It is more properly applied only to those Witchcraft traditions which originated in or derive from practices in the British Isles. Shamanismisnot areligion, butaset ofspiritual techniques used for healing and the acquisition of knowledge through forays into non-ordinary states of consciousness. These techniques are used in virtually every tribal society and are widely used by contemporary Pagans. The centralbeliefs ofmodern Pagansdiffer in specificsyet share many fundamentals. Deity is seen as immanent rather than transcendent.
Experience is preferred over doctrine.
It is believed that there are and should be multiple paths to the Divine. There is no prescribed creed, but there are a number of beliefs shared by most contemporary Pagans, summarized at the end of this pamphlet. Likereligious Humanists,modernPagans havealove and reverence for this world and the physical plane generally. The rational is seen as important. Great emphasis is also placed on the intuitive, however, and the belief that the physical and non-physical worlds are equally real, and are interconnected, interpenetrating manifestations of nature.