#talkingtocandles-follows

[dionysianfreak]

hi!! i can't get this off my mind - love hear your thoughts!

I don't understand and still need to answer for myself: I generally see us modern polytheists pray for and attribute good outcomes to gods' interference/support (eg. good garden yield, long-needed rain, creative or shadow work breakthroughs) and refuse to attribute gods' interference when "bad things" happen (eg. dead plants, natural disasters) because it would be unscientific to do so.

Obviously "gods" is no longer adequate scientific reasoning for the weather forecast. Godly things can happen, but most of the time the reasons are mundane.

So how can we pray for rain from Zeus, get rain, and attribute this to his generosity, when you can't "blame" Poseidon for an earthquake or tsunami that strikes your home?

hello love. I've touched on this a few times on my pages over time. the post that sticks out the most to me is this one. this answer is also going to be extremely leaning on personal opinion/upg so keep that in mind.

i personally do attribute negative things to the Theoi, that has always been a very central idea for my practice. i definitely wouldn't deem this "unscientific", I would argue that it's unscientific to only attribute positive qualities.

my reasoning is that our concepts of good/bad, positive/negative, helpful/damaging, etc tend to be human-centric. we define things as good based on how they effect humans, not how they effect the earth or any other species. one could argue that, in some aspect, earthquakes are positive because they are a product of the earth's movement and constant change. the opposite is also true, the rains that help our crops grow could be very catastrophic if I was a butterfly without shelter.

so, my answer is people will focus on good qualities and reject the bad because they push their mortal, human morals onto the natural workings of the earth. our planet was not made specifically for us, it's a miracle that our species even evolved and gained the ability to conceptualize religion. the Theoi would have carried on had we not evolved, but we did, and that's the blessing of our existence.

it can be very eye-opening to begin praising the Gods for the bad things in life. it helps you realize that existence, especially with how vast and diverse it is, is not all about humanity. killing that part of your ego allows you to get infinitely closer to the Theoi because you are no longer rejecting parts of Them that don't benefit you. the true blessing is that we evolved to the point that we are able to form the connections and commune with the energetic side in the first place, not the gifts or benefits that may come with it.

especially because, in more cases than not, the bad is what clears the way for the good. your partner leaves you and you're shattered, but it allows you to follow your passion without someone pinning you down. you're kicked out of a job you worked hard at, but you avoid a disaster that occurs in that building. so then, what constitutes something being good and something being bad ?

you generally see people pray for good things because most people aren't inclined to share the worst parts of their lives. this is the internet, you're only seeing a very small part of someone's practice—the parts the choose to show you. behind the scenes, we all struggle, so remember that what you see here is but a small slice of our real lives and praxis. for the ancient people, the bad things certainly outweighed the good. in modern times we live very privileged lives compared to them, especially with modern medicine and widespread access to diverse foods and cultures. it makes sense that they would only wish to invoke the good qualities, the bad ones were already way too prevalent.

this answer is also swayed by my belief that the mundane is the most Godly. I believe the Theoi encompass all that They rule, and are present in every being and object under Their wing. it's an extremely animist-leaning perspective. I hope this can help you come to your own conclusions :)