For Acts of Speech, in the "public" (not performance) section, I'm writing a few poems that focus on intersections of myth, modern astronomy/cosmology, sometimes philosophy, and the Gods, with the core idea that on some level, the physical things I am discussing are symbols that can easily and smoothly connect to stories and concepts that are … Continue reading Light-Scattered Fire Upon Us
Category: polytheism
On Fandom and Gods
I read "What Polytheists Can Learn from Fandom" today. First off, the piece had some good takeaways: An emphasis on building coalitions through a lattice of local, semi-local, national, and international events and loose affiliations of people is important for the future of polytheism. We can do things that respect the diversity of religions and … Continue reading On Fandom and Gods
Some Quotations from Damascius
I finished reading Damascius' Lectures on the Philebus. Why does the Cause associate itself with the mixture? Because the mixture is all-embracing, while the Cause itself is all things. For what is simple cannot comprehend its power, which, transcending unity, comprises all things in an ineffable way. For this reason the divine Iamblichus says that it … Continue reading Some Quotations from Damascius
A Miscellany of Quotations — Bryant & Damascius
From The Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali Years ago, when I started reading the 600-page commentary (900 ebook pages; the page numbers below are ebook ones) on the Yoga Sūtras by Edwin F. Bryant, I wanted to have a better grounding in the philosophy behind the asana I practiced multiple times a week so I would … Continue reading A Miscellany of Quotations — Bryant & Damascius
Some Thoughts About Giving Tuesday
This coming Tuesday, many organizations will be asking for money — your alma mater, religious organizations, the charity you gave to during a natural disaster years ago, and any group that crosses your social media feeds or that has acquired your email address. First, it is possible to donate to archaeological sites — just look … Continue reading Some Thoughts About Giving Tuesday
A Miscellany of Quotations — Majercik, Bryant, Damascius
First, for several days, I have had a brainworm from the Chaldean Oracles fragments. (This isn't getting a header because it's a single quotation at the beginning.) It's the phrase sober up from Fragment 15, trans. Ruth Majercik: And you do not know that every god is good. O, drudges, sober up … However, my … Continue reading A Miscellany of Quotations — Majercik, Bryant, Damascius
Hellenistic Syncretic Polytheism (HeSP)
(Addendum: I don't use this term anymore — I just call myself a polytheist.) The only definition for this exists in my About Me or that long post I made after a summertime Twitter situation a while ago. This post will serve as a definition reference link so I can link to it whenever I … Continue reading Hellenistic Syncretic Polytheism (HeSP)
A Miscellany of Quotations — Damascius and Kongtrul
From Damascius' Lectures on the Philebus First, the translator, L.G. Westerink — or the Prometheus Trust when they did their monograph — capitalizes Gods. I only just admitted that was a good decision after waffling for more than a decade, but this is a happy thing to see in a book. The Philebus is the Platonic dialogue in … Continue reading A Miscellany of Quotations — Damascius and Kongtrul
Black Friday Sales
It is a general rule that a blog with "minimalism" in its tagline will spend some of Thanksgiving Week talking about Black Friday, Cyber Monday, the horrors of consumerism, and the acquisitive awfulness that is dragging us all down. Some of these bloggers will go on to discuss what we have done to the planet … Continue reading Black Friday Sales