Welcome to Gaia! ::

Wow. I don't have really that much to say, but do as your heart desires. You seem as if you rather would be somewhere else, which I understand. Ask yourself, "How long do I plan on staying here?"

I agree with Neko. There is no need to "buy" his book just to perform rituals that could bring you closer to the Kemetic pantheon. As I've told you before, if you want to become closer to Bast or any other of the Kemetic deities, simply talk too them. (Not Prayer, just talking).

The very fact that you have to buy the book to participat is weird. If you are joining his group why can't he just give you a copy of the book, or at lest the ritual that you would be partisipating in. Can people outside of his group buy the book? If not, I would ask why you need to buy it.

I want to pause and examine this for a moment. First of all, it's a means to an end. The ability to perform a specific rite as outlined for a ritual is a courtesy for those you worship with no matter if you are attending a Blot, a Mystery Festival or coven. There is personal responsibility involved in this- if you are grown up enough to engage in these rites, you are grown up enough to be responsible for getting the necessary materials- be that candles, offerings, or the texts one must study in order to not mess up.

I mean really? Are we so self centered that we would enter into another's group in complete ignorance and then expect them to stumble over themselves in order to hand us their blood, sweat and insights into their tradition without a thought of paying them back for all the energy and time they spent building these relationships?

Flip the coin. Why can't you just pay the man for the effort he put into generating the material?

Here's the reality of why this perception has root in the neo-pagan scene, why people think they should have all the sacrifices others have made for their gods handed over to them on a silver platter:

A small group of the early witchcult traditions that would eventually spawn the "Byrning Tymes!" movement within the scene took two things out of context. 1) The issues Martian Luther had with indulgences issued by the Catholic Church- they misunderstood the principle behind the indulgences, and 2) they combined the idea of an all clergy theology to argue that no one should pay money for spiritual services.

This became diluted, bastardized and soiled as it spun through the scene to where the scene started to sing a mis-worded form of Timothy 6:10 as the mantra of "Give Me Free s**t!"-Spirituality.

The reality of the situation is that people deserve to be compensated for their effort. It doesn't matter if it is a doctor, a teacher, an author, a Priest.

If you do not want to buy the book- if you do not want to spend what... $30 for the ability to learn and be respectful of the individuals who are practicing, you don't belong in the group any more than you belong in a circle of Wica where you to waltz in and demand the HPS' Book of Shadows to copy before your initiation.

And you know what? That's okay. Maybe you don't have the funds. Maybe you aren't willing to part with the cash in order to show the group the courtesy it deserves. Maybe you just don't feel like you want to go without two movies and a few mochas in exchange for working with this specific group. That's fine too.

But for goodness sake- don't go around telling folks that it's weird that someone might actually not want to cast their pearls before someone they do not know is at least somewhat committed to the tradition.

Typos with dyslexia happen. ~shrugs~

Have you ever answered her with "Food and gas for the artists, renting the space and maintaining their tools?"