Like many pagans in Europe, the Slavic pagans and polytheists residing in Croatia shared a powerful connection with nature: they believed in many gods, guardians and spirits that served as patrons of the forests, meadows, suns, moons and the earth itself. They believed that each living entity, be it plant or animal, contained a soul. It was from this respect of the natural world that one of the oldest documented traditions, from the 10th century, was born: the Cult of the Trees.
In some regions, Slavic pagans believed that certain trees held a connection to the deities and spirits present in their local folk lore. Temples and statues were built using corresponding trees; however, some trees were strictly for worship and were not to be harvested. In some cases, temples were simply wooded areas filled with the trees associated with a particular deity.
Folk worshiped these trees: they prayed to them, made sacrifices to them, held important meetings under them and even confessed their sins to them. Some even performed rituals in which they would adorn the trees with flowers, red cloth and fruit. A few smaller villages in Croatia and parts of Dalmatia continue to have a Sacred Tree which serves as the patron of the village – their protector against storms, floods and droughts. It is believed that if an individual steals a piece of the Sacred Tree that their family would suffer devastating illness and even death.
Many folk still believe that the trees serve as symbols of the universe, fertility and wisdom – that the spirits share their wisdom with us if we choose to listen. Some folk in the Southern Slavic regions believe that the souls of the deceased could seek refuge and reside within the trees. In some regions, folk believed that the trees were symbolic of our own mortality and that the changing of the seasons were a metaphor for our own human experiences:
Rebirth/Birth: In Spring the trees would give birth to new buds and, eventually, new leaves, blossoms and branches.
Adolescence: In Summer the leaves and branches are reaching full size. Blossoms are slowly developing into fruit and nuts.
Adulthood: In Autumn the leaves have turned colour and the fruit and nuts have matured and are ready to be collected.
Death: In Winter the leaves are beginning to fall until the tree remains barren.
In the rural areas of Croatia, these beliefs are commonplace in villages with generations of elders. These communities have a few cult trees that serve specific purposes, with a firm logical structure regarding their positioning in relation to architectural pieces (homes, churches, markets). The reasons are rooted in old mythology and vary from community to community.
Below are a few trees that were significant in the Croatian tribe I was raised in. I do not speak for any other Slavic magic practitioners as their associations vary from region to region and are influenced by the land and their beliefs.
An onna-bugeisha (女武芸者) was a type of female warrior belonging to the Japanese upper class. Many wives, widows, daughters, and rebels answered the call of duty by engaging in battle, commonly alongside samurai men. They were members of the bushi (samurai) class in feudal Japan and were trained in the use of weapons to protect their household, family, and honour in times of war. They also represented a divergence from the traditional ‘housewife’ role of the Japanese woman. They are sometimes referred to as female samurai. Significant icons such as Empress Jingu, Tomoe Gozen, Nakano Takeko, and Hōjō Masako are famous examples of onna bugeisha. (x)
A young Yemoja priestess in Nigeria is engaging millennial Yoruba to return to their ancestral religion through social media.
Concerned that the Orisha culture and its practices were being scorned and forgotten, Ifawemimo took to social media six years ago in an effort to educate a broader audience about indigenous Yoruba spirituality. Her inspiration? Nollywood, or Nigeria’s film industry, which she blames for depicting Yoruba spirituality as a practice based on sorcery, love potions and get-rich-quick charms, distorting its history and contributing to negative stereotypes. “Though our people have been brainwashed already, [Nollywood] has made our people lack knowledge and enlightenment about their roots,” she says.
Wood believes Ifawemimo’s work is crucial for countering the “stigma, hypocrisy, misunderstanding and demonization of the traditional culture,” with most viewing it as evil, and traditional worshippers forced into practicing in secret. And she is helped in these efforts by her age: “The fact that she is so young — she is a millennial, basically; she is meeting a lot of these people at their level.” What’s more, through social media she has found acceptance for being approachable and willing to demystify and interpret the tenets of traditional Yoruba religion. By using everyday language to explain the culture and encourage people to embrace it, Wood adds, Ifawemimo is trying to show that it’s a living tradition. “It’s not ossified. It’s not some ancient unapproachable thing.”
And also of note:
For diasporans who make pilgrimages back to African countries in a bid to connect with their religious and cultural roots, Ifawemimo warns that they may be vulnerable to unethical peddlers of spiritual practice. She has known many who come as students, eager to learn about their spiritual heritage from a priest or priestess who takes their money and leaves them with very little in return. “They will not teach them anything about how to feed your Orisha or connect with your higher self. They will just initiate them, collect their money and go. They are extorting them,” she says.
Baba Yaga, in Slavic folklore, is a supernatural being (or one of a trio of sisters of the same name) who appears as a ferocious-looking woman. Baba Yaga flies around in a mortar, wields a pestle, and dwells in the forest in a hut usually described as standing on chicken legs. Although she is mostly portrayed as a terrifying old crone, Baba Yaga may help those that encounter or seek her out. Her faithful servants are the White Horseman, the Red Horseman and the Black Horseman.
A Chinese-Cuban Babalawo in the film Mulata (1954).
In Cuba, the Chinese who arrived as indentured servants mixed socially with Africans and their descendants and some became initiated into Afro-Diasporic religions. There was also a significant adoption of Chinese cultural and religious objects, not the least of which being Chinese porcelain pots, into Lukumi – including syncretism between several Chinese deities and the Orisha. Today there are still Chinese-Cuban Babalawos practicing in Havana’s Chinatown.
any irish polytheists out there have recommendations for legitimate, trustworthy books/articles/resources on the tuatha, irish mythology, and/or irish history (pre-christian would be great, but not a requirement)?
i’m good with mary jones, but looking to expand my knowledge and want to be cautious because i know there’s a lot of questionable content out there.
any help is much appreciated!
ANYTHING by Morgan Daimler is going to be fantastic, but for this I particularly recommend “Gods and Goddesses of Ireland”. They are an Irish Polytheist of sorts in addition to be very well-read and scholarly. They make mention of their own personal practices often, but do so in conjunction with lore and historical fact.
“The Year In Ireland” by Kevin Danaher is another fantastic book looking at Irish holiday customs. It’s written post-Christianity and discusses Christian traditions, but there are some very obvious not-Christian-traditions in the book that correspond to the holidays Samhain, Imbolc, Bealtaine, and Lughnasa.
Are you familiar with Story Archaeology? It’s a podcast ran by two fantastic women who discuss Irish Mythology and Folklore, and it’s just such an informative podcast.
ALSO there’s “The Lore of Ireland” by Dáithí O hOgáin is absolutely fantastic. It’s a encyclopedia-style book that is a great reference for when you’re reading myths and other books/articles/whatever.
There’s a bunch more… but those are the what come to mind first. I have more resources (that needs to be updated) if you click here.
Authors to avoid in your search are Edain McCoy and DJ Conway, as both just kinda made up stuff to sell things.
For the past 1,500 years, Limahuli Valley on Kauai has been a green haven, a wilderness preserved to exist just as the native Hawaiians experienced it. It is home to plant life unlike anything found in the rest of the world, with many endangered plants thriving in the valley.
-our sacred texts include more than just the 5 books of the “old testament”
-we don’t call it the old testament and please don’t call it that unless you’re referring to the christian use of it, when talking about the jewish torah use the term “hebrew scriptures”
-torah = the 5 first books (genesis exodus leviticus deuteronomy numbers) + the prophets and the writings (song of songs, psalms, etc)
-there is also Talmud (mishnah and gemara) which is where conversations by rabbis about how Jewish law should work were recorded (mishna) and further commented / debated on (gemara), and the law codes that later simplified and revised the talmud for better practical use (the shulchan aruch and mishne torah), sages’ commentaries on these law texts, and centuries of responsa to them. these texts are where you will find a lot of the rituals, observances, and rules that Jews follow (so for example the kosher laws, when we say what blessings, how we celebrate holidays, etc). so no, we do not participate in “old” testament ritual sacrifice and looking directly in there for how Jews live is a rather fruitless attempt.
-sometimes the word “torah” can refer to talmud as well, it can refer to any study of holy texts.
-responses and interpretations of Jewish law and scriptures goes on to this day
-Midrash is another type of important jewish texts which are basically poetic or interperative writings about the things in the torah/talmud/etc, comparable to parables, written by various jewish scholars to think through Jewish thought, history, religion, etc. not seen as binding legal texts but rather ways of thinking through torah/judaism. there are ancient published midrashim as well as modern ones.
-Basically understand that Jewish textual tradition goes far beyond what you know of the Hebrew scriptures and “Jewish practice is just Christianity without the New Testament” is terribly inaccurate.
-The idea that “Jews just do ancient barbaric Old Testament rituals” is ages old antisemitic slander.
non Jewish people are ok to reblog this because it is so often misunderstood
teakepp 