Confessions of an Obligate Psychonaut

I'm a psychedelic survivor. No, wait. I said that incorrectly. I have survived because of psychedelics. There, that's better. Now, people have varying opinions about this class of drug...and all drugs which are used by some for fun and recreation. This is a big subject, and I hope to unpack it, but let me disclose …

Substance Use, Background Noise, and Reenchanting the World

I'm drinking a beer as I write this. That's not a big deal. I'm not drunk and I don't intend to have another. But I'm sitting at my local with a laptop, and I'm surrounded by a typical Friday afternoon crowd, which will swell considerably after 5:00. People in my society drink. They drink alcohol, …

Journeying in the Inner Landscape

Here at Atheopaganism, we have discussed ritual skills quite a bit. Developing the skill sets that help people to attain the Ritual State (or "trance") is key to our ability to be  effective ritualists who can transform consciousness in empowering ways. Click here to see previous posts tagged as "Ritual Technologies and Core Skills". Thus …

Happiness, Ecstasy, and Threading the Needle

I stumbled out from the trees atop the mountain, Matagalls—the second-highest in Catalonia. I was teaching at a children's language camp, and at the end of the camp we had taken a day to lead the students on an expedition to climb the peak. Cold weather had moved in and many of them had remained …

The Pagan World is Different (Adult)

This post is really meant most for those who have come to check out Atheopaganism from the atheist/skeptic community. Thus far, the material on this blog has all been "family-friendly" from the standpoint of mainstream Western society. Even my post on the 10th Principle was more cautionary than encouraging, though at its core is encouragement …