sharing knowledge?

[Laiste]

I seem to have the same problem occuring over and over again. Since I have begun to seriously study the Pagan way I have had one friend after the other wanting me to "teach" them all I know and have learned thus far. I believe that most of this knowledge can only be gained by the individual not "taught" by another. Being a Solitary I have had a lot of ups and downs with my studies and quite a few haphazzard rituals! I have learned a lot through reading, but, have grown the most by listening to my inner self and finally begining to "hear: the messages from my higher self and most importantly accepting messages from the Lord and Lady. I have explained this to all who have inquired about it.

My conflict is I can only go so far when trying to "teach" someone about what I have learned and experienced and there are some things that should not be shared with others. I have lent out books, which I find precious and have only gotten them back in poor condition. This happened with three different people and won't happen again. The second problem is at this time I want to continue to be Solitay and my friends don't seem to understand this. They want to do rituals and such with me and always want Tarot readings at the jump of a hat and they get annoyed when I refuse. I sometimes wish I had kept all this to myself.

I apologise for this being so long...I really do tend to ramble!!

Any advise or similar experiences?

[Sequoia]

I know what you mean. . . I'm barely a beginner, yet I've had people try to get me to teach them things. . . about all I'm willing to teach a person is how to ground, because it's one of those things that many people do on their own anyway without even KNOWING it's grounding. . . other than that I don't like to do because like I said, I'm a beginner. For all I know, I could screw things up royally! Sometimes the best answer is to tell them the title of a book you found useful, or a website. Sometimes it's one of those things you need to discover for yourself, in my opinion.

[Laiste]

Hi Puma Hime,

Do you really feel like you could screw things up? I mean I think there is room for mistakes, except when it comes to spells and such, everything else can be chaulked up to experience. Thats the way I try to think about it. Try to relax a bit and not worry so much about mistakes you never know, you could learn alot by doing something the wrong way.

Oh and I agree with teaching grounding. Also, self hypnosis and Meditation are great start to get you in the frame of mind.

[Sequoia]

well, what I mean is, I'm afraid that I may think I know enough about a particular subject, and once I teach it to a person, I find out I don't know all of it yet, and I may end up giving someone wrong or incomplete information and not be able to fix it, and they may end up hurting themselves.

[Laiste]

ok. I thought you were refering to your personal studies. In that case I agree. that is just another reason for me not to "teach". I don't want the resposibility.

[Astraea]

Laiste,
I've been faced with this too, I understand your frustration.
Usually I try to explain that each person arrives at answers differently, and each person's spiritual ideas are different. By teaching, we are showing someone *our* way.

Some people just don't get it! No matter how well you explain your point of view on this, they still get upset and don't understand. I guess we just have to deal with it. Usually, when a person becomes a bit more experienced and begins finding their true path, they will understand you and finally see why you feel the way you do about teaching. A newbie will probably not grasp the "what I do is not necessarily best for you" idea. Knowing that paganism is a path of personal discovery can be overwhelming. And until a person experiences the personal discovery, they may never fully understand your point of view.
I like to share my experiences and ideas, but won't teach. That also seems to confuse some of my friends.
Good luck with it, I know how you feel.

[Mairwen]

It's that whole Mc-Microwaved-Pagan thing ~
gimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimme
gimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimme
gimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimmegimme
~ and I don't think so. The whole thing just makes me want to bend over and puke. I've worked hard these 13 years to gain the knowledge that I have. I'm not going ot turn around and just give it to someone else just because they think they deserve it. No way. No one ever gained anything by having something given to them on a silver platter.:mad:

[Lavender]

There are a lot of confused people out there...some of them find their way here. I love sharing what I know with others but I'm a solitary & have no plans of changing this anytime soon. I wonder if these people are just looking for a bit of acceptance as well? Giving them a list of books to start with is a good idea. If they are serious about going on, the books would be helpful as future reference guides. I don't mind discussing & sharing ideas with people but like you guys, I don't like spoon-feeding them.

[Laiste]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels this way. Thanks! I have shared some ideas and experiences and they just don't get what I'm trying to say. I tell them you have to experience things first hand. I suggest books, ect. There is only one person who has taken on the inititive herself and now we are at about the same level of understanding and we have some great conversations.