Basic Beliefs (your God has a 9 inch what?)

Lets start by saying this, you can believe what you like about Paganism, I'm not gonna tell you who is what and such. Now, there are probably more Goddesses and Gods associated with Paganism then you could shake a big stick at.

To be honest the basic belief of most Pagan 'Pantheons' (meaning a sect or culture. Such as Egyptian, Greek and Norse are examples) follow the principle that there is a Goddess. She created everything and is therefore the mother of everything. However, she couldn't do this alone and a God followed her, aiding her in everything she did. He is usually ritually sacrificed in some way (Osiris for example), but always comes back. There are then usually Goddesses and Gods that are in charge of certain areas of the respective world, feelings and acts. They also usually have statues and corresponding festivals associated with them. The various Goddess' and Gods are called upon for help in everyday tasks and around various times of year dependant on their use.

Mostly belief systems are based around how the world began and moral stories. These stories are passed down through the generations and retold by the eldest of the group, around the fire or at festivals. This is why it's hard to research most of the Pagan beliefs and a lot of them could have been lost over the ages. Word of mouth can be lost very easily and our ancestors were not ones for detailed analysis' of everything they did, the best you got were pots and pans. So everything we know now came from writing on the walls, Egyptian texts and very very lucky accounts of people passing on by word of mouth. However, we have probably lost so much more to the ages.

Now. Pagan beliefs seem to follow a matriarchal system. The women of the group were, not in charge so to say, but were seen as perfectly equal. Their input was highly thought of, as their wombs created life. Men, were equal. They hunted and gave the women their children. No-one was higher than the other. This is the same in any ritual working if you join a coven and when doing your work. But more on that in another episode.

Some beliefs had more Goddess' and Gods than others. Some only had the Goddess and God, others had a Goddess/God for everything, down to Nataero the Roman God of lost things.

And to another important point, the afterlife. Most pagan religions believe in reincarnation and an afterlife you go to, 1 while you're reflecting on the lessons of your old life and waiting to come back to earth, and 2 when you have learned all you can from your time on earth. In Wicca this is called the Summer-lands. A blissful place where you can celebrate or relax eternally. But there are differences from religion to religion.