Popular fantasy-fiction and childhood fairy tales have taught us a certain
view of what constitutes magic. Popular psychology discusses the concept
of "magical thinking", or unconnected cause-and-effect thinking (such as
"if I do A then B will result" with no concrete connection between cause
and effect) as a barrier to true psychological growth. Many of us have
memories of magic that responds immediately and concretely to our
workings. What do all three of these have in common? All three of these
descriptions do not accurately describe what magic is and how it works on
Planet Earth.
Universe
Posts from across the community. New members are part of the Universe too — the dust and gas of the Nebula simply obscure them from view until they reach a certain luminosity. When they graduate, everything they have written shines through here.
[Ed: This was originally written in a discussion about the vampire
community, but the concepts apply equally well elsewhere]
Well, that should get someone's attention. If there is anyone listening.
One can have awareness of and sympathy for another's suffering without
concluding that it is one's God-given right to step into that person's life and rearrange it according to our own standards. judgments and desires.
How do you recognize leadership in a community that is inherently
highly diverse and geographically distributed? Traditional models of
leadership don't seem to map well to the Otherkin community. In large
part, the Otherkin community is composed of highly individualistic people,
many of whom have a distinct dislike for traditional authority figures.
When you combine this with the sheer geographical spread of the
community members, the resulting situation presents serious challenges
to a traditional model of leadership.
There is a certain bias in the occult community concerning fantasy. I
understand it, for I have it, too. When someone speaks to me of an idea or
concept, no matter how potentially valid, if it turns out that their source
of inspiration was a novel, a movie, a game -- then I am less inclined to
listen to anything else they have to say.
"Am I 'Kin?" or some variation of it is a question that is asked quite
frequently on Otherkin lists and boards. The thing is, it can't be
answered. At least by me or anyone else except the person asking the
question. So it is time to turn the question back instead of answering
it. Are you 'Kin?