Paganism

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A place for pagans of all shapes and sizes to discuss their faith and practice.

No bigotry of any sort will be allowed. That means NO FOLKISM.

Please keep the discussion respectful and pagan centric. You don't have to be a pagan to participate, but you must respect its adherents and tenets and keep the discussions relevant to paganism. Paganism is an umbrella term for a very diverse range of religious and spiritual beliefs, so please be inclusive and accepting of people's differing beliefs and opinions.

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Any good recommendations for books (or other sources) on pagan traditions and beliefs? (lemm.ee)

submitted 8 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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I'd br interested in what you'd consider a good book (or other sources) on various pagan beliefs and traditions that you would recommend.

I'm personally interested in European pagan traditions - be it Norse, Celtic, Germanic, Slavic (bonus points for Slavic!) - but would love to leave the topic open to others as well, just to make it interesting for people with different intrests.

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago (1 children)

That's too broad so I'll pretend you asked "What are some sources to learn about authentic Slavic paganism?"

As with all things paganism, beware of claptrap; there's always someone talking shite with no citations. Watch for American or English people with no qualifications in history, linguistics, or archæology, and no peer-reviewed publications who overuse the words "spiritual" and "nature".

Everything always comes from primary sources, though primary sources are usually inaccessible to most people. In the Slavic case, there's quite a bit of archæological evidence (idols like the Zbruch Idol), and texts like the Russian Primary Chronicle and the letopis genre, and oral folk evidence.

The evidence from historical linguistics (e.g. gods' names preserved in modern words) was best analysed by Roman Jakobson in Volume VII of his collected works.
Chapter VIII of Marija Gimbutas's The Slavs is about religion and is 20 pages long – worth a read regardless of what you think about Marija Gimbutas.
Linda J. Ivanits' 1989 book Russian Folk Belief (on annas-archive dot org as an epub) is a grand little general work, covering the bases: Slavic creation myths, witchcraft, all based on interviews/oral tradition.
Encyclopædia Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Slavic-religion
The Mythology of all Races is one of the go-to sources I listed here and has a section on Slavic Mythology: https://archive.org/details/mythologyofall03gray
Modern Paganism in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives (on annas-archive dot org): Chapter Six, The Revival of Ukrainian Native Faith, is about 30 pages and covers neopaganism
Studia Mythologica Slavica seems to be the main journal on the subject, correct me if I'm wrong. Articles in English and Slovenian: https://ojs.zrc-sazu.si/sms – You can search the journal, e.g. a search for the god Triglav

There's a bunch more if you can speak Polish or Russian.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

That's too broad so I'll pretend you asked "What are some sources to learn about authentic Slavic paganism?"

You found me out. That was the question that promted me, but I made it a bit broader as the other traditions would interest me as well, though I'm of Slavic descent so this is something I have greater interest in.

I also figured Slavic stuff is niche within a niche, so rather than ending up with a thread with no answers, might as well ask more broadly for others to find something nice for them amd me possibly broadening my horizons,

Anyway, thanks for the tips!