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Author Topic: How to know if a certain God is calling you?  (Read 5489 times)

MongolianCow

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How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« on: February 08, 2016, 05:00:55 pm »
I know for a past year that some god or deitie was calling me. I don't know which one is calling me or generally I don't want to worship a God without knowing that they even called me. I hope I didn't mix that up sorry I'm bad with wording.
Best wishes,
A MughalCow

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #1 on: February 08, 2016, 06:25:03 pm »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186349
I know for a past year that some god or deitie was calling me. I don't know which one is calling me or generally I don't want to worship a God without knowing that they even called me.

 
What kinds of things make you think that a deity is calling you? (In general, I mean?)

If you read around here for a bit, you'll see that many people don't have an experience of a deity calling them - lots of people worship and honour and work with deities who haven't expressed a clear interest in them.

If you feel you've had a deity make contact, but you're not sure which one, there are a bunch of things you can try. Which ones work best are going to depend on you, the deity, and a bunch of other circumstances, so often people need to try several options to take a step forward. (And a lot of this can be one and a half steps forward, one step back.)

Exploration

1) Meditation. There's some meditations out there, but the ones of a lightly guided format that do the "Ask for a deity who is interested in connecting with you to communicate. Put yourself into a comfortable neutral space in the meditation (a field is a common starting place) and then walk a little until you meet someone" are a common choice for this particular goal.

2) Research: If you have any signs or indicators already, you can start by doing research and seeing if any of the deities commonly associated with that thing feel more 'right' to you. (Note that you might end up reacting to a deity who is *similar* to the one interested in you, but not actually the same deity.)

3) Divination. Tarot works particularly well for this, I think, because it's got a broad symbol set, and you can often narrow down other lines of exploration.

4) Exposure to a variety of options while paying attention. Read broadly about deities and people's relationship with them. Watch (good quality!) historical documentaries and see if something catches your attention. See if archetypes or particular personality types keep showing up in ways that catch your attention and explore that.

5) Paying attention to unusual patterns in your life. Do particular symbols, colors, names, references, etc. keep coming up? Those don't mean 'this is that deity' but they're a great way to guide further research and exploring.

Narrowing

Once you get to the point where you thnk you have one to threeish likely candidates for deities, you can then explore them in more depth.

Do some reading and other learning about their primary myths, connections, pantheon, and so on. If they come from a culture which has written legends or sagas, read (or listen to, or watch) some relevant bits. People on this forum can help point you at good resources if you share more about what you're looking for.

Try doing a creative project to honor the deity - art or poetry or music or sewing or anything else that you do that's creative. Often this will help engage other parts of your brain and give you new insights. If you find yourself repeatedly not able to do the art (and not for any good reason) that can be a good sign that you're on the wrong track with the deity.

Pay attention to your dreams. Dreams that are very clear (X is the deity I should follow) are pretty rare, but patterns in dreams can be informative.

Trying some simple rituals honouring the deity you think is most likely are a good step at this point. Don't make any long-term promises, just do a "Hey, here is an offering of  a thing I think you would like. Hi." sort of thing. Like you'd go out for coffee or something with a possible new friend, not plan a day-long outing.

If these things go well, then you can take further steps to build and develop the relationship. If you don't feel like they're going well, go back a couple of steps in your exploring, and see what seems to work better. This might involve more research, trying some initial steps with a different deity, or even going back to square one and looking at your data with fresh eyes.

(There are a *lot* of deities out there who are not very well described anywhere, or who it is difficult to research. Often if you can pin down the culture or pantheon they come from, it gets easier, but not always.)
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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #2 on: February 08, 2016, 07:10:43 pm »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186349
I don't want to worship a God without knowing that they even called me.

 
Why not?
as the water grinds the stone
we rise and fall
as our ashes turn to dust
we shine like stars    - Covenant, "Bullet"

Jainarayan

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #3 on: February 09, 2016, 09:11:30 am »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186349
I know for a past year that some god or deitie was calling me. I don't know which one is calling me or generally I don't want to worship a God without knowing that they even called me. I hope I didn't mix that up sorry I'm bad with wording.
Best wishes,
A MughalCow

 
Sometimes you have to make the first move. The deities don't always come knocking on your door. If you have an affinity for a deity - that in itself may be a clue - make a small offering and offer some prayers. See how they are received. If you don't feel the offering was received, then the deity is not interested. I second Jenett's recommendations under Exploration, especially Research and Exposure.

MongolianCow

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #4 on: February 10, 2016, 02:22:35 pm »
Quote from: Jenett;186351
What kinds of things make you think that a deity is calling you? (In general, I mean?)

If you read around here for a bit, you'll see that many people don't have an experience of a deity calling them - lots of people worship and honour and work with deities who haven't expressed a clear interest in them.

If you feel you've had a deity make contact, but you're not sure which one, there are a bunch of things you can try. Which ones work best are going to depend on you, the deity, and a bunch of other circumstances, so often people need to try several options to take a step forward. (And a lot of this can be one and a half steps forward, one step back.)

Exploration

1) Meditation. There's some meditations out there, but the ones of a lightly guided format that do the "Ask for a deity who is interested in connecting with you to communicate. Put yourself into a comfortable neutral space in the meditation (a field is a common starting place) and then walk a little until you meet someone" are a common choice for this particular goal.

2) Research: If you have any signs or indicators already, you can start by doing research and seeing if any of the deities commonly associated with that thing feel more 'right' to you. (Note that you might end up reacting to a deity who is *similar* to the one interested in you, but not actually the same deity.)

3) Divination. Tarot works particularly well for this, I think, because it's got a broad symbol set, and you can often narrow down other lines of exploration.

4) Exposure to a variety of options while paying attention. Read broadly about deities and people's relationship with them. Watch (good quality!) historical documentaries and see if something catches your attention. See if archetypes or particular personality types keep showing up in ways that catch your attention and explore that.

5) Paying attention to unusual patterns in your life. Do particular symbols, colors, names, references, etc. keep coming up? Those don't mean 'this is that deity' but they're a great way to guide further research and exploring.

Narrowing

Once you get to the point where you thnk you have one to threeish likely candidates for deities, you can then explore them in more depth.

Do some reading and other learning about their primary myths, connections, pantheon, and so on. If they come from a culture which has written legends or sagas, read (or listen to, or watch) some relevant bits. People on this forum can help point you at good resources if you share more about what you're looking for.

Try doing a creative project to honor the deity - art or poetry or music or sewing or anything else that you do that's creative. Often this will help engage other parts of your brain and give you new insights. If you find yourself repeatedly not able to do the art (and not for any good reason) that can be a good sign that you're on the wrong track with the deity.

Pay attention to your dreams. Dreams that are very clear (X is the deity I should follow) are pretty rare, but patterns in dreams can be informative.

Trying some simple rituals honouring the deity you think is most likely are a good step at this point. Don't make any long-term promises, just do a "Hey, here is an offering of  a thing I think you would like. Hi." sort of thing. Like you'd go out for coffee or something with a possible new friend, not plan a day-long outing.

If these things go well, then you can take further steps to build and develop the relationship. If you don't feel like they're going well, go back a couple of steps in your exploring, and see what seems to work better. This might involve more research, trying some initial steps with a different deity, or even going back to square one and looking at your data with fresh eyes.

(There are a *lot* of deities out there who are not very well described anywhere, or who it is difficult to research. Often if you can pin down the culture or pantheon they come from, it gets easier, but not always.)

 Thank for the tips. But I have an attraction towards the Greek and Roman gods since I grew up learning about them, but I don't notice any signs that would be Greek or Roman.

Jenett

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #5 on: February 10, 2016, 03:34:47 pm »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186435
Thank for the tips. But I have an attraction towards the Greek and Roman gods since I grew up learning about them, but I don't notice any signs that would be Greek or Roman.

 
Sometimes there aren't really obvious cues about a deity's culture.

Are you willing to share a bit more about what you do have? It's possible people might be able to make some suggestions, at least about specific places to consider starting.
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MongolianCow

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #6 on: February 10, 2016, 11:24:23 pm »
Quote from: Jenett;186438
Sometimes there aren't really obvious cues about a deity's culture.

Are you willing to share a bit more about what you do have? It's possible people might be able to make some suggestions, at least about specific places to consider starting.

 
I haven't expirenced much, it's been sometime so I forget some things that might be a Greek sign I did sacrifice some food to Athena asking if I could worship her, and haven't gotten any signs. Possibly did something that didn't catch her attention.

Darkhawk

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #7 on: February 10, 2016, 11:52:06 pm »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186457
I haven't expirenced much, it's been sometime so I forget some things that might be a Greek sign I did sacrifice some food to Athena asking if I could worship her, and haven't gotten any signs. Possibly did something that didn't catch her attention.

 
You don't need permission to honour a god; that's not how worship works.

You just do it.
as the water grinds the stone
we rise and fall
as our ashes turn to dust
we shine like stars    - Covenant, "Bullet"

Lux Nocturnalis

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #8 on: February 11, 2016, 02:00:43 am »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186435
Thank for the tips. But I have an attraction towards the Greek and Roman gods since I grew up learning about them, but I don't notice any signs that would be Greek or Roman.

So start worshiping the Greek or Roman pantheon and see how it goes? Maybe one of them called to you, or maybe it's a different god that might reveal him/herself to you over time.

You don't need a sign to begin a religion.

Jenett

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #9 on: February 11, 2016, 06:28:58 am »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186457
I haven't expirenced much, it's been sometime so I forget some things that might be a Greek sign I did sacrifice some food to Athena asking if I could worship her, and haven't gotten any signs. Possibly did something that didn't catch her attention.

 
As I said in my first reply, that's really an entirely normal thing.

You can decide if you want to keep honouring Athena, if you want to try honouring a different deity, or if you want to change how you're doing the honouring and see if that gets you a different response.

But it's really really common for most people not to get a very noticeable sign much of the time.
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MongolianCow

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #10 on: February 11, 2016, 08:34:38 pm »
Quote from: Jenett;186471
As I said in my first reply, that's really an entirely normal thing.

You can decide if you want to keep honouring Athena, if you want to try honouring a different deity, or if you want to change how you're doing the honouring and see if that gets you a different response.

But it's really really common for most people not to get a very noticeable sign much of the time.
I see danke.
« Last Edit: February 11, 2016, 08:40:47 pm by MongolianCow »

PhantomQueen

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #11 on: February 15, 2016, 12:43:15 pm »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186506
I see danke.

 
Looks like it's german to me-'thank you'.  Something to consider ;)

MongolianCow

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #12 on: March 03, 2016, 12:15:41 am »
Quote from: PhantomQueen;186650
Looks like it's german to me-'thank you'.  Something to consider ;)

 
What do you mean?

DIASPORA-1963

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #13 on: March 03, 2016, 05:49:29 am »
Quote from: MongolianCow;186349
I know for a past year that some god or deitie was calling me. I don't know which one is calling me or generally I don't want to worship a God without knowing that they even called me. I hope I didn't mix that up sorry I'm bad with wording.
Best wishes,
A MughalCow

Patience maybe.
I was in a parking lot one day & somebody handed me a skeleton key & said, "This is for you". OK.
Then, I came across a little, green ceramic box that had snakes and strange circles on it. The box was just the right size for one of my Tarot decks, so I bought it.
Then my sister gave me a ceramic owl & said, "For your altar". She had never given me anything for my altar before, but the owl looked like it would be perfect for the altar.
W/o reason, my taste in colors changed; all of a sudden, I liked black and orange and purple and orange-red and pinkish-black.
I got urges for cinnamon - including the desire to put it in my coffee - ???
I became nocturnal ...
I had never been interested in Greek mythology before, had only vague memories of reading a few stories in school - decades ago - but one name came back very, very strongly: HECATE.
Then I looked her up, & all of the above has to do w/her.
ADD - I wear the skeleton key on a chain around my neck now.
« Last Edit: March 03, 2016, 05:53:14 am by DIASPORA-1963 »
MARK aka CELLVLANVS MAGVS
OMNIA DEPENDET!

MongolianCow

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Re: How to know if a certain God is calling you?
« Reply #14 on: March 07, 2016, 11:57:04 am »
Quote from: DIASPORA-1963;187522
Patience maybe.
I was in a parking lot one day & somebody handed me a skeleton key & said, "This is for you". OK.
Then, I came across a little, green ceramic box that had snakes and strange circles on it. The box was just the right size for one of my Tarot decks, so I bought it.
Then my sister gave me a ceramic owl & said, "For your altar". She had never given me anything for my altar before, but the owl looked like it would be perfect for the altar.
W/o reason, my taste in colors changed; all of a sudden, I liked black and orange and purple and orange-red and pinkish-black.
I got urges for cinnamon - including the desire to put it in my coffee - ???
I became nocturnal ...
I had never been interested in Greek mythology before, had only vague memories of reading a few stories in school - decades ago - but one name came back very, very strongly: HECATE.
Then I looked her up, & all of the above has to do w/her.
ADD - I wear the skeleton key on a chain around my neck now.

 Wow I lost for words in a good way.

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