Most of us live in a technological world. The role that technology plays in our day to day lives may vary, but some universal truths are becoming more prevalent. A smart phone is becoming as necessary as a house phone once was, internet access is everywhere, and being at least passing familiar with social media is expected.
And while some people take to technology like a fish to water, for other's it's not such an easy jump. Not everyone is well suited to the constant input and expected output of today's technological mediums. Whichever group you find yourself in, that's fine! You can have a fabulous spiritual practice, and even use technology to your personal level of comfort, without needing to go all in on any given platform.
One of the things social media has done is change how we look at privacy and our interactions with society. Twenty years ago, you might call up a friend and chat for hours about what was going on, but today many people feel compelled to post what they eat for breakfast every day. And this also translates to how we conduct our spiritual life.
When I was first learning (again, like 25 years ago...) the internet was still pretty new. Sure, it existed, and there were Pagan sites and message boards (the precursors to forums lol), but most of our social interaction was done by seeking out like minded individuals for local and face to face meetings. Informational websites existed, but most of your learning would come from books, or by finding a teacher. It was pretty rare to find online covens or study circles or even teachers.
I would consider my roots to be at the heart of the eclectic Pagan trend. Covens and established Pagan groups were a bit on the out. Not only were there some questions about how they were doing things, but there were more and more books being published, more ways for an individual to learn without having to dedicate themselves to a specific group or tradition.
But the concept of magical secrecy was still pretty big. It wasn't a big deal to share your knowledge with people you knew, but the idea of keeping your magical workings private was a given. If you were doing a spell, you weren't talking about it (at least until after it was over). Part of this was a safety thing, it was much less trendy to be a witch back then, but part of it was also just the way things were. If you had close witchy friends you might invite them over to participate in spellwork or rituals, but you definitely weren't sharing your work publicly online for anyone to see.
A lot of my early learning was done through trial and error. I knew the 'basics', and I just had to figure it out from there. There weren't dozens of apps with guided meditations for me to listen to, or sites with tarot spreads and hints, or places where I could easily look up astrological information. Yes, you could find stuff, but it took a lot more work, and the variety was a lot less.
Skip forward to today, and now I can type in tarot in my phone, and not only have a dozen free apps that will pull cards and tell me what they mean, but also sites that will walk me through learning how to read cards, step by step. I will have countless pictures of numerous decks, and lots of people who have posted their cards and readings online.
On the whole, I think this is a wonderful development. I think having this kind of information, not only available, but also out in the open is fantastic. We still have a ways to go, when it comes to true acceptance as a viable and serious religion, but more people are comfortable claiming their path now than they were 25 years ago, and that is just awesome.
But I also think it's lead to a very real sense of inferiority. Like I'm not a good enough witch if I'm not posting my altar and ritual pictures for every Sabbat (and if I'm not doing a full ritual, with all the fixings). Or I'm not a real reader if I'm not posting spreads and readings or offering to pull cards for strangers. We see all these fantastic and fabulous pictures and videos online, and sometimes we may feel like we just can't keep up.
And it's not even about doing the thing. On some level it's about not telling everyone that we are doing the thing. It's about not having the pictures to post or the video documenting the things we did. It's about not having feedback from the community, and therefore not feeling like we fully belong to the community. It's about feeling like a lurker.
For all that I'm on the computer all day (and you know...blog and stuff), I'm not a tech person. I'm really, really not a phone person. My phone pretty much sits on my desk, plugged into the wall...and when I do leave the house (which isn't that often), it mostly lives in my purse. It's there so that I can call for help if needed, but there is a good chance that if you call (or text/message me), I won't answer for like a day...because I probably missed it. I'm more likely to notice notifications on my computer than on my phone.
So, I don't really do all the social media stuff that one (apparently) does on the phone (because for those of you who are phone people, a lot of social media stuff just doesn't function well on an actual computer....try sharing anything on Instagram, you'll see what I mean!). Add in that my phone isn't the newest model, and has some funky idiosyncrasies of it's own (like saving pictures I took on my phone, onto my computer...that's a whole process, and it really, really shouldn't be). Because I spend so much time typing on a keyboard, I'd much rather do that than try to type on my phone, so if I am going to do social media stuff, it will be on the computer...which leads to all kinds of frustrations.
There are lots of things that I see other people doing that I think are amazing, and some things I would love to do. I'd love to do more posted readings, to expand my Patreon with levels of regular divination...but even the thought of taking pictures, getting them on the computer, onto the appropriate social media platform, and then writing up the reading...that just exhausts me. Also, I hate taking pictures of myself, so all those witchy lovely pictures I see other people take...the thought of doing them myself makes me cringe!
And it's taken me a while, but I've sort of come to terms with it. Whenever a new platform or trend comes out, I'm again swept up in the desire to BE more of a presence online. Part of me would love to be able to share some of the things I'm doing. I have slowly (and with much grudging resistance) expanded my posts to include stuff like altar pictures (of my indoor altar...because I don't really do the big outdoor rituals unless I'm doing group work)...and the occasional divination spread. But I will never be one of those people who posts their daily draw or everyday witchiness. And it's okay if you aren't one of those people too (or if you are)...it's all good, we need all types!
So, if you are a social media fanatic...keep posting! If you love documenting your spiritual journey, by all means, do it. The more of a presence we (as a whole) have online, the more beautiful, magical, ordinary and wholesome posts people see, the more they understand that we aren't scary or dangerous or delusional. And if you aren't someone who likes to post, that's also fine! You are still completely valid as a witch (or Pagan, or Heathen, or spiritual person), and you are still totally welcome in online spaces. Whatever your level of technological involvement, be okay with it. Don't let envy or worry make you feel like you are any less just because you don't post about what you are doing.
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