I mentioned in my last post that I was rewriting various pagan and/or Wiccan rituals to better fit my pantheist beliefs. For non-theists who also identify as pagan or who are simply trying to incorporate more spirituality into their lives via pagan practices, it can be difficult to overlook some of the language in many rituals and blessings. It may seem as if non-theistic pagans don’t exist, but there are more than you may realize, and how they approach the subject of deity is unique to each person.
When I first began learning about paganism after I had already identified as a pantheist, symbolism became a big deal for me. I started viewing the pagan idea of the Goddess as Mother Earth or Mother Nature, and the God as the mighty Universe, both equally destructive and mysterious as they are creative. What is Divine if not these unseen forces we experience during every moment of our lives?
I even have a goal to one day buy Demeter and Atlas statues for my mantel to represent my beliefs – Demeter being the Goddess of the harvest and seasons, so, in my mind, she represents Mother Nature to me, and Atlas, holding up the heavens in an Earth-shaped globe, personifying the planet’s orbit, the stars, and all of the Universe. This is just one example of how I’ve used or viewed deity in my pantheist pagan practice.
I also “met” a Goddess I was previously unaware of through a guided meditation. During this meditation, I encountered a quiet red-haired woman with kind eyes, so I did some research when it was over to see which goddesses fit the description. I came across Nemetona, the Celtic Goddess of the Sacred Grove. This was around the time I was clearing and creating sacred space. I had just set up my altar in the days before this and was rededicating myself to my spirituality, so Nemetona was the exact concept I needed to be aware of at the time. Sure, my mind could have conjured up any description and my research led me anywhere, but working with deities in this way can be quite introspective, like how horoscopes or tarot cards make us think more deeply about what’s going on in our lives. Focusing on them and what they represent can help us better understand ourselves and our path, or even tap into our higher selves. We don’t need to believe they’re real entities to benefit from that.
Everyone learns about the concept of personification at a young age – the attribution of human characteristics to something nonhuman. Atheist or naturalistic pantheist pagans may use this concept to incorporate deity archetypes into their daily practices. Dualist pantheists go a step further and believe a spiritual substance exists in conjunction with what we deem to be “reality.” Some pantheists may also have panentheistic or animist leanings, so pantheist pagan practices vary widely, and no two pantheist pagans will practice in the exact same way.
Having said all that, I leave you with this pantheist Daily Blessing inspired by the Blessing Chant from Luna’s Grimoire. I hope it will be of some use to you on your spiritual path.
Daily Blessing
May the powers of the Divine,
The Source of Creation,
All pervasive and eternal,
At once a nurturing Goddess, Mother Earth,
And a formidable God, the ever-expanding Universe,
Bless this place, this time, and I who am of you.
The Pantheist Pagan 
As always, I reserve the ability to change my mind on such things in the future if knowledge or experiences warrant such a change – but as of now my incorporation of deities is similar to yours. In my current understanding, there are two types of energies/ideas in the universe: 1) the physical world (which includes and is best illustrated by the birth and death cycle of all things within it) and 2) Inspiration/Creativity/emotion. Even though I’m a pantheist and I’m not inclined to believe in the personhood of individual deities (rather we are all sparks of a singular divine energy of which the whole universe is a part) – in my rituals I have come to identify the physical energy with Mother Earth or Gaia. I have come to identify the creative/emotional element with Dionysus (partially for personal reasons and partially because we was the patron deity for the arts, wine, emotional frenzy, etc.). Even still, when I’m putting together a ritual, I find myself I’ll at ease if the material I’m working with calls for addressing either of them personally – because I know them to be symbolic of a greater energy or idea. I will enviably rewrite the material to say something along the lines of “earth beneath my feet, from which I was sprung and will one day return, which I will identify here as Gaia” or “spark of creativity, idea, imagination, inspiration, dreams and every emotion that constitute who I am, which I identify here as Dionysus”.
Slaine,
Sounds like we do have very similar outlooks on the deity concept. I like how you’ve managed to make your rituals align more to your own beliefs. And you make an excellent point that we have the ability to change our minds. That’s so important to anyone’s spirituality! But perhaps even more so in paganism because it’s such a fluid belief system. What I believe now isn’t even the same as when I first started this blog, and sometimes my fascination with deity is more intense than others. Most days I don’t even give deity any thought. I expect I’ll always change my mind about something, and that’s okay. 🙂
Jen
This is exactly what I needed to read right now. I have had pantheist views for some time now, but also some pagan views. Recently I have been reading up on the two and every resource I have found until now have deemed paganism as a polytheistic religion and pantheism as atheist or scientific.. it is quite refreshing to know that there are some other people out there that fit into both and neither one at the same time 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
Haylee
Haylee,
I’m so glad this post was helpful! You’ve actually given me an idea for another blog post. Most pagans are polytheists, but so many of them are not. Paganism is a rich, diverse tradition, and that’s something to embrace. 🙂
Thanks for commenting!
Jen
I see I am a bit late to the discussion, but I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate your post! I grew up strictly Lutheran and switched to a more agnostic belief system in college, and ever since then I’ve been teetering somewhere in between atheism and the acknowledgement that life needs to be recognized as something amazing and something worthy of praise. Not necessarily in the form of a deity, but for what it is. I believe we are all connected somehow, that everything is, our whole reality. And I don’t believe that there is some set of rules for us to follow, other than our own instinctive morals not to do harm to others. I think this believe is a rational and balanced median between scientific rigidity and spirituality. I love it. Thanks for the read ❤
I see I am a bit late to the discussion, but I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate your post! I grew up strictly Lutheran and switched to a more agnostic belief system in college, and ever since then I’ve been teetering somewhere in between atheism and the acknowledgement that life needs to be recognized as something amazing and something worthy of praise. Not necessarily in the form of a deity, but for what it is. I believe we are all connected somehow, that everything is, our whole reality. And I don’t believe that there is some set of rules for us to follow, other than our own instinctive morals not to do harm to others. I think this believe is a rational and balanced median between scientific rigidity and spirituality. I love it. Thanks for the read ❤