Question of the week.

[moonvoice]

This question was offered up by the awesome tsukikokoro.

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What, if any, texts do you rely on for spiritual guidance? Have those texts changed over time? Are there any you're interested in exploring in the future?

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As always, feel free to answer here, in your own journal, or both! Discussion is welcome and encouraged. :)

Comments

[moonvoice]

I know for myself, I used to be heavily reliant on spiritual texts, especially when I was a teenager. I devoured anything I could get my hands on, from Fiona Horne to Hutton to academic anthologies on shamanism.

But over time, there ended up being only a very few books that I repeatedly went back to. One was Flying with Shamans by Nana Nauwald. I suspect I might be in the minority in loving this book so much and finding it a rare but amazing template for shamanic practice (even though this is not the book's intent - since it is instead an anthology of fictional tales gathered and collated by subject instead). Another was the Tao Te Ching (I've since read several translations, and don't actually have a favourite, since they all - so far - yield wisdom in different ways).

Recently, I've started getting back into the devouring of books on spirituality. I'm reading one on Pagan Sustainability, another on Earth jurisprudence (which isn't strictly spiritual, but imho, anything that deals with the earth and environmentalism could be considered informative for many animists; particularly those that are conscious of interconnectedness and ecosystem), and about 15 others that I am currently too tired to get from the bookshelf and list! Hee.

I'd definitely say the texts I'm interested in exploring has changed. When I was younger, I'd grab what was available on the bookshelves in Dymocks and Magic Circle and Angus and Robertson. Nowadays I'm far more likely to look up academic level / researched works complete with references, through databases like Book Depository or Amazon. I also love recommendations from other people.

I've found every single book I've read on trance and the trance state disappointing on some level. Either because journeying was conflated with visualisation (and I strongly believe they are not the same thing), or because journeying techniques were given, but not enough cautions were laid out in plain language for the beginner. I tend to avoid trance books now, if I can help it.

As for the future, I have recently joined OBOD, so I am going to look for some texts that will help broaden my knowledge of both the history associated with Druidry as well as the esoteric practices found within. I'd like to re-read some of my own books, including the one I have on Baba Yaga, as well as Flying with Shamans again. :)

[azhure]

Heh, I totally used to do the same in Dymocks/Magic Circle/A&R. Man, I miss Magic Circle. Except for the random stands of romance novels they used to have. I never knew what was up with that.

You're always welcome to borrow any of my books, too. I've collected a bunch of the recommended OBOD texts. And will likely get more, knowing me ;)

[moonvoice]

I really miss the Magic Circle too. That was like my gateway drug for really bad Llewellyn books, with a few great books thrown in. :D