Bleidd Mawr

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Everything posted by Bleidd Mawr

  1. Happy New Year! or Blyddyn Newydd Dda! In Welsh I hope everyone has a great 2017
  2. I work with a deity as a "spirit guide," but I do not worship any deities or consider them as authority figures. I fully believe that someone can be a spiritual and moral person without worshiping or believing in a God at all I feel I have found some answers, but not all the answers. And the answers I do have may work for me, but they may not work for anybody else Blessings, Bleidd Mawr (Great Wolf)
  3. Hello everyone, I was watching the ABC sitcom THE REAL O'NEALS on demand. the episode that aired 12/13.They were announcing the winners of a multi-church Christmas choir contest where the main rivals were a Catholic and an Episcopalian church. At the end, the MC announced that the winner of the contest was The Universal Life Church. One of the main characters (a teenage gay Catholic) remarks something like, "Oh, we forgot about the gays!" I am gay myself, but I thought it was odd they identified the ULC as a gay church, especially since many Episcopalian churches are also gay friendly. But in any case, the mention of ULC caught my attention Blessings, Bleidd Mawr (Great Wolf)
  4. Thank you, Jonathan. I totally agree I am interested in what others believe (or don't believe), and I feel that there are many paths equally as valid as my own. The universe is a big place, and there are many possibilities
  5. Hello Jonathan, You are quite right. I take things a bit further in the scope of my spiritual path, but I am not asking that others endorse my beliefs in the metaphysical or supernatural. My path is what works for me, but I concede it may not make sense to others. I practice a form of Reiki influenced Celtic Shamanism. The wolf is my primary power animal, and I attempt to emulate qualities associated with the wolf. I practice shamanic journeying (comparable to astral projection) where I visit other worlds (planes of existence). On these journeys my spirit travels in the form of a wolf. While I choose to believe my spirit actually leaves my body, others may choose to believe I am visiting an internally created mental landscape. In any case, I find the practice to be beneficial
  6. Hello all, I have been a member since 2011, but I post infrequently. I have lurked more than I have posted. Initially I presented myself as full-on werewolf (sans physical transformation, of course). I softened my public position a little because I felt I might alienate people. I thought others would not bother to look at the "method" behind my "madness" (or lunacy if you will, connotation intended). But I have decided to embrace the werewolf and not dance around the issue. If anyone has questions about how I function as a werewolf, I will be happy to answer them. I also have made previous posts which explain my path. To avoid confusion, I would also mention that my current icon, a red pentagram, is a nod to its association with werewolves as "the mark of the beast." I am not a Wiccan, although my path is decidedly Pagan. (I do sometimes use a triskele as a symbol of Celtic Paganism.) In any case, I do not mind good natured ribbing, references to Twilight or dog biscuits, etc. But I just wanted it known that when I refer to myself as a werewolf, I am not joking. To me, some of the things that others believe seem as (or even more) fantastical than what I do. But I believe others are free to believe as they wish, and I hope I would be extended the same courtesy. BTW, I do not mean to give the wrong impression. This is a wonderful community here at the ULC Forum, and I have never encountered any real problems. Actually (in the past) my homosexuality provoked more of a reaction than my stating I was a werewolf Blessings of Lludd-Mars, Bleidd Mawr (Great Wolf)
  7. Hi Cuchulain, I just doubted that many people would have seen the word "awenydd" before, much less know how it is translated I figured with your profile photo you probably would If people innocently misuse a title it's one thing and can be overlooked, but if they intentionally misuse it as a form of derision or sarcasm that's another matter.
  8. I just wanted to comment that I am changing my title under my icon from werewolf to Awenydd. The werewolf thing is fun, but I feel it might cause others to believe I am not serious about my religious path which is not the case. The path I follow of is that of the Celtic Shaman. I am aware that the word shaman (saman) originally applied specifically to the Tungus people in Siberia, but for good or ill it has become applied in a broader sense to animistic practices across the world. I do not shrink from using the word shaman, but there is a more culturally specific term used in Wales that was roughly equivalent. The term was Awenydd which can be translated as "inspired one." Here is a quote from Giraldus Cambrensis writing in 1194: "There are certain persons in Cambria, whom you will find nowhere else, called Awenyddion, or people inspired; when consulted upon any doubtful event, they roar out violently, are rendered beside themselves,and become, as it were, possessed by a spirit. They do not deliver the answer to what is required in a connected manner; but the person who skilfully observes them, will find, after many preambles, and many nugatory and incoherent, though ornamented speeches, the desired explanation conveyed in some turn of a word: they are then roused from their ecstasy, as from a deep sleep, and, as it were, by violence compelled to return to their proper senses. After having answered the questions, they do not recover till violently shaken by other people; nor can they remember the replies they have given. If consulted a second or third time upon the same point, they will make use of expressions totally different; perhaps they speak by the means of fanatic and ignorant spirits. These gifts are usually conferred upon them in dreams: some seem to have sweet milk or honey poured on their lips; others fancy that a written schedule is applied to their mouths and on awaking they publicly declare that they have received this gift." I am not changing my screen name, Bleidd Mawr, which means "Great Wolf" (great as in big or large) because the wolf is my primary spirit animal (along with the osprey and dolphin). I may be replacing my werewolf icon with an appropriate Celtic symbol, most likely a triskelion (triple spiral). Blessings Bleidd Mawr
  9. I do not mean to fall off of the esoteric deep end by posting this, but I am curious to hear other people's opinions. A psychic once said I was not a human. I was told I was from another galaxy and was only here on Earth to witness the changes as Earth ascends into a higher plane of existence. I naturally took this with a grain of salt, but I have heard of "starseeds" before. (According to the starseed concept a lot of people here have souls or spirits that originate on other planets.) As I have stated elsewhere I practice a form of Celtic Shamanism and travel as a wolf spirit when going on shamanic journeys. I believe that I am traveling to other dimensions or planes of existence when I do this. It is my belief that concepts of the Underworld, Heaven, and Hell are ways of describing other dimensions or planes. I have read paranormal and cryptozoological discussions of aliens, demons, angels, bigfoot, chupacabras, and werewolves that suggest that some of these creatures are extra-dimensional visitors. (Where is Dana Scully when you need her?) Anyway, I have this paranormal stew of ideas floating around in my head and sometimes I come up with bizarre thoughts. I was half-dreaming and remember thinking what if I am an extraterrestrial canid (dog-like entity) here to drink Bahama Mamas while watching the Earth evolve into a higher state of consciousness? What if being a shamanic wolf spirit is just a different way of interpreting this? I am a fan of the show Ancient Aliens, and they frequently suggest that our myths and folklore were just the result of the way our ancestors interpreted extraterrestrial contact. BTW, before anyone else mentions this, I do not practice drug-induced shamanic journeys. I enter a trance state by listening to music, and the strongest substance I might be under the influence of is caffeine I am not claiming that any of this is true, but it's just one of those "things that make you go hmmmm." I know this topic may be a little far out, but I thought it would perhaps be fun to discuss. If anyone else has stories related to these subjects, please share them.
  10. I was posting here for a brief period in 2011. I stopped posting but I have still lurked from time to time
  11. Happy Halloween to everyone ! Happy Samhain (Irish) or Nos Galan Gaeaf (Welsh) to all the Celtic Witches and Pagans ! I'm on my way out to howl at the moon .
  12. Hi everyone. Although currently I currently describe myself as a Celtic shaman (with some Native American elements), in 1998 I was studying Wicca with the Order of the Crystal Moon. The High Priest and Priestess were both ULC ministers, and this prompted me to check into ULC myself. I became ordained in August of that year. A few years later I performed my sister's wedding here in Florida after registering at the county courthouse as a premarital counseling provider. (My ULC ordination certificate allowed me to do this .) My spiritual path has taken some twists and turns over the years. Because of ULC's open attitude to all faiths, it has remained a constant in my life over the past 13 years.