were glaringly bright. you barely noticed when your boyfriend's arms wrapped around your own.

"and you too shall enter the happiest homes. may god bless you."

you felt your mind go numb and the next thing you knew you were on the floor.

[stagefoureddiediaz]

what if we've missed some major Eddie foreshadowing???

What if we all followed the red herring and missed a massive clue the show has given us about Eddies arc?! I'm going back to season 7 - 7x05 to be exact and the conversation Eddie has with Marisol when he gets back from Bucks.

The scene plays out like this;

Marisol: I should have told you, about the nun thing. Eddie: Why didn't you? Marisol: Because no man has ever looked at me the same after he found out. There's two types of guys, the ones that get freaked out by it and the ones who get a little too into it. Eddie: Maybe theres a third? The kind of guy who just needs a minute. Marisol: You don't need to slow walk it. If you're not ready for this... Eddie: Yeah. I don't think I am. Yet. so here's something you don't know about me. This moving too fast. I do it a lot. I just go with my gut and let my head catch up later.

Obviously the literal meaning is obvious - the reality of relationships as experienced when something that has been kept secret is revealed. The meaning of the words said can be taken at face value but thats doesn't have to be the only meaning and fandom explored the subtext.

Now I don't think our theorising about the subtext of Eddies storyline in that episode and that scene being about catholic guilt and it setting up Eddie's reckoning with the catholic faith is wrong - I think it very much is about that. But what if there is a second subtextual meaning hidden underneath the catholic guilt and the set up for a catholic faith arc. One that is part of that catholic faith and Eddie arc, but is also its own thing separate from it?!

I know I always read those lines and the idea of a third guy being a play on the idea of people falling into three categories - religious, agnostic or atheist. The third guy being the agnostic as it sits in the middle of that spectrum. Eddie sees himself as catholic and therefore religious. Even though he is lapsed and therefore agnostic is something he hasn't really grasped about himself because he hasn't needed to. until now.

The conversation preceding the Eddie-Marisol conversation above is also really key for this scene - because it sets up the idea of a third way. There is plenty of subtext and metaphors in that scene - Eddie not wanting to go home is a metaphor for the house of god - the church. Eddie at this point in the scene thinks his only options are to go home - to religion - to be fully practicing, or to not return at all - become atheist. Buck revealing he and Tommy were on a date is a metaphor for the third way - agnostic.

This is still a valid way to view the meaning of the scene and sets up Eddies arc for the rest of the season and going into season 8 really well.

But...

The Eddie - Marisol conversation takes place immediately after Eddie’s chat with Buck - when Buck comes out as bi and Eddie says nothing is going to change between them. A loaded line that make it clear that things have already changed between them and that they will continue to do so.

What if it’s also a metaphor for sex in a more literal sense.

'The ones who get a little too into it' are the ones who enjoy and have sex regularly (we're shown and told that is who Marisol is in this episode multiple times) - we'll use hypersexual as the term here

'the ones who get freaked out by it' are not interested in/ don't want or need sex and don't have it - are ace.

Those are the only two guys Marisol describes and that is key. It is Eddie who suggests a third way and describes what that third way is - 'The guy who just needs a minute' - doing this means that this is who he is - he is the third way which is a metaphor for demi sexuality - needing a minute is short hand for needing a connection - needing a bit of time to build up that connection that then allows sex to become part of the conversation. It’s foreshadowing- hinting at Eddie’s demi-sexuality and setting up his s8 arc. 

Eddie also talks in that scene about really getting to know each other, that line works on all the various levels of subtext as well - Marisol gives eddie that minute and they are shown 'getting to know each other better' getting to know each other better is also a reference to the idea of Eddie seeking out religion again and getting to know that aspect better but it also plays into the idea of demi-sexual Eddie. Him getting to know himself better and not going with his gut without paying attention to his brain. Figuring out that giving himself that time to see if sexual attraction does develop - rather than starting out with sex early on and then panicking when it doesn't.

This plays into what happens later in season 7 with Kim - it gives him the parallel of Shannon - who he was friends with first - which is why he had sexual attraction to her when their friendship turned romantic. Things with Marisol are not following the same pattern - he isn't finding that connection with her. But he's still learning and figuring things out so when he comes across a doppelgänger of Shannon it allows him to test things out further on that front and not just the not being having let Shannon go of it all.

The fact we see nothing remotely sexual for Eddie in the rest of the season with Marisol, and the decision of the show to go with Eddie hugging Kim rather than kissing her along with the Adam and Eve and snake imagery we get with Kim (her hair is up in a snake knot bun) is really interesting.

Whilst the time we see him spend with Kim can be read as being dates (which is the intention and technically what they are) they can also be read another way because of the lack of romance and sex we see when it comes to Marisol. Marisol is the representation of the church - of catholicism. Kim is the opposite end of the spectrum - she is atheism which is why she has the snake knot bun and the leather outfit and also the dark lighting. she is the snake in the garden of eden tempting Eve (Eddie) to eat the apple. If they had kissed in the later scene then it would have represented him eating the apple - him not doing so means he didn't - that he resisted temptation where Eve did not. Its the play on the religious meaning, but its also a play on the sexual spectrum meaning as well - catholicism v atheism v agnostic.

Buck is very heavily connected to all of this narrative. not only because of the scene preceding the scene about three types of guy, but also because it is him Eddie drops Chris off with before he sees Kim and he is the person Eddie opens up to about Kim. He is always the middle ground. He is the representation of agnosticism in the religious subtext and demi-sexuality in the sexual subtext (what Bucks position on the sexual spectrum is is irrelevant - he represents the connection needed to feel sexual attraction in this context)

There is a third subtextual reading as well (again a subtext that is foreshadowing) - that has only become more clear as we've started season 8. They do like their threes in connection with Buck and Eddie!!

Eddie is going to reckon with/seek advice from the church - so he is going to explore his faith which sets up another 3 way situation- this time it’s the religious agnostic and atheist metaphor from a sexuality standpoint- religious = straight - heteronormative, agnostic = bi and atheist is gay - the opposite of heterosexual! 

Eddie won’t need the third way here (or maybe he will - perhaps the show is going to make Eddie Demi and bi - it would be kind of amazing rep if they did. Or maybe Eddie is going to to be Demi and bi initially because he thinks that’s what he is because of Shannon, Ana and Marisol but will ultimately figure out he’s gay when he is shunned by the church for dating a man (metaphorically speaking - it is his parents who would most likely be the representation of this!) 

I don't know how this became so long and how it went off on a tangent I didn't mean it to but here we are welcome to my brain 😂😂😂

[no-more-rqs]

seoracial

a term thats an alternative to "transracial" that doesnt have the connotations of supporting and encouraging the concept of "race transitioning" because of the "trans-" prefix. its for those with atypical dysphoria or those with exomemories that cause them to have a different perceived race that doesnt line up with their physical race. the term supports doing non-harmful things to relieve dysphoria (ex. learning a new language, participating in open cultural practices, joining and practicing open religions, eating cultural food, etc), however it doesnt support lying about your physical race and acknowledges that its impossible to "transition to" a different race or ethnicity.

the prefix "seo-" or "seor-" comes from the latin word "seorsum" which means "separately, apart from the rest" to acknowledge the disconnect between the user's physical race and their perceived race while also acknowledging that they arent physically their perceived race.

[starrclown]

☆ Redesign Time/Have Tea With Me: The Black Characters of Hazbin Hotel, The Radio Demon ☆

Note: Okay I kinda feel like a cheat because it isn't a whole redesign, it's just two sketchy headshots. Sorry it's not a full design. Sorry also it isn't my Stolitz Rewrite... but I have 10 followers now!! I know that's not alot but hey, it means people actually WANT to read these blogs and see my art. I'll take it!!)

Ahoy Matey's!! So there has been two controversies going on withing the Hazbin Hotel fandom. 1 has been long term while the other is semi recent.

Have tea with me while we talk about it 🫖🍵:

1. The black/people of color don't have any features of their race.

2. Alastor's voodoo symbols.

I will not be talking about Alastor's voodoo. I am a white boy and I am not educated enough to talk about Voodoo. What I'm here to talk about is that none of the poc look like poc. Let's play another game. What is the race of these characters:

Have your guess? Their black. Sera is black, Velvette is black, and Alastor is Creole. All are black and or mixed and none of them have any ethnic features. All of them are gray. (I'm just saying it's sad when me, a white boy that has 2c/3a hair, has curlier hair then people with textured hair.)

(Also, Alastor, who is not a good guy but is the good guy team, is light gray. Velvette, who is on the villains side, is dark gray. I'm not accusing Viv of being racist but I find it weird.)

The problem is so easy to fix. GIVE THEM ETHNIC FEATURES!! ITS SO EASY!! No one's expecting you to draw every individual braid or dreadlock but oh my god!! Give them textured hair! Or I don't know, NOT ASHY GRAY SKIN!! BLACK PEOPLE ARE BEAUTIFUL VIV!! YOU CAN MAKE THEM BROWN ITS OKAY I SWEAR!! Sorry that got aggressive. Look, I just said that I am not a poc but there's no way they don't have black people on the SpindleHorse team. Hell, you can just ask people on Twitter or the black people you know!! Seriously, it's not hard to learn to draw ethnic features! It's really fun actually! I had so much fun drawing the second hairstyle!! Speaking if which!! (Drum noises)

Drawing these hairstyles were so fun yall. Andddddd, you get a sneak peak at what my Alastor redesign might look like! If you can tell what I'm going for then you get a cookie. Dude the second hairstyles was so fun. Like honestly. I do think I can do the first hairstyle, (I think I know the nameof this hairstyle but I don't want to be wrong.), better but thats for me to practice on my own time. Seriously I had so much fun drawing these. Hell I didn't even line them. Those are sketches with colors. These aren't final designs or anything, I still need to adjust colors and get his outfit planned out but I think I know where I'm going with this!!

The hairstyles I used:

It's just really sad seeing how SpindleHorse treats its poc characters. Textured hair can come in so many different types and hairstyles, you just wasting them making have straight hair with choppy waves. (Side note: Does anyone else like get excited when they draw new things? Like I was happy drawing Al's hair. I got excited learning how to draw my curls. I tried learning how to draw a hijab. It's really fun actually!! I highly suggest to challenge yourself drawing other types of hair types, races, religions, clothing. Seriously it helps your art and representation is important.)

There were other examples I couldn't list but I don't want this to be long. I want to get back to my Stolitz post but I HAD to draw Alastor with textured hair. Seriously Viv, he's Creole, at least make him look like it if your not even going to try and make him look like what he's described.

I have about 60% of the Stolitz post done! I encourage you to draw something new and to commit mass amounts of tax fraud!! Goodbye Matey's!!

- ⭐️StarClown⭐️

[pomegranate-jewitchery]

I was trying to find something like this to just look at and see the responses, and I couldn't find any, so I decided to create one.

Witchcraft Ask Tag

How long have you been practicing?

I have been practicing for about 6-7 years now, kind of off an on as my adhd takes me from one place to the next.

How would you describe your practice?

Its a mix of kitchen witchcraft, green witchcraft, and my jewish religious practice and culture all together. I have also called it hearth craft to a couple friends since my practice is based in my household and home, ie what can I do to improve the quality of the lives within my home.

What tools do you use in your practice?

I have a mortar and pestle, thats sooo necessary imo. And all my kitchen utensils as well. I just have a lot of bits and bobs that are used.

What kind of divination is your go to?

Bone throwing! though I have recently tried crystal throwing and that is pretty cool too.

Where do you think your practice falls on the low energy to high energy scale?

I would say medium, and at times high.

What are your favorite resource(s) in witchcraft? (books, youtube, podcast, etc.)

I am gonna say Jewitches in my favorite resource for all my jewitchery needs.

For general witchcraft HearthWitch & ChaoticWitchAunt on youtube have to be my favs.

How cycle oriented in your practice?

Very! Thats because Judasim is a very cycle oriented religion due to the calendar being sol-lunar, and every week I renew things once more on shabbat.

How does nature play a role in your practice if at all?

A lot! being out in nature is very important to me, and my plants are a reflection of mine and my households health.

What is your witchcraft hot take?

Stop calling non-jewish holidays sabbats! You are appropriating if you do.

(link to a nice tumblr post that describes my feelings on this a lot better than I can)

What is the weirdest thing to happen to you via your practice?

I had a prophetic dream that predicted the end of one of my long term friendships.

What is the best thing to happen to you via your practice?

Making new friends and joining a community of like minded people. I am so happy to have met the people I have!

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

I am going to @salixsociety, @will-o-the-witch, @hiddenhearthwitch, @magickkate, @broomsick, @thegraveyardwitch, @thewitchesgrove and anyone else who wants to do it! Feel free to share as much or as little as you would like, and don't forget to pass it on!

edited 7/5/24: trying to fix some of the tags and added another

[sophieinwonderland]

hey im endo neutral before you go off on one, but just came in here to say triggering people's psychosis is cringe and fail, so is triggering abandonment/attachment issues, so is going against a group of highly traumatised indivoduals (cause lets face it thats exactly what you did, regardless of whether they accept you or not or whether you think theyre "bigoted" or not) and ALSO you really do not give pro endos a good look and maybe you should like reevaluate what you post or think for more than like three seconds before hitting post (literally anyone could have seen how that post would be incredibly triggering). i look through your blog every once in a while to look at all the papers you post and all your arguments cause i like having a nuanced view and i understand it feels shitty for people to not believe in an integral part of you - i have the same thing when it comes to my religion but i dont fucking go around telling non believers im gonna take everything they love away from them because im not an asshole? have a day <3

I'm just curious... is there a group actively identifying as anti-[your religion]?

Do you have to regularly deal with non-believers coming into your religious spaces just to tell you that your religion isn't real and that you're faking your religious experiences?

How many times have you been told to kill yourself because of your religion?

When was the last time you saw someone say cyberbullying needed to be brought back specifically to bully people with your religion?

When you introduce people to your religion, are the non-believers accusing you of "grooming" them?

Do you want to know something? I don't actually care if people believe in me or not. That vast majority of people don't know that tulpas exist because it's still pretty niche.

That's fine. They can be taught later.

Other people people are aware of bits and pieces but don't get involved and don't believe either. They have their beliefs and keep those to themselves. I can respect that.

These people aren't anti-endos.

But then you have a hate group who have made it part of their identity to spread constant hate and disinformation about us. These are not simply "non-believers." This a group that is united solely by their hatred of us.

And this is probably more controversial in the pro-endo community, but I don’t even mind the "endogenics are all traumagenics in denial" people, in theory. As long as they're respectful and aren't actively spreading hate or standing with those who do.

I say in theory though because practically every one I've actually encountered is still gatekeeping space and resources. And that somehow makes it even worse to me because while disbelieving in endogenic plurality is ignorant, even if willfully ignorant, believing we're confused trauma survivors in denial and still treating us like shit and gatekeeping terms means they're just knowingly hurting other trauma survivors.

Don't you dare try to frame this as me simply going after people for not believing me.

[losthomisexual]

Intro/beginners guide to paganism

This is a brief guide based on my personal experiences and research.

What is Paganism?

Now this is a big question with limited evidence but lets go through what we know and how people practice today. A lot of our sources for old religions were written by christians or romans where they could have skewed the original meanings for their own agendas. Christianity played a large role in the loss of these beliefs by ways of genocide, missionaries, renaming holidays and more. My ancestry being European i research more into Celtic, germanic, norse and Anglo-Saxon beliefs but everyone has roots and if traced back far enough we find similar beliefs across the globe. There are also a lot of neopagan religions and beliefs like Wicca and witchcraft with many subcategories.

Paganism for me is about a deeper connection to nature, myself, the spirits of the land and honouring those who’ve come before. Its being grateful for what we have, spending time with our family and friends, being kind and respectful of our surroundings and those within whether thats people, animals or plants. It gives me a bigger perspective, helping to see through hardships and take lessons from them rather than begging the gods for forgiveness or salvation. Even just walking through the bush i get a sense of how small i am in the world, we are all just small cogs in the wheel of time, passing on our lessons and stories through the generations. Norse paganism tends to have more stories than others so i tend to find myself drawn to them for guidance and symbolism. Everything around us has a spirit or a soul all the way from the sky, rain, and thunder to the grass, rocks and dirt beneath our feet, there is spiritual energy everywhere. When it comes to the afterlife i don’t really think about it much but it could be reincarnation, a realm for the dead although nothing like heaven and hell, just a resting place or even something else entirely. Living in the present is more important to me.

So how can you practice paganism?

Seasonal changes are important in paganism as well as the equinoxes and solstices.

Following the natural cycle and staying in tune with it is a simple way to get closer to nature, our ancestors and the spiritual realm. For me i also flip the holidays to suit my climate as i live in Australia so the seasons are inverted.

Many people have altars or sacred spaces in their homes but i also encourage people to go outside and create a space if they can. Whether its just a rock were you place meat or bread offerings or a tree or lake you visit you don’t need much to practice paganism.

If you cant do that thats okay too, light a candle and make an altar out of items you have found and felt a connection to.

Create an inviting, cozy atmosphere and keep it clean and cleansed to avoid unwanted spirits and energies. For holidays you could have a feast and drink beer and wine with friends and family around a fire for instance. Throughout the year theres lots of small ways to feel some magic like following the phases of the moon, cleaning, making things with intention, mindful walks, having a garden or house plants, meditation or working with charms for some examples.

There is no one way to practice and no one can be right, it is all interpretation and feeling.

You can follow a set of gods, pick and choose or none at all. You can perform rituals, spells or divination or not it is not a practice with rules unlike other big religions. Even just the term pagan or animism may be enough for you.

Whether it’s something more modern, a reconstruction or neither, you don’t have to choose a particular path or label just do what feels right to you.

Overall I believe paganism is a way of life, an open way of thinking rooted in nature, gratitude and respect.

[wyrmguardsecrets]

lmao at people regurgitating reddit posts about degenerate being a neo nazi term. Hate to tell all you smooth brains this, but that word predates the 1940s German Political Party by several hundred years. and all it takes to know how foolish you look is a simple google search which takes you to the Oxford English Dictionary Website Which states and I quote: "The earliest known use of the verb degenerate is in the early 1500s.

OED's (Oxford English Dictionary's) earliest evidence for degenerate is from around 1526, in a translation by R. Hyrde.

It is also recorded as an adjective from the Middle English period (1150—1500).

degenerate is a borrowing from Latin.

Etymons: Latin dēgenerāt-, dēgenerāre." Please stop calling literally everything you don't like a nazi something. You are literally watering down what it means to be an actual nazi. Until I see anybody on this server goosestepping, doing a certain salute or claiming an entire race needs to expelled from history based on their religious practices i don't want to hear another thing about 'Nazi's' Also while we on this subject You'll notice i left the Swastika out of that equation. Thats because the Swastika isn't even German or Nazi in origination. Once more I will quote a trustworthy source, the Holocaust Museum "The word swastika comes from the Sanskrit svastika, which means “good fortune” or “well-being." The motif (a hooked cross) appears to have first been used in Eurasia, as early as 7000 years ago, perhaps representing the movement of the sun through the sky. To this day, it is a sacred symbol in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Odinism. It is a common sight on temples or houses in India or Indonesia. Swastikas also have an ancient history in Europe, appearing on artifacts from pre-Christian European cultures. " So by your definitions. Buddhists, Hindus, and several other religions are 'Nazis' Go tell them that and let me know how that works out for you.

.

[judaismandsuch]

"Antisemitism" v. "Judeophobia"

Y'ever run into some fucknut who say "I'm not antisemitic cause I don't have an issue with people from the middle East/ I am from the middle east. And they are Semitic as well?"

And got annoyed cause obviously thats patently dumb, but you don't know enough to argue the point?

Well worry no more!

Judaism is an Ethnoreligion as we all know, which in theory means you have 2 ways to hate the Jews. One from a religious stand point: "Fuck you guys! You worship the wrong... oh you converted? All good then. I'll see you at the potluck on Wednesday."

The second from an Ethnic/Racial one: "Fuck you guys! Your kind is in control of...Oh they converted 3 generations ago and at most only have one Jewish great grandparent? Still Jewish."

(Another way to think about it is the Spanish Inquisition v. the Nazi Holocaust)

For 99% of Jewish history, it was religious hatred. Once you converted they didn't have an issue with you (in theory, in practice people are dicks. Well they hated you before you converted so obviously they are dicks, but they are also inconsistent dicks.).

Then, in the 1800s, there were all of the theories of Genetics and Race being thrown around. And people started hating you even after you converted, or if only one parent was jewish, or you were nonpracticing, or w/e.

So to distinguish from the previous "normal" Jew Hatred (which didn't have a special name) a new term was coined. "Antisemitism" or "hatred of the Jews due to lineage" as in theory our lineage goes the Noah's son Shem (or 'Sam'). It was not meant as 'You hate all the Semitic People' But rather 'Jews are a Semitic people, you hate them for their peoplehood rather than the religion, so you are against Semites'.

Admittedly a better term could have been chosen, but that is neither here nor there.

Currently the correct/technical term (I believe) for religion based hatred of Jews is Judeophobia, but that is mainly used to distinguish historically. (Yes, 'phobia' means 'fear' but in this usage it is 'Hatred from fear', like how many arachnophobes want spiders killed, not just taken outside.)

Now are more people now Judeophobic or Antisemitic? I dunno (though antisemitic does cover both meanings in it's current usage), nor do I care.

But I do know that antisemitism only refers to Jews, not the Semitic peoples in general.

(also, isn't it interesting how few forms of bigotry have their own words? )

[system-of-a-feather]

Apologies if you've talked about this before! We've seen some say using the term thoughtform as an alternative to tulpa is better, while others say thoughtform is also related to the bastardization of Buddhist practice. Was wondering if you could provide insight on that? We don't have any ourselves, but we tend to stick with the term "created headmate" or "willogenic" to describe others' experiences, and wanted to know what your opinions were on the term thoughtform

(* = footnote at the bottom)

I actually have less knowledge on the origins of thoughtform other than the fact that the term "thoughtforms" come from a more Theosophical Approach and I honestly don't really know much about Theosophy and its history. I generally prefer thoughtforms to tulpa, but I tend to prefer the aforementioned "created headmate" and "willogenic" and similar terms simply because I trust them more than things that were rooted in western white esotericist of that era*.

Anything beyond this point though is stuff I am gleaming from a cursory read on Theosophy's origins on wikipedia so please do know this is no hall mark High End Research or anything, just me doing a light reading cause I actually never really looked into or heard people talking about Theosophy much beyond "the thoughtform term comes from theosophy"

[cue research montage]

So generally from what I'm getting, I don't see anything too particularly wrong about the origins of Theosophy or the term thoughtforms other than white people being a little weird about eastern practices that make me a little uncomfortable**, but not in anyway that I would necessarily claim it to be cultural appropriation

They do have their roots coming from India and engaging in Hinduism / Buddhism, then propegated and pushed primarily by white people, and I don't really like how the wikipedia comments on them "borrowing" Matreiya from Buddhism so that is kind of an orange flag, but that might be just Wikipedia's poor wording or it might be something more. I'd have to read into it, but beyond that I don't see anything that really directly takes a Buddhist practice and bastardizes it like "tulpa" does.

As far as I have read, it seems the practice and idea of thoughtforms largely seem to stem from Theosophy independently of Buddhism beyond the fact that the foundation of Theosophy was inspired by Buddhism ALONG with a number of other philosophies and religions and (from what I can tell) Theosophy is built and centered around trying to connect the underlying truth between multiple cultural backgrounds?

It seems to be a genuine melting pot of a lot of concepts and philosophies / religions and thoughtforms seem to pull more from that melting pot than it does specifically from Buddhism (the wikipedia actually only mentions Buddhism twice and its in the citations of books rather than anything else; one of my large issues with the term tulpa is that it touts Buddhism as its source, which thoughtforms seem to not).

Additionally, I also think its actually kind of neat in a way? I'm not really someone who would really read much into Theosophy or thoughtform stuff, but doing a skim of it, thoughtforms seemed to be based on a theosophical practice about the power of thoughts within life and... honestly, as a Buddhist I think thats a concept I can get behind.

I dunno though, in the end, I don't know enough to confidently make a stance one way or the other, so if people have more resources or information my opinion may change; but as it is from skimming through a couple of wikipedia pages*** and getting some of the gist, I don't think there is all that huge of an issue at least on a surface level****?

If there were any links to people making the claim that thoughtforms are culturally appropriative and why they think its that, I could share some thoughts on the points, but as it is, I didn't see anything too particularly bad.

----

Footnotes:

(*Which is entirely a distrust issue on our end and not representative or a moral standing that I think should be placed on others, so please keep in mind that our distrust is not something that should be imposed and it is a bias in my judgement

(**isn't hard to do, personal history makes me side eye white people being engaged in the propegation of Eastern Cultures / Ideologies; that said, I think it is very important to note that my discomfort does not reflect or superimpose the fact that white people and westerners are encouraged to partake in Buddhist thought and practice. I personally prioritize the principle of Buddhism's openness and promotion of people to engage in it rahn I do my personal distrust and so while I am reluctant and hesitant to give the benefit of the doubt to Theosophy, I am choosing to - on principle - state that I don't see anything that I think would be particularly "bastardized" as much as something genuinely developed from engaging in it

The Most important Point from this footnote is the following "Please do not take my discomfort as more important than the value of openness in Buddhism. Even if I am uncomfortable, to my current awareness of the history of Theosophy, it is more of a me issue than it is anything else and removing my personal bias, I don't see anything yet that would make me think that anything egregious has occurred.)

(*** the pages I skimmed through:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theosophy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thought-Forms https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koot_Hoomi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiddu_Krishnamurti)

(**** I am still a bit suspicious of the "Borrowed Matreiya" that I mentioned before as well as some things about Annie Besant and Helena Blavatsky but I largely got tired of reading by the time I got to them so, if I were to, I'd have to read more into them which I quite honestly just don't feel like doing right now cause reading about Krishnamurti was enough smh smh)

[lilac-set]

o/ Hi! For the system ask game:

(feel free to pick just a couple to answer, i know we sent a lot!)

🧡 (How does your system handle memories? Does everyone share, or is it split across members?)

⭐ (Do you have a headspace / inner world? What does it look like?)

🍀 (Do any system members practice a religion or belief system? What about spirituality?)

🧵 (How does your system handle the body's / vessel's appearance? Does everyone dress the same, or is there a broad range of styles?)

🤎 (Do system members typically agree on things or is there a broad range of opinions?)

🌼 (Do any members have accents or typing quirks? Are accents/quirks common in your system, or more rare?)

🤍 (Say something positive about another system member (or all of them, if you'd like!))

:o this makes me so happy!! Thank for you the ask!! We’re all cofronting rn which is perfect, although the little has the largest minority i think (dont be surprised if little mannerisms come through significantly) edit: as soon as we starting answering 🔥 came forward instead

🧡 we dont share memory storage, but if we’re cocon we can actively go dig through each others memories, and we’re basically always cocon, so that isnt much of an issue. That being said, some things fall through the cracks if it didnt seem important enough (or we forgot) to actively communicate it and the other one didnt know there was anything to go actively looking for. That doesnt interfere with anything as long as anyone who might have expectations for us is respectful of our plurality

⭐️ kinda? Do you know rose’s room in steven universe? It works kinda like that, we can will things into existence, but unless we’ve done that we dont really have a headspace. For example if we all want to sit at a couch together we can do that, and its always the same couch, its consistent, but we dont constantly keep it loaded in our “RAM” so to speak (computer metaphor)

🍀 religion no, spirituality yes, we’re (all four of us) nontheistic animists who place a significant importance on nature, for now the best term we have is druidry, but there are some aspects of druidry we dont resonate with, for example we dont like rituals (for ourselves), and we aren’t sure about the awen (again, for ourselves), but maybe its just because we’ve mostly seen it described from a more pantheistic perspective, but plenty of druids are nontheists, we’ve just never heard their perspective on it. Learning about the concept of the awen has certainly been inspiring to us to learn about and engage with bardic arts more, not that we’ve actually done it, but we’ve felt inspired to, and i know thats just what theism is for a lot of druids, choosing to believe in something not because you necessarily believe it as objective fact but because entertaining the belief has a positive impact on your life, which i respect. That brings me to my next qualm with it as well, ive heard multiple druids say that one cant call themselves a druid because they simply feel like one, but that active engagement with druidry is essential. Of course we make decisions in accordance with our values at every opportunity, but theres a limited amount we can do in terms or actual activism and engagement with nature according to our/druidic values given our living situation, lack of income, disabilities, etc. So, given that, im not sure we can technically call ourselves druids, but also druidry is a nondogmatic religion/spirituality, there are no hard and fast rules, these are just the opinions of a handful of individuals who happened to express them online, i dont know. Also it obviously feels ableist to us, but like i get it, it doesnt make much sense to call oneself an activist if one isnt engaging in activism, even if you believe in their beliefs. But druidry and activism aren’t synonymous. Yes both are lifestyles but one leans spiritual and the other leans… ya know, active. The last thing stopping me from identifying as a druid wholeheartedly is that druidry has strong connections with celtic culture, which is fine, i dont mind borrowing from and appreciating other cultures (this isnt a closed thing) (cultural anthropology is also a special interest of ours, these are related special interests), but to an extent it feels like an act of patriotism for a country i have no connection to. It would feel more connected to me if i could find a similar set of beliefs associated with a region that either i or my ancestors have ever lived in, but im not sure if that exists. Sorry this was longwinded, and i know i left a lot terms undefined that anyone unfamiliar with druidry is likely unfamiliar with, i just didnt wanna make this even longer and didnt wanna overexplain if no one is really interested (and i also dont wanna make any horrible mistakes when maybe you should be asking a “real” druid about this instead), but this is kinda a special interest of ours, feel free to ask more questions about it! We love to talk about it. Edit: ah shit, i just realized i basically just contrasted our spirituality to druidry but i didnt really tell you much about our actual spirituality itself, feel free to ask about that as well

🧵 so, we all identify with the body itself, but we dont necessarily agree on how we would present it. In headspace everyone dresses distinctly differently, we have different hairstyles and bodymods etc, but in the body everyone would look pretty much the same, not because we want to but because we still live with our parents, and they have weird arbitrary rules about how we’re allowed to dress. Not about modesty or anything but just whatever their preconceived idea of what our style would be before we were born, that now they enforce on us. We’ve actually grappled a lot though with the fact that once we move out and we would have more freedom, rather than everyone just looking like ourselves internally and the body looking like the body, the body will probably look like a particular one of us at any given moment, depending on who dressed it, and then if we switch, that person has to deal with the dysphoria of looking like their brother, and the first one has to deal with the dysphoria of their brother looking like them, and i know both of those would be really hard for us. Within our parents constraints right now obviously we like to wear our preferred colors or whatever, and we’re good at, like, “oh, he would like to wear this, and i know he’ll switch in later, so i’ll go ahead and put it on, because i know it’ll make him happy” (it does), or like cofronting/cocon compromising “ok ill put this on because i know you like it but ill get to choose the pants” or whatever, so maybe the style on the body in an ideal situation would end up being more of an amalgamation of all of ours, because i know we wouldnt struggle with that, but god do we each long for the euphoria of making the body actually look like ourselves individually. Aaaaas long as we dont switch

🤎 ah nice another shorter one (we like the long ones but god this post’ll be huge) yeah we pretty much agree on everything. 🪨 and i (🔥) experience attraction differently, he’s quioplatonic and hyperromantic and im alloplatonic (presumably?) and bellus-lithromantic, so thats been somewhat of a point of conflict that we cant agree on what type of relationship we want and are comfortable with with collective significant others, but other than that we’re pretty much on the same page about everything in general. I mean, (not to put down systems that cant relate, just talking about it for ourselves), imagine you had a conversation partner who you knew the exact line of reasoning of, you could feel their emotions directly, miscommunication was literally impossible, you share any relevant past experiences, etc. Sometimes it takes some talking but theres really no reason we wouldnt eventually come to a consensus. (Taking an excuse to talk about another special interest) The four of us are different myers briggs types, which means we value different types of information regarding what we pay the most attention to and what we prefer to make decisions based on, so thats something you would notice but isnt any sort of source of conflict. We have one of every xNFx type. Feel free to ask us more myers briggs questions, we could infodump about this forever. This question didnt actually end up being all that short lol. Edit: i realized there multiple uses of the word “opinion”, i took it here more like “belief”, “stance”, etc, but if youre talking about more like “preferences”, yeah we have plenty of different preferences, but im not gonna make this longer

🌼 the little uses babytalk, idk if that counts. No typing quirks or variation is regional accents, but our voices are distinctly recognizable, apparently.

🤍 ah fuck hmm let me think. Theyre so complex and wonderful and i dont want to reduce them to a single compliment, or create pda for them to continue being whatever i would say. I think ill pass on this one, they all know i love them <3

[selamat-linting]

my parents aren't exactly fundamentalist people, but the day to day of living in a culture with a strong eschatological belief was enough to be traumatizing, no matter what religion it is. and im sure this is not just me, most people are just too afraid to even acknowledge how it fucks with them.

take a typical nature phenomenon, like eclipses, stars, black holes, sandstorms, weird animals, or rivers gone red from algae. this thing should have inspired curiosity right? well, in my country, all of the news articles and science videos regarding the subject is filled with people proselytizing, warning others its a sign of the apocalypse. worse when its a disaster like floods or tsunami or heatwaves or even extinction from poaching and environmental destruction. i've had people saying brazenly that climate change isn't man-made but god's punishment because the apocalypse / rapture is coming soon and we have too many LGBT people existing so of course trying to stop it would be a waste of effort, so just pray and prepare for akhirah and abuse others into falling in line.

the media does not help either. they made cheap infographic shows that are literally just about scaring people about the end of the world. a baby born with a life-threatening disability gets turn into shock fodder for tv because its born with one eye on its forehead. thats evil. do they even think of the effect it will cause for disabled people? of course they dont, in their mind theyre doing good because theyre reminding people that the apocalypse is coming soon and they should repent. i wonder, if someone from 2012 see a one-eyed child, would that kid be safe?

and in terms of personal experience, its horrifying to hear adults say, "yeah dajjal (the anti christ) will show up in your lifetime so you'll see the end of the world" and think that your parents didn't care enough to even think of the implication of bringing you to this world when its so corrupt and rotten. especially when you grow up knowing something is wrong and different with you.

and its not just that. its the end of the world, of course people would constantly talk about it in hushed tones. i've seen predictions shared in facebook or whatsapp groups, talked by kids and adults in sermons and hearsays. it turns people hostile to others with a different religion, or at best, they learn to be apathetic or detach their inherent empathy to other people because they have a different religion so theyre going to hell for eternity. so why fucking bother being tolerant or befriending them? you dont want to commit a grave sin since you wished a non-muslim to go to heaven for their good deeds right?

and when i was a kid, my friends would all have this strategy to prepare for judgement day. creating a culture where kids make up survival scenarios to prevent eternal, senseless torture is bad. and hypocritical when you keep saying god's love and care are boundless and unconditional.

my dad and every preacher i know always say to not be afraid of death, its something to look forward to, because you'll meet god, but you cant kill yourself and you must make sure even if its a natural death you live in the right way so you dont go to hell and be tortured for eternity. i agree death shouldnt be feared, but none of these people are truly unafraid of death. they shaped their entire life to make sure their death is the right one, and they force others to have belief out of a misguided sense of love.

i had an uncle who went far into this religious group, and even if the practices are completely identical to mainstream sunni islam, the man stopped providing for his wife and just pray and pray without doing anything else. believing god would simply take care of everything and even if he didn't, the apocalypse is coming soon! becoming too successful will just distract you from akhirah anyway.

its disgusting. i dont care what any religious/spiritual people on this site says. religion never gave people a sense of gratefulness or wonder or fulfillment. it turn them into incurious, selfish, frightened fucks that are too helpless to even fight for themselves and their home because the world is ending and its an inevitability so why bother? but thats the best case scenario. at worst, the eschatological sentiment turn people raging bigots abusing others so they'd convert or fall in line with cisheteropatriarchy and blame every tragedy to powerless minorities instead of the people in power.

i might have some faith left in me, but i would still advocate for state atheism. because its obvious every dominant religion will be used as a tool for terror and submission.

[sag-dab-sar]

Personal Terminology: why "Mariolatry" and not "Marian Devotion/Veneration" ?

Mariolatry is a pejorative term used primarily by protestants to describe Catholic & Orthodox veneration of The Virgin Mary.

Here is a small part of what Mary means to me.

Mariolatry

Wiktionary Entry

Latin Maria + o + -latry

Maria referring to The Virgin Mary, 'o' is an interfix, and "-latry" meaning 'worship of'.

-latry according to wiktionary comes from "Late Latin latria, from Ancient Greek λατρεία (latreía, “service; worship”).

So the literal meaning is "Worship of Mary"

This may not seem bad on the surface but it certainly is bad for many Christians because there are different types of acceptable veneration.

Christian Veneration

*Obviously individual Catholics and Christians are going to have different ideas. Certainly not all follow official doctrines many syncretisms and DIY exist. I am basing my view off Church *doctrine* as I know it.

In Catholicism (largest denomination of Christianity) worship is known as latria. It comes from the exact same origin "-latry" does.

Latria is due only to God (The Trinity) and God alone.

Dulia, which comes from Greek douleia meaning servitude, is the honor paid towards Saints.

Hyperdulia, which is just dulia with a hyper prefix attached meaning "over", describes the honor paid towards Mary. It is above the honor of saints but below worship.

"Wherefore dulia, which pays due service to a human lord, is a distinct virtue from latria, which pays due service to the Lordship of God. It is, moreover, a species of observance, because by observance we honor all those who excel in dignity, while dulia properly speaking is the reverence of servants for their master, dulia being the Greek for servitude". — St. Thomas Aquinas

Worship is due to God and God alone.

So saying "you worship Mary" can be offensive, and a Christian who participates in Marian Devotion might strongly disagree. Marian devotion exists in the Roman & Eastern Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, and Lutheranism. They don't worship her, they give her honor and veneration that is below the worship of God, even if it is devout.

Many Protestants refuse these distinctions and see the veneration of Mary and Saints along with statues and icons as idolatry..... hence "mariolatry"

My Personal Practice

The distinctions individuals wish to use is all well and good, and I completely respect it.

But I am not Christian. I am a polytheist. I see no reason to give Mary Hyperdulia/Dulia and not Latria.

I don't come from a theological framework were worship is due to The Trinity and The Trinity alone. Or even due to Gods alone. Many other types of spirits that may not be considered Gods or "fully" Gods can receive worship in my practice. I view Mary on par with heros such as Herakles, he certainly receives worship.

Mary is separate from my rituals, offerings, and prayers to the Theoi and Diĝirene. However, my veneration/honor of Mary is still not below their worship. Hence "worship of Mary" seemed completely acceptable and well thats what "mariolatry" means so I took a very strong liking to the word.

Other Terms

"Mariology" — this is the theological study of The Virgin Mary. Her place, her role, etc within Christian theology. I have no interest in studying theology.

"Marian devotion" — devote is a very strong word in my religion that can't be ascribed to Mary

"Marian veneration" — connects my desired personal practice more to Christianity than I want it to be. Also "Marian devotion/veneration" just tingle my childhood catholic school spidey senses and I don't like that.

(Hm, 🧐 so if an idolater is someone who practices idolatry would a mariolater be someone who practices mariolatry.)

Last Note

I am not trying to be pejorative towards Christians. I have no issues with Christians. Nor would I insist Marian Devotion by other people = worship. This is solely about me personally using a particular word. I also don't feel any offense if someone called me an idolater, even if they are trying to offend, since I call the animated objects of the Diĝirene & Theoi "Idols."

Anyways hope that all makes sense.

-not audio proof read-

[tobithecorvid]

thats really interesting. ig i never thought about what it takes to work as a funeral director. what exactly is it that you want to do?

So in my state you need to be educated on the front of house (office work, laws, how to plan funerals, etc) and back of house (embalming,restoration, pick ups, and a little bit of crematory work.) However once you learn everything and become certified you can stick to one area or bounce around!

I love all of it, from step a all the way to step z. I don’t think I could be fulfilled without doing embalming and funeral directing. Hell I think for me to stay at a firm long term they need to have a retort/cremation machine (one funeral home I worked at had one and I have worked at a pet crematory!)

So when I say all I mean it all.

I really love connecting with people and taking care of them and making them comfortable. I’ve worked at hotels for front desk and i just started my new front desk job at a hotel! It’s a big passion of mine to make others feel even just a little bit better at the end of the day.

But I also love science and anatomy and thanatochemistry (death based chemistry.) I love art and restoration! So I would also need to stay involved when it comes to the embalming and restoration/makeup.

Another big component that I love which is seen on both sides is I love religion and religious practices and respecting the dead is SUPER important and vital to me. The dead deserve to be taken care of to the best degree, especially for their mourning loved ones.