As a person who worships, primarily, Celtic and Norse deities, I say yes, you can worship deities from different pantheons. The Romans did it all the time so why not? It’s not like there’s a rule against it
Same here. I am Celtic but I do acknowledge Norse (and other) deities. It is hard to ignore the Norse when looking at the days of the week. 😀 One thing I have never observed (some may have!) is the Heathen/Pagan community attacking the pantheon of a "different" culture.
@@random2829 and the Germanic/Norse world imported the idea of weekdays named for gods from the Roman Empire, happily accepting that Tyr was Mars, Wotan was Mercury, Jupiter was Thor and Frigg was Venus and so on. If syncretizing was good enough for the ancients, it’s good enough for me.
Started the listen and my first thought was “Hoo, boy, people not thinking syncretism happens haven’t heard of the Romans.” Epona immediately came to mind.
The fact that this came out as I’m constantly questioning my practice and the validity of it, being a Filipino heathen and wanting to venerate my ancestors, but not wanting to invoke the Filipino deities. I considered multi-traditionalism and invoking the Filipino and Norse deities at the same time, but having to worship two pantheons at once in two ways was too overwhelming for me. Too much to keep track of. I felt like being in touch with my culture meant abandoning the Norse completely. And I was stuck in binary thinking. So, I decided I’d worship the Norse pantheon and syncretize that with venerating my Filipino ancestors. Thank you Ocean, for your insight here, and on Reddit. You’ve validated my experiences.
@@OceanKeltoi I actually feel… homored ??? that I inspired you… one of my favorite heathen content creators to make a video. This is automatically one of my favorite videos lmao
I actually have come across several other Filipinos that also practice European based forms of polytheism, I specifically recall a presentation about native Filipino traditions at one of the Indica Polytheist conferences, ua-cam.com/video/74vLagvIvK4/v-deo.html Watched & it was very interesting & I didn't know anything about Filipino cultures before this. I also found this- ua-cam.com/video/6OzwR6WfVLE/v-deo.html Hope that helps!
Syncretic polytheism just makes more sense to me. Cultures all over the globe and all across time would adopt deities and practices over time, mingling those elements in with their own beliefs and traditions. I doubt any of them felt as if they had 'broken' their practice. That said, I can also appreciate Traditionalism for preserving history in its own way.
yea. like, with the history of cultures being taken from people and repainted while the very same people were stopped from practicing their faith, it's reasonable to have some skepticism to the idea of syncreticism. that said, ultimately spiritualism is most crucially about finding your path, and what deities you ask for guidance with that goal is between you and the gods.
I agree, Eric. I feel that part of the human experience has always involved in some way an evolution, mixing and even inventing new practices; it doesn't sound strange at all to me, therefore, that a heathen might hold in high regard as a religious symbol the Web of Wyrd (for example) even if we do not have historical evidence for anything like that existing in the ancient tradition, but still giving it validity for what it symbolizes under a modern lens of heathen spirituality. Same goes with forms of syncretism. Furthermore: nowadays is becoming more and more commong to be descendant in some way shape or form of different cultural heritages. I for example can claim with certainty given my family history, nordic ancestry, as well as roman ancestry and native american ancestry. As a politheist, it becomes hard to choose and "stick" to a single one while ignoring the others, it feels disrespectful to my own heritage; as an extention of that, it also feels weird to approach worship from a multi-traditional point of view. My blood, after all, is a mix from all these different peoples, not a set of three separate things. I think my faith should reflect that.
The idea of anyone pushing back against syncretism at all, or just being weird about it in general, baffles me as someone who can literally look up how the Celto-Germanic Magusanus got blended up with Hercules along the Germanic limes by Romanized soldiers, or leaving a European context behind, the centuries of blending between Buddhism and Shinto in Japan that not even imperial decree could separate effectively. Sometimes I genuinely wonder if these people have actually done any significant research on how religions, or cultures in general, work.
IMO, "deep Christianity" (persistent attitudes from Christianity present in a person who is no longer a Christian) probably has a lot to do with it. People in Christian cultures are conditioned with Yahweh being portrayed as rejecting all other deities and being obsessed with "purity" of religious practice and belief in his worshipers. Getting religious chocolate in your spiritual peanut butter is _bad._ So the impulse is to seek the "purest" form of worship of a deity that can be found in historical sources, sort of a Pagan version of Sola Scriptura. Ironic then, that Yahweh, who was all about exalting himself over the other gods and being history's first recorded atheist ("I am the LORD your God, you shall have no gods before me! Besides me there is no god," etc.) went and got himself turned into a threesome. 🤣
@CrushingNihilism euro centric of you to assume that A. The commenter is synchronising European traditions, or B. That any or everyone has to follow the specific teachings of one guy. There's no one way to be pagan, and no single correct way either
@CrushingNihilism I'm white myself, i've nothing against us, and I meant what I said. Sure, aristotle is important, but that does not mean anyone who does not follow how he did things is wrong. And what do you mean he laid the ground work for Eastern thought?, Asia had its own philosophers, the Middle East, China, India and Japan are, amongst many reasons, so distinct from Europe because of their different philosophies. He did influence Islamic scholars, but not to the same degree as Europe. Aristotle was very important to Western thought, yes, but his influence was mostly contained there, waining the further you get from here.
@CrushingNihilism in your first reply to the commenter you say that their 'problem' is, to paraphrase, that their not following aristotle. I'm saying that there's nothing wrong with not following aristotle
I'm a Norse pagan but syncretize with Hecate. She's on my altar along with Freyja, Thor, Eir, Odin, and Loki. I worship all of them in a Norse style. I haven't made any Hellenists or Heathens mad yet, but there's plenty of time for that to change.
As a person that mainly focuses on syncretism, I always have this idea of "Oh, my praxis doesn't make any sense to other people" then realized that the key words there is "To other people". It makes sense to me and my own praxis. Ever since I was a little kid, I always loved mythologies and learning different pantheons so it makes sense that my praxis is an echo to that passion and love for many pantheons and numerous deities from said other pantheons
absolutely! I just sometimes get afraid that the frameworks it creates make communication hard. for example, and this is like the one case where it's based in a specific tradition and not derived from own study but, I am a discordian and in discordianism Chaos is defined as "the presence of both order and disorder without clear distinction". the fact that most people simply mean "disorder" when they say chaos has caused one or the other confusion in my life. at the same time, I needed to understand that chaos is made up of both to stop rejecting anything that lacked disorder and realize the order innate to that rejection. and in the long run, these occassional misunderstandings have spared me a lot of the discord and strife that may otherwise have emerged from my continued belief that order and structure could never be worthwhile pursuits. evidently, for some people they are, and sometimes I need to be more welcoming to my own need for hodge too.
Same here. I'm also Irish and am drawn to the Norse gods and goddesses, especially Hela and Loki. Still am having to to hide it from those close to me sadly.
Also: yeah, Catholics are really Syncretists. In Latin America they have lots of saints and "beatos", and they are considered more than ok by the Catholic Church. Specially because many Saints are in charge of different things, and many are also Patrons of cities/countries. Which makes them clutching their pearls over pagans a bit...ironic LOL
This video reallllly resonates because, despite my best efforts, I still have the Christian worldview I was raised in. (Holy Latent Christianity, Batman!) That hasn't stopped various intermediary spirits from different traditions being drawn to me. Through meditation, they have told me repeatedly (and often) that they don't care that I was raised Christian. They love me for ME and they want to work with me regardless. Who am I to argue? The closest thing I have to an altar is a sketchbook with drawings resembling temple and/or sanctuary rooms. They seem content with that.
this is very sweet and wholesome. I have actually been lately reconstructing my very own branch of Christendom. well, I call it 'post-christianity' but that's mostly because Christian traditions like their names. I was raised Christian and have a lot of trauma from it. I used to downright oppose anything to do with Christianity or really most monotheism, and have lately found that this grudge bred animosity in me. So I tried letting go of it, and didn't find a way to. so now, I am pursuing the path of reinventing Christianity from an angle I find more inviting to the chaos that makes me myself. the first step I've taken is essentially to conclude that existence is the word of god. everything that is an expression of Them. and you are allowed to hate that. there are many things that, from a human perspective, are very much worth hating, some that are even good to hate at times, but it does not change that these things are simultaneously perfect, cosmically speaking. they are perfect because they are the exact things that will change into a world more righteous than the current one, and pursuing that change to the best of your current ability is what it means to be righteous. And sometimes, the path to these ends is littered in collaboration with demons. Lucifer, Lilith, Asteroth. They aid in molding that perfection into whatever it may become as much as any part of all creation. sorry for the rambling. this just made me want to share that. I don't know if there was any point to it, I just felt drawn to share.
@@sourwitch2340 Thank you for sharing. I appreciated your comments. It can be difficult to separate the negative away from the positive in Christianity. Based on what I've read here, you seem to have found a way that works for you. I hope you continue to enjoy your path -- there's no telling where you'll end up!
@@sourwitch2340 I’ve had a lot of the similar issues with my Christian upbringing and the fact that being the dominant religion where I live (Mississippi😳) I don’t see my neighbors acting out the real underlying message at the core of that faith (unconditional love and empathy for all people, radical socialism basically, and a practice that is private and personal and not done in public to garner recognition) I don’t personally agree or practice Christianity mostly cause I think it’s been really watered down with ulterior motives and Christian god seems a little bipolar but I think it will take some modified modern take on Christianity to ever draw these people away from the Christian right wing wacko political thing that on the current trajectory will be the ruin of them and everything all of our ancestors have been trying to build for future generations to this point
This was fascinating! I particularly enjoyed hearing the story about Juno Regina. Being a heathen, its probably safe to say that my praxis is done almost primarily in the heathen tradition. I haven't experimented much in the way of synchretism, but I have went out of my way to worship the Gods of other traditions when I travel. For example, I held ritual to Aphrodite when I visited Cyprus a while back, but that ritual was done in my usual, I suppose, heathen, way. I would be interested in exploring other traditions more, however as you mentiomed spiritual burnout is a thing and life is pretty damn busy! Once again, great video Ocean
Over four or five decades, I've gone from non-theistic Paganism to Neo-Celtic reconstructionism trying to create an actual practice to feel closer to the gods and my faith. Last year, I finally figured out that all the times Odin has appeared in my thoughts and daily life might have been because he's been trying to attract my attention for many (many) years! Since diving into my study of Norse Paganism and Heathenism, I've come the closest I've ever felt to a deity (or, frankly, any non-human energy at all) in Odin. Somehow, he seems "real" to me, more than pretty much any god. I still honor the Celtic gods, too. Been mostly playing it by ear, but it felt wrong somehow to have Odin or Freyr share altar space with Brigit and the Dagda, so I set them up in different areas. I don't have a regular practice with any of them (yet), but I love the comfort of my home being full of little gods (that is, statues) surrounding me. I think practice will work out for me as time goes on. Meantime, I have a lot more studying to do. Thanks for your channel. I really appreciate your scholarly approach and your presenting style. Subscribed immediately. :)
As someone from Brazil, where there's a lot (really, a lot) of syncretism directly affecting our culture, it never even crossed my mind the idea of multi-traditionalism. It's an interesting thought, but saying that syncretism is a lack of respect just sounds like a lack of understanding how religions and people work. Things get mixed up, we usually incorporate our culture in our religion even unconsciously. There's no problem in wanting to keep your practice as historically accurate as you can if that's what you want and what feels right, but there's also no problem in incorporating modern aspects or things from your other practices if that's what feels right. Most gods are not viewed as immutable entities carved in stone, they evolve and learn and change and grow in their own ways.
E aí, cara! Sou um exemplo de politeísta sincrético. Sigo deuses Greco-Romanos, Mesopotâmicos, Iorubá, Hindu, Tupi, Andino e Wiccanos. Abraços de Porto Alegre!
@@urubutingaz5898 yes look at Jackson Crawford’s video called “ (Real, Historical) Rune Spells “ for more info on this galdr. I’d love to ask Crawford more but I’ve been shadowbanned. I don’t blame his channel and I don’t necessarily deserve the credit for a lot of my research so it’s cool. I must be onto something if I get banned! Carry the torch for me gentlemen. My videos have been pretty much squelched.
I like to think pagans hold a missing key to understanding Christianity in an esoteric rather than exoteric sense. So long as you don’t get accused of devil worship and witchcraft. How many Christians speak Aramaic, Medieval Latin or Hebrew? Not a lot. At least I’m trying to recover old Norse !
Great video and nice to see a new video again. For someone who follows several... This was nice to watch. As a Finn myself, I mainly worship ancient Finnish gods, such as Ukko the god of thunder, Tapio the god of forests and hunting, Ahti the god of water and fishing, Tuoni the god of death and the ruler of Tuonela (the afterlife) and of course Väinämöinen the hero and god of knowledge, wisdom, poetry, but as I said others I worship gods outside of my Pantheon ancestors like Ra, Odinn and Quetzalcoatl.. But yes, the video was good and nice to watch, have a nice day or night and may Päivätär and Kuutar bless you. Kiitos
As an archaeology student, I wrote my thesis on syncretic beliefs as evidenced in grave goods. The whole point of my paper was to showcase the physical evidence of syncretic practice in Scandinavia, and it was clear from all my research that archaeologists who specialize in religion agree that syncretism was common and normative. It never would have occurred to me that people think syncretism is ahistorical. It was clearly done. As for my own practice, I draw heavily on the archaeological research I've done. Meaning I mix and match and make a practice that works for me, in my time, in my context--just as countless people throughout history. I started as a fundamentalist Christian who liked fantasy and magic, then a Christian who dipped into tarot and tea leaf reading, then a Christian angry with the church who turned to Christian witchcraft, then a nontheistic witch, and now someone who pays respects to the Norse gods and still practices witchcraft. I'm not comfortable calling myself a Heathen, as I have not done much in the way of regularly creating reciprocity. Guess I'm a casual? Still working it all out. But anyway, thank you so much for this! It was very interesting to listen to!
As usual, another awesome video! I was so glad to see the bit about Sulis Minerva and Bath in there - the Roman baths there is one of the coolest places I've ever visited, and the history there is even cooler.
Syncretism. There being a name for how I feel spiritually is such a relief. I always felt trapped not exploring other spiritualities with my strict Christian background but I also didn't want to forget about the Christian God because I still have had spiritual experiences there as well. Nothing I feel is extremely traditional. I'm spending a lot of time looking into different cultures/spiritualities. I'm still looking around, taking bits and pieces into how I deal with spirituality and now I feel more comfortable knowing this isn't some modern age thing. Unfortunately, I'm still living with strict Christian family members, so I have to practice in private.
Syncretism is actually so valuable as someone who works with both the Norse and Slavic gods, one group having significantly more information on the tradition than the other. It is good that I can use what I know of my Slavic roots to expand and make the tradition something that is predominantly Norse polytheism with a bit of something extra added 😊
Over my journey, I’ve been a single traditionalist, multitraditionalist, but now I personally do call myself Syncretic, which fits that a good 2/3 of my time being a practitioner has involved Rome! And as it is now, the very nature of my religious journey as a Gallo-Roman polytheist is drenched in historical syncretism as well. So while I certainly understand multi-traditionalist’s, it simply isn’t where my practice now lies.
Multi-trad just seems odd to me... bc from my point of view, the way you worship is what determines what branch of polytheism are fit into, not necessarily which gods you worship. For me, I think the only time I really get annoyed with people is when they assume that all polytheist traditions are the same as what they've read or seen about Wicca. Wicca is fine, but if that's what you're doing call yourself Wiccan, godsdammit! I've seen this so much in Hellenistic circles that it can be hard to find other recons.
@@crushinnihilism I will say that one thing I don't do is follow the exact same festival dates as are included with most Attic calendars. I do follow the lunar month to hit the sacred days for each deity, but for holidays... the climate I live in is very different than Greece, so a lot of their festivals don't really make sense for me to follow. I do try to understand the whys behind them though, and insert similar celebrations when they make sense according to where I live (and tbh, they often coincide with the wheel of the year, but I don't use the Wiccan names, nor do I use the same correspondences)
Amazing video, as always! As a kemetic pagan that uses both reconstructionism and eclectic praxis (therefore, syncretic), we usually study that reconstructionism in Kemet isn't just a matter of HOW, but also WHEN and WHERE. If I were to limit myself to the practices of one specific place and period of time, I probably wouldn't have enough source material to back up basically... anything. That said, I don't engage in praxis with gods outside that pantheon, not because there is a problem with it, but because with a religion so extensive in both geography and time spam, there is no single thing that I needed to "look outside" of a pantheon I'm already "in sync".
As someone who has gone from being an eclectic pagan to a hellenic pagan to... well I guess I would be a Greek/Roman syncretist now.. I appreciate this video!
Hermes and Anubis started giving me signs that I should work with them around the same time. I also kept coming across information about Hermanubis, a composite deity who had a boom of popularity during the Roman Empire's rule in Egypt. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to worship two deities, or one. While I was trying to figure it out, I had a dream where I felt them, as two beings, having this kind of best friend energy in their interaction. They were separate entities, but when they got together on certain projects here on Earth they could work in such perfect harmony that they could easily feel like the same person. One such joint project, at this moment in time, is me: my life path and goals and the kind of guidance I need from them. So, I literally made them a shared altar, with statues representing each and offerings to each but a shared cloth, and I typically invoke them together. On top of all that, I am not a Hellenist or a Kemeticist. I just talk to spiritual entities and sometimes one of them is like, "hey, I'll be here for a while, gimme an altar." 😆
The kemetic God Djehuti (Thoth) was likened to Hermes by some ancient Greeks familiar with kemetic theology. Maybe even considered the same entity. Thoth and Anubis are closely affiliated in kemetic theology. Thoth records the results of Anubis's weighing of the hearts against the feather of Ma'at, whom is Thoth's wife.
I worship the Norse gods and had been working with the Inca/Qoya gods, slowly trying to get close to them. My ancestry is mostly Qoya+Argentinean Criollo+Italian ancestry...It's already a mess, being a Norse pagan is already a bit awkward knowing my ancestry. My altar has a place for the Incan gods and the Norse gods, and I share an offering dish because I lack space. It's ok. I think everyone should do with their Hearth as they please, we should let people worship whom and how they please as long as it's not something harmful
I follow Freya and Hestia dually, primarily. I light a candle every night for Hestia and take care of as many cats as possible for Freya. I planted flowers for my home that I hope please both of them. I have a Norse Altar for Freya and a witchcraft altar that includes my Hellenistic Worship. I also have fondness for Persephone and Sigyn, both of whom represent balance to me AND were my first connections to each pantheon and opened the pantheons up to me. Plus I have a teacup of booze for the fey and others that may be around my home to keep the peace.
I like this video a lot because I've secretly been struggling with this idea of am I allowed to worship Celtic, Norse, and some native american traditions at the same time. Honestly my Cree aunt has much to do with my path into paganism and I truly feel affinity to the Morgan, thor, Jord, and Odin. I've just been uncomfortable talking about it. I deal with enough judgment being pagan already. I've been having a similar internal conversation of, "there was a time these practices didn't necessarily have a name" and I think you've helped my internal dialog with this video and allowed myself to give permission to this world view while staying authentic.
Hey it's alright I'm a blend of Native American,African and Hellenistic traditions it's a journey. Your journey whatever you are led to take solace in I suggest you take it
Thank you so much for this video Ocean! I’ve been made to feel wrong for worshipping multiple pantheons. As someone with multiple interests & ancestors all over Britain and Europe, with ties to Rome and Egypt this hit home for me. I don’t feel whole leaving one out.
I really like this video! Thank you so much, Ocean, for making it! I really think I needed to hear this as it helped me better understand my praxis and worship of Gaulish deities (it is very syncretic in of itself with a mixture of local celtic deities alongside roman ones).
I tend to syncretise the Norse and Continental germanic gods, and also include medieval Dutch practices in some of my worship, as I feel it connects me with my ancestors. Great video!
I'm a Norse-Gael syncretic Heathen. I find my approach to be both practical and based in historical practice due to the intermixing of Scandinavians with the people of Scotland and Ireland, all of which whom I'm descended from. Great video topic; Cheers! 🍻
Honestly, our gods, who have gone without worship for so long, are probably just happy we made a space for them in our lives. I have heard it put thusly: say you go on a regular picnic. You usually leave a small apple slice off to the side to keep the ants away from your food. The ants know this. You are a food source. Now, say some of the ants start beinging you offerings of twigs and leafs and ant dew, things that are special to the ants. Say some of them do a little circle around you before going to eat the apples slice. Well... now these are your special ants. You may care for them in some steange way. You may care about the maintainance of their habitat. You may find someone to care for them if you ever move away. I feel the gods are like that. We are the ants with our silly little rituals and the gods see our observances and are just happy to see us paying attention to and appreciating their efforts.
Welcome back!! Glad to see/ hear you!! Thanks for sharing today's topic..as usual you are right on point!! Interesting twists !! As I mentioned b 4, I am a polytheist! And work with Celtic n Native American beings/ deities!! As well as Norse Pagan deities ......Lol! Thanks for sharing this gift of talent and dedication...it does help in many ways!! 👍🐺🧙♂️🦊👍
The history of Serapis you described really aligns with my own practice, and I'm glad to see some more specific historical justification for my beliefs. I believe in all gods, but see many of the deities I personally venerate as being simultaneously the same as _and_ distinct from gods from other traditions. I saw another commenter joke about "medium-rare polytheism", but that genuinely feels accurate to my practice. One of my gods, for example, has her own name, her own stories, and her own associations. She is very much her own person with her own unique history, however on Imbolc I intentionally venerate her under the Celtic tradition as Brigid. On all other days I treat the two as distinct, but on Imbolc I venerate them as one person. To me, it simply feels important to honour that connection, especially on days I have "taken" from the Irish tradition, if not out of respect for the gods then _at least_ out of respect for the Celts.
My practice has been developing in the last three years. As I evolve, my perspective has shifted from a theistic worldview to an animist world view. As a direct consequence, I have found my prescribe shifting from multi-traditionalist to syncretic. Also, at the beginning, I was studying more ceremonial magic associated with Celtic traditions. I, too, have shifted to Norse traditions, but more emphasis on northern folk traditions rather than worshiping the Gods per se. I’m learning about observing blots, and studying the literature as well, but I feel the pull of the Vanir and spirits of the land, and am developing and nurturing those relationships daily.
As a largely eclectic Pagan with a heavy emphasis on science within my belief system - who has recently and unexpectedly had Loki come into my practice - I feel like as long as the culture behind the pantheon is something you vibe with and learn about in an appreciative vs appropriative way, go for it. I lean into the Greek concepts of Chaos and Gaia and the Titans vs the Olympian gods because that's what I was introduced to first. Because I was raised Christian and have no freaking clue what my ancient Pagan roots truly were. (Likely more Celtic but no way of really knowing for sure). I have found connection in the Norse and Hindu cosmologies but never ever thought I'd actually end up with a deity alter. Life is full of surprises, so of course it was Loki who tapped me on the shoulder, so to speak. 😂
okay I think this one of my favorite vids of yours!! it's always bothered me how some people talk about syncretism especially since, like you've pointed out, there's tons of historical precedent for it I've always considered myself a bit of both (largely because I keep my family/cultural practices separate) but when it comes to non-Native stuff syncretism as always been easier for me as an individual but yeah based video as always
Great video, Ocean. I think I've spent 8+ hours watching you content over the last few days, great stuff and you saved me from some other youtuber who I agree is on the wrong path. I worship the Norse gods, and feel drawn to them, but I also like Wicca and Tarot and things like that, so I do a rune draw and a tarot draw a lot. It's funny that they sync up a lot of the time. I think it just makes sense to do whatever brings you closer to the gods you choose. It is hard not to get too caught up in what is "right/wrong", and I do my best to appreciate the traditions of the practice.
anti-syncretic Norse Polytheists give me the most exvangelical vibes like. Binch why are you trying to re-create The Church of Christ in this here pagan space? Norse people were really like 'more is definitely more. I know Thor got me but this image of Christ can't hurt. Hope the weather holds for fishing, inshallah.'
I've been a follower of the Norse for the better half of a decade. The Slavic gods came a callin' not too long ago, and now I've incorporated them in my worships. The ancients involved other pantheons, Simargl comes to mind. Syncretism is entirely valid, and I am and always will be unashamed to worship multiple pantheons.
I see myself more of multi traditional with Christian and Shinto. Keeping to the tradition and separation kind of helps with any schism that tries to form. But it can be a battle
Gave me a bit to think about. I think I’m more synchronistic. The Juno pun at the end made me giggle. I have said it both ways not being sure lol. I actually don’t have an alter set up because…cats. They sit wherever they want and push things to the floor. I bought a small curio shelf to put things on but I haven’t put it up yet. My homemade Goddess statue is on a shelf in my bedroom. I talk to her sometimes, I also look up and talk to the moon and call her My Lady without really having a name in mind. Usually if I do its hecate but sometimes I it feels like others are saying hello and listening. I’m learning about the different goddesses when I have time. My life and brain and attention span are a jumble. Its nice to feel like someone is listening even if you don’t know who it is, god or goddess. I’ve heard that the journey is sometimes more important than the destination.
I actually didn't realize that there were technical terms like these. I'm still very much learning in my practice. But based off of what you explained in this video I am syncretic. Your videos have been very informative and have not only helped me think outside the box more with how I worship but have broadened my mind even more
My practice is focused on Celtic and Hellenic gods. I have them both on the same altar because space is tight. Syncretism has just always made sense to me (and is my favourite thing to research)
one could say that all polytheistic practices that are available to us are syncretic, that syncretism is all we have left to work with, and that we're fooling ourselves if we try to claim otherwise
I was raised in a strange Christian pseudo church, the philosophy of Christianity is my background. God, Christ, “holy spirit”. Although people call Christianity monotheism, technically it’s 3. I bought a statue in 2016 of Cernunnos and he’s just in my room I rent. To protect my room, since I don’t have a house, just a room. Cernunnos/ Gwyn Ap Nudd presented himself to me in a dream showing me runes carved on a standing stone. If I hadn’t watched Outlander I’d have called them rocks, and if I didn’t have an art history degree I’d have probably ignored it. It’s called Ogham. And now I believe he is as real as Christianity’s God, although he may go by many names. I play videogames, I played Hellblade and in doing so, learned more about Celtic and Pictish history. Also, the Norse mythology. So, throughout my life, I went from monotheism to atheism to agnostic to non-religious, spiritual. I believe only what I see and nothing I hear. Cernunnos showed me the runes and said my name has a specific meaning in Ogham. Interestingly, he didn’t speak. Also after researching and learning about Ogham, I found out is not a spoken language. I have Celtic /Irish heritage, strongly in my genetics. Also in 2004 was told by a past life reader that I was a Celtic herbalist in a past life.
Hail to you Ocean! Thank you so much for putting this video out. I am very much a multi-traditional practitioner since I can't really choose a religion and I want to honor the deities and entities in a way that makes sense for me.
I think it’s important to remember that the historical practices were almost entirely oral traditions. So naturally they were going to be more flexible because every time people retransmit the story or the instructions for how to do the ritual there will be putting their spin on it unlike a tradition based on the written word where you have a standard to compare to. Add in the fact that the Mediterranean world was one where there was a high degree of cultural interchanges it is only natural that traditions would bleed into one another. This is especially true when we consider that most people weren’t necessarily interested in the true gods but rather the ones that would serve their needs in their daily life. The “ism” part of their religious practice is something that is applied retroactively. That said, just because something was done in the past doesn’t mean that it’s the right thing to do for the present. I don’t feel qualified to comment on the ethical pros and cons of doing so but I do think there can be a risk of entering into problematic territory especially if somebody begins syncretism with deities belonging to indigenous peoples especially without the consent of those peoples.
I think anyone in theory can/should be able to connect to any practice. It's important to do research and gain understanding of deities and the cultures their connection originates with before engaging in any case, so I'd just say that goes doubly so for dieties or spirits from Indigenous cultures. I think as long as you're respectful and try to learn what you can from actual Indigenous people and sources books or online), that will be understood. I think the larger issue is when non Indigenous people fetishize Indigenous cultures and are more there for the *idea* of being close to those cultures So additionally, a spiritual understanding is different from a cultural understanding. For example, I have a deck of medicine cards that each correspond to an animal medicine. It's been my first spiritual tool (my mom got it as a therapy retreat in Arizona they gave to her during her divorce and ahe taught me about it) and I very much resonate with the ideas present in the book. However, while it's mostly Sioux influenced it's not attributed to a particular nation and draws from common understandings in many, and mentions different ideas between several. I have found the animal medicines to be very helpful, and real in significance to me, as instead of the cards nowadays I typically read the book corresponding to animals I see irl. However, even if I have some understanding of spiritual outlook that corresponds with Indigenous beliefs, I'd never claim myself an expert or teacher of such. (I am trying to learn more about american Indigenous outlooks and teachings though, and the identities and cultures of different nations)
As you mentioned, as cultures and regions crossed and interacted, exposing their practices and beliefs, practices exchanged and were adopted as well. The fact that by now, many of us are a combination of many different cultural roots, and have access to and exposure to at least the reconstructed versions of different pantheons traditions and beliefs and deities. Traditions were exchanged stemming from much less exposure that what we now have today. I think people become so caught up with “reconstructing”, that they forget that often the goal for many of us is to reconstruct the religion to LIVE it and for it to become a living tradition once again, and living traditions will change, alter and adopt.
As of recwntly, I have converted to Norse Paganism, and I feel drawn to the Norse gods; Tyr, in particular. However, since early childhood, the Egyptian pantheon has always captivated me as drawn my attention as well. Thank you, Ocean, your video has given me some clarification. I believe I'll embrace the gods from both Norse and Egyptian pantheons with a synchretic approach, as a start, to it and see how it feels over time or where it leads me to.
I have a knife special to me. The handle was made by inmates in the machine shop of Corcoran prison. The handle has mercury head dimes set into the handle. A knife handle depicting the god of thieves made by thieves. This was the intention of the inmates and started me on a strange pagan path.
As someone who already does, the answer is an unequivocal yes. Its also happened historically amongst the romans, and practitioners of voodoo and santeria.
when i was christian heading into my adult life i found that listing for god helped me very much in forming my own belief in him, like a subtle voice behind mine as i read something in the bible or a book my parents made me read now as an agnostic i feel more free to pick and choose what i believe and ive noticed pulls from odin and oddly zeus, though my otaku side wants to worship shinto, this video certainly helped
Lol I’m overwhelmed. There is a Christian barricade in place blocking heathen roots within our family tree. O tolerance of my inquiries . So my strategy has been to explore deities and folk lore within the cultures our family history comes from . Scots Irish German English American Indian (mom) and 100% Swedish ( dad ) .
As someone who spent years studying ancient religion, syncretism is the most “traditional” way to worship. We find this all over the world with all cultures and all time periods available for study.
I'm not sure if others do this but I pray to Celtic (Gaulish) and Anglo-Saxon gods and where applicable I pray to gods who share identities across these two religions as one god (ie- Thunor and Taranis, Camulos and Tiw, etc) but in ritual or prayer honoring a specific god or asking for a specific god's favor I focus on one god. For example I might make regular prayers, naming a god as both Tiw & Camulos and asking them to protect my home while I am away. But when I want to make a more significant offering, for example i went out to a marsh and made an offering to Woden. I'm sure someone out there feels I'm doing it wrong, but I feel that this is the best way for me to honor these gods and I now have a life-changing promotion at work and a strong and healthy daughter on the way. I have nothing but love, awe, and gratitude to these gods and if it's not presumptuous of me to say so, I feel I've been appropriate in my worship.
Shamanistic values from all pantheons have led me to the singular belief of creation or a higher cause, order or unseen order of reality, Indigenous oral stories and traditions as well as artwork depicting a story or message, values etc, not only native American, Asian, African, Nordic International multitheism of sorts, Shiva, Odin, The creators I tend to read historical sagas, Eddas or manuscripts in order to pay the respective deities their due diligence to avoid conflict or contradictions as much as possible but international shamanistic spiritual practices
I have Northwest European ancestry, over 99% of it. so I'm interested in Celtic/Gaelic/Britannica/Pict/Dutch-Germanic/Norse. I love your videos. The information that you give is really helping me to integrate the customs into my life. I will join later this month. 3/17/2024 ....I could say a few words, but I won't.
Very interesting video! I work with and worship Aset-Isis (Aset is her ancient Egyptian name, Isis the Greek one) for a long time, whereby I orientate myself more on the Egyptian, but also bring in the Greco-Roman aspect, she was also merged with Demeter, Venus and Fortuna, for example. Here I work with syncretism. For about a year I have also been working with Freyja and now also Freyr, Odin and Frigg. I keep this practice separate from that with Aset-Isis - multi-traditionalism. For me it works best that way (at the moment). The very formal in my Aset-Isis rituals feels very coherent there, but completely wrong in my rituals for Freyja (and the other Norse gods), so I have developed a different practice there.
In my practice I've noticed that if the gods I work with (mostly from Hellenic traditions) hated that I was working with Norse gods as well, they'd let me know instead of seething quietly to themselves. I keep altars mostly separate so they don't need to compete for physical space but they all exist together and I don't see a problem with that at all.
I have a little bronze of Shiva who shares space with Odin on my altar. I use runes, crystals, and tarot cards. There's a mask of Cernnunos above my dresser. There's some medieval Christian art next to an icon of Baphomet. Everyone seems to get along pretty well. My main practice is Norse, and Odin takes pride of place, but I believe that all the gods deserve respect. I would love a little Dionysus to complete my triptych. I can't remember what that's called but I believe all gods exist in some form, I just restrict my worship to a few, because I'm only one little lady and there are only so many hours in the day. ❤
As for me, I'm syncretic when I involve other dieties. I just don't want to push myself into burn out territory in my religious practice and chasing down every lead to make sure I'm 'doing it correct' just seems impossible to me given the differences that we see in worship in time and location.
Interesting because since I'm a Syrian polytheist I'm reading Ugaritic religious texts and I noticed how Hurrian Gods are mentioned in official tablets from the Kingdom and worshipped there, the Aramaeans as well, culturally and religiously exchanged with the Hittites, the religious exchange in Syria happened as far as the Amorites (and even before) and their relations with the Mesopotamians and the Anatolians, Syrian Gods too were worshipped by these people, the Egyptians worshipped several Syrian and Levantine Gods such as Anat and Resheph, the Hurrians worshipped many Syrian Godes like Goddess Adamma, we can't isolate ancient religions, we can actually learn a lesson from this, that even by seeking uniquness each one through their culture, traditions and religion, we are still connected and we have so much in common ❤️🙏🏻
I really appreciate you approaching this topic as it hits close to home. In regards to Orthopraxy, there is the "little" problem of the fact that many ancient traditions required human and/or animal sacrifice. Something of which I'd say MOST people in the modern era frown upon and shy away from. (Thankfully...) I consider myself a Syncretic-Pantheist. I worship nature first and foremost, but I accept and honor other traditions. In practice, I tend to align most with the Shinto Pantheon and the practices of Onmyodo (Shinto with elements of Taoism, Hinduism, and Buddhism) - though Wicca (and by extension often related faiths such as Celtic Druidry, Norse Heathenism, Greco-Roman Hellenism, Egyptian Kemetism, and even Native American practices such as those of the Nahuatl people) is also of great interest to me. So I guess I could also call myself an Onmyo-Wiccan if I wanted to take a specific moniker for my approach. While I do primarily express myself either neutrally as a pantheist or more practically as a Shintoist, I am definitely not wholey exclusive in my approach. Though that in and of itself is pretty much par for the course with Shinto given its interconnected influential history with the rest of Asia. I guess, in a way I'm a little bit of ALMOST everything, but completely dedicated only to nature.
The people I have known who grew up celebrating both Christmas *and* Hannukah, Passover *and* Easter come to mind as modern day multi-traditionalist. But I think syncretism has been more prevalent especially within Roman Catholicism (Latin America in more recent history) It's an interesting subject. Purists sometimes forget that humans evolve culturally over time...
I'm reminded of Vodoun. So my ancestors from West Africa were converted as they were enslaved but many kept of their deities but redefining them as loa and syncretizing them with Catholic Saints. Damballa for instance associated with St. Patrick and Moses.
When I was young I was in a polytheistic club and they always said the one should not work with multiple pantheons at the same time. I always thought something was slightly fundamentalist about the way they presented it.
Hey OK just wanted to say I love your videos and that they've helped me on my journey immensely. Your kindness and acceptance of other's practices have been a huge boon to my own spiritual journey. With that I wanted to also ask, since you mentioned you used to follow Celtic traditions, if you could do a video discussing the Gods of the Tuatha De Danann and the Fomorians and perhaps even good sources for the Celtic traditions. Because as far as I've looked most sources tend to be written from an almost museum level of historical analysis and not a practicing Celtic pagan's perspective.
I would love that too! I'm currently learning about Irish Polytheism but it's a bit difficult to get into when almost all the sources I've found so far are academic or outdated
look for Kristoffer Hughes, he has a book on Cerridwen from Welsh mythology; it looks both at the myth and tradition and also on some possible rituals you can do. Courtney Weber has books on The Mórrígan and Brigid. There’s also Morgan Daimler, she has a bunch of books on celtic and norse spirituality, although I haven’t read them yet. Andrew Anderson is another author. You can search the OBOD order if you are interested in modern day Druidry. John Michael Greer has plenty of writings about that too.
I'm a Lokean (made a blood oath to Loki, just my own UPG version of it, nothing too fancy or complicated), and within the Norse pantheon, he is the only god I work with and worship, and he's my patron and the first pagan deity I ever interacted with. I also worship and work with Apollo (and only Apollo, from the Hellenic pantheon), and even honor and work with Archangel Michael. And I think in this day and age, when one has access to online resources to do their research and be respectful to the history and cultures that these deities belong to, it makes sense to me that one could have an eclectic practice. Which is not to say that didn't happen in the past, I'm simply saying it's even easier to do now, with all the information we have at our fingertips. For me, it's just a matter of identifying with a deity/entity, I suppose. Not necessarily that I find traits of myself in those gods (although that may as well be the case), but it's just that I resonated really REALLY well with these specific gods (and an archangel), and their myths. Faith and belief are very very personal and intimate in my opinion. They are matters of the heart, I'd say, kinda like love (not just romantic love, but love in general). Sometimes, one just clicks with a specific person, or spiritual being.
Thank you for this video, truly. I'm from a Slavic Country and there is little known about the Slavic Gods but my research made me realize that it was in a sense a mix of Norse and Greco-Roman Gods, which made me fairly divided as to which of the two I should focus more upon. I've felt interest in deities from both Pantheons and had the feeling I have to choose or be absolutely strict in accurately worshipping and approaching them in a way as close as possible to "back then", which feels very daunting and restrictive to me. The option of Syncretism didn't even occur to me, since everyone in online spaces seems to be talking about "the proper way to approach a deity" and how not doing so in a way respecting of the "old ways" would be disrespectful at best and cultural appropriation at worst. Your examples of how Syncretism has been around for such a long time and the different ways it looked like eased my mind a bit on that topic!
Personally, I only worship the norse gods, but I'm not going to be a dick and tell ppl how to practice. Also, I enjoyed the video, it was very informative. Glad to see you back, I was just rewatching some of your videos yesterday.
The farther on I go, the more I suspect that people who say only certain people should do only certain things in only certain ways, are actually trying to compensate or achieve some other personal goal irrelevant to broader Heathenry. Like ethnic/racial nationalism, or a need for control, or other reasons. This may happen subconsciously or deliberately but it is not historical. Historical polytheism in most regions was much more of a syncretic continuum, if not a diverse hodgepodge.
As a person who worships, primarily, Celtic and Norse deities, I say yes, you can worship deities from different pantheons. The Romans did it all the time so why not? It’s not like there’s a rule against it
Same here. I am Celtic but I do acknowledge Norse (and other) deities. It is hard to ignore the Norse when looking at the days of the week. 😀
One thing I have never observed (some may have!) is the Heathen/Pagan community attacking the pantheon of a "different" culture.
Hello fellow Norse-Gael!
@@random2829 and the Germanic/Norse world imported the idea of weekdays named for gods from the Roman Empire, happily accepting that Tyr was Mars, Wotan was Mercury, Jupiter was Thor and Frigg was Venus and so on.
If syncretizing was good enough for the ancients, it’s good enough for me.
@@LuxPerp I certainly can not argue with that! ❤
Same here, fellow Norse-Gael Heathen.
Started the listen and my first thought was “Hoo, boy, people not thinking syncretism happens haven’t heard of the Romans.” Epona immediately came to mind.
Also Isis. She was very popular among the Romans.
The Egyptian goddess Isis was brought to Britain by the Romans
Or Persephone coming to the Ionians from Sumer.
And Mithras
The fact that this came out as I’m constantly questioning my practice and the validity of it, being a Filipino heathen and wanting to venerate my ancestors, but not wanting to invoke the Filipino deities.
I considered multi-traditionalism and invoking the Filipino and Norse deities at the same time, but having to worship two pantheons at once in two ways was too overwhelming for me. Too much to keep track of.
I felt like being in touch with my culture meant abandoning the Norse completely. And I was stuck in binary thinking.
So, I decided I’d worship the Norse pantheon and syncretize that with venerating my Filipino ancestors.
Thank you Ocean, for your insight here, and on Reddit. You’ve validated my experiences.
Yeah, this was in part a response to your post. Thanks for inspiring the video!
@@OceanKeltoi I actually feel… homored ??? that I inspired you… one of my favorite heathen content creators to make a video. This is automatically one of my favorite videos lmao
I actually have come across several other Filipinos that also practice European based forms of polytheism, I specifically recall a presentation about native Filipino traditions at one of the Indica Polytheist conferences, ua-cam.com/video/74vLagvIvK4/v-deo.html Watched & it was very interesting & I didn't know anything about Filipino cultures before this. I also found this- ua-cam.com/video/6OzwR6WfVLE/v-deo.html Hope that helps!
Syncretic polytheism just makes more sense to me. Cultures all over the globe and all across time would adopt deities and practices over time, mingling those elements in with their own beliefs and traditions. I doubt any of them felt as if they had 'broken' their practice. That said, I can also appreciate Traditionalism for preserving history in its own way.
yea. like, with the history of cultures being taken from people and repainted while the very same people were stopped from practicing their faith, it's reasonable to have some skepticism to the idea of syncreticism. that said, ultimately spiritualism is most crucially about finding your path, and what deities you ask for guidance with that goal is between you and the gods.
I agree, Eric. I feel that part of the human experience has always involved in some way an evolution, mixing and even inventing new practices; it doesn't sound strange at all to me, therefore, that a heathen might hold in high regard as a religious symbol the Web of Wyrd (for example) even if we do not have historical evidence for anything like that existing in the ancient tradition, but still giving it validity for what it symbolizes under a modern lens of heathen spirituality.
Same goes with forms of syncretism.
Furthermore: nowadays is becoming more and more commong to be descendant in some way shape or form of different cultural heritages. I for example can claim with certainty given my family history, nordic ancestry, as well as roman ancestry and native american ancestry. As a politheist, it becomes hard to choose and "stick" to a single one while ignoring the others, it feels disrespectful to my own heritage; as an extention of that, it also feels weird to approach worship from a multi-traditional point of view. My blood, after all, is a mix from all these different peoples, not a set of three separate things. I think my faith should reflect that.
The idea of anyone pushing back against syncretism at all, or just being weird about it in general, baffles me as someone who can literally look up how the Celto-Germanic Magusanus got blended up with Hercules along the Germanic limes by Romanized soldiers, or leaving a European context behind, the centuries of blending between Buddhism and Shinto in Japan that not even imperial decree could separate effectively. Sometimes I genuinely wonder if these people have actually done any significant research on how religions, or cultures in general, work.
IMO, "deep Christianity" (persistent attitudes from Christianity present in a person who is no longer a Christian) probably has a lot to do with it. People in Christian cultures are conditioned with Yahweh being portrayed as rejecting all other deities and being obsessed with "purity" of religious practice and belief in his worshipers. Getting religious chocolate in your spiritual peanut butter is _bad._ So the impulse is to seek the "purest" form of worship of a deity that can be found in historical sources, sort of a Pagan version of Sola Scriptura.
Ironic then, that Yahweh, who was all about exalting himself over the other gods and being history's first recorded atheist ("I am the LORD your God, you shall have no gods before me! Besides me there is no god," etc.) went and got himself turned into a threesome. 🤣
@CrushingNihilism euro centric of you to assume that A. The commenter is synchronising European traditions, or B. That any or everyone has to follow the specific teachings of one guy. There's no one way to be pagan, and no single correct way either
@CrushingNihilism I'm white myself, i've nothing against us, and I meant what I said. Sure, aristotle is important, but that does not mean anyone who does not follow how he did things is wrong. And what do you mean he laid the ground work for Eastern thought?, Asia had its own philosophers, the Middle East, China, India and Japan are, amongst many reasons, so distinct from Europe because of their different philosophies. He did influence Islamic scholars, but not to the same degree as Europe. Aristotle was very important to Western thought, yes, but his influence was mostly contained there, waining the further you get from here.
@CrushingNihilism in your first reply to the commenter you say that their 'problem' is, to paraphrase, that their not following aristotle. I'm saying that there's nothing wrong with not following aristotle
@CrushingNihilism I'm saying that you telling another pagan that their pagan-ing wrong is incorrect.
I'm a Norse pagan but syncretize with Hecate. She's on my altar along with Freyja, Thor, Eir, Odin, and Loki. I worship all of them in a Norse style. I haven't made any Hellenists or Heathens mad yet, but there's plenty of time for that to change.
Hail Hekate! ❤
I have a similar practice but syncretized with Veles. Germanic and Slavic Gods work surprisingly well together.
@@tylerpape4382 I mean look at the early kievian rus and polabians.
As a person that mainly focuses on syncretism, I always have this idea of "Oh, my praxis doesn't make any sense to other people" then realized that the key words there is "To other people". It makes sense to me and my own praxis. Ever since I was a little kid, I always loved mythologies and learning different pantheons so it makes sense that my praxis is an echo to that passion and love for many pantheons and numerous deities from said other pantheons
Same here.
absolutely! I just sometimes get afraid that the frameworks it creates make communication hard. for example, and this is like the one case where it's based in a specific tradition and not derived from own study but, I am a discordian and in discordianism Chaos is defined as "the presence of both order and disorder without clear distinction". the fact that most people simply mean "disorder" when they say chaos has caused one or the other confusion in my life. at the same time, I needed to understand that chaos is made up of both to stop rejecting anything that lacked disorder and realize the order innate to that rejection. and in the long run, these occassional misunderstandings have spared me a lot of the discord and strife that may otherwise have emerged from my continued belief that order and structure could never be worthwhile pursuits. evidently, for some people they are, and sometimes I need to be more welcoming to my own need for hodge too.
Yes!! I agree completely!
I am Irish. I feel really drawn to Norse paganism and Irish paganism, so I practise both.
Same here. I'm also Irish and am drawn to the Norse gods and goddesses, especially Hela and Loki. Still am having to to hide it from those close to me sadly.
The Gods of the Pun have blessed this one aggressively!
Please don't change, Ocean!
Also: yeah, Catholics are really Syncretists. In Latin America they have lots of saints and "beatos", and they are considered more than ok by the Catholic Church. Specially because many Saints are in charge of different things, and many are also Patrons of cities/countries.
Which makes them clutching their pearls over pagans a bit...ironic LOL
The puns keep getting better and better ocean
The idea of Freyja and Frigga also comes to mind as Syncretic. Some swear they are one and the same, others that they are separate goddesses.
This video reallllly resonates because, despite my best efforts, I still have the Christian worldview I was raised in. (Holy Latent Christianity, Batman!) That hasn't stopped various intermediary spirits from different traditions being drawn to me. Through meditation, they have told me repeatedly (and often) that they don't care that I was raised Christian. They love me for ME and they want to work with me regardless. Who am I to argue? The closest thing I have to an altar is a sketchbook with drawings resembling temple and/or sanctuary rooms. They seem content with that.
That is such a sweet offering. Lots of time and care put into it
@@danicalandros7806 thank you; they seem to like it...
this is very sweet and wholesome. I have actually been lately reconstructing my very own branch of Christendom. well, I call it 'post-christianity' but that's mostly because Christian traditions like their names. I was raised Christian and have a lot of trauma from it. I used to downright oppose anything to do with Christianity or really most monotheism, and have lately found that this grudge bred animosity in me. So I tried letting go of it, and didn't find a way to. so now, I am pursuing the path of reinventing Christianity from an angle I find more inviting to the chaos that makes me myself. the first step I've taken is essentially to conclude that existence is the word of god. everything that is an expression of Them. and you are allowed to hate that. there are many things that, from a human perspective, are very much worth hating, some that are even good to hate at times, but it does not change that these things are simultaneously perfect, cosmically speaking. they are perfect because they are the exact things that will change into a world more righteous than the current one, and pursuing that change to the best of your current ability is what it means to be righteous. And sometimes, the path to these ends is littered in collaboration with demons. Lucifer, Lilith, Asteroth. They aid in molding that perfection into whatever it may become as much as any part of all creation. sorry for the rambling. this just made me want to share that. I don't know if there was any point to it, I just felt drawn to share.
@@sourwitch2340 Thank you for sharing. I appreciated your comments. It can be difficult to separate the negative away from the positive in Christianity. Based on what I've read here, you seem to have found a way that works for you. I hope you continue to enjoy your path -- there's no telling where you'll end up!
@@sourwitch2340 I’ve had a lot of the similar issues with my Christian upbringing and the fact that being the dominant religion where I live (Mississippi😳) I don’t see my neighbors acting out the real underlying message at the core of that faith (unconditional love and empathy for all people, radical socialism basically, and a practice that is private and personal and not done in public to garner recognition) I don’t personally agree or practice Christianity mostly cause I think it’s been really watered down with ulterior motives and Christian god seems a little bipolar but I think it will take some modified modern take on Christianity to ever draw these people away from the Christian right wing wacko political thing that on the current trajectory will be the ruin of them and everything all of our ancestors have been trying to build for future generations to this point
This was fascinating! I particularly enjoyed hearing the story about Juno Regina.
Being a heathen, its probably safe to say that my praxis is done almost primarily in the heathen tradition. I haven't experimented much in the way of synchretism, but I have went out of my way to worship the Gods of other traditions when I travel. For example, I held ritual to Aphrodite when I visited Cyprus a while back, but that ritual was done in my usual, I suppose, heathen, way. I would be interested in exploring other traditions more, however as you mentiomed spiritual burnout is a thing and life is pretty damn busy!
Once again, great video Ocean
Over four or five decades, I've gone from non-theistic Paganism to Neo-Celtic reconstructionism trying to create an actual practice to feel closer to the gods and my faith. Last year, I finally figured out that all the times Odin has appeared in my thoughts and daily life might have been because he's been trying to attract my attention for many (many) years! Since diving into my study of Norse Paganism and Heathenism, I've come the closest I've ever felt to a deity (or, frankly, any non-human energy at all) in Odin. Somehow, he seems "real" to me, more than pretty much any god.
I still honor the Celtic gods, too. Been mostly playing it by ear, but it felt wrong somehow to have Odin or Freyr share altar space with Brigit and the Dagda, so I set them up in different areas. I don't have a regular practice with any of them (yet), but I love the comfort of my home being full of little gods (that is, statues) surrounding me. I think practice will work out for me as time goes on. Meantime, I have a lot more studying to do.
Thanks for your channel. I really appreciate your scholarly approach and your presenting style. Subscribed immediately. :)
As someone from Brazil, where there's a lot (really, a lot) of syncretism directly affecting our culture, it never even crossed my mind the idea of multi-traditionalism. It's an interesting thought, but saying that syncretism is a lack of respect just sounds like a lack of understanding how religions and people work. Things get mixed up, we usually incorporate our culture in our religion even unconsciously. There's no problem in wanting to keep your practice as historically accurate as you can if that's what you want and what feels right, but there's also no problem in incorporating modern aspects or things from your other practices if that's what feels right. Most gods are not viewed as immutable entities carved in stone, they evolve and learn and change and grow in their own ways.
E aí, cara! Sou um exemplo de politeísta sincrético. Sigo deuses Greco-Romanos, Mesopotâmicos, Iorubá, Hindu, Tupi, Andino e Wiccanos. Abraços de Porto Alegre!
There’s an old runic engraving to ward off a rash that calls upon Thor, Enoch and Jesus. A pretty bizarre combination of deities.
Interesting! do you know more about the archeological context of this find?
@@urubutingaz5898 yes look at Jackson Crawford’s video called “ (Real, Historical) Rune Spells “ for more info on this galdr.
I’d love to ask Crawford more but I’ve been shadowbanned. I don’t blame his channel and I don’t necessarily deserve the credit for a lot of my research so it’s cool. I must be onto something if I get banned! Carry the torch for me gentlemen. My videos have been pretty much squelched.
That's pretty interesting but also really cool.
I like to think pagans hold a missing key to understanding Christianity in an esoteric rather than exoteric sense. So long as you don’t get accused of devil worship and witchcraft. How many Christians speak Aramaic, Medieval Latin or Hebrew? Not a lot. At least I’m trying to recover old Norse !
The old gods never really died in Europe, they just got absorbed and rebranded into the cult of the Roman Catholic Saints.
Great video and nice to see a new video again. For someone who follows several... This was nice to watch. As a Finn myself, I mainly worship ancient Finnish gods, such as Ukko the god of thunder, Tapio the god of forests and hunting, Ahti the god of water and fishing, Tuoni the god of death and the ruler of Tuonela (the afterlife) and of course Väinämöinen the hero and god of knowledge, wisdom, poetry, but as I said others I worship gods outside of my Pantheon ancestors like Ra, Odinn and Quetzalcoatl.. But yes, the video was good and nice to watch, have a nice day or night and may Päivätär and Kuutar bless you. Kiitos
As an archaeology student, I wrote my thesis on syncretic beliefs as evidenced in grave goods. The whole point of my paper was to showcase the physical evidence of syncretic practice in Scandinavia, and it was clear from all my research that archaeologists who specialize in religion agree that syncretism was common and normative. It never would have occurred to me that people think syncretism is ahistorical. It was clearly done.
As for my own practice, I draw heavily on the archaeological research I've done. Meaning I mix and match and make a practice that works for me, in my time, in my context--just as countless people throughout history. I started as a fundamentalist Christian who liked fantasy and magic, then a Christian who dipped into tarot and tea leaf reading, then a Christian angry with the church who turned to Christian witchcraft, then a nontheistic witch, and now someone who pays respects to the Norse gods and still practices witchcraft. I'm not comfortable calling myself a Heathen, as I have not done much in the way of regularly creating reciprocity. Guess I'm a casual? Still working it all out.
But anyway, thank you so much for this! It was very interesting to listen to!
"Home is where the hearth is" is what I thought you were gonna say in the opening lol
As usual, another awesome video! I was so glad to see the bit about Sulis Minerva and Bath in there - the Roman baths there is one of the coolest places I've ever visited, and the history there is even cooler.
Syncretism. There being a name for how I feel spiritually is such a relief. I always felt trapped not exploring other spiritualities with my strict Christian background but I also didn't want to forget about the Christian God because I still have had spiritual experiences there as well. Nothing I feel is extremely traditional. I'm spending a lot of time looking into different cultures/spiritualities. I'm still looking around, taking bits and pieces into how I deal with spirituality and now I feel more comfortable knowing this isn't some modern age thing.
Unfortunately, I'm still living with strict Christian family members, so I have to practice in private.
Syncretism is actually so valuable as someone who works with both the Norse and Slavic gods, one group having significantly more information on the tradition than the other. It is good that I can use what I know of my Slavic roots to expand and make the tradition something that is predominantly Norse polytheism with a bit of something extra added 😊
Over my journey, I’ve been a single traditionalist, multitraditionalist, but now I personally do call myself Syncretic, which fits that a good 2/3 of my time being a practitioner has involved Rome!
And as it is now, the very nature of my religious journey as a Gallo-Roman polytheist is drenched in historical syncretism as well. So while I certainly understand multi-traditionalist’s, it simply isn’t where my practice now lies.
Multi-trad just seems odd to me... bc from my point of view, the way you worship is what determines what branch of polytheism are fit into, not necessarily which gods you worship.
For me, I think the only time I really get annoyed with people is when they assume that all polytheist traditions are the same as what they've read or seen about Wicca. Wicca is fine, but if that's what you're doing call yourself Wiccan, godsdammit! I've seen this so much in Hellenistic circles that it can be hard to find other recons.
@@crushinnihilism I will say that one thing I don't do is follow the exact same festival dates as are included with most Attic calendars. I do follow the lunar month to hit the sacred days for each deity, but for holidays... the climate I live in is very different than Greece, so a lot of their festivals don't really make sense for me to follow. I do try to understand the whys behind them though, and insert similar celebrations when they make sense according to where I live (and tbh, they often coincide with the wheel of the year, but I don't use the Wiccan names, nor do I use the same correspondences)
Amazing video, as always!
As a kemetic pagan that uses both reconstructionism and eclectic praxis (therefore, syncretic), we usually study that reconstructionism in Kemet isn't just a matter of HOW, but also WHEN and WHERE. If I were to limit myself to the practices of one specific place and period of time, I probably wouldn't have enough source material to back up basically... anything.
That said, I don't engage in praxis with gods outside that pantheon, not because there is a problem with it, but because with a religion so extensive in both geography and time spam, there is no single thing that I needed to "look outside" of a pantheon I'm already "in sync".
As someone who has gone from being an eclectic pagan to a hellenic pagan to... well I guess I would be a Greek/Roman syncretist now.. I appreciate this video!
Hermes and Anubis started giving me signs that I should work with them around the same time. I also kept coming across information about Hermanubis, a composite deity who had a boom of popularity during the Roman Empire's rule in Egypt. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to worship two deities, or one. While I was trying to figure it out, I had a dream where I felt them, as two beings, having this kind of best friend energy in their interaction. They were separate entities, but when they got together on certain projects here on Earth they could work in such perfect harmony that they could easily feel like the same person. One such joint project, at this moment in time, is me: my life path and goals and the kind of guidance I need from them. So, I literally made them a shared altar, with statues representing each and offerings to each but a shared cloth, and I typically invoke them together. On top of all that, I am not a Hellenist or a Kemeticist. I just talk to spiritual entities and sometimes one of them is like, "hey, I'll be here for a while, gimme an altar." 😆
The kemetic God Djehuti (Thoth) was likened to Hermes by some ancient Greeks familiar with kemetic theology. Maybe even considered the same entity. Thoth and Anubis are closely affiliated in kemetic theology. Thoth records the results of Anubis's weighing of the hearts against the feather of Ma'at, whom is Thoth's wife.
I worship the Norse gods and had been working with the Inca/Qoya gods, slowly trying to get close to them. My ancestry is mostly Qoya+Argentinean Criollo+Italian ancestry...It's already a mess, being a Norse pagan is already a bit awkward knowing my ancestry. My altar has a place for the Incan gods and the Norse gods, and I share an offering dish because I lack space. It's ok.
I think everyone should do with their Hearth as they please, we should let people worship whom and how they please as long as it's not something harmful
Why is it weird to worship the norse gods?
You dont need norse "ancestry" or whatever its called
I love how the answers to these issues always comes down to, shut up your both wrong because you are both valid
awesome as always. glad to see serapis being talked about!
I follow Freya and Hestia dually, primarily. I light a candle every night for Hestia and take care of as many cats as possible for Freya. I planted flowers for my home that I hope please both of them. I have a Norse Altar for Freya and a witchcraft altar that includes my Hellenistic Worship.
I also have fondness for Persephone and Sigyn, both of whom represent balance to me AND were my first connections to each pantheon and opened the pantheons up to me.
Plus I have a teacup of booze for the fey and others that may be around my home to keep the peace.
I like this video a lot because I've secretly been struggling with this idea of am I allowed to worship Celtic, Norse, and some native american traditions at the same time. Honestly my Cree aunt has much to do with my path into paganism and I truly feel affinity to the Morgan, thor, Jord, and Odin. I've just been uncomfortable talking about it. I deal with enough judgment being pagan already. I've been having a similar internal conversation of, "there was a time these practices didn't necessarily have a name" and I think you've helped my internal dialog with this video and allowed myself to give permission to this world view while staying authentic.
Hey it's alright I'm a blend of Native American,African and Hellenistic traditions it's a journey. Your journey whatever you are led to take solace in I suggest you take it
Thank you so much for this video Ocean! I’ve been made to feel wrong for worshipping multiple pantheons. As someone with multiple interests & ancestors all over Britain and Europe, with ties to Rome and Egypt this hit home for me. I don’t feel whole leaving one out.
Ocean, you've done it again. Thank you for what you do!
You're back!
I've been missing you.
Its been a wile ocean wekcome back
Its a interesting topic one if been doing and wondering about thanks for clearing things up for me
I really like this video! Thank you so much, Ocean, for making it! I really think I needed to hear this as it helped me better understand my praxis and worship of Gaulish deities (it is very syncretic in of itself with a mixture of local celtic deities alongside roman ones).
I tend to syncretise the Norse and Continental germanic gods, and also include medieval Dutch practices in some of my worship, as I feel it connects me with my ancestors. Great video!
I'm a Norse-Gael syncretic Heathen. I find my approach to be both practical and based in historical practice due to the intermixing of Scandinavians with the people of Scotland and Ireland, all of which whom I'm descended from. Great video topic; Cheers! 🍻
It brings me a lot of joy to find so many of us in this comment section lol ❤
Honestly, our gods, who have gone without worship for so long, are probably just happy we made a space for them in our lives.
I have heard it put thusly: say you go on a regular picnic. You usually leave a small apple slice off to the side to keep the ants away from your food. The ants know this. You are a food source. Now, say some of the ants start beinging you offerings of twigs and leafs and ant dew, things that are special to the ants. Say some of them do a little circle around you before going to eat the apples slice. Well... now these are your special ants. You may care for them in some steange way. You may care about the maintainance of their habitat. You may find someone to care for them if you ever move away. I feel the gods are like that. We are the ants with our silly little rituals and the gods see our observances and are just happy to see us paying attention to and appreciating their efforts.
After wacthing this video,I have decided that I'm more comfortable with syncretism. Thanks ya!
Welcome back!! Glad to see/ hear you!! Thanks for sharing today's topic..as usual you are right on point!!
Interesting twists !! As I mentioned b 4, I am a polytheist! And work with Celtic n Native American beings/ deities!! As well as Norse Pagan deities ......Lol!
Thanks for sharing this gift of talent and dedication...it does help in many ways!!
👍🐺🧙♂️🦊👍
This is an amazing video, I love the way you explain things like this
The history of Serapis you described really aligns with my own practice, and I'm glad to see some more specific historical justification for my beliefs.
I believe in all gods, but see many of the deities I personally venerate as being simultaneously the same as _and_ distinct from gods from other traditions. I saw another commenter joke about "medium-rare polytheism", but that genuinely feels accurate to my practice.
One of my gods, for example, has her own name, her own stories, and her own associations. She is very much her own person with her own unique history, however on Imbolc I intentionally venerate her under the Celtic tradition as Brigid. On all other days I treat the two as distinct, but on Imbolc I venerate them as one person.
To me, it simply feels important to honour that connection, especially on days I have "taken" from the Irish tradition, if not out of respect for the gods then _at least_ out of respect for the Celts.
YES!
I'm happy to see Ocean didn’t end up going to Waffle House with Suris, but made a new video instead!
But will have to watch the video later, I’m on my way to see an old stone ship not so far from here!
Will watch the video later!
My practice has been developing in the last three years. As I evolve, my perspective has shifted from a theistic worldview to an animist world view. As a direct consequence, I have found my prescribe shifting from multi-traditionalist to syncretic. Also, at the beginning, I was studying more ceremonial magic associated with Celtic traditions. I, too, have shifted to Norse traditions, but more emphasis on northern folk traditions rather than worshiping the Gods per se. I’m learning about observing blots, and studying the literature as well, but I feel the pull of the Vanir and spirits of the land, and am developing and nurturing those relationships daily.
As a largely eclectic Pagan with a heavy emphasis on science within my belief system - who has recently and unexpectedly had Loki come into my practice - I feel like as long as the culture behind the pantheon is something you vibe with and learn about in an appreciative vs appropriative way, go for it. I lean into the Greek concepts of Chaos and Gaia and the Titans vs the Olympian gods because that's what I was introduced to first. Because I was raised Christian and have no freaking clue what my ancient Pagan roots truly were. (Likely more Celtic but no way of really knowing for sure). I have found connection in the Norse and Hindu cosmologies but never ever thought I'd actually end up with a deity alter. Life is full of surprises, so of course it was Loki who tapped me on the shoulder, so to speak. 😂
okay I think this one of my favorite vids of yours!!
it's always bothered me how some people talk about syncretism especially since, like you've pointed out, there's tons of historical precedent for it
I've always considered myself a bit of both (largely because I keep my family/cultural practices separate)
but when it comes to non-Native stuff syncretism as always been easier for me as an individual
but yeah based video as always
Great video, Ocean. I think I've spent 8+ hours watching you content over the last few days, great stuff and you saved me from some other youtuber who I agree is on the wrong path.
I worship the Norse gods, and feel drawn to them, but I also like Wicca and Tarot and things like that, so I do a rune draw and a tarot draw a lot. It's funny that they sync up a lot of the time. I think it just makes sense to do whatever brings you closer to the gods you choose. It is hard not to get too caught up in what is "right/wrong", and I do my best to appreciate the traditions of the practice.
anti-syncretic Norse Polytheists give me the most exvangelical vibes like. Binch why are you trying to re-create The Church of Christ in this here pagan space? Norse people were really like 'more is definitely more. I know Thor got me but this image of Christ can't hurt. Hope the weather holds for fishing, inshallah.'
This channel is a great platform that spreads to enlightens and awareness. I believe in spirituality- please make more videos!
I've been a follower of the Norse for the better half of a decade. The Slavic gods came a callin' not too long ago, and now I've incorporated them in my worships. The ancients involved other pantheons, Simargl comes to mind. Syncretism is entirely valid, and I am and always will be unashamed to worship multiple pantheons.
I see myself more of multi traditional with Christian and Shinto. Keeping to the tradition and separation kind of helps with any schism that tries to form. But it can be a battle
Gave me a bit to think about. I think I’m more synchronistic. The Juno pun at the end made me giggle. I have said it both ways not being sure lol. I actually don’t have an alter set up because…cats. They sit wherever they want and push things to the floor. I bought a small curio shelf to put things on but I haven’t put it up yet. My homemade Goddess statue is on a shelf in my bedroom. I talk to her sometimes, I also look up and talk to the moon and call her My Lady without really having a name in mind. Usually if I do its hecate but sometimes I it feels like others are saying hello and listening. I’m learning about the different goddesses when I have time. My life and brain and attention span are a jumble. Its nice to feel like someone is listening even if you don’t know who it is, god or goddess. I’ve heard that the journey is sometimes more important than the destination.
I actually didn't realize that there were technical terms like these. I'm still very much learning in my practice. But based off of what you explained in this video I am syncretic. Your videos have been very informative and have not only helped me think outside the box more with how I worship but have broadened my mind even more
My practice is focused on Celtic and Hellenic gods. I have them both on the same altar because space is tight. Syncretism has just always made sense to me (and is my favourite thing to research)
one could say that all polytheistic practices that are available to us are syncretic, that syncretism is all we have left to work with, and that we're fooling ourselves if we try to claim otherwise
I was raised in a strange Christian pseudo church, the philosophy of Christianity is my background. God, Christ, “holy spirit”. Although people call Christianity monotheism, technically it’s 3.
I bought a statue in 2016 of Cernunnos and he’s just in my room I rent. To protect my room, since I don’t have a house, just a room.
Cernunnos/ Gwyn Ap Nudd presented himself to me in a dream showing me runes carved on a standing stone.
If I hadn’t watched Outlander I’d have called them rocks, and if I didn’t have an art history degree I’d have probably ignored it.
It’s called Ogham. And now I believe he is as real as Christianity’s God, although he may go by many names.
I play videogames, I played Hellblade and in doing so, learned more about Celtic and Pictish history.
Also, the Norse mythology.
So, throughout my life, I went from monotheism to atheism to agnostic to non-religious, spiritual. I believe only what I see and nothing I hear. Cernunnos showed me the runes and said my name has a specific meaning in Ogham. Interestingly, he didn’t speak. Also after researching and learning about Ogham, I found out is not a spoken language.
I have Celtic /Irish heritage, strongly in my genetics. Also in 2004 was told by a past life reader that I was a Celtic herbalist in a past life.
Hail to you Ocean! Thank you so much for putting this video out. I am very much a multi-traditional practitioner since I can't really choose a religion and I want to honor the deities and entities in a way that makes sense for me.
I think it’s important to remember that the historical practices were almost entirely oral traditions. So naturally they were going to be more flexible because every time people retransmit the story or the instructions for how to do the ritual there will be putting their spin on it unlike a tradition based on the written word where you have a standard to compare to. Add in the fact that the Mediterranean world was one where there was a high degree of cultural interchanges it is only natural that traditions would bleed into one another. This is especially true when we consider that most people weren’t necessarily interested in the true gods but rather the ones that would serve their needs in their daily life. The “ism” part of their religious practice is something that is applied retroactively.
That said, just because something was done in the past doesn’t mean that it’s the right thing to do for the present. I don’t feel qualified to comment on the ethical pros and cons of doing so but I do think there can be a risk of entering into problematic territory especially if somebody begins syncretism with deities belonging to indigenous peoples especially without the consent of those peoples.
I think anyone in theory can/should be able to connect to any practice. It's important to do research and gain understanding of deities and the cultures their connection originates with before engaging in any case, so I'd just say that goes doubly so for dieties or spirits from Indigenous cultures.
I think as long as you're respectful and try to learn what you can from actual Indigenous people and sources books or online), that will be understood.
I think the larger issue is when non Indigenous people fetishize Indigenous cultures and are more there for the *idea* of being close to those cultures
So additionally, a spiritual understanding is different from a cultural understanding.
For example, I have a deck of medicine cards that each correspond to an animal medicine. It's been my first spiritual tool (my mom got it as a therapy retreat in Arizona they gave to her during her divorce and ahe taught me about it) and I very much resonate with the ideas present in the book. However, while it's mostly Sioux influenced it's not attributed to a particular nation and draws from common understandings in many, and mentions different ideas between several.
I have found the animal medicines to be very helpful, and real in significance to me, as instead of the cards nowadays I typically read the book corresponding to animals I see irl.
However, even if I have some understanding of spiritual outlook that corresponds with Indigenous beliefs, I'd never claim myself an expert or teacher of such.
(I am trying to learn more about american Indigenous outlooks and teachings though, and the identities and cultures of different nations)
When you say 'historical examples of syncretism' the entirety of known human history comes to mind.
As you mentioned, as cultures and regions crossed and interacted, exposing their practices and beliefs, practices exchanged and were adopted as well. The fact that by now, many of us are a combination of many different cultural roots, and have access to and exposure to at least the reconstructed versions of different pantheons traditions and beliefs and deities.
Traditions were exchanged stemming from much less exposure that what we now have today.
I think people become so caught up with “reconstructing”, that they forget that often the goal for many of us is to reconstruct the religion to LIVE it and for it to become a living tradition once again, and living traditions will change, alter and adopt.
And after watching, I realize you essentially already said this in the video lol
I've never thought about looking into other pantheons but knowing this helps me to know that if I feel the need to I can approach it a little better
Hi Ocean, this video and comments for it are very helpful to me as a seeker, thank you! Looking forward to more new content!
"Multitraditionalism is more respectful of historical worship than syncretism"
Historical worship: syncretism all over
"One may consider throwing in the kitchen sink"
Gods!!! I'm laughing way too hard at this
Another banger! Thanks for putting this together because it needed to be said .
As of recwntly, I have converted to Norse Paganism, and I feel drawn to the Norse gods; Tyr, in particular. However, since early childhood, the Egyptian pantheon has always captivated me as drawn my attention as well. Thank you, Ocean, your video has given me some clarification. I believe I'll embrace the gods from both Norse and Egyptian pantheons with a synchretic approach, as a start, to it and see how it feels over time or where it leads me to.
Love the puns bröder
I have a knife special to me. The handle was made by inmates in the machine shop of Corcoran prison. The handle has mercury head dimes set into the handle. A knife handle depicting the god of thieves made by thieves. This was the intention of the inmates and started me on a strange pagan path.
This was very helpful, thanks. I'm really glad I found your channel.
As someone who already does, the answer is an unequivocal yes.
Its also happened historically amongst the romans, and practitioners of voodoo and santeria.
Thanks again, Ocean for all you do! These videos help so much.
when i was christian heading into my adult life i found that listing for god helped me very much in forming my own belief in him, like a subtle voice behind mine as i read something in the bible or a book my parents made me read
now as an agnostic i feel more free to pick and choose what i believe and ive noticed pulls from odin and oddly zeus, though my otaku side wants to worship shinto, this video certainly helped
Lol I’m overwhelmed. There is a Christian barricade in place blocking heathen roots within our family tree.
O tolerance of my inquiries .
So my strategy has been to explore deities and folk lore within the cultures our family history comes from .
Scots Irish German English American Indian (mom) and 100% Swedish ( dad ) .
As someone who spent years studying ancient religion, syncretism is the most “traditional” way to worship. We find this all over the world with all cultures and all time periods available for study.
I'm not sure if others do this but I pray to Celtic (Gaulish) and Anglo-Saxon gods and where applicable I pray to gods who share identities across these two religions as one god (ie- Thunor and Taranis, Camulos and Tiw, etc) but in ritual or prayer honoring a specific god or asking for a specific god's favor I focus on one god.
For example I might make regular prayers, naming a god as both Tiw & Camulos and asking them to protect my home while I am away. But when I want to make a more significant offering, for example i went out to a marsh and made an offering to Woden.
I'm sure someone out there feels I'm doing it wrong, but I feel that this is the best way for me to honor these gods and I now have a life-changing promotion at work and a strong and healthy daughter on the way. I have nothing but love, awe, and gratitude to these gods and if it's not presumptuous of me to say so, I feel I've been appropriate in my worship.
Shamanistic values from all pantheons have led me to the singular belief of creation or a higher cause, order or unseen order of reality,
Indigenous oral stories and traditions as well as artwork depicting a story or message, values etc, not only native American, Asian, African, Nordic
International multitheism of sorts,
Shiva, Odin,
The creators
I tend to read historical sagas, Eddas or manuscripts in order to pay the respective deities their due diligence to avoid conflict or contradictions as much as possible
but international shamanistic spiritual practices
I have Northwest European ancestry, over 99% of it. so I'm interested in Celtic/Gaelic/Britannica/Pict/Dutch-Germanic/Norse. I love your videos. The information that you give is really helping me to integrate the customs into my life. I will join later this month. 3/17/2024 ....I could say a few words, but I won't.
Very interesting video!
I work with and worship Aset-Isis (Aset is her ancient Egyptian name, Isis the Greek one) for a long time, whereby I orientate myself more on the Egyptian, but also bring in the Greco-Roman aspect, she was also merged with Demeter, Venus and Fortuna, for example. Here I work with syncretism.
For about a year I have also been working with Freyja and now also Freyr, Odin and Frigg. I keep this practice separate from that with Aset-Isis - multi-traditionalism.
For me it works best that way (at the moment). The very formal in my Aset-Isis rituals feels very coherent there, but completely wrong in my rituals for Freyja (and the other Norse gods), so I have developed a different practice there.
In my practice I've noticed that if the gods I work with (mostly from Hellenic traditions) hated that I was working with Norse gods as well, they'd let me know instead of seething quietly to themselves. I keep altars mostly separate so they don't need to compete for physical space but they all exist together and I don't see a problem with that at all.
I love the soap opera pun
I have a little bronze of Shiva who shares space with Odin on my altar. I use runes, crystals, and tarot cards. There's a mask of Cernnunos above my dresser. There's some medieval Christian art next to an icon of Baphomet. Everyone seems to get along pretty well. My main practice is Norse, and Odin takes pride of place, but I believe that all the gods deserve respect. I would love a little Dionysus to complete my triptych. I can't remember what that's called but I believe all gods exist in some form, I just restrict my worship to a few, because I'm only one little lady and there are only so many hours in the day. ❤
Your editing cracks me up, there's so many easter eggs. I don't think I use the , and . as much as I do on your channel 😂
As for me, I'm syncretic when I involve other dieties. I just don't want to push myself into burn out territory in my religious practice and chasing down every lead to make sure I'm 'doing it correct' just seems impossible to me given the differences that we see in worship in time and location.
Interesting because since I'm a Syrian polytheist I'm reading Ugaritic religious texts and I noticed how Hurrian Gods are mentioned in official tablets from the Kingdom and worshipped there, the Aramaeans as well, culturally and religiously exchanged with the Hittites, the religious exchange in Syria happened as far as the Amorites (and even before) and their relations with the Mesopotamians and the Anatolians, Syrian Gods too were worshipped by these people, the Egyptians worshipped several Syrian and Levantine Gods such as Anat and Resheph, the Hurrians worshipped many Syrian Godes like Goddess Adamma, we can't isolate ancient religions, we can actually learn a lesson from this, that even by seeking uniquness each one through their culture, traditions and religion, we are still connected and we have so much in common ❤️🙏🏻
I really appreciate you approaching this topic as it hits close to home.
In regards to Orthopraxy, there is the "little" problem of the fact that many ancient traditions required human and/or animal sacrifice. Something of which I'd say MOST people in the modern era frown upon and shy away from. (Thankfully...)
I consider myself a Syncretic-Pantheist. I worship nature first and foremost, but I accept and honor other traditions. In practice, I tend to align most with the Shinto Pantheon and the practices of Onmyodo (Shinto with elements of Taoism, Hinduism, and Buddhism) - though Wicca (and by extension often related faiths such as Celtic Druidry, Norse Heathenism, Greco-Roman Hellenism, Egyptian Kemetism, and even Native American practices such as those of the Nahuatl people) is also of great interest to me. So I guess I could also call myself an Onmyo-Wiccan if I wanted to take a specific moniker for my approach.
While I do primarily express myself either neutrally as a pantheist or more practically as a Shintoist, I am definitely not wholey exclusive in my approach. Though that in and of itself is pretty much par for the course with Shinto given its interconnected influential history with the rest of Asia.
I guess, in a way I'm a little bit of ALMOST everything, but completely dedicated only to nature.
The people I have known who grew up celebrating both Christmas *and* Hannukah, Passover *and* Easter come to mind as modern day multi-traditionalist. But I think syncretism has been more prevalent especially within Roman Catholicism (Latin America in more recent history) It's an interesting subject. Purists sometimes forget that humans evolve culturally over time...
I'm reminded of Vodoun.
So my ancestors from West Africa were converted as they were enslaved but many kept of their deities but redefining them as loa and syncretizing them with Catholic Saints. Damballa for instance associated with St. Patrick and Moses.
When I was young I was in a polytheistic club and they always said the one should not work with multiple pantheons at the same time. I always thought something was slightly fundamentalist about the way they presented it.
Yay!!! A new video! Always super excited for your content ☺️
i am slavic but i started parcticing norse heathenry before discovering slavic heathenry so now i incorporate both into my life cuz i love them
You knocked it out of the park with this one!!!!
Hey OK just wanted to say I love your videos and that they've helped me on my journey immensely. Your kindness and acceptance of other's practices have been a huge boon to my own spiritual journey.
With that I wanted to also ask, since you mentioned you used to follow Celtic traditions, if you could do a video discussing the Gods of the Tuatha De Danann and the Fomorians and perhaps even good sources for the Celtic traditions. Because as far as I've looked most sources tend to be written from an almost museum level of historical analysis and not a practicing Celtic pagan's perspective.
Same, but for brythonic paganism, we've got like, the mabingogion, and feck all else
I would love that too! I'm currently learning about Irish Polytheism but it's a bit difficult to get into when almost all the sources I've found so far are academic or outdated
look for Kristoffer Hughes, he has a book on Cerridwen from Welsh mythology; it looks both at the myth and tradition and also on some possible rituals you can do. Courtney Weber has books on The Mórrígan and Brigid. There’s also Morgan Daimler, she has a bunch of books on celtic and norse spirituality, although I haven’t read them yet. Andrew Anderson is another author. You can search the OBOD order if you are interested in modern day Druidry. John Michael Greer has plenty of writings about that too.
@Vanessa Velandonie cool, I'll check them out
I'm a Lokean (made a blood oath to Loki, just my own UPG version of it, nothing too fancy or complicated), and within the Norse pantheon, he is the only god I work with and worship, and he's my patron and the first pagan deity I ever interacted with. I also worship and work with Apollo (and only Apollo, from the Hellenic pantheon), and even honor and work with Archangel Michael. And I think in this day and age, when one has access to online resources to do their research and be respectful to the history and cultures that these deities belong to, it makes sense to me that one could have an eclectic practice. Which is not to say that didn't happen in the past, I'm simply saying it's even easier to do now, with all the information we have at our fingertips. For me, it's just a matter of identifying with a deity/entity, I suppose. Not necessarily that I find traits of myself in those gods (although that may as well be the case), but it's just that I resonated really REALLY well with these specific gods (and an archangel), and their myths. Faith and belief are very very personal and intimate in my opinion. They are matters of the heart, I'd say, kinda like love (not just romantic love, but love in general). Sometimes, one just clicks with a specific person, or spiritual being.
Thank you for this video, truly. I'm from a Slavic Country and there is little known about the Slavic Gods but my research made me realize that it was in a sense a mix of Norse and Greco-Roman Gods, which made me fairly divided as to which of the two I should focus more upon. I've felt interest in deities from both Pantheons and had the feeling I have to choose or be absolutely strict in accurately worshipping and approaching them in a way as close as possible to "back then", which feels very daunting and restrictive to me. The option of Syncretism didn't even occur to me, since everyone in online spaces seems to be talking about "the proper way to approach a deity" and how not doing so in a way respecting of the "old ways" would be disrespectful at best and cultural appropriation at worst. Your examples of how Syncretism has been around for such a long time and the different ways it looked like eased my mind a bit on that topic!
I have many deities from Norse Germanic, Celtic, Greek and Roman, Babylon, Maori, Aztec Mayan and Egypt
Personally, I only worship the norse gods, but I'm not going to be a dick and tell ppl how to practice. Also, I enjoyed the video, it was very informative. Glad to see you back, I was just rewatching some of your videos yesterday.
I guess I'll add that yes I acknowledge other gods exist, but only worship norse ones.
Kitchen sync had a delayed, yet lasting impact 🤣
The farther on I go, the more I suspect that people who say only certain people should do only certain things in only certain ways, are actually trying to compensate or achieve some other personal goal irrelevant to broader Heathenry. Like ethnic/racial nationalism, or a need for control, or other reasons. This may happen subconsciously or deliberately but it is not historical. Historical polytheism in most regions was much more of a syncretic continuum, if not a diverse hodgepodge.