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| And when the Earth was in dire need, when man had turned upon the Mother and destroyed the very Spirit that birthed us all, it flew down from the sun: a bird of rainbow colors. And from the light reflected upon its wings, the earth trembled and shook, and all manner of life began toburst forth. At the end of it all, the world was once again: Paradise. "Paradise bird myth" |
So I have recently begun to do the literature review for my PhD (The anthropology of ecology and environmentalism) and I must say that I have begun to unearth all sorts of wonderful tit-bits of information regarding religion, spirituality and the ecological/environmental movement. Did you know, for instance, that there is a fundamental difference between the two terms; "environmentalism" and "ecology"? The former suggests a retrospective look at the world we live in. A "repairing" (for lack of a better word) of the damage we've already inflicted upon Mother Earth. The latter, on the other hand is essentially more radical in nature, and believes that societal norms and values (namely the restrictive duality of the contemporary world) need necessarily be overturned in order for environmental (or rather, ecological) changes to be permanent. It is concerned, in other words, with shifting the predominantly capitalist world-view to a more natural shade of green. Bloch (1998) discusses in his musing of the matter that the Alternative Spirituality movement (Wiccans, neo-Pagan, etc.) of fairly recent times may be seen to be a subversive social movement that is gradually moving along that direction.
The summary of his otherwise fairly lengthy (and, I'm afraid quite dismissive at times) analysis is that unlike "traditional" or "organized" religions, whose theories and ideologies of cosmology (who we are as a people, where be belong, and where we come from) is juxtaposed upon the metaphorical and literally unreachable sky/heavens, the cosmology of many alternative spiritualites is positioned right here, among the mundane practices of the earth. The heaven vs. earth dichotomy that structures the living world as a material resource, to be used in support of the ephemeral life of the individual (a supposed recurrent theme across many forms of organized/structured spiritualities) purportedly no longer exists across the spectrum of Alternative Spiritualities. Indeed, by pointing out that the "common laws" of specific religious groups which binds its supplicants as a social category unto itself do not hold sway with alternative spiritualites, Bloch (1998) also demonstrated the ways in which the alternative spiritual movement is structured not by fixed rituals and traditions (in the way that one can be Neo-Pagan and practice Wiccan spell casting, or Nature Spiritualist and practice Kaballa, but still find a sense of spiritual camaraderie with each other) but a pervasive and "universal" ideology regarding these people's connections to the land. The metaphysical cosmology of existence with alternative spiritualites, therefore is not focused upon the heavens and the spiritual hereafter, but rather grounded in the many mundane things that happen on earth and the sustainability of of the Planet (personified through Its "spiritual consciousness" known as Gaia). "Mundane" actions like recycling, growing trees, and show respect for all living creatures, is therefore given an added dimension of significance via spirituality. It is theorized, therefore that many individuals of alternative spiritualities therefore exhibit a more fundamental dedication to the environment (though it is arguable that this is definitely an oversimplified generalization on Bloch's part).
Which leads me to question; is my own fundamental dedication to the environment an inherent component of my own Neo-Pagan/Wiccan Spiritualism? Or is this all just a coincidence? To be honest although I do see some truth in Bloch's words, I also do think that it really all depends on the general disposition of the individual to the environment in the first place. Frankly, I have always been dedicated to environmental preservation and the conservation of endangered species. Indeed, what my entrance into the Neo-Pagan spiritual realm some 12-13 years ago did was not so much give me an entirely new and enlightened view of my environmentalism, but rather, consolidated that "practical" aspect of my life, into the spiritual. Looking at some of my fellow practitioners, I can similarly attest that many, if not all of us, hold a deep reverence to the environment and are therefore often involved in one way or another with environmentalism, conservation, or the green (vegan/vegetarian)/health food movement. Is there any truth in this? As a Wiccan or Pagan practitioner, what do you think? Is the environment and nature an integral part of who you are as a person? And to what extent does your reverence for Nature go above and beyond your own spiritual customs?
The summary of his otherwise fairly lengthy (and, I'm afraid quite dismissive at times) analysis is that unlike "traditional" or "organized" religions, whose theories and ideologies of cosmology (who we are as a people, where be belong, and where we come from) is juxtaposed upon the metaphorical and literally unreachable sky/heavens, the cosmology of many alternative spiritualites is positioned right here, among the mundane practices of the earth. The heaven vs. earth dichotomy that structures the living world as a material resource, to be used in support of the ephemeral life of the individual (a supposed recurrent theme across many forms of organized/structured spiritualities) purportedly no longer exists across the spectrum of Alternative Spiritualities. Indeed, by pointing out that the "common laws" of specific religious groups which binds its supplicants as a social category unto itself do not hold sway with alternative spiritualites, Bloch (1998) also demonstrated the ways in which the alternative spiritual movement is structured not by fixed rituals and traditions (in the way that one can be Neo-Pagan and practice Wiccan spell casting, or Nature Spiritualist and practice Kaballa, but still find a sense of spiritual camaraderie with each other) but a pervasive and "universal" ideology regarding these people's connections to the land. The metaphysical cosmology of existence with alternative spiritualites, therefore is not focused upon the heavens and the spiritual hereafter, but rather grounded in the many mundane things that happen on earth and the sustainability of of the Planet (personified through Its "spiritual consciousness" known as Gaia). "Mundane" actions like recycling, growing trees, and show respect for all living creatures, is therefore given an added dimension of significance via spirituality. It is theorized, therefore that many individuals of alternative spiritualities therefore exhibit a more fundamental dedication to the environment (though it is arguable that this is definitely an oversimplified generalization on Bloch's part).
Which leads me to question; is my own fundamental dedication to the environment an inherent component of my own Neo-Pagan/Wiccan Spiritualism? Or is this all just a coincidence? To be honest although I do see some truth in Bloch's words, I also do think that it really all depends on the general disposition of the individual to the environment in the first place. Frankly, I have always been dedicated to environmental preservation and the conservation of endangered species. Indeed, what my entrance into the Neo-Pagan spiritual realm some 12-13 years ago did was not so much give me an entirely new and enlightened view of my environmentalism, but rather, consolidated that "practical" aspect of my life, into the spiritual. Looking at some of my fellow practitioners, I can similarly attest that many, if not all of us, hold a deep reverence to the environment and are therefore often involved in one way or another with environmentalism, conservation, or the green (vegan/vegetarian)/health food movement. Is there any truth in this? As a Wiccan or Pagan practitioner, what do you think? Is the environment and nature an integral part of who you are as a person? And to what extent does your reverence for Nature go above and beyond your own spiritual customs?
Love and Light
)O(
)O(
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