A sensitive appreciation of “other” gods helps us understand our own relation to “our” and “their” gods. Personally I don’t feel I own any of them – drawn to one, not the other, but trying my best not to appropriate any. It is like inviting a woman to a meal, for example – she may say yes or turn it down. I can always try again!

I think the cultural context of a god can help us understand him better, and this is why I enjoy studying folklore and languages.

Like you I am not drawn to the “idol worship” of mass movements. I am more interested in getting to know a god through study and introspection, as well as talking to people who sincerely follow that god, say Odin.

What will be the building of a temple of Odin be like in a German city like Berlin?

All the best with your journeying forth and within!

There is a lot in so-called Hinduism (a category ‘invented’ by English colonialists) that is great, wise & admirable. I have especially an interest in LHP Tantra & Advaita Vedanta. However, the Hindus I met were rather ‘conservative’, if not even prude. I never asked them, but I didn’t have the impression they would have liked the idea that I did Ganesha invocations for chaos magick.

I know that they are buliding a huge Ganesha Temple in Berlin, but also here I had the clear impression that these Hindus believe in Ganesha as a reality (like Kristjans believe in Christ) and I would feel rather out of place, when these guys worship their God(s). If I may be absolut honest: When I read about these Ganesha worshippers from Berlin I felt very strange. I had the strange feeling (not the rational thought) that these are THEIR Gods, not mine. This doesn’t mean that I cannot ‘work with’ Ganesha in a chaos magickal way, but somehow it felt ‘wrong’. I had the impression that I just ‘use’ this God for my own ends, rather than feel real appraisal for Him. This has been already a critique that ex-chaos magician Phil Hine stated in an interview. However, I’m not a purist & I would work with Ganesha again, if I considered it ‘necessary’. I was thinking recently about Freyr after Henry has written about Him some time ago. I believe that Freyr can achieve the missions (at least the worldly ones) that Ganesha is the patron of.

Weird topic, isn’t it? I have to think about all that…

Thanks, Volksfreund.