Lupa Greenwolf | Animal Magic, Neo-Paganism, & Connecting With Totems

While many of us recognize that the ancient perspective of indigenous cultures spanning throughout history has placed an overwhelming amount of importance on the connection between humans and nature, we can also acknowledge that modern Western society has divorced itself from the natural perspective.

With the intersection of nature and magic in our rear view, our isolation  leading to our justification for cruelty, destruction, and eradication of species worldwide, it appears our stewardship to Mother Earth is on the decline.

Fortunately, the importance of nature, especially in conjunction with consciousness, and the values of indigenous cultures and Pagan communities are experiencing a triumphant return to the forefront on the human psyche under the guidance of people like today’s guest.

A practitioner of animal magic and Neopaganism, Lupa Greenwolf joins The Higherside to help us reforge our relationship with the natural world.

3:00 Lupa kicks things off by walking though the pillars of her magical practice. She details the early days of cutting her teeth on the generic, Wiccan works of Scott Cunningham, her discovery of Chaos magic, and her winding path Neopaganism and Totemic magic. Greenwolf explains how in recent years, after feeling the ritualistic aspects of Paganism pulling her away from her fundamentals, such as time spent consciously connecting to nature, she has returned to the basics and her views as a naturalist pagan no longer encompass a belief in the supernatural. Greg and Lupa also discuss the totem, an archetypal being that embodies all the qualities of a given species, and the recent push from Pagans to scientifically validate their beliefs on consciousness.

13:00 With undeniable similarities among ideas and practices of indigenous cultures and the nonexistent communication among them, it’s easy to see how this respect for animals and nature may be an inherent, and subconscious piece of humanity. And, in our drive to connect and better understand how these nonhuman beings interpret the world, we tend to under estimate their role, anthropomorphize their experience, distort reality, and demystify nature. Greg and Lupa discuss the ways we misinterpret animal behavior, the need to value all species equally, and the reasons we should recognize the importance of each specie in it’s given ecosystem.

24:00 Throughout history, cultures have maintained a coexistent and codependent relationship with nature, and it is only recently that we have begun divorcing ourselves from it. With the vast majority of cultures during the history of our species incorporating animals of some kind in their ritual practice, our innate desire to reconnect with nature has prevailed. Using Paganlike rituals, today’s indigenous cultures continue to reaffirm their connection to nature, while Westerners are left trying to fill the void created by our separation from it. Greg and Lupa discuss the complicated path the Western world must take to avoid appropriating other cultural traditions and reestablish a new and unique worldview that reforges our bond to nature and minimizes our individualistic tendencies.

36:00 After covering guided meditation and other good ways to establish your totem, Greg and Lupa pivot to what comes next. Lupa describes ways to foster the relationship, such as regular interactions in neutral realms, establishing an altar or shrine, and acknowledging them during ritual practices or meditations.

42:00 After covering ‘rituals’ she has applied to her own personal practice such as volunteering and donating to important social causes like local conservation organizations, Lupa provides some personal insights she has gained from her role as a practitioner. She explains how in her attempt to overcome human consciousness and conditioning in her practice, she has gained a universal empathy and interconnectedness to the world around here.

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