Some modern magickal traditions utilise this idea when they ensoul a magickal object like a stone, or blade. Animists feel a sense of kinship with the natural world, they feel intimately connected and concerned with the world around them, and feel this regard and relationship returned to them. At the core of many New Age ideas are Animist concepts. Psychometry the ability to read an object and divine something of its owner s life or destiny is definitely Animistic. Many people, and groups of people are Animist to one degree or another.
Most ancestor worshipping religions, for example, are Animist.
Shamans, both traditional and modern, are Animist. Most Neo-Pagans, especially Eco Pagans, are quite definitely Animist, although they may choose to elaborate upon this very simple system of belief. In fact, all ecological groups exercise a very Animistic concern for the natural world. If we are to avoid destroying the Earth, and exploiting its inhabitants, we must develop and nourish a sense of kinship with the Earth itself. If we believe that our well being is intimately connected with the Earth s wellbeing, we may well take better care of it.