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From prayers to meditations, journeys to offerings, it can sometimes feel like we are casting our cries out into the void in the hopes of hearing a reply. Struggling to manage the effort and energies of living a spiritual life as much as our physical, emotional and mental life. Communicating with our Gods guides and guardians is not always easy, so why is it that some people almost always seem to hear back from their Gods?
What it all really comes down to is growth. Each of us are unique in our existence and as such we should try not to compare ourselves to others unnecessarily. Some people find physical effort easier than others, some find mental or emotional effort easier. That doesnât mean they are incapable of other forms of effort, it just means that the others paths of growth might be slower, or require more groundwork to build from.Â
Do the work
At the Irish Pagan School we are often heard to use the phrase â just do the workâ. Though it is more often than not said with good humour, it is quite honestly the only way to make any real progress in one’s spiritual journey.
There are of course many ways to approach a relationship with self, with our deities, ancestors, and the rest, but what every single option will always include is effort. It is a dedication to turn up for oneself and one’s relationships whenever and wherever possible in our busy lives. It is a commitment to expanding our knowledge and our experience so that we are more capable of addressing our spiritual needs in a healthy and regular manner. It is understanding and accepting that though we may have expectations of self or deities, the Godâs themselves also have their own will and agenda to be considered. It is acknowledging that we ourselves are limited and will almost always have something more to learn and grow towards as we live our lives.
The only way we can build a responsive and receptive connection with deity is by accepting all of these things and committing to the effort and energy investment involved. In essence the only way is to simply do the work!
âGod Botheredâ
Many years ago a Morrigan priest was instructed to build a relationship with ManannĂĄn Mac LĂr in his capacity as a guide to the Otherworld. This led to a devotional offering of immersing herself in the Irish sea every day for a monthâŠ.in the depths of winter.Â
Now there are many folk who would choose to take a winter swim for any number of reasons, but in this specific case the Morrigan priest was not just following some personal whim, or engaging in some kind of ordeal olympics. This Morrigan priest was in fact âGod Botheredâ.
There are times when those who have done the work on their own spiritual growth, as well as building a healthy, receptive, respectful and reciprocal relationship, are called upon to fulfil some work requirement of their deities. It is rare that such a thing would happen at the outset of a deity connection as there are usually rather intense processes of growth to go through when these times of âCallingâ come around.
When a person is experiencing such a process it is quite common for them to be in regular communication with their deities, guides and guardians and for that contact to be more of a two way discussion than a process of prayer or supplication.Â
The Ego Issue
As with all aspects of our lives, our ego is something that needs consideration when it comes to spiritual growth. Of course there is nothing wrong with having an ego, in fact many of the initial stages of connection with deity need to start with connection to self and it is here that most of the work actually involves the ego.
It is our ego that helps define us as who we are. From the perspective of psychoanalysis ego can be defined as the part of the mind that mediates between the conscious and the unconscious and is responsible for reality testing and a sense of personal identity. Hopefully it’s easy to see how crucially important it is to cultivate a healthy sense of ego. How it is a balanced ego that helps us maintain our sense of self and reality when we are dealing with concepts and connections that exist outside of our readily perceived norms.
That being said, it is quite easy for our ego to become imbalanced when we explore these expanded aspects of self, reality, deity, energy etc.
For some the ego cannot sustain the pressure of these concepts and it collapses, leading to a person losing their sense of self, personal autonomy, or even the very fundamentals of our reality.
For others these greater perspectives or expansive energies lead to an ego inflation where they lose any rational sense of self and humility. Where the common place is seen as banal, lesser, or to be shunned or pontificated at from their supposed superior experiences.
In either situation, an unhealthy or imbalanced ego leads to harm, not just of self, but of those around or exposed to these people. This imbalance also interrupts the flow of communication with deity as the relationship is no longer one of connection and respectful reciprocity.
Our belief in our Gods, guides and guardians is essential to our spiritual growth, but so too is their belief in us. It is our first duty of care to see to the healthy needs of self, so that we can live a long and full life in service to our Gods and their callings.Â
A Matter of Faith
We are each of us a unique expression of life, existing as beautifully complex and individually as a snowflake, and much like a snowflake, we too are temporary.
For all of that there is a vibrant energy that exists in all living things, and regardless of how long it exists in our world that energy is always beautiful for its resonance and its potential.
When we engage in a spiritual life we are in many ways acknowledging that energy and choosing to actively connect and work with it, inside ourselves and in other living things with which we share existence. In my perspective this also includes deities as, though their energies might have a longer duration than ours, it is no less beautiful, vibrant and powerful.
When we begin our spiritual growth it is not always easy to perceive or interact with the energies all around ourselves. Even when we have grown in experience and skill, sometimes we get in our own way and stumble. Sometimes our path of growth leads back to that internal effort and as such the voices of the Gods become distant and hard to hear.
This is where faith comes in. A belief that extends beyond whatever current challenge we are facing in our lives. A belief that knows no restriction of distance or time. A belief that is not just some passing fancy, some occasional consideration or entertaining concept. A belief that is as fundamental to our lives as our own identity.
Faith. It is what we have in our Gods, but also what they place in us when the relationship is built in the right manner. We become not just devotees, dedicants or followers of a deities ideology, but also examples, advocates, priests, bards at whatever else our Gods require of us.
Here is where some of the paths of spiritual growth lead and it is with these people that the Gods seem to answer more often than not. When the relationship of self to deity is no longer a matter of solo consideration, but an effort of service to a calling or collective. These people are not âspecialâ not âchosenâ or any other such term. These are just people who have done and continue to do the work, not just for the Gods, but also for themselves and their community.
This then is why some people almost always hear back from their Gods, and this is something that anyone can aspire and achieve. They just need to do the work.Â
Where To Now?
If you think that Paganism is interesting, and might even be something youâd like to explore further, you can always:
Visit the Irish Pagan School YouTube Channel
Take a Class â Practical Guide to Irish Spirituality
Or⊠Take a Free Class to Learn More about Irish Paganism!
