Pagan Survey. :)
Found this survey originally from Cicada’s post awhile ago, but have seen others on here do it recently as well and witchyways mentioned on hers that she found it on thewalkinghedge.net which was posted last year. Wherever it’s originally from it’s one of the best Pagan surveys so far that doesn’t say it’s a Pagan survey when it’s really a Wiccan and/or Witchcraft survey.
Please describe briefly your Path:
My path is a Reconstructionist path based on Pre-Hispanic native Filipino animistic beliefs. Before the Spaniards came my ancestors were not a unified people and were divided by tribes and kingdoms. The original beliefs were animistic, similar to and some the same as the beliefs of the indigenous groups in Taiwan like the Tao (Yami) and Amis who are the closest genetic relatives to majority of the population from different ethnic groups in the Philippines. Alongside the animistic beliefs some groups of people practiced Vajrayana Buddhism as some parts of the Philippines were part of the outer Srivijaya Empire in Sumatra and Indonesia which is proven by recovered Buddhist and Hindu artifacts and historical records by other nations, though it was mainly practiced by the noble class, the rest of the populations were animist’s.
But pretty much I follow Anito, which is the collective name for the indigenous animistic beliefs of the Philippines. It is a Reconstructionist path in reviving the beliefs of my ancestors that are only found today by the remaining indigenous groups who fought Spanish and U.S. influence and in the deep rural areas.
Please describe briefly how you practice it:
Working with and honoring the ancestors and spirits, known as Anito, is a big part of my path, more so than working with deities, though I do work with some and honor them but not as much as the reverence of the Anito. I work with them, I work with the seasons and nature, and what the spirits have to offer to help myself, my people, and others.
When did you first commit to your Path?
My current path now? The beginning of last year which is why I went in a several months hiatus from this blog for those who remember. But in Paganism in general, since I was 15 so almost 6 years now though I have been interested and studying Paganism, though mainly Wicca at first, since I was 10 but didn’t really fully commit and really start practicing spiritually until I was 15.
How is your practice different now than it was then?
There are some thing different such as my reverence to the ancestors and spirits more so than deities. Most of my beliefs when I was Wiccan I don’t follow anymore such as the God and Goddess concept. I have started not celebrating the whole Wheel of the Year and only celebrate the Solstices and Equinoxes and to an extent Samhain but I don’t call it Samhain, I celebrate All Soul’s Day which in the Philippines is celebrated much like Dios los Muertos or Day of the Dead where it was influenced from Mexico. I don’t follow the Rede or Threefold Law and have grown to be a Hard Polytheist and Animist than I was before. A lot of things have changed in my practice which is influenced by indigenous beliefs and practices but my belief in many deities, of Gods and Goddesses, my reverence for nature and the universe, belief in spirits in everything, of reincarnation (though vastly different from the standard reincarnation), working with herbs in rituals and health, are all still the same.
Is your practice different today than how you thought it would be back then?
Oh definitely. When I first started I only really knew Wicca and it was something I connected strongly with. But as my spiritual growth grew and I learned more about Paganism, the different paths under Paganism, and eventually through curiosity and my passion for my culture, my people, and finding my identity I found out about our indigenous beliefs and our history and true culture before the Spanish colonized us, my path has changed so much than how I expected it to be when I first committed to Paganism 6 years ago.
Does your Path and core belief system differ now than how it was when you first started?
Yes very much so which is explained above.
What is your heritage and how does this inform your Path?
I am Pilipino (Filipino for those in the West), specifically Tagalog and Aklanon as there are many and I mean many different ethnic groups in the Philippines with their own cultures, practices, languages, and dialects. Since we are a unified people now, all our diverse cultures make up our Pilipino culture as one people, however we acknowledge where all those different practices and cultures come from in the Philippines. Most people outside of the Philippines don’t know that there are many ethnic groups that are diverse, they believe we are all one ethnic group but that is not the case. Our diversity in our languages, customs, practices, and how we look, though similar, they are different from one another resulting from the tribes and kingdoms we came from. The names of our ethnic groups is what our original tribes and small city states were and even then there were separate tribes even with the same ethnic group for example the Tagalogs had several but spoke the same language and were the same people, just in different tribes.
How does this influences my path? Well everything. I work with Tagalog and Visayan deities as that’s what I am. I work with more on Visayan beliefs such as the umalagad, the belief in Sulad, in Bakunawa, the Babaylan tradition which I will explain in another question later, and everything else that makes up my path. My culture is important to me spiritually as well as reviving old ways and cultural traditions like our tattooing culture, to take pride in who I am, my ancestors, and my people.
What are your main influences for your Path?
My culture of course, nature, the remaining tribal groups in the Philippines who have kept their native beliefs and practices despite 400 years of colonial rule, and life itself.
Which do you do more: practice or research?
Both. My research, as a Reconstructionist, is tied into my practice and I can’t do one without the other.
Do you feel that one is more important than the other?
No, definitely not.
What values and ethics are important on your Path and in your practice?
There aren’t any set ethics in my path such as the Wiccan Rede or the 9 noble Virtues in Asatru. I go with what is right and just, honorable, and respectful.
What sort of cycles do you feel your practice goes through?
Joy to excitement to fascination to frustration to spiritual
What is one of the greatest obstacles or struggles you have had to over come?
Coming out to my dad. Before practicing my native beliefs, I was Wiccan and I have always been open about my beliefs. I would wear my small, simple, pentacle that my mom bought me years back everyday and if someone questioned it I answered their questions. I didn’t go out proclaiming, “I’M WICCAN! I’M WICCAN!”, but I didn’t hide it either if someone asked. Now my mom knew but she didn’t really care as long as I wasn’t harming anyone or anything. She has always been open minded so she was no problem. My dad on the other hand was a different story seeing as he’s a very conservative and religious person. But eventually he moved on and accepted my beliefs, at least from what he vaguely knows of it seeing he doesn’t want to be a part of it, so I have no struggles now.
How do you see yourself practicing in ten years?
Same as I do now, though back home in the Philippines and practicing with other Pagans whether they are Wiccan or follow indigenous beliefs and practices.
How do you incorporate your practice into your life?
Daily offerings to my ancestors, spirits, and deities. Observing and being more aware of my surroundings in nature, being attuned to the earth and her cycles, and the everyday life of being a spiritual person.
Has walking your Path changed you as a person?
Oh most definitely. I would have to say since I became Pagan I have been more aware of the world and been involved in social justices a lot more.
Do you consider yourself to be a priest/ess? How so?
Absolutely not. I don’t work with a group of people to be called a Priestess though I am studying to be a Babaylan one day. What a Babaylan is I will explain in a minute.
A witch? How so?
In a way, yes. I mean I work with magick, though I don’t as much. Though that is changing again as I study the Witchcraft in the Philippines.
A shaman? How so?
Yes and no. Yes because I do work with the spirits and spirit world. No because I don’t use the term Shaman as my people have their own local terms for our Priestesses who worked with the spirits and spirit world for their people. Some of the terms are babaylan, katalonans, mumbaki, etc. depending on the ethnic group, and I use the term babaylan because it’s a Visayan term and I am Visayan. However I am not nor do I claim myself to be a babaylan. Why? Because I don’t work for a group of people, I am not a leader to a group of people. I am following and practicing the babaylan tradition yes, but I do not call myself a babaylan as I don’t spiritually lead and work for a group of people, however I do call myself an alabay, which is a term for someone who is studying and training to be a babaylan one day. One day however I hope I can be a babaylan to my people like the modern day babaylans today who do work for their communities.
Which matters more: getting the vocabulary right or the actual practice of what we are trying to define?
Both are important.
One of the most profound things anyone ever said to you was:
Not sure really. I don’t think anyone has said anything profound to me before.
A defining moment on your Path was:
Finding others out there who were Pilipino and studying Wicca and Paganism. However the biggest moment was finding others who were Pilipino and practicing our indigenous beliefs and following the Anito tradition like I am. I have only seen a very rare few however they are out there and I’m happy to know I’m not the only one reviving our indigenous beliefs.
Have you ever taken a “leap of faith”?
Yes.
Please tell us something stupid, reckless or embarrassing you did once in your practice:
Nothing? At least nothing that I can really think of.
What is the most frustrating thing about your Path?
Not practicing with a group of people who practice and believe in the same way I do. Also research. Don’t get me wrong I love researching and finding out more about what we practiced and believed in but there are some instances where it’s frustrating because you can’t find anything or they are all stored and written in historical accounts in Spanish or in other records like the Chinese, which I can’t get access to or even understand.
Have you ever been frightened?
In my path? Yes when I first started.
Can you perform ritual without a script?
Yes.
Have you ever preformed spontaneous magick/spellcraft?
A few times.
What are you still exploring or experimenting with?
I am still researching and I will continue researching for the rest of my life and not just on my own path but others as well.
What (or whom) are you the most committed to in your practice and on your Path?
What= Research.
Whom= The ancestors and spirits.
Ritual tools are …
Tools I use for ritual. They are simple and ones I make myself from nature as I don’t need anything extravagant.
Magickal tools are …
Same as above.
The one thing you can’t do without is:
Personal space. I need a cleared out area to commune with my ancestors, spirits, and deities.
Seeking personal power is …
Whatever. I personally don’t care. To each their own.
Politics and your Path are …
Politics have nothing to do with my path and are far from each other.
One thing you wish people would understand about your Path and/or practice is:
It’s a part of my decolonization process and back to my roots, on who I am, and connecting with my ancestors and the spirits.
Do you teach?
I answer questions and help others learn when it comes to Wicca, other Pagan paths, and Witchcraft, and to anyone who wants to know about Anito, but I don’t go out and teach people formally.
What do you feel is the role of clergy in modern Paganism and Heathenism?
To bring together a group of people spiritually and to teach. For the clergy in my path which is basically the Babaylan, she (or he but the role was mainly for women and if a man wanted to be a Babaylan they had to be either gay or trans, or cross dress as a woman) was the communicator between her people and the anito and diwata (deities), who did shamanic work pretty much to commune with the spirit world. She was also a healer and the medicine woman, and the highest position in the community besides the Datu (chief) and Rajah (king), who was the Datu’s and Rajah’s trusted adviser.
When the Veil (or Hedge!) is thin, how does that feel to you?
I’ve actually never really payed attention? I don’t know I never really felt anything. I feel a change in the air but that’s pretty much it.
What entities do you work with most? (ancestors, gods, fae etc)
In order? The Ancestors first and foremost, then the spirits, of nature and the land, then the deities. Again the deities were not as important as the ancestors and spirits. They were important yes for certain things and were to be respected but the ancestors and spirits are with you and all around and have the ability to intervene in your life good or bad so reverence and respect for them was more important.
What is your relationship with the Land?
I may not live in a rural area, though I really want to, but even so living by the city in the outskirts there are plenty of places where you can commune with nature despite the lack of forests, mountains, rivers, etc. There are plants, tree’s, many, many parks in NYC despite being a metropolis, beaches, bays, marine life, nature reserves, etc. that I can go to and be connected. And even then, while walking the streets of NYC or in Queens, I connect with the spirits of the land because they are still here despite modern developments. The plants and tree’s along the sidewalks, at homes I pass, in the highways, they are a part of the land and speak their words. So even despite living in one of the biggest and busiest cities in the world, there is always a place to connect with the land, you just have to connect, commune, and understand.
The most important aspect of ritual is:
Communing with the ancestors, spirits, and deities, to either make a change or for celebrating such as harvests and planting.
The main purpose of ritual is:
To connect with the ancestors, spirits, deities, and nature.
What is the purpose of divination/dowsing (or whichever form of augury you use)?
There are many reasons for divination. Receiving questions for yourself or others is one. I don’t personally use divination in my practice so my opinion of it is whatever works for the person to better themselves, others, to each their own.
What was the most difficult book you ever read? (Either difficult to understand or hard to face what it said or both)
Haha. Difficult book reading in terms of my practice? Books and manuscripts written in Spanish. Why? Because they are accounts by the first Spaniards who recorded and studied the various groups of people they met. There are accounts of the deities, how my ancestors practiced, and things about them that has been lost to us now and only in written records of a language I can’t understand and speak. As for books in general Paganism, none, most are actually way to simple to understand.
What book do you recommend the most to others?
One of my favorite books is Spirited by Gede Parma. It’s not a Wiccan book as he is not Wiccan, but it can be useful to any Pagan and those who practice Witchcraft though he doesn’t go into Witchcraft all that much. Basically it’s for anyone who is really spiritual and young I’ll leave it at that. Other books are any good herbal books for those interested in herbs. Everyone has their own favorite books and depending on their path, each person reads different books based on what they want to learn. Majority of the books from popular authors people read? I have never actually read or attempted to read except Scott Cunningham’s books. It’s your own spiritual journey, choose what books you want to read and find out for yourself if you like it, if it’s right (historically, as the earlier books are rubbish when they talk about the history) and if its relevant to you.
What is you favourite podcast (if any) and favourite blog (other than your own)?
Pagan Centered Podcast, or PCP. They go into many topics besides Wicca as not all the members are even Wiccan (there is a Satanist on there as well who’s sarcasm makes me smile). They are also pretty funny but if you get offended really easily don’t even bother because they do poke fun of Wiccans, Witches, and other paths and Christians a lot as a joke and when being serious. But when they do it’s for a reason.
As for my favorite blog? Oh man. There are so many there both on Tumblr and off of it I don’t have a favorite and have lost track of all the blogs I read and follow.
If you could impart only one last piece of wisdom or knowledge, or share one experience with the world at large, what would it be?
Research, know that you don’t know everything and that you will continue learning and studying the rest of your life, as well as respecting cultural boundaries.
Is there an additional question you would like to see here? What is it? (please also answer)
Nopee. Though if anyone does have a question for me regarding my path and what I believe in besides what is written in my beliefs page then feel free to ask because that page is just a summary of what I believe, I don’t really talk about details.
Please finish this meme with a picture, image or photograph of some sort:
I’ll post two because I love gifs and I love Ksenia Solo and Kris Holden especially when he dances like the sexy man he is. :3
