From: ciaran@county.lmt.mn.org (Ciaran Benson)
Subject: Nature Spirits
Reply-To: ciaran@county.lmt.mn.org (Ciaran Benson)
Organization: LaserMaster Technologies, Minneapolis, MN
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 92 17:09:07 GMT

  Someone from alt.co-evolution posted something about the
Perelandra books over to alt.pagan, and I don't have the post or
the poster's name any more, but thought of a couple things to
say, so I thought I'd just start a new thread.  This post is
echoed on each, as the original was, and if it starts to focus
one way or the other then hopefully people will modify the
newsgroups appropriately.

  #include StdDisclaimer /I am only speaking for myself, and
represent no branch or sect of Paganism.  If you want to know
what "Pagans" think, you'll have to go around and ask each and
every one individually/
  
  The question had something to do with, as I recall, what views
Pagans might have of the Perelandra writings.

  For myself, I stumbled onto the Perelandra garden workbook at
a really opportune time.  My partner and I had just moved to
a farm in monkey-butt-nowhere Westconsin, and were starting to
do the stewardship thing.  Moving plants, tearing down old
buildings, picking up a century worth of rusted and rotting
discarded farm equipment, and setting up housekeeping.

  At the same time, we had set up some outdoor temples and ritual
areas where we'd started doing regular rituals.  We had become
fairly accustomed to the Fey showing up at rituals, at least
enough accustomed that it was an exciting kind of unnerving,
rather than a frightening kind of unnerving, but at the new
covenstead we got "something quite else" than the mist-cloaked
Fey we'd expected.  Seemed like the trees themselves were the
attendants, and something quite other was there as well.  The
Fey, themselves, stayed well back from what we were doing, and
at the most would show up at the edge of fires during sweat-
lodges.

  The Perelandra garden workbook offered a substantially different
way of looking at the situation.

  Instead of living all alone out there and making decisions for
ourselves about what we wanted to do, we suddenly had room-mates.
Lots and lots of room-mates.  Room-mates who had pretty clear
ideas about what they want to see happen, although they'd be just
as happy to wait for us to die rather than take any shit for us
(after all, 80 years from now I and my partner are going to be
dust and the Fey will still be working on _right_now_).

  I'm still uncomfortable with the channeling stuff in the
Perelandra books, and think that our relationship with Devas and
the Fey is much more immediate than the Perelandra folks
describe.  This is land which we share with them, and they with
us, and that translates for me into a working relationship.

  Using Tarot, intuition, astral projection, and just plain old
aura-reading seems much more reliable and communicative than the
kinestetic tests recommended in the workbook, and after a couple
of years of experimentation the results seem reliable enough that
I can start projects knowing that I'm not going to get any flack
from the Fey for it.

  We do, of course, have some disagreements about the land.  For
example, there's simply no way I'm going to get the septic tank
moved even though they're periodically pretty worked up about it.
I make compromises, they make compromises.  Everyone bitches from
time to time, though.

  As far as how this has all effected my Paganism, I guess the
most immediate effect was that the idea of a sacred and living
Earth went from being an empowering concept to a physical reality
that walked up and shook my hand.  It's one thing to stand in the
North and invoke the *concept* of a deity, it's quite another to
have one show up.

  It also inspires a deeper responsibility for promises that we
make during rituals.  If I offer something or talk about doing
something during a ritual council between us and the Fey, then
I've learned it had better well happen or they'll drop their
end of the arrangement as well.

  Some friends in town have had equally positive results using the
Perelandra workbook's principles right in the downtown of the
city.  Most of the Perelandra stuff is, IMHO, a codification of
stuff which I and my Pagan friends here in the Cities have been
doing all our lives.  The Perelandra book, however, introduced
the idea of experimenting with the relationship, and working for
a solid recognition -- both ways -- of our sharing the land
with the Fey.

  Well, I could go on, but this is probably enough for now.  I
hope I haven't bored the alt.pagan gang to much with this -- I'm
sure that this is all pretty self-evident or someone would have
responded to the post by now.  Hopefully this has answered some
of the alt.co-evolutionist's questions, at least as far as my
own personal opinions are concerned.

  I'm sure Pagans who disagree with this (and there's probably
dozens) will add their own 2cents.

  As always, your milage may vary.

  Blessed be, Ciaran.

  "...And here, Queen Aphrodite, pour heavenly nectar into cold
   cups, and fill them gracefully with sudden joy."  -- Sappho


Xref: sparky alt.co-evolution:62 ba.announce:190