| I have to say something somewhere *warning rant ahead* |
[Nov. 28th, 2008|01:01 pm] |
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| |  aggravated | ] |
*Note, I'm talking about gaia guild drama. It may relate back to the pagan scene in general or at least my interation therein too. I won't know till it's written.
I know that starting with Halloween and going through Christmas on gaia and other places I dwell a lot of "pagan" topics come up. I know most of them are created by misinformed people. For the most part I sit back and watch. Sometimes I add bits and pieces where I can. It doesn't generally bother me. Fluffies, harassers, and so on are usually amusing to me. It's part of the reason I can be a part of a large number of guilds and groups online, because fluff for the most part rolls off my back. I correct where I can and I move on. It isn't my beliefs what could I care?
That being said, one of my gaia guilds is really under my skin right now. There's a lot of factors involved, the first is that the guild leader has no tolerance for opinions that descent from hers.
She created this post about "dangerous stones" where she talks about stones that apparently try to suck out here soul. To me, it looks like a Mr. Dark, but Idon't know a lot about stones in general, so I ask a few questions about her experience and her sourcing.
It's all experienced based because, you know we can't trust books. Fine, I know what I'm dealing with and instead of saying anything, mostly because she's in charge of the group, I just stop posting and watch. Some people are mystified, others agree, others attempt akward jokes, it's expected. This one poster comes in and explains her take on what happened.
She said: "You are talking about the things that come out of the ground and are primarily composed of carbon, correct?
If this is the case, I would ask how a stone contains any sort of disposition other than the one we impose on it.
If I had to take my guess I would say that your experience is probably not due to intrinsic properties of the stones themselves, but of your disposition towards them. That is, if you believe that a stone is stealing your energy is it because you believe the stone is stealing your energy. "
Personally, I thought it was a pretty nice way to tell this girl that soul stealing stones are highly unlikely and perhaps what she experienced what more in her head than anything else (reasonable point to make in almost any pagan experience, not just the ones that seem completely unreasonable).
The op goes off on a huge rant about how dare this other person call her crazy. How dare she think she knew all the answers. Insert even worse What the Bleep do We Know science. Insert random insults. Insert threats to ban said member/ suggestions that closeminded people leave the guild. Ah, and a personal favorite insert experitse in energy work and insistence at this person's amateur status in this areana.
This goes on back and forth between a the angry op and a few disagreeing people (I'm included in disagreeing, I was only trying to point out that providing an alternative opinion isn't always a way to say that said person's take is wrong, only that there are more likely solutions or at least others to consider). Eventually she asserts that there is at the very least someone more right and that this venue is closed in her thread. Her thread is about dangerous stones and she isn't interested in discussing ANYTHING else that comes up here. I let things go again because, she's partially right that we've gotten off topic and because she's the guild leader.
She warns anyone else who attempts to keep up the convo and eventually mindless dribble returns. That's all fine until some poor girl comes in and says:
"Perhaps the term "dangerous" is subjective.
I don't believe that I have a "soul," first of all, so something that sucks my soul away would not be feasible.
Secondly, hematite, for instance, is "generally" (with few exceptions), a "good" stone for people. But it's horrible for me. It feels like it's trying to purify me, and I don't do purification.
I also don't do grounding, but whatever.
This isn't just the hematite I've gotten, but also hematite from friends who claim it works wonderfully well for them.
Some stones are just out to get you, and some aren't. Rarely is it that a single stone doesn't work well for everyone no matter what. "
Op comes back and is nasty to her. In her rebuttal she includes:
"Just because you "don't believe" you have a soul doesn't mean you don't. Anyways, if you didn't, a stone would be the least of your worries, for sure. Soul is our will, our emotion. Without a soul you have no free will, and would thus just be a complicated program. You can believe whatever you want, I am just pointing out that what you believe and what is real isn't necessarily the same thing."
Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. If anyone is being rude and mean when it comes to differing views, it's her. But she's the guild leader so I don't know whether or not to say something. I'll probably be banned. But the flip side is that I really want to leave the guild at this point in time. Should I quietly leave or should I just go for the jugular and call this chick out for her bull?
Meh, I have to think about it some still. |
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