Auroch is fearless and greatly horned,
A very fierce beast, it fights with its horns,
A famous roamer of the moor, it is a very courageous animal.
Continuing our series examining modern pagan practice via the Elder Futhark, we move on to the second rune, Uruz. As with Fehu, the rune-poem above gives us a place to start.
Modern interpretations of this rune center around two basic ideas: Wild energy, and primordial chaos. And modern-day paganism has plenty of both to discuss - it would not be a stretch to say that Uruz better describes the state of most of the last century of neo-pagan religion than any other rune.
To discover the wild energy of modern-day paganism is not terribly difficult: wander around most pagan festivals at night and you will find many people acting with wild abandon - singing (even those who refuse to sing in daylight), dancing frenetically, drumming with more energy than steadiness, wearing little or no clothing, consuming mind-altering substances, and enjoying sexual activity. Indeed, you will find many attendees at such festivals are effectively nocturnal while at festivals, because for them this is the primary purpose of going to a festival, bursting past any inhibitions that society might impose on them in order to experience their true selves unchained. Festivals frequently advertise this idea in their marketing materials: "Come to ______ and be free to finally be yourself!"
A question comes up when somebody raised in more somber religious traditions encounters this kind of behavior: "Are you really engaged in spirituality, or are you just using that as an excuse to have a giant party? Where's the hymns, the prayers, the reverent poses, the fancy hats?"
The Spiritual Practice of Frenzy
Spirituality from a place of wild abandon rather than somber reflection is definitely not a new idea. Among the first documented versions of this behavior is the ancient Greek maenads (and similar Roman bacchantes), where often-respectable women would go out into the woods, get very inebriated, engage in frenzied dances, and so forth. Anthropologists have encountered similar concepts among traditional animist religions, particularly in Africa. Even in Christian circles, one might find religion-as-frenzy in revivalist churches. Many modern-day pagans, particularly female-identified pagans, see themselves as the heirs of the maenads, with women finally able to act as they choose rather than being confined to a particular role of housewife or mother.
The general idea is that frenzied activity, especially combined with mind-altering substances, can break the self-imposed and societally-imposed boundaries on one's behavior and even one's conscious thinking. Pushing through those boundaries leaves a person with nothing left but their own personal essence and deepest-held beliefs, which can most certainly lead to spiritual enlightenment.
Party Time! Excellent!
The personalities of people who find wild abandon most attractive in a spiritual context tend to be those who enjoy engaging in wild abandon in a non-spiritual context as well as a spiritual context. Those who choose to get drunk and/or stoned at festivals are often the same people that would choose to get drunk or stoned at home if the opportunity presented itself. Those who enjoy sexual freedom at festivals also find joy in sexual freedom in their everyday lives. In some cases, that is because the person in question went to a festival, tried something they had never considered doing before, enjoyed it, and incorporated that into the rest of their lives. In other cases, the person in question always enjoyed that sort of behavior, discovered that the pagan festival scene was a place where that behavior was not only tolerated but celebrated, and thus the party led to the religion rather than the other way around.
It would not be unreasonable to assume that at least a portion of those hanging around the pagan festival scene are there for the chance to party in an unrestricted environment. This is a similar impulse to those who show up at music festivals with only a passing interest in actually listening to the music - it is always about more than its ostensible purposes. These folks, however, might just discover spiritual meaning by accident.
So Which Is It?
Probably some of both. Since pagan religion for the most part teaches that activities that make you feel good are good, and many people find that that kind of partying makes them feel good, suffice to say that the complete compatibility of religion and what these folks would want to do anyways makes pagan religion very attractive to those that enjoy wild abandon.
Dangers
The kind of freedom that this environment creates is not all fun and games, though. There are real concerns that need to be paid attention to:
- Ignoring the needs of non-partyers: If your festival is organized by those who enjoy wild abandon, it is easy to forget that there are some who do not find that enjoyable or freeing, and find their true self in different activities. Wise festival organizers create quiet zones so that those who are not up all night engaging in Dionysian wild abandon can get a decent night's rest.
- Children: Kids are often not legally allowed to participate in the kinds of activities we are talking about. Teenagers in particular may need extra supervision, because their judgment is not as developed as adults on average.
- Coercion and social pressure: It is not uncommon for those who find meaning in wild abandon to push for others to join them, even if those others do not wish to engage in the same sort of activity. Younger women in particular are often pressured to engage in nudity and/or sexual behavior that they really would rather not, even after stating unequivocably that they do not wish to take part. While festivals certainly allow younger women the same rights and freedoms as anyone else, resources and safe spaces should be available for those who choose not to.
- Health and Accidents: Frenzied people around a large fire lends itself to people being set on fire. Frenzied people in the woods at night lends itself to injuries. Sexual activity without appropriate precautions lends itself to STDs and unexpected pregnancies and relationship issues. And of course some forms of chemically-induced frenzy are addictive. Smart festival organizers make sure that some non-frenzied people are around to ensure the safety of others.
The above was not an exhaustive list, by any means. Just know that there is a cost that must be paid.
As a religion, neo-paganism is still very much in its infancy. Modern paganism as we know it is not even a century old (even if some of its roots go deeper). For comparison's sake, Christianity lacked even a working definition of what it meant to be a Christian for the first three centuries of its existence, and lo and behold modern neo-paganism finds itself in much the same place: there is still much debate about what a working definition of what it means to be a neo-pagan, and attempts at developing that definition have run into serious conflicts.
In addition, with a general lack of established organizations, there is a trend of leaders heading every which way rather than leading in the same general direction. There are strong economic forces pulling leaders in this direction - if they take a different angle on how to do pagan religion, they are better able to differentiate themselves in the marketplace, improving their chances of selling books and materials, getting invites to speak at festivals, and so forth. There are also egotistical reasons a leader might do this - after all, would it not be a great legacy to be The Founder of the Faith (TM) that ends up lasting centuries after your death and influencing millions or even billions of lives? And with many organizations operating more as personal fiefdoms or even for-profit businesses than non-profit churches, the tendency is that rather than unseating a leader, a would-be replacement leaves and founds their own group.
There is a certain value to this if it is approached with more a spirit of experimentation, where groups are learning what is effective organizationally, materially, and spiritually. We will never know what a Tolkein-mythos-focused ritual feels like until somebody tries it, for instance. However, this chaos is not without cost, among them:
- Wasted Physical Resources: If there is an established group with a worship space and a bank account and other material goods, and that group breaks up, the new group(s) often lack access to all that stuff and have to start from scratch again. This leads to organizations being poorer.
- Witch Wars: During a group split, the leader of the faction that split off often tries to recruit from their former group. Meanwhile, the leader of the older group tries to keep their group together by trying to prevent them from joining the new group. In either case, it can frequently escalate to spells, insults, and worse, as each leader competes with each other.
- Loss of Institutional Memory: Organizations learn a great deal about how to run a successful organization. When a new organization is formed with a new leadership, they do not have access to that knowledge, be it "this policy really helps" or "avoid giving Joe power, he talks a great game but causes serious trouble".
- Sociopathic Leaders: Sociopaths are drawn to chaotic environments where they can set themselves up as leaders without demonstrating good leadership skills. Some who become known as pagan leaders fall into this category, and can seriously abuse their power, especially with newer seekers.
- Lack of a Public Voice: If a media organization wants a statement from "the pagan community", who do they call? Odds are, there is not a clear answer. Compare that to, say, most religions that have either a qualified and approved clergy-person or at least an office with a marketing team.
There have been many attempts to try to deal with this problem. Unfortunately, most attempts at pan-pagan organization have the effect of attempting to impose the views of the leader of those attempts on everyone else (e.g. attempting to make Triple-Goddess worship or gender binary a fundamental part of what it means to be pagan). What will probably end up happening is closer to "survival of the fittest", where a few organizations that have made wise-enough decisions to survive and grow will end up eventually representing the majority of the religion, similar to how the chaos of Protestantism has mostly distilled itself into a few "mainline" denominations that basically agree on the core of their faith.
In both the microcosm of exploring ones' personal freedom in pagan ritual space, and the macrocosm of the general disorganization of the neo-pagan community, what we see is that paganism is relatively untilled ground or undeveloped territory. That creates tremendous opportunity for experimenting and growth. It also fosters confusion, danger, and conflict. What these discussions suggest is that a balance must be struck between reveling in the chaos and controlling the chaos for productivity to ensue. Wild bovines can do a great deal of fertilizing the land, but also pose a significant risk to those around them.
The burst of chaos that so energized the pioneers of paganism will likely fade over time as organizations are established, rules are put in place, and enforcement of policies increases. This will likely be seen as a loss of energy or vibrancy among those who revelled in that chaos, but it is in fact a sign that collectively we are putting down roots and heading towards growth.
So, to truly embrace the power of Uruz in modern times, take part in the chaos as you choose. To the degree you choose not to take part, do the hard work of keeping safe those who are in the frenzy. If need be, take turns who is frenzied and who is not. Honor both those who tried seemingly-crazy activities that worked, and those who work hard to ensure that the wilds do not encroach on the village.
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