Probably the largest culprit for spreading misinformation is the writing of books, and the publishing of these text - especially by certain publishing companies (rhyems with Hellan).
These Publishing companies are the devils of Paganism, if there could be such a thing. They drive what we mentally ingest. They control the very words that we read, believe, and follow. They have great power. And they are churning out a great deal of misinformation - and have been for some time.
More than that, they know how to market a book for the self-help/new-age/neo-pagan market - I mean community. They find a niche and they exploit it for every penny that it has to offer. Because we know no better, we buy buy buy.
If I could give one great word of advice here - Spirituality cannot be found in a book. Religion cannot be found in a book. The Gods and Goddesses cannot be found in a book. Only by working with your spirituality can all of these things be achieved. The best way to learn? Stick with a tradition, learn from someone who has been there. Experience.
Get your nose out of the book !
OUCH ! I just said what the book publishers don't want you to believe. I just said what they have been working sooo long and hard to try and erase ! If you dont need books - They are out of business ! You see, if you are taught to depend on books, you depend on them. if you depend on them, you need to buy their product. So they intentionally teach you to be solitaire, to be alone, that special individual. Thats part of it. The other part is that they teach you to be eclectic. meaning that you need to buy more and mmore and more books to find every little bit of what you like and dislike, so you have something to conjure up.
If a book taught a specific tradition, you would need a lot less books. If a book taught you to seek out a teacher, you would need even fewer books.
If you are a pagan and you want to write a book, follow these simple steps to produce a fantastic text of Pagan proportions!
1. Use Factual Information
2. Cite Your Sources
3. Use the 50-30-20 model - that is 50% History, 30% Tradition information, 20% Craft work
4. Do not be misleading - if you have to make something up to fill in a gap, be truthful. if you dont know - be truthful.
