Friday, August 20, 2010

Kickboxing Geisha


I love books that have a strong application to magic or the Pagan community, without being written directly for them.
Gender studies have always fascinated me, and this one in particular was both an entertaining and eye-opening read.
In the context of a highly structured society, the women within it casting off expected roles to pursue something more in line with their desires than secretary and housewife is inspiring.
The crossover?
This isn't a storybook in which success and a happy ending are guaranteed for our hero. Making those giant, scary, unprecedented steps to a more authentic version of self and speaking of the journey can certainly draw parallels to the modern practitioner, particularly those with Goddess-centric spirituality.
In later chapters, the author delves into an interesting side effect. More men are feeling free to pursue the path (in life and career) that vibes more closely with their soul than the traditional salary man and provider role, due in large part to their female trailblazing colleagues.
Too often I meet people within the Pagan community that fear their own power and the consequences of it's exercise. This book, to me, spoke of a healthy display and movement of power without the bogeyman of a cautionary tale. As you free yourself, you allow others to do the same.
Just like us, this community of unconventional men and women are finding their way and testing the waters.

Quick question for my lovely readers: How how you seen the evolution of gender roles within the Pagan community over your years of practice? How have things changed, stayed the same, and how have you evolved within that context, for positive or negative?


-Carmin

1 comment:

Amanda L said...

I haven't really been a major part of the pagan community; always more of a solitary person and practitioner. But what I've seen in myself, personally, is that I'm able to have a very good balance within myself of feminine and masculine roles. An internal equivalent of the external pride prejudice and zombies women who pick up their skirts and kick a zombie in the face!