Now I\u2019m getting questions that ask \u201cOK, I\u2019ve done all that, what\u2019s next?\u201d Part of me is thrilled to see more and more people answering these calls and searching for greater depth. Another part wonders why they\u2019re asking me and not a more experienced priest. But then I remember that very few experienced polytheist priests have a public presence on the internet.<\/p>\n
Polytheism isn\u2019t a religion \u2013 it\u2019s a collection of many religions. I can\u2019t tell you how to be a better Hellenist because I\u2019m not a Hellenist. I can only tell you what I\u2019ve done, what\u2019s worked, and what hasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
Devotional polytheism isn\u2019t off the map<\/a>, but it\u2019s at the edges and you can\u2019t go very far without finding yourself in uncharted territory. Those of us have gone deeper have an obligation to draw maps for those who come after us.<\/p>\n This is my attempt to draw a small piece of that map of the territory beyond beginning polytheism.<\/p>\n All-Star basketball players practice free throw shooting every day. Concert pianists practice several hours every day. The Dalai Lama meditates four hours every day. Masters of any art don\u2019t learn the basics and then move on. They keep practicing the basics day after day, year after year. Whatever you\u2019re doing now, do it more \u2013 more frequently and for longer periods of time. If there are practices you\u2019re not doing, pick them up at least on a trial basis.<\/p>\n How much is necessary? That depends on what you\u2019re called to do. Most of us with jobs and school and families can\u2019t spend four hours on spiritual practice every day \u2013 I certainly can\u2019t. That\u2019s OK \u2013 a little more practice will make you a little better polytheist. Most of us aren\u2019t called to become the polytheist equivalent of the Dalai Lama.<\/p>\n But if that is your calling, that\u2019s the level of commitment that\u2019s required.<\/p>\n Polytheist religions are religions of the Gods, but they are rooted in places and cultures. If you worship Celtic Gods, you need to understand Celtic history and culture. I\u2019ve read books on the history of Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. I\u2019ve read translations of ancient stories. I\u2019ve been to all three countries (which, to be clear, aren\u2019t the extent of the Celtic world). I\u2019ve walked the land<\/a>\u00a0and experienced some of the ancient sites. In 2016 I got to see the Celts exhibit<\/a> in Edinburgh.<\/p>\n The fact that some of my ancestors came here from Ireland 220 years ago is of little importance. I\u2019m an American, and no amount of study and travel is ever going to make me Irish. This isn\u2019t about becoming Irish. It\u2019s about learning how the Gods of Ireland were understood and worshipped in the past. That provides context for our understanding and worship of Them here and now.<\/p>\n We have stories about the Celtic deities, but they weren\u2019t written down till well into the Christian era. We know much less about Their stories and worship than we know about, say, the Greeks. So where we have missing information, we can study the beliefs and practices of better documented neighbors. This becomes the \u201cfrog DNA\u201d (to borrow from Jurassic Park<\/em>) in our practices. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn\u2019t, but it gives us a good place to start.<\/p>\n A lot of intermediate polytheism looks like mundane academic study.<\/p>\n Prayer \u2013 talking to the Gods \u2013 is important. So is listening to Them.<\/p>\n Who is speaking to you? What are They calling you to do? Perhaps They\u2019re calling you to priesthood, but don\u2019t jump to that conclusion. Priesthood<\/a> is a specific set of duties and commitments, and it often looks very different from what Catholic priests and Protestant ministers do. There are many forms of service \u2013 priesthood is only one.<\/p>\n Listen for what you\u2019re being called to do. That may take months, or it may take years. Keep listening. When you hear something, confirm it with divination.<\/p>\n What training does it require? What study? Do you need a teacher<\/a>? If so, where can you find one? A quote often misattributed to the Buddha<\/a> says \u201cwhen the student is ready the teacher will appear.\u201d Sometimes that\u2019s true, but teachers tend to appear when you hang out in places where teachers teach on a regular basis.<\/p>\n Or perhaps you don\u2019t need training \u2013 perhaps you just need to get to work. Learning by doing is a vastly underrated form of education.<\/p>\n Go far enough and eventually you\u2019ll run out of teachers. But there are always people who are knowledgeable and experienced who can serve as sounding boards, sanity checks, and general resources on topics where you\u2019re still learning. I have several of these people in my life, and I\u2019m thankful for all of them.<\/p>\n When you\u2019re first starting out, you\u2019re going to make mistakes. You\u2019re going to forget things. You may even consciously make a bad decision. Rarely are there serious repercussions. While obviously I cannot speak for all the Gods, the ones I\u2019ve worked with have been nothing like the God of the Old Testament, looking to smite people for the slightest slipup.<\/p>\n But as your practice deepens, expectations get more serious. The Morrigan asked me for weekly offerings. When I went on vacation a month later, I wondered about my usual obligations and I heard \u201cevery week, period.\u201d And so I\u2019ve poured libations into a river in Ireland and into decorative shrubbery in London and in Las Vegas.<\/p>\n At some point, \u201cI was too busy\u201d is no longer a valid excuse. You have daily obligations and you meet them, no matter how busy, how tired, or how uninspired you are.<\/p>\n You may be given a geas<\/em> \u2013 a religious obligation to never eat a certain food, to always wear a particular piece of jewelry, to always respond in a certain way to offers or requests. You may know why you were given that particular geas<\/em>, or you may not. I have two \u2013 they are relatively minor and easy to keep. There may be more. Or not \u2013 we will see.<\/p>\n As your practice gets deeper, more will be expected of you, and less tolerance will be shown for failure.<\/p>\n As your devotional relationship develops, you can try things out, see how they go, and see what responses you get. There are no obligations for either party (obviously, if you\u2019re one of the few who find yourself forcefully claimed<\/a>, this doesn\u2019t apply to you \u2013 I\u2019m genuinely sorry). But do this for long enough and it is likely you will be asked for an oath.<\/p>\n Oaths may be for a fixed period of time: a month or a year or a decade. They may be for life. I know some people who\u2019ve sworn oaths for \u201cthis life and beyond\u201d \u2013 I\u2019m not doing that. I don\u2019t know what the next life is going to look like and I\u2019ll deal with it when I get there.<\/p>\n You can negotiate terms. You can say no. Unless you can\u2019t. If you haven\u2019t been there, it\u2019s hard to explain. Most deities don\u2019t bother with reluctant devotees \u2013 They just move on and find someone else who\u2019s more agreeable. But not always.<\/p>\n Keep going deeper into your devotion and your polytheist practice and you\u2019ll be asked to go deeper still.<\/p>\n![\"Cernunnos](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/09\/Cernunnos-04.10.17-03.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n1. Practice: the same, but more<\/h2>\n
2. Study: cultural and cross-cultural<\/h2>\n
![\"Newgrange](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/09\/Newgrange-rear-2016.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n3. Listening: finding your place<\/h2>\n
4. Consistency and reliability: no excuses<\/h2>\n
![\"Beltane](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/09\/Beltane-2017-07-782x411.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n5. The stakes get higher<\/h2>\n
![\"Ring](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2017\/09\/Ring-of-Brodgar-2016.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n