#indo caribbean folklore

[havatabanca]

[revenantscholar]

Advice to a polytheist, 1

Hi, I felt a strange sense of urgency when I read your post and I ended up finally joining reddit (!), so Lord Ganapati must have been prompting me to respond you.

I have been engaged in devotional practice for more than twenty years. In my external life, I am an academic who has lived in India and who has written and published on South Asian history. I also speak a Slavic language as one of my native ones, so I feel qualified to deal with this.

First of all, neither Hinduism nor Slavic reconstructionism have the equivalent of a pope and a dogma. In Hinduism, there is a vast number of regional practices on top of a very complex history. Just one example: now he is considered as a very benevolent being, but some of our first attestations of Ganapati are those of a warrior deity. So there is no one Hindu tradition, but in fact many, many ones.

I pay respect to Ganapati, but I work with and worship other members of his family, and those are my primary patrons. Since it is a living tradition, it is crucial to learn about the historical, social and theological background, and to respect elements of the ritual. You clearly already are on that path. I had visions of Ganapati, in fact even on my first night in India, but I have never felt a strong connection with Him. You are lucky to have it.

That's why I am surprised, even astonished, because you believe so strongly that Slavic paganism and Indic practices cannot be reconciled. If you go deeply enough, you will find that they draw upon many of the same underlying Indo-European elements, see for instance academically flawless study by Professor Indu Lekha of Delhi University on Cognite Words in Sanskrit and Russian (Delhi, 2007). But that's just one part of the argument.

My personal experience has taught me that South Asian deities like adherence to tradition, but they are also curious and they like to travel. In the 10th century, you could find people praying to Indic Gods in Uzbekistan, Siberia, Thailand, China, Afghanistan, and many other places. In our days, they have extended into Western Europe and the US. If you pray to Them, you have to accept that they are active agents, not just passive objects. Lord Ganesha has reached out to you and yet you want to throw away a relationship which you have cultivated for some time. That's not just silly, it might actually be dangerous to some extent, because he is the opener of doors. He might start closing doors and blocking you, and that would be painful even in your everyday life.

To the Slavic angle. I have practiced with many traditions, also because I read and speak many languages professionally, but for some reason, I've never been attracted to the Slavic ones, perhaps because most of the evidence does not come from my geographical area, although folklore has preserved it. If I felt called to them, I would never ever see it in a racialist, exclusive ethnic mode. Do not fall for the exclusionist crap; that is reactionary 19th century nonsense. None of us have pure ancestry. If you are a Northern Slav, you may have Baltic, Finno-Ugric or other ancestry in addition to Slavic. Ancestry matters, but it is never an exclusive club.

Instead, realize that neglected deities, be they Celtic, Egyptian, Slavic or even Norse ones, are grateful for attention and love because they have been deprived of it for centuries. If you feel called to them, give it to them. I personally do not respond to Slavic ones, except perhaps vaguely to Veles, but if they called me, I would, as I respond to any who call upon me.

Finally, my most important practical point. In terms of actual worship and devotion, I have found that my primary patrons, the Indic ones, do like the aesthetic and the atmosphere and the practices to remain largely Indic. You are correct in the sense that they would not like an ad hoc mix-and-match ceremony most of the time, and that the Slavic ones might have different preferences.

To my most important point, and I do believe that Lord Ganapati wants this conveyed to you: Continue your practice with him. There is no obstacle to also establishing a relationship with the Slavic ones, but at this point, you should not mix and match during the ceremonies. Maintain your "mandir" as it is -- again, why destroy something which you have constructed so lovingly? -- but build a second one for the Slavic ones in a different location and practice accordingly. Maybe you devote Tuesdays to Lord Ganapati, when you follow strictly Indic practices, and then you give the Slavic ones time on different days of the week.

Nota bene: I do mix and match occasionally, but that has happened organically, after years of practice, and I've noticed that Indo-Caribbean works especially well, Indo-Celtic slightly less so, but Indo-Egyptian or Indo-Norse very weakly. Maybe the precise point is to establish some kind of an Indo-Slavic connection after a few years.

I have no personal stake in this, but I ask you to take this seriously. Do not throw away your practice, but restructure it instead to show respect and love to all involved

[whitnei-writes]

I'm super excited about this! This Carribbean book tour is coming all the way to sweet ol Georgia to visit with me!! 😍😆🥰 Follow This Brone Girl Reads to meet the other awesome stops on the 🚂🖤🥰💥🔥! (And because she’s freaking awesome! 😆) • @thisbrownegirlreads Have you read a book and you wanted everyone else to read it? Well, that was Greyborn Rising for me in 2019. The book was my unexpected fond read for the year. One that I will revisit and share. . 🖋. . Greyborn Rising. Derry Sandy. Exquisitely written, deep in Caribbean folklore. Takes you on a journey through time and space and is flavored with magic, mysticism an adventure. Adorning African witchcraft and rich Afro and Indo Caribbean history. It is a thrill ride from start to finish and let me mention with some badass, kickass WOMEN WARRIORS, embracing their role and never shrinking back. It is a beautiful love story woven in the war of champions. With jumbies and all that makes Caribbean storytelling what it is. Primarily set in island of TRINIDAD 🇹🇹. I have so much to say but IG and it’s character count won’t allow. . 🖋. . I have organized a book tour. The book will travel state to state being read and reviewed by some awesome #bookstagrammer s who were kind enough to accept my invitation for participation on the tour. We will tour 10 U.S. cities and 2 Canadian. I’ve made sure to include #ownvoices representation. All reviews will be honest and may not share the same sentiments as I. Swipe left to view the tour stops and stay tuned for their reviews. . 🖋. . Read more in the comments below. (at Atlanta, Georgia) https://www.instagram.com/p/B-Le0-PgI2m/?igshid=1o8fo1b2e99t0