The Ten Commandments of Mother Earth

[DixieWitch]

Just wanted to share something I came across...

The Ten Commandments of Mother Earth

I. Thou shalt love and honour the Earth for it blesses thy life and governs thy survival.

II. Thou shalt keep each day sacred to the Earth and celebrate the turning of its seasons.

III. Thou shalt not hold thyself above other living things nor drive them to extinction.

IV. Thou shalt give thanks for thy food, to the creatures and plants that nourish thee.

V. Thou shalt educate thy offspring for multitudes of people are a blessing unto the Earth when we live in harmony.

VI. Thou shall not kill, nor waste Earth's riches upon weapons of war.

VII. Thou shalt not pursue profit at the Earth's expense but strive to restore its damaged majesty.

VIII. Thou shalt not hide from thyself or others the consequences of thy actions upon the Earth.

IX. Thou shalt not steal from future generations by impoverishing or poisoning the Earth.

X. Thou shalt consume material goods in moderation so all may share the Earth's bounty.

[Fairyelf]

:thumbsup:

[Isil Darkmoon]

(I know you didn't write it. This is just a rant at this "sort" of thing in general.)

I STRONGLY agree with the ideas and ideals put forth in this piece. I agree with the spirit of it almost completely. I like its message.

HOWEVER, I dislike the piece itself a great deal,

Much like the "pagan" version of the 23rd psalm, seems like a desperate attempt to 'reclaim' something that was never "ours" to begin with.

The specific language "thou shalt" and "thou shalt not" IMMEDIATELY invokes the language of the Christian 10 Commandments. This is a very specific form of language, and is NOT a common 'archaic' form that appears globally. Even though "thou" and "thee" were common formal forms of "you" at one point, the rest of the phrase is overly specific. "Thou shalt" isn't even a proper sentance construction, to my knowledge. (I could be wrong, but I believe it to be the case.)

"10" commandments? Why 10? Again, this strike me as 'reclaiming'. (Yes, this piece never mentions 'paganism' in so many words, but the view it takes is an eco view from a pagan perspetive, not a scientific ecologocal perspective, in the way it is written.) 10 is not a *particularly* sacred pagan number in most panteons or magic systems. In pretty much any form, you'll find "three" as a sacred number, as well as "four", "seven", and "thirteen".
THese make logical sense... four seasons... thirteen lunar months... etc. 10 is kind of arbitrary number for most magical systems. In fact in most numerological forms it doesn't exist, as digits are added togehter until you get a single number... which would be "1" not "10".

Seeing the "13 Commandments of the Earth" written with a more common, familiar English style--even archaic English--would make me a lot happeir. That would make me feel like it was written as its own, unique piece, with the mindset actually involved taken into account, instead of just trying to "re-create" something that is already actively in the public realm.

[Gede]

MM~
I agree with Isil...that wording is shockingly authoritarian

Namaste, Gede...

[Ron]

MM~
I agree with Isil...that wording is shockingly authoritarian

Namaste, Gede...
They are "commandments" are they not? lol ... Guess it's time to burn the Torah lol

[Loopaleigh]

I also agree with Isil. The wording is Judeo/Christian and the meaning is Pagan. Why not just word it Pagan and leave all the "Thou shalt nots" out. It's like using something Judeo/Christian to give the Pagan meaning legitimacy.

The piece is nice though DixieWitch, I'm not trying to come across as grumpy. I'm just on a bit of a "leave Christianity out of my Paganism" rant this week.

[DixieWitch]

Yeah, but it's not mine!! So don't flame me! I just wanted to share it in a non-Christian way!

[barlitone]

I'm not so much a fan of these paganizations of Judeo-Christian teachings. Yes, yes, modern Christianity has taken a lot from pagan religions through the centuries and twisted them to work with the religion's belief structure. But, I don't know if this is 'reclaiming something that was not ours.'

I see this as an unfortunate continuation of something that is all to rampant in the modern English-speaking world: the use of Bible-esque language. One good thing I'll say about "Passion..." is that it's NOT in that kind of English. (It's not in English at all.)

Besides, the idea of commandments is sooooo ancient Jewish. It had to do with the Law. As far as I know, there is no pagan Law.

That said, the content is rather nice. I don't mind the message at all; in fact, I like it... once I get past the language.

[tygherrayn]

Love it. I've seen that somewhere before but can't remember where .. thanks for bringing it up here! *hugs*

[ap Dafydd]

Like others, I do rather like the sentiment in the original post. But like others, I do see it as a "re-write" of the biblical 10.

Isn't there a better way?

Christianity doesn't have a monopoly on sacred teachings, most religions have them, so why shouldn't Paganism?

EAW, we already have the beginnings of a corpus with things like the Charge of the Goddess and the central Wiccan texts.

What sort of style do people think _would_ be appropriate?

gwyn eich byd

Ffred

[fay]

i like! bery nice dixie, thanks for sharing.
blessed be

[-Sky-]

I agree with what the commandements state,I do and try to do most of these things above.But just like Isil and the rest stated I don't like the word "commandements",it reminds me of Christianity and this is a no-no.

~Anna

[Lady Jessi]

I have a question? Has anyone here tried their own hand at a "pagan wording" ? I too agree with many saying the sentiment is great but I could do without the "thou shalts and thou shalt nots".(brings back too many childhood memories that are not pleasant). There are many "versions" of the "commandments 10" , why not find the missing 11, 12 , & 13th? Or could it be that "pagans" did not "need" to be reminded of these things, they just knew them and respected them as part of their daily lives?

Just my wondering mind claiming it's voice,
Lady Jessi

[goDez]

I must follow Isil here.

I do not believe in any kind of "Commandment" we MUST follow. Personally, if I did anything to harm the planet in any way (or so to say, to break such a commandment) there is a reason for it. It also means I CHOSE to do so. And I believe nature/the higher self/goddess/god/deity/ain soph/tetragrammaton/j-h-v-h agrees with all my decisions. For they are mine.

Or could it be that "pagans" did not "need" to be reminded of these things, they just knew them and respected them as part of their daily lives?
It's called common sense. I think many pagans if not all pagans will see these "rules" and say: well doh, I try to follow these already as much as possible. Again, as much as possible, there's no way we can completely harm none (this goes for earth as well).

[Aelfoak]

It sounds nice but i think a nature loving Christian wrote this probably for his/her ideals.

[Kern]

My Revised Version:

The Seven Referrels of Mother Earth


I. Love and honour the Earth for it blesses your life and governs your survival.

II. Keep each day sacred to the Earth and celebrate the turning of its seasons.

III. Do not hold yourself above other living things nor drive them to extinction.

IV. Give thanks for your food and to the creatures and plants that nourish you.

V. Teach your offspring to respect nature and all living things.

VI. Do not destroy, nor waste Earth's riches with weapons of war.

VII. Do not rob from future generations by impoverishing or poisoning the Earth.

[Rubber_Piggy]

While the ideas are good, I have never liked they way everything seesm to get Judeo/Chrsitianised into a set of comandments. The 'Thou shalt not...' _tsk_ phrase makes me fell like doing the opposite just to prove free will

[MorningDove030202]

Just a note: I've seen these comandments around for a while and I don't think they were writen by Pagan. They were writen by an Environmentalist.... FYI

Dove

[Aelfoak]

My Revised Version:

The Seven Referrels of Mother Earth


I. Love and honour the Earth for it blesses your life and governs your survival.

II. Keep each day sacred to the Earth and celebrate the turning of its seasons.

III. Do not hold yourself above other living things nor drive them to extinction.

IV. Give thanks for your food and to the creatures and plants that nourish you.

V. Teach your offspring to respect nature and all living things.

VI. Do not destroy, nor waste Earth's riches with weapons of war.

VII. Do not rob from future generations by impoverishing or poisoning the Earth.
Now that is much better, this is something i could relate to.

[Erebus]

Yeah, but it's not mine!! So don't flame me! I just wanted to share it in a non-Christian way!

If you refuse to cite your source, we kind of have no choice but to assume it's yours.

They are "commandments" are they not? lol ... Guess it's time to burn the Torah lol

The god in the Torah had a specific idea of what he'd do to people who broke the commandments. What's the earth going to do? Except sit there and take it for another 5000 years?

[WynterSpirit]

I too don't really care for the "christian" sound of those commandments. I think the premise behind them is good though. :)

I prefer the Native American Commandments

The Earth is our mother care for her
honer all your relations

Open your heart and soul to the
great spirit

All life is sacred treat all beings with respect

Take from the earth what is needed
and nothing more

Do what needs to be done for the
good of all

Give constant thanks to the
great spirit for each new day

Speak the truth but only of the
good in others

Follow the rhythms of nature rise and retire with the sun

Enjoy lifes journey but leave no tracks

[Tsuchimaru]

I like them. :)