Wicca and Buddhism

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Vulpixie

Wicca and Buddhism

Post by Vulpixie »

So I've identified as an atheist for quite some time now, and religion has never really been in the forefront of my mind. I did however find myself relating to Buddhist teachings and beliefs, they appealed to me in a way that was comfortable as Buddhism doesn't ask you to believe in any Gods or follow any set rules.

Now I have discovered Wiccan teachings and the idea of a God and a Goddess, and I am struggling to accept the idea of a deity. This what was what always did not appeal to me about religion in the first place. I am coming to understand that they are both versions of the same thing, such as night and day are versions of the same sky. However, I related to the Buddhism concept of Oneness, the idea that there is only one conciousness and that everything that is alive is part of the same thing. In the same way that flowers are different from each other, but they all belong to the same tree.

My problem is that although both concepts make sense to me, I do not feel comfortable in accepting both the concept of Oneness and the concept of a God and a Goddess. My question is, is belief in deities central to Wicca?

Thankyou so much, any help or comments are greatly appreciated. I also apologise is this is a dumb question, I am very new to all of this!
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Xiao Rong
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Re: Wicca and Buddhism

Post by Xiao Rong »

Hi Vulpixie, you may be interested in a post about non-deity centered Paganism I wrote some time back about exactly this (I also grew up an atheist, and have had a hard time accepting deities as, you know, literally real beings). I think there are a great many differing interpretations and approaches to the Divine, and I think many Pagans can simultaneously hold many different attitudes towards deities (I myself often find myself drawn to a view similar to yours, which I think is known as monism; yet I am also an animist and panentheist, and yet sometimes also work with deities as archetypes).

While I can't speak for Wicca in particular, I think it's quite possible to modify many Pagan rituals, prayers, and spells to call upon the Oneness (however you might call it; others have used the term "Great Spirit", "Life Force", "Gaia", "the Divine", etc.), or to call upon the God and the Goddess as metaphors or aspects of the Oneness, etc.
~ Xiao Rong ~ 小蓉 ~ Little Lotus ~
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AnaisStar
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Re: Wicca and Buddhism

Post by AnaisStar »

I think with Wicca it seems to be pretty strongly centered around the God and Goddess. If you dont feel that is what you want to work with, maybe Wicca is not for you. You can create your path any way you choose. You can borrow from Wicca the parts you like, and stay away from the ones you dont.

For example, I dont consider myself a follower of Hinduism, but I do honor two Hindu deities, and do borrow some stuff from that religion. I just incorporate it into my pretty eclectic path, along with a few other paths/ideas.
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BabyBear
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Re: Wicca and Buddhism

Post by BabyBear »

Hi Vulpixe :D
I had some of the same thoughts going into wicca and paganism
i originally worked with just Buddhism,, i grow up in christanity and was going to focus on wicca but ended up with buddhism at first thanks to my ex who was buddhist i figured why i studyed up on everything i would go with what i already understood and liked (Buddhism) and after studying for a couple of more years i realized that for me its best to mix what i feel i honestly believe and make my own path
see with the Buddhism Oneness i incorporate that the god and goddess are a part of everyone and anything meaning that they are the oneness also, i also just happen to believe in being helped and guided by a god and goddess (Poseidon and Artemis) and others along the way (hades, apollo, thor, freya even odin) or aspects of the oneness.

but see just like i said the ideal of god and goddess can be incorporated into the whole Oneness that because of those being everyone is connected
because many believe that the god and goddess are just the male and female energy, the yin and yang so to speak within everything and that you and everyone else are the god and goddess not any physical being, or that they are all the same just different faces for those energies, meaning that they are the physical aspect of parts of the whole Oneness.

you yourself do not have to believe that deities exist, but you also have to realize that within the oneness there are going to be different aspects that define it, just like you said with the tree there are many flowers that make up it and they all might have the same name for everyone like rose or cherry blossom (god and goddess or oneness) they might all have a difference name for each other (you, me, your parents everyone) and that deities just give those aspects a name a power to focus on, a aspect to look at.

hope this helps or give you something to think about and if you have questions about what i posted or dont understand feel free to post the you don't understand and ill try to explain it better when i get back on next (ive been sick so ill try to get on again later but make no promises lol)
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