While it is always important to take note of the individual identities and
backgrounds of the Gods and Goddesses that pagans worship, follow, or interact
with on different levels, one trait of the Gods that will always remain
universal and transcend all boundaries is how and when they choose to manifest
to the minds and hearts of the mortals who have gained an audience with them.
Personal interactions with the Gods tends to boarder on the taboo. These are
tales and perspectives that should be shared but are often held in secret for a
couple of primary reasons. The first is that such occurrences are often
considered to be personal and, in a way, sacred to the individual. From this
perspective the common defense to not telling the tale is that it's personal and
no one else's business. And in a world culture of possessiveness even words are
given an unrealistic weight in gold. Just ask anyone who wants to copyright and
demand credit for every single word that comes out of their little mouths. (On
this note, anything I do or say is probably more valuable to my readers than it
is to me. The more readers who gain from my words the more value the message
has. So pass it on. I adore seeing others gaining from me with no follow up
effort given to pushing the words forward. It means I did something great that
was worth someone else noting.)
A second primary, and more disturbing reason, is that interactions with the Gods
invokes a kind of fear response in those it actually happens to. Especially if
the occurrence are vivid and not simply an emotional response to a ritual,
spell, or prayer for intervening. That trend was programmed into us by the
cold, hard, and rough perspective of reality gifted to us by the scientific age.
And it's one of the great curses self imposed upon mankind. Often when we are
young and keep getting drilled about growing up. With lines that include phrases
like: ghosts and monsters aren't real. It was just your imagination, a bad
dream, get your head out of the clouds…." the list goes on forever. And what is
the one thing that us pagans value nearly more than anything else? The gift of
sight we had as children before we had that gift taken from us by the world we
live in.
Probably one of the greatest powers that deities have is the ability to manifest
to any mortal, pagan or not, in any manner they see fit to do so at the time.
So, any account of interactions and manifestations recalled by any individual
fails in shocking me or giving me the point of view that this person might just
be crazy. Which is the response they fear the most. They wont recount the tale
simply because they are afraid of what others will say or think. Oddly enough,
the opinions of others rules over many of our actions. Meaning that they are
somewhat in control of what we say and do. Even though we speak venomously about
those we catch trying to do it.
Because of the rarity of the accounts in question they are always valuable to
those they are gifted to. And it's important to respect each tale as it is told
and not try to interpret it or disrespect it in any way. Those who have these
experiences hold some value to the Gods and Goddesses that manifest to them. By
insulting the tale you insult the God or Goddess in question. And none of them
are limited to being kind and loving to any mortal.
Manifestations are an important lesson to learn. Not because they happen but
because of how and why they happen. Those who come to the call of the Gods often
enough get the favor returned. That means that if you run into a person who has
favor with a deity you not only face that person if you have reason to pick a
fight with them. You face the wrath of the God or Goddess who they have favor
with. That is not related to the dogma of karma in any way. That is simply the
equivalent of a pissed off parent or guardian.
While some Gods and Goddesses tend to remain indifferent there are others who
quite literally fall in love with the mortals who worship them. And they will
protect them in a more intense manner than any mortal lover ever could. At the
same point in time, many of the Gods and Goddesses have a strong and intense
hitch for jealousy. There is a fine line between love and hate. Especially when
it comes to the Gods.
In learning the true nature of the Gods we interact with we are better able to
serve and cope with their influences on our daily lives and the lives of those
around us. In this, we must also side note the effects of interacting with
creatures beyond the realm of the Gods. Dragons, fairies, fauns, and all manner
of what the world views as "mythical creatures" often enough appear to us
somewhere along our path. They're part of our world that is no different than
the world of man. Different races, different cultures, different attitudes and
ways of etiquette in dealings with them.
If a God or Goddess chooses to manifest to a mortal there is almost always a
hidden agenda. This could simply be a question of a favor for a favor or they
want you to do something for them just because they want you to do something for
them. And they will use the art of manifestation to aid them in getting the end
of the deal that they want.
All Gods and Goddesses have "mortal world" symbols, animals, totems, and so on
that are considered sacred to them. The reason for such things is one: they do
have a love for the physical world, and two: it offers mortals tangible evidence
for their existence. Something that is quite valuable in any belief system,
especially this day in age. It also gives you tangible worshiping tools for all
those sympathetic magics and rituals.
Deities can mask themselves and appear as anything or anyone they wish. There is
even a wealth of accounts and tales where Gods appeared in the form of a lover,
wife or husband, for the sole purpose of having sex with a mortal. Zeus is
probably the most noted of these exploiters. Beyond deity you can view accounts
of fauns and other creatures who have done the same. These attributes help
mortals to explain our more primal instincts and urges that we most often deny
or keep to ourselves. We note that we have such experiences and we counter
manifest those experiences in the extreme to myths and tales because it helps to
justify the natural tendency to have them. It dulls our sense of shame and guilt
that is pre-set into our psychology by whatever culture or time we happen to
live in. When in Rome…
The mask of the Gods is unlimited. They will appear in whatever form suits their
needs. And they do it to exploit all the darker corners of your mind and soul
that you don't like to visit too often. They do it to let you know that you're
mortal and subject to mortal fears. Granting them instant power and a measure of
respect that they don't necessarily have to earn.
The other technique is to mirror some part of your being. Something personal to
you that you can relate to on an instinctual level. Something sacred to you or
to your "expanded" memory (meaning: transcendent life experiences). They will
mirror something that your soul is more comfortable with. It helps to keep your
mortal mind from becoming overwhelmed. Your not much good to them if you fall
into the abyss of insanity. And in this form of manifestation, if we note the
details, we may often discover aspects of our lives that we may have not
realized in the past. The trick is to realize that they can see all of you. Even
the parts that you can't or refuse to see yourself. And the mere act of
manifesting in such a way is a lesson all in its own.
One of the most potent aspects of manifestation is that they can be
overwhelmingly beautiful. The Gods and Goddesses in particular can be so
seductive that they destroy all boundaries of reason. We simply fall obsessively
in love with them. And in doing so, they claim our hearts and can manipulate our
actions beyond the point of view or perspectives of any other God and mortal
alike. We can find ourselves in their service just because they are beautiful
and have seduced us into something with the same consistency of half set jello.
An exploited weakness in being mortal that can be the single greatest experience
of our lives. Nothing can ever compare to a love spell woven by a God.
Masks and mirrors. All tools and techniques used to interact with mortals on a
mortal level. Just as tangible and creditable as a mountain or a river or the
fact that you have bills to pay. Part of pagan life and the mystical experiences
that will remain beyond the realms of interpretation or expression in any true
form. Something that has to be experienced to be understood. The tales we are
willing to tell are pure gold. To the rest of the world, they don't have to be
understood. Just known to happen. For good reason or no reason what so ever.
