"Focusing on a curated selection of pagan art and artifacts, this book explains the iconography and mystic power of pagan ritual objects from around the world. Ethan Doyle White identifies three critical elementsof paganism from classical antiquity to today: polytheism, affiliation with nature, and witchcraft and divination. Fundamental symbols are identified and examined closely, and central myths and allegories are clarified to provide new insights into the philosophies and beliefs of pagans. Pagans begins with an introduction that clarifies what we mean by 'pagan.' It traces the pre-Christian origins of paganism, the development of the different aspects of pagan belief over centuries, and how materials from the pre-Christian religions of Europe, North Africa, and West Asia are built into the practices of today’s Pagans. The book is organized into three broad sections―'Ancient Ways,' 'Ritual,' and 'Community'―each containing three themed chapters. For each chapter, illustrated text is interspersed with double-page presentations of the key figures, stories, and iconography relevant to each theme. Readers will not only come to understand the many symbols that define pagan religions and practices but will also discover the beliefs and philosophies of pagans from around the world, from polytheism to pantheism and from magic and ritual to ideas about the afterlife."-- Provided by publisher.
"For more than a thousand years, a diverse range of peoples, from Ireland to India and from the Andes to Australia, have been labelled ‘Pagan’ by the Christians who encountered them. Since the twentieth century new groups have emerged – wiccans, druids, neo-shamans and heathens – who openly call themselves Pagans. But who are these Pagans and what do they believe? Which gods and goddesses do they revere? Do they worship nature? Do they practise divination and magic? From sacred plants imbued with supernatural powers to hand-carved amulets that repel evil, and from mischievous spirits of nature to holy mountains, Pagans find divine value in the natural world and spiritual significance in the material universe. Delve within these pages and examine the myriad paintings and sculptures, shrines and ceremonial objects that reveal the stories, symbols and rituals of Paganism."-- Provided by publisher.