As the days passed, her thirst for knowledge only grew. Was this the way she was always meant to find?
Soaking up every bit of knowledge she could, desk piled high with Paganism for beginners’ books, crystal guides, herbalism journals, and everything she could get her hands on to learn more about this culture. Was it a culture? Or a religion? A way of life? It seemed to tick all the boxes of many blanket terms. There was no one way to do things, Paganism embraced diversity. Among it’s people as well as the way they practice. Paganism was the old gods, the ancient ways of worship, or modern versions of old rituals. It was about nature, acceptance without regulation, respect.
Paganism as a whole had all the things she had always wanted in a religion, but never found with modern worship. The old gods had always pulled her, frequently she found herself reading mythologies of Greek, Roman, Egyptian, and Celtic gods. She did not identify with any one deity strongly, but she had never thought about it before. As she researched and read about different deities, one stood out and kept popping up. So, as she read, she wrote down a list of interesting deities, at the top naming Cernunnos and putting a little star by his name. Other deities made the list, but Cernunnos kept finding his way to her. Mostly coincidence, she thought, as Cernunnos was the god of animals, it seemed only fitting that his stories resonated with her easily.
Befriending a deity isn’t required in paganism, but it was something that piqued her interest. She had never felt a connection with any supreme deities or gods, and as such just assumed religion was not for her. How did she go so long without realizing that Paganism was the inclusive, versatile, welcoming community she had always joked about creating herself. They welcome all, and respect everyone’s way of practicing. Rituals not your thing? No problem. Not into spells and crystals? Still welcome. But most interestingly…do you not feel the need to worship a deity? That is completely ok. Paganism just asks that you be respectful to others, and nature, as well as take responsibility for your own actions and beliefs.
Sleep did not come easily to her that night. She tossed and turned, read more articles and stories, and happened upon a place where she could get something interesting. Something that, she was quite sure was a craps shoot, but felt it tug at her, nonetheless. A deity reading. This guide, out of Australia, claimed to be able to discern what deities were trying to contact you, or interested in meeting you, based on your full birth name and birthdate. Well…why not? She murmured to herself close to midnight.
She finally drifted off to sleep, only to wake up suddenly hours before dawn. She could not shake the feeling that she was NOT to go back to sleep. So, she checked her incoming letters and there she saw the completed deity reading, ripe and ready for the reading.
The reading was involved, showcasing three very different deities that were somehow supposedly connected to her, or wanting to connect with her.
Gaia, The Morrigan, and...Cernunnos.