How did you become a Pagan?

[wyldwiccan]

wyldwiccan here!
I was just wondering how people became Pagans?

I think I became one because I felt so calm when I was outside in the Scottish countryside last summer. When I sat on a huge boulder at the top of a hill, with the rest of my family trailing behind, I looked out at the beautiful surroundings, felt the wind on my face and felt suddenly and wonderfully calm and serene.

I had felt like this before, deep down, but never as strong as this. Also, I had read about Paganism in the library before, from curiousity, but I never thought about becoming a Pagan.

It was like being woken from a shallow sleep where you know something, but can't put your finger on it straight away. All replies are greatly appreciated.

Blessed Be and Merry Met
wyldwiccan

:ugh: :p :D

[Earthcup]

I read an article explaing how Wicca is NOT evil and why parents shouln't freak if their kid converts. I was interested and did a few web searches.... it "struck a chord"!

I'm now a fairly happy Pagan gearing up for a bookstore "raid"..:D

[Melysande]

Just seemed like I always was, but without realizing there was an actual name for what I believed. **smiles** I can still remember being only 7 or 8 years old and having arguments about what my mother thought I should believe, since she was trying to raise me with Christian values (if not church-going values). So, I took to irritating the heck out of her by declaring that I didn't believe in God. Inside, I knew I believed in something. It just wasn't what she believed and I didn't know how to explain it. Plus, the look she gave me whenever I told her I didn't believe was always worth seeing. **grins impishly**

I only made the conscious decision to study Wicca in college, after wandering through the Occult section of the college library and picking up Drawing Down the Moon. I've only recently been pulled away from Wicca and onto a different part of the Path. But I think that, even if I hadn't realized that what I believed had a name, I'd still be going along the same way, learning the same things and just thinking I was peculiar and fanciful.

I'm glad I did discover that my beliefs had a name and that there were others who shared them. If I hadn't, I'd be one very lonely person right now.

[Mithrea]

I have been searching for the Divine ever since I realized he or she was NOT at the Baptist Church ;) That was about age 12.

Then I met a lady in college who was a witch and we became instant friends. She taught me a little about her faith and it seemed to coincide with my own personal values. She asked me to come to a class but I didn't.

Then I went to work in a bookstore and was put in charge of the so-called "New Age" section. As I shelved books, things started looking interesting and then I started checking them out and reading them.

It's been a gradual learning process.

[AradiaSupernova]

Well....I was 14 when I went into "in search of" mode when it came to religion. I was raised Christian for all of the time before that, and it just...didn't feel right anymore. My younger sister had started a search for something that fit her and one of the first things she studied was Wicca. It took my twin sister (who started studying Wicca a half a year after my younger sister) 3 months to get me into it, then I took 3 months of studying what I could before I made my religious decision. So...thats how I got started :) I've been interested in greek mythology, anything paranormal related..anything like that, since i was very young. *shrugs* :)

[Radocs]

Psyche Ague and I had a coversation about it last year which got me interested and ended up with me doing a ton of reading. Needless to say I liked what I found. ^_^

[Loon]

I found Paganism through feminism. I picked up a book on the Goddess and for the first time the idea of "religion" didn't seem so alien to me. I started doing research and discovered that a larger Neo-Pagan "community" existed. I searched for a defined path before becoming comfortable with being "eclectic." I feel like I've finally found a spiritual expression that fits the life path I was on anyway.

[UlricDagon]

I became wiccan after being in the christian churc (peticostal) for almost 10 years and just felling guilty and empty. If you do this you go to hell and such like that.

I found a friend online and we talked and she suggest a good books called the soliatary wiccan and I knew this was my calling in life. I have been self study for some time and am not activaly seeking a group (coven) I can study with.

I will be hitting witchvox and seeing what I can fine!

Blessed BE!

[CondurerMan]

I've always felt in peace with nature... i loved it's beuty anf serenity.

it wasn't until i started learning about paganism that i re3ally started to like find myself always walking somwhere with trees or near forest and stoping for a few minuts just to take it all in.

[Sequoia]

hehe we talking this life only or previous ones? ;)

I don't really know. I've always held pagan beliefs. . . . well except for that one year I went through my OOBER CHRISTIAN phase. . . lol but other than that. . . I've always been like this.

When did I call it pagan? ohh I think about two years ago.

[Myst]

Originally posted by wyldwiccan
I was just wondering how people became Pagans?

Was bored, surfing Yahoo! one day, found Wicca & Witchcraft, read a billion sites and books. :)

[Nissala]

It seems I always have been interested in it but due to baptist upbringing and my mothers overbearing personality and guilt trips I denied it for the longest time, only recently (within the last year) have I overcome the brainwashing I encountered and have taken the path that feels right for me. Although, I have lost contact with my mother over recent years, it has enabled me to sort things out for myself and it feels pretty good...no, it feels wonderful to find and follow the path that has been right for me all along and to be out of denial to follow my dreams!

MW has helped me tremendously in every aspect that was needed. I thank Mol and Semele for hosting this site and for the many, many people who post so that others may learn. thanks to everyone for their kindness and generosity of knowledge:)

I have recently confided in my sister about my path and she was amazed to find out that our thought processes are so similar :D
She is now finding her own path and making her own decisions free of parental influence!:thumbsup: :boing:

[Jeleia]

I've always been interested in Witchcraft. After "The Craft" came out, my best friend got a book of spells from the Library . So we set up some candles and attempted to change our eye color, and cast love spells... but we soon gave it up when none of our spells worked. heh

A few years later I was reading a Magazine when I saw an article about Wicca. I looked on the internet and and it sparked an interest. I've been on my path for about 4 years now. :cutie: My best friend, however is a completely dedicated Christian. (and she thinks I'm evil.) :rolleyes:

[DragonStar]

When i was younger, i found a book about being Psychic, and developing your psychic ablilites, then later i found one on candle burning magick, and it all went from there. i loved what the books said, and never really told anyone about it at first, but when i got to high school, i found others. A couple times i had put paganism aside thinking "it's just a hobbie" and even bought a Teen Study Bible thinking that it was what i should be reading. But in the end, i realized that my heart was not in the Bible and that my spirit was not trapped into those stories being what i believe in. My heart and my spirit are free, and that's where paganism fits me. I love it so, because there are hundreds, thousands, of ways to practice it. What else could a free spirit ask for? ;)

[widukind]

I had a vision that totally spazzed me out. I started doing some research on the images I saw and became a member of a few yahoo groups, which in turn led me here. If you want to read the whole story, it's on a thread with a similar name on the Druids board.

[Emaleth]

I've always known that Christianity wasn't for me. I was sure that there was something wrong with this religion and its view of the Divine, but wasn't quite sure what. After realizing that I lived in a state of total confusion as to what I should believe, it lasted for a couple of years. And then I read an article where it was said that many modern fiction writers are Wiccans, I got interested and started searching for information about Wicca. It must have been 1998 because the article was published then (boy, was it really that long ago?). Though I made the final decision of changing my faith this summer. Soon there'll be the first anniversary.;)

Blessed Be

[Lauralu]

It was Halloween about 2 years ago and i was looking up stuff about that holiday. i found the Sabbat Samhain and it looked interesting, but I decided not to delve deeper into witches b/c of my Christian background. Well, this past halloween/samhain I decided to go looking again for info and i found wicca and paganism. I was intrigued and a little scared but I couldn't look away. Something said "Study more" so I did. i've had no regrets since I've left Christianity and the church. :)

I'm guessing nobody else here has had any either!!! :)

[Rubi Waters]

My story is the same as many others here...raised catholic and never felt right about it. I refused to make my confirmation I was the only non-conformist in my class ( I was even more shy then, which makes it more meaningful)spent many years not knowing where I fit. about 2 years ago I found a book about wicca, I read it and immediatly went on to read more. It all made sense to me, I feel more at ease outside, under the moon amd stars. so here I am. I still read everything i can find, many different paths. Even if i don't follow them , I still want to understand them.

[WandererInGray]

*chuckles*

My Christian best friend gave me a book for Christmas 4 years ago called "The Wicca Spellbook"....:lol:....because, she said, it had a great recipie for brownies in the back.

:rotfl:

I think that the Gods decided that was the only way I would listen. I'm not a Wiccan any longer (Hindu, and Kitchen Witch) but I'll always remember just how I started looking around.

[Psyche Ague]

I don't know how romantic my introduction to paganism is, but my interest started back when I was an avid watcher of "Buffy: The Vampire Slayer." As Willow became interested in Wicca, so did I. An ex-boyfriend was a Druid and so I felt free to pursue my interest. So, there you have it. *shrug* Not very exciting, but it's my story and I'm sticking to it. I'm not Wiccan anymore, by the way - I'm a Buddhist Pagan.

[Haedis]

Well I certainly wasnt looking for it.

I was in a bookstore looking at the New Age section with my mother (she's been into new age stuff for years but i never paid much attention since it all seemed flaky). I saw a book on Wicca, it was a really cheesy looking spell book. I muttered "Wow its amazing what some people will buy into". The next week she handed me another book on witchcraft (which was somewhat less ridiculous) and I found out that it wasnt as silly as I thought. My mom isnt a witch but she didnt want me to make an assumption based on a book chock full of "how to make your parents un-ground you" spells. Well I looked deeper in to it and found out that witchcraft fit me very well.

[rowansoleil]

Personally, I believe that since paganism is the "old religion" or the original way of expressing spirituality, then wouldn't we all be pagans at birth? Given that we have not been introduced to an organized institution (as so many of our current faiths are considered).

Anyway that is just a thought to ponder! I have always been pagan, I have discovered. I found my peace in nature since early childhood, having grown up in a rural setting. I learned dowsing before the age of 10, my parents I recognize now, practiced a lot of folk medicine (though it was never labelled as such). My interest in the occult was always there and I happily pursued it in libraries and bookstores when I had the opportunity.

So, I consider that I was born pagan. And I encourage others to reflect on their lives and experiences, when considering your thought provoking question!

Rowan

[Kalena]

When I realised that the 'god' I was praying to in church was actually a Goddess. It took nearly 20 years but I got the message in the end.
She has forgiven me for being slow and now I am learning to apreciate her more.

[Jasmine Star]

I was looking on the internet for a new religion that I actually believed in. I found Wicca and never looked back.

[cherrywind]

Interestingly enough for me, my father aquainted me with the idea of Paganism. He bought me a book on the subject, and told me (since he knew I was interested in religions from an academic point of view) that I would find it very interesting. I wasn't even searching for a religion, but I found one anyways.
The funny thing is, my dad isn't religious in any aspect at all. He was raised in a very strict Roman Catholic household and because of his bad experiences with that he has since being 100% athiest (and isn't too fond of Catholics either). However, he's very open to other religions and I do think he believes in some aspects of Paganism, although he isn't Pagan.

[Sora]

Ah, I awakened this path in me thanks to a school project, actually. We were to write a report on world religions. My teacher gave us the night or whatever to mull things over, and the next day after checking out a good site (www.beliefnet.com) I decided to do paganism. I had herd about it before, though only in a book my grandmother had gave me that portrayed pagans as the evil Satanists she thinks they are. I did a hugely huge amount of research, and a few weeks into writing my paper my teacher said paganism wasn’t a world religion. Right. Apparently a world religion isn't just a religion practised in the world. It has to be one my teacher though of as orthodox. So, yeah, I ended up doing Buddhism :) But the point here is that I got interested, very interested, and things clicked. Now nearly five years later, I’m still here. Yay school reports.

[Autumn]

I suppose this is as good as anyplace for an intro...I was a kid who was always in the woods and by a stream with lots of little waterfalls and such. As a teen I became interested in astrology. I then started spending lots of time in front of New Age displays in bookstores. I eventually came across Scott Cuningham's The Truth About Witchcraft Today. I started reading it and more of his work and Marion Weinstein and I felt at home...that was 12 years ago.

Since then I got married to a great guy, went to nursing school and had two little girls. I am in my second Coven and I adore bookstores, new or used, I also like downhill skiing, watching my girls play and hanging with my husband, who's also my best friend.

I found this place from Mothers Magic and I found that as I was looking for a place to hang after Hipmama had to shut down the forums. This turned out to be a blessing as I found lots of new stuff on the net, like this place:)

[shnen]

I was raised many different religions in the Christian faith, Baptist, to Mennonite... (no, no horse or buggy;))

I watched as my mom struggled as a single parent from one church to another trying to find love and support, and non of them provided her with that... I grew up learning all the bible things, and the christian way, but it just neer sat well with me... it's like there was more to it, it was being hidden.

So I ventured onto many areas and decided to take from it what I liked, and leave behind what I didn't... what I thought was sorta creating my own belief system... when someone asked me out of the blue is I was a witch. I was shocked at first, but it opened my eyes into what I had created, which wasn't my own belief system at all, it completely fits in with Paganism and Wicca perfectly. :)

I always had strange things happen.. dreams, and just knowing certain things, and certain visions... amongst other things that I kinda wrote off.

Ever since then I have never felt more alove and sure of myself. I couldn't be happier with who I am as a person or spirit.

[Kalosi]

My dad, whom I love deeply and who was a dedicated catholic, passed over a few years ago. A few years after that, my husband and I split up. It wasn't until after that breakup that I learned from my sister and mother that my dad hadn't liked him very much. This was a shock to me, because dad was always very supportive of me. During the time when I was doing the I-just-split phase (you know: partying, dating around, doing really stupid things that probably should have gotten me killed) I met my boyfriend. We'd known each other for awhile, but I had never really considered dating him. I knew he was pagan, but that just made for interesting conversation - nothing more. Then one day I asked him out on a whim. We ended up talking for hours on different subjects. That night dad came to me in a dream. He had his arm around the person I had just had a date with. I didn't want a relationship, but generally your dad knows what's good for you! So, I took my father's advice and starting dating my boyfriend exclusively. He had tons of books on paganism and, being a huge reader, I started reading them. They just made more sense than the bible stuff I'd had stuffed down me (ironically, from my dad). I did a dedication, and have been learning ever since.

Sorry this was so long, but I just love telling that story.

[Valnorran]

The seeds were sown when I began researching my Celtic roots and learning about the Druids. Their beliefs sounded very similar to something I'd read about Wicca years before. In the interests of academic curiousity (or so I told myself at the time) I bought Ray Buckland's Complete Guide to Witchcraft. I sat down to read it, all the while thinking to myself, "Ha! Wouldn't it be something if you actually converted! Ha, ha! It is to laugh! Ha! Um.. errr, yeah..." I did my self dedication on the first full moon in August 1996.

I was raised Episcopal, also known as Catholic Lite. My church encouraged free thought and questioning, so I didn't mind it. I was just happy I wasn't born into a Catholic or Fundamentalist family, which are in the majority around here. Man, I felt sorry for those poor b*****ds! But group worship never worked for me. My mind will instantly go somewhere else during the service. So I tried worshiping on my own, but while I had nothing against Christianity, it never really worked for me. Images of a man being tortured to death do not inspire hope or devotion in me. They inspire sorrow, rage, and shame. All of the emphasis on the Father Almighty left me wanting simply because I have no idea what it is like to have a father. Mine died when I was very young and I do not remember him. However, I do know what it is like to have a mother so, on a momentary whim, I tried picturing God as a woman and voila! Everything suddenly made sense! Another difficulty I had with Christianity was that all the characters and figures belonged to a culture which is not mine. However, in Wicca, I am free to worship Celtic dieties, images with which I am far more comfortable. Ray Buckland described self dedication as an awakening, a feeling of returning home after being away so long you hardly knew it still existed. He was absolutely right.

[Scarlett O]

Actually, from what my gram used to tell me, my ancestors were a band of gypsies in "the old country." I always thought she was teasing until recently I went to see a reader and she told me that my daughter was "a very old soul that used to run and dance with the gypsies." I about fell out of my chair. So, I guess, according to Gram it's been handed down. Gram didn't practice, she was raised Catholic and was ex-communicated when she was 18. She found the Episcopal Church, therefore that is the religion in which I was raised. But, she never let go of her "Gypsy" roots. Now, I really don't know what it means to be a "gypsy," just the stereotype of them. Gram did tell me that my great-grandmother "had the gift, but it scared her so she pushed it away."

But,I personally began searching and wondering when I was very, very young. I remember having this fear, because there are so many "religions, " how do we know that we're "right" and they're "wrong"? I mean, what if they're right? Then my whole life I've been wrong without meaning to, and I'll be punished for being ignorant.

When I was about 13, I read the Chronicles of Narnia. I didn't get it the first time or the second, but the third time (ok, I'm a bit slow...lol) I realized that the books were religious, Christian even. But, the most comforting thing that they taught me was no matter who or what name you use, being a good person was what life's about, and NO ONE is "right" or "wrong."

With that I allowed myself to delve into paganism. I still can't say that I'm really a pagan, necessarily. I've decided that I don't care for labels. I haven't "left" the church, even. There is a comfort and peace that I can find there, when I need it. Maybe it's just the reminder of being there with Gram and her love. But, yes, I still find comfort in my church. In the same respect, I can find comfort within myself and through meditation.

So...What am I? I'm a happy, Christian, Wiccan, Buddhist, ect.

[pitchafit]

About 5 years ago, I was looking for something to believe in that was actually believable. I grew up Christian, but never felt right about it because of the way other Christians behaved. So much bigotry and holier-than-thou attitudes. Hell, just look at the televangelists. And I was supposed to take christianity seriously?

Anyhow, shortly after I joined the marines, I was at a new friend's house who introduced me to it. The more I asked, the more it made sense. I only wish I could've been raised this way rather than have to develop on my own.

It's the second best thing that's ever happened to me.