While my girlfriend doesn't believe at all in Gods or anything else 'supernatural', she has said repeatedly she would love to have faith. She finds the thought that someone is watching over you comforting, and it would ease her fear of dying--although I pray the Moirai keep that inevitability away from us for a long while longer. I find a lot of comfort in my faith. It wasn't the reason why I started worshipping the Gods, but it is a really nice bonus. Stepping out of the house after offering to Hermes makes me feel surer I will return to it at the end of the day. Praying to Hekate to watch over the boundaries of my home while we sleep makes me a lot less jumpy when I hear a noise; I have faith that I have Their divine protection--not to the point of stupidity, but I still go through life a little more peacefully.
A little while ago, I discussed asking the Gods things for yourself with a blog reader. He came from a background where asking things for yourself was discouraged; I did as well. While the Gods certainly should not be treated as divine vending machines, Hellenismos does functions around the concept of kharis, where proper worship raises your standing with the Theoi to such a degree They might be inclined to look after you. It's not a sure bet, but it helps feel more at ease in life.
I want to talk a moment about faith, about having it, and what it means to me. A little while ago, I told you about my intolerance issues with grains (and, as it turns out, grass seeds). I've most likely had it all my life, but I have been struggling with it the last two years and since a few months, it has become acute: whenever I ingest anything in the grain or grass family, I get cold flashes after five to ten minutes, my throat closes up, I get pins-and-needles headaches and then, about twenty minutes in, the nausea starts. The stomach cramps start a short while after that. If I am lucky, the cold flashes end by then, and the headache fades a little. These episodes last anywhere from three to eight hours, and they are exhausting, painful, and they make me very unhappy.
Yesterday, I unintentionally poisoned myself again because I didn't read a label correctly. I say 'again' because it happened on Sunday as well when my mind totally blew past the fact that popcorn is corn (duh!) and I really, really, should not be eating corn. I realized what I was doing after three bits, but three hours later, I was still cursing myself. Again, I'm not asking for sympathy, I'm only sharing this to make a point--beyond the fact that my brain really needs to get with the program; last night, while mentally steeling myself to do my nighttime rituals with a stomach cramp, headache, and a constricted throat, my girlfriend came up to me and told me--and then the ceiling--that the Gods should take better care of me with all I do for Them. I smiled, kissed her good night, and got to praying.
I have faith the Gods watch over me. I think They realized that I was poisoning my body with grains and grass seeds every day of my life, and They took action: They made me aware of the issue. Would I have preferred They took the deficiency in my body away? Sure! I would love not to have these issues, but the pay-off when I am not eating grains and grass seeds is worth the slip-up pains. No more mandatory naps, no more unexplainable muscle cramps, no more headaches that went on for days... I feel 200% better... unless I eat grains or grass seeds; then I am miserable.
My intolerance issues could have simmered for years. I would have been able to eat everything, but I would also have been keeping my body in a permanent state of 'poisoned'. Now, I have a chance to live up to my potential, as long as I stay away from certain foods. It's a very small price to pay, considering, and this is why I feel my intolerance issues are a blessing, and I choose to believe it is a blessing from the Gods. This, to me, is having faith. Blind faith, perhaps, because I have no proof whatsoever. Yet, I have so many examples of these types of things happening to me; I can't doubt.
In the end, having faith requires a leap of faith, but seeing the blessings, the positives, in everything is one of the side effects of faith that are priceless and real, and which far outweigh any negative that may come along with it. I am perhaps the most positive person you will ever read; I will always assume the best. It drives some people nuts, and confuses others, but to me, it is the only way to live. I have my bad days, my doubts, like everyone but try not to let these overshadow the positives. The bad passes, it always does, because I have faith in the positives. I have faith in the Gods, and Their plan for me, and there is hardly a day when that is not enough.
A little while ago, I discussed asking the Gods things for yourself with a blog reader. He came from a background where asking things for yourself was discouraged; I did as well. While the Gods certainly should not be treated as divine vending machines, Hellenismos does functions around the concept of kharis, where proper worship raises your standing with the Theoi to such a degree They might be inclined to look after you. It's not a sure bet, but it helps feel more at ease in life.
I want to talk a moment about faith, about having it, and what it means to me. A little while ago, I told you about my intolerance issues with grains (and, as it turns out, grass seeds). I've most likely had it all my life, but I have been struggling with it the last two years and since a few months, it has become acute: whenever I ingest anything in the grain or grass family, I get cold flashes after five to ten minutes, my throat closes up, I get pins-and-needles headaches and then, about twenty minutes in, the nausea starts. The stomach cramps start a short while after that. If I am lucky, the cold flashes end by then, and the headache fades a little. These episodes last anywhere from three to eight hours, and they are exhausting, painful, and they make me very unhappy.
Yesterday, I unintentionally poisoned myself again because I didn't read a label correctly. I say 'again' because it happened on Sunday as well when my mind totally blew past the fact that popcorn is corn (duh!) and I really, really, should not be eating corn. I realized what I was doing after three bits, but three hours later, I was still cursing myself. Again, I'm not asking for sympathy, I'm only sharing this to make a point--beyond the fact that my brain really needs to get with the program; last night, while mentally steeling myself to do my nighttime rituals with a stomach cramp, headache, and a constricted throat, my girlfriend came up to me and told me--and then the ceiling--that the Gods should take better care of me with all I do for Them. I smiled, kissed her good night, and got to praying.
I have faith the Gods watch over me. I think They realized that I was poisoning my body with grains and grass seeds every day of my life, and They took action: They made me aware of the issue. Would I have preferred They took the deficiency in my body away? Sure! I would love not to have these issues, but the pay-off when I am not eating grains and grass seeds is worth the slip-up pains. No more mandatory naps, no more unexplainable muscle cramps, no more headaches that went on for days... I feel 200% better... unless I eat grains or grass seeds; then I am miserable.
My intolerance issues could have simmered for years. I would have been able to eat everything, but I would also have been keeping my body in a permanent state of 'poisoned'. Now, I have a chance to live up to my potential, as long as I stay away from certain foods. It's a very small price to pay, considering, and this is why I feel my intolerance issues are a blessing, and I choose to believe it is a blessing from the Gods. This, to me, is having faith. Blind faith, perhaps, because I have no proof whatsoever. Yet, I have so many examples of these types of things happening to me; I can't doubt.
In the end, having faith requires a leap of faith, but seeing the blessings, the positives, in everything is one of the side effects of faith that are priceless and real, and which far outweigh any negative that may come along with it. I am perhaps the most positive person you will ever read; I will always assume the best. It drives some people nuts, and confuses others, but to me, it is the only way to live. I have my bad days, my doubts, like everyone but try not to let these overshadow the positives. The bad passes, it always does, because I have faith in the positives. I have faith in the Gods, and Their plan for me, and there is hardly a day when that is not enough.
6 comments:
I always love it when people try to create the false dichotomy of natural/supernatural. I am of the view that there are no such things or beings in the universe that are supernatural. This opinion comes from almost the first days of Philosophy and the Atomists. Some schools which followed them are the Epicureans and the Aristotelians. BTW, Aristotle really, really disliked Plato -- thought he was a real A-H. His school followed in the Orphic tradition. To me, it never made any sense that Ideal objects existed. In addition, in The Republic's Myth of the Cave, it is fairly clearly stated that nothing "real" on Earth can be better than this Idealistic world. You can later see these ideas permeating Gnosticism and Pauline Christianity as well as Neo-Platonism and Hermeticism. I keep away from it all. It is a slippery slope to atheism and hubris.
I just found your blog yesterday and I have not been able to stop reading! This post along with other writings you have made have really been helping me figure out my own faith system and I just wanted to say thank you!
@Julia Ergane: I agree with you very much. As much as I appreciate what Plato did for philosophy and ethics, I am not a fan of his writings. And yes, the term 'supernatural' always seems rather useless to me; all is part of our world.
@Modernlife: Welcome to the blog! I'm happy to hear you found it and enjoy it :) You are very welcome; I am very happy I was able to help.
My first comment is this: http://wheniwentglutenfree.tumblr.com/post/31399668675/when-i-meet-someone-with-as-many-dietary-restrictions
Second, I know that I don't want any risk of cross-contamination, so I stopped using barley for tossing about a year ago. Instead, I use quinoa or sunflower seeds (or any kind of seedlike thing that I have on hand, really). Do you do something similar?
@Kaye: HA! Epic .gif XD Yes, indeed, my sentiment exactly.
I am very, very, grateful I only get sick from direct ingestion. As such, I still toss barley seeds, but I substitute barley flour with tapioca flower for honey cakes now, because I doubt the Gods want to give me a intolerace reactions after every big festival XD As a grass seed, I am also intolerant to Quinoa. Sunflower seeds would work, though, if I had to substitute anything. For now, tossing barly groats has never been a problem; I was my hands afterwards and everything is good. But if it gave me issues, I would absolutely find an alternative.
When I Went Gluten Free is one of my favorite Tumblrs.
I tend to avoid quinoa because the saponins can be gut-irritating for me, but I keep it around for when veg*n people visit (and I sprout it for that to make it easier to digest). It's far more likely for someone to get glutened from handling barley (due to airborn grain dust, accidentally touching one's mouth, &c.) than to react to quinoa by handling it. Saponins are basically plant soap.
Post a Comment