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Many different ways of practicing the craft. Do you know of any differences?

What you have listed, are the religions and system of spiritual ties to the use of magick.

You can do all sorts of things without a religous overtone...

Vodunism is the beginning. Look that up, and you shall have a base for all of them.

hinduism is a religouse philosophy over in india, it is celebrated and practiced over in india,. It is the main religon of india and worship of gods and a belief of people turn to life of a different form after death. there is not really much going on with the religon Philosophy is the study of the univerese and meaning of human life. and the studie of the leaves

Wicca is the drawing of the earth's energies to use to your own will.

Voodoo, or Vodou, is mainly the use of prayer and medicines calling upon your gods and/or ancestors to do your bidding.

Shamanism could be described as a combination of both of the above. Shamanism is more about nature and gods of nature and natural things, though.

Santeria is the worship of Christian saints. It is a hybrid of Christianity and African beliefs. Worship of a patron saint is believed to get that saint to act either for or against the target of your prayers.

no i know there is Wicca and white magic and black magic if there is another i can find out from my sis and let u know

http://www.angelfire.com/mi3/tomekeeper/index.html

Wicca is not a religion defined by boundaries. Because each member of the religion is expected to descide for themselves how to worship, it is very difficult to explain. Usually some research is involved.
The rest are not all well documented but have a more narrow definition, and are easiest to look up.
I suggest search for references on the web, instead of attempting to get answers thru a forum- there is just too much information.

Pinja....reread your sources
vodoun is A beginning of some of them from south america and africa
it is NOT THE beginning of all
by provable written histories, druidry is older than vodoun, this doesn't make it factually older...just provable older
I hate it when pople try to say that this or that type of magical practice is the original one....when in fact they have NO way of knowing as written histories do not date back far enough to know which were the first pagan or tribal religions, and any who make such claims do so without the benefit of any provable source
as to the question, wicca has little to nothing to do with voodoo in any sence, hoodoo, voodoo, and santeria are all the same base concepts, communing with the spirits or LOAS to request their help or blessings in acccomplishing a goal or series of goals.
while MOST brands of wicca are a form of goddess worship with some european style ritual magic thrown in, and shamanism is part spirit communing, part ancestor worship...it goes far deeper than that...but thats a quick overview

I think the 'end' product is pretty much the same whichever route you take....all about personal belief.

I agree with you Carvall, one can spend a lifetime learning about the different religions or spiritual beliefs, but it is up to you to chose what path you may take.

I beleve with the last two post realigon is what you make of it.. The boundrys lie within each person. How far you will go to studie what you wish to learn. Or who do you talk to is all up to ones personal belefs...

The following information was taken from part of the reading material for a class on Shamanism I am currently enrolled in. It is NOT my work and credit is duly given to the author.

Shamanism isn't a religion. There are many religious sources which confuse the issue by claiming that their 'techniques' are shamanic or that they draw on shamanism as a source for their religious rituals.

One way that shamanism differs visibly from religions is in the nature of spirit belief. Just because shamans believe that everything has a spirit of its own, it does not mean shamans universally require belief in a deity, Creator, god or goddess, source of all, Great Spirit -- or any theory of origins.

A shaman is a medicine man or woman.

Shaman are spiritual beings with the ability to heal, work with energies and 'see' visions. The essential characteristics of shaman are mastery of energy and fire as a medium of transformation.

Shamanism is a range of traditional beliefs and practices that involve the ability to diagnose, cure, and sometimes cause human suffering by traversing the axis mundi and forming a special relationship with, or gaining control over, spirits. Shamans have been credited with the ability to control the weather, divination, the interpretation of dreams, astral projection, and traveling to upper and lower worlds. Shamanistic traditions have existed throughout the world since prehistoric times.

Shamanism is based on the premise that the visible world is pervaded by invisible forces or spirits that affect the lives of the living. In contrast to animism and animatism, which any and usually all members of a society practice, shamanism requires specialized knowledge or abilities. Shamans are not, however, organized into full-time ritual or spiritual associations, as are priests.

©2007. Jeanine Joanna Todd.

I never looked in to Santeria. But as far as the other 3, they'll a nature based to a point. I feel that Shamanism is the most though. Done by the Native Americans and many other cultures. Though not always called a Shaman, sometime a spirit walker, or a medicine man. But all similar. All being healers.

Wiccan is more faith based and magick based. Believing something that will happen but also does include herbal, crystal, gem studies, along with many other things.

And voodoo was always considered a form of withcraft. And very dangerous too. It can do a lot, but if used improperly, can also become a major harm to the person using it.

to me they are basically the same..i am learning the LHP and the rituals so far involves self cleansing..to each their own and i agree it can come back to bite you in the ass worse than what you did to the other person..karma is real

Wiccans I think, were people chanting incantations in order to tap into the Ultamite Energy in order to make things happen i think, or was that something else? well i do know that voodooists believe they have a spiurit who cariies out their duties and commands the living request....

I think if you have fate in your art and have talent in it. it is best to learn all you can on it

I guess the rules about how you can use the magick are different too.

Wiccans are an Earth based religion that believes that each of the quote deities is a facet for connection through prayer to the universal source. They may or may not do any more magic than a Christian does when they pray to heir god. They just tend to set up a sacred space in a circle of power for their religious rites instead of a church.

There are so many types of Wiccans that this may only describe a few. :)

There are so many flavors of paganism out there. Each individual will use a different method of magic based off personal preference and some will use magic that is in line with their heritage.

Because it is based off of "what works for the individual", most people I have run across fall under the title of "eclectic"... a generalist of sorts. Sometimes these eclectics are the "university studies" of witchcraft. I, however, specialize in my own brand that turns and changes based off what is needed at the moment.

no difference really...just there general belief structure, and the gods they attribute thier magik too...333

with each person. he or she must make and chose to walk there own path. it can be either that of enlightenment or that of the darkness. it is up to that person to make the choice of good or evil.

Would it not be odd that each, Wicca, Shaimanism, Voodoo all began at the same point in time.. Different locations but same time?

All of the things you asked about is just magick, and the only thing that is diffrent is the way they practice it...

Right RK I do agree with you there. Some religeons do practice yet they do tend to keep it under their hats to outsiders. I have seen this in some of them is why I know. Take the Masonic for example not long ago on the history channel they were talking about them and how doing things in the form of a symbol meant something.

I think you should practice it in the way that makes mo sense to you and that you feel most comfortable doing

"Romanov

Wicca, Voodoo, Shamanism, Santeria whats the difference?
Many different ways of practicing the craft. Do you know of any differences? "

I would be more apt to say how many people are there.. then you will have how many differences there are.
None more correct than the other.
That's my truth and I'm sticking to it.

Smiles.

they all share one thing in common that is belief no matter what the other parts are to them they are all used by individuals that believe in that particular thing , no one greater than the other but all seen as different

Going to add a totally different view on this. Just for fun. Feel free to comment.
Take all four of these and put a time-line on them. Then look at how each one inter-acted with the society at that time. For example:
The oldest of these religions is Shamanism. At this time of religion, it was based on a caste system. Either you belonged to this family and became a shaman like those before you or you faced exile from the village. No outsiders or someone from another caste was allowed in enter and hold a Priestly station.
As time went on private initiations took place. If you were interested and suited, and pasted tests you could partition to enter and practice this faith. Either Voodoo or Santeria.
Time pasts again and we find that the general public can not only practice their own faith but do so on their own terms! As they do in Wicca.
These are general explanations but you can clearly see that even though the spirit may be the same in these four, they also provided spirit growth and personal empowerment in those that follow them. And that, is Cool.

No matter what, all religions and or practices are one and the same, just differant uses with differant social structures. All gods and goddess's, all faiths...With the same meanings. If you really want a discussion, how about which one started it all...That should stir quite a ruccass.

Only deep memories, or fantasy, holds the original religion. Very little is known about Lemuria other than the New Age stuff. Cayce did a lot about Atlantis and its downfall. It was the introduction of the masculine god where Lemuria was goddess based. Better to keep the thread on topic.

Magic is magic, it's only in the way the individual chooses to practice it that you would find any difference.

very true magic is magic its the practicer
who holds it

They are all a personal choice. They are different in so many ways, but share some parts in common.

Look in amulets and Talismans for the rest of the post




Santeria is an earth religion a pre-Christian religion. African slaves who were brought to the Caribbean from Yoruba(northwest Nigeria) Also brought this religion which became part of Puerto Rican culture. African slaves had to deal with the Christian slave owners who not only wanted to dominate them.. But also feared this religion and looked at it as a demonic primitive religion that need to be ended. The slave owners not only changed what people must worship but also what and how they would dress and speak.

In this time anyone caught in the worship of native gods would be punished and many times by death, Africans and the native Tainos. In order to keep the religion and life, The slaves became "Christianized" at least to the slave owners. The slaves took each African god(Orisha) and renamed them after the saints. Chango the god of thunder became Santa Barbara and they kept the religion in secret. Even today the religion is kept in secret since there is still people who see it as devil worship when it's not.

There are hundreds of gods in Africa but within Santeria, many people worship 7 main Orishas. Also represents the planets: Mars, Venus, Mercury, Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune,Uranus plus the Sun & Moon. Each has his or her own colors, numbers, foods, herbs, so on. Jesus would be Olodumare or Olofin, Olorun. He would have no sacrifices, his day is Thursday and his color is all combined.

Sacrifices is a part of Santeria, Animal as well as foods and cafe...money Chances are that within your home or relative's home, You have seen the 7 day glass candles in different colors and with pictures Of the saints. Maybe a cup with old coffee and a dish full of change. Or you light candles for your dead family since we as Puerto Ricans have What is called "ancestor worship" which can be found in the African & Taino culture. We pray to our dead for help and guidance and protection. This is Santeria and Taino beliefs and not Christian beliefs.

When an animal is to be sacrificed, Its done by a priest or Babalu only. We can have altars and offer food, money, coffee, but we are not to kill an animal. Animals are used only in major situations, Such as ones life is in danger or badly cursed. With all religions, there is good and bad people.. This does not make the religion itself bad but the people who use it for harm.

Santeria isn't just about magic or voodoo, These people are the people we go to when we are sick. They know what herbs gives what effects, This is something in the African & Taino culture as well. To the church it is looked at as bad and even evil. Within the church, There is no herbs and only Jesus is the one you pray to and not the Virgin or Lazarus.

Every Puerto Rican and Latin knows to pray to Lazarus is to pray for money. This is not a Christian or Catholic belief. So in many ways we still keep our pre-Christian beliefs with us without knowing where we get them from. The Virgin brings miracles...San Jose protects her and all Virgins St. Christopher protects while we travel.

A lot of religions practice magics of some sorts. I think they all tie into the same deal though, they're all similar in the way.
I've heard that vaudun was where it started though.

I believe you should look around until you find something that reaches your heart and soul at the same time. that's what i did.

my simple humble opinion.

Voodoo is definitely different as it focuses more on the realm of the dead. Shamanism focuses more on the spiritual realm. Yes, there is a difference between the realm of spirits and the realm of the dead. I wanna know if there is a difference between Wicca and Paganism.

wicca is set by there on rules, voodoo is africain black magic and dangerous, shamanism is irish celtic magic... yjays the difference

Wicca is a variated craft focused on drawing energies. There are roughly 33 different variations of Wicca, 90% of them fluffy.

Voodoo is a magic based around separation of good and evil. It is considered a very real magic and has a tendency to work better as it works itself off of superstitions and the like.

Shamanism is an art of healing and seeing.

Santeria...hmm, never got to into that.

If you really look deep into all religions... you will find that they are all very similar..... and in their own way believe the same thing even if in complete opposites.... its something that is very simple that everyone has made extremely complex to make their religion sound more important then the next persons.....

There are MANY differences.
Oh what a question*sigh*
I am amazed no dominar (some posted here) didn`t close this thread in the first place asking you to restrain the area of responses.
There are MANY differences.One ore two more religions and we have to write you a book on that subject.
Please read a little firs and then post.
General questions require vague responses!
Please restrain the question.
Please read first about that.Don`t expect us to read and just give you the info!It`s not fair.
:)

i think they are in a certain way related, but wicca is about nature... the earth and the energy the earth provides...
I have a friend who says Santeria is bad.. because you can damage others, like in Voodoo... but i dont have a personal experience with them...

Shamanism came first and its more then anything a Animist aspect of magic. Which Shinto and severial other religions fall under this type of area.

Animists are those who believe in that all things have a spirit, or their are spirits for all things placed upon this world.

Which is why in shintoism there are Eight Million Kami (Gods).

- Sin (VII)

i believe they're all just from different cultures. they follow sort of the same rules, but have some minor differences.
just like the hundreds of cristian religions running around.
like, wiccan is more american, voodoo is more african, etc.

Wicca, has its roots in many places, mainly from Europe I believe. Voodoo, not sure the exact orgin, but Aferica is a good guess. Shamanisim is more of a general classification unless your asking about the Native American Shamanisim which is like Shintoism, Animist.

Voodoo has its own gods, the Loa and not sure what the last one on the list is.

Yet I can tell you a bit about shintoism if anyone cares.

- Sin

i find that these religions are just another tool that is used to get the mind set to be able to work magick with success,just like a wand would so to say.

it's a bit like asking the difference between catholics, Mormons, Jews, and Muslims. so many differences that really it would be easier just to list the similarities.

i think they all believe in sympathetic magic, and all are based on the principle that there are many spirits of nature all around us, and that we can interact with these spirits.

Shamanism is a very wide umbrella though, and some shamans believe in gods - whilst others don't. some believe in one god, some believe in a trinity of gods, some believe in a vast pantheon of gods, and some believe in no gods as such.

You have listed a very diverse list of religions there. I know that there are great differences between say Santeria and Wicca but whole books could be written about it. I think that the question is a little too general to get a good simple explanation in a forum. You would probably have to spend a lot of time researching these religions individually to get a good answer to that question.

I know of white magic black magic Dragon Magick wicca cletic magic and I think thats it right off the top of my head that i have knowledge about. voodoo i think started in Africa, but I'm not too sure.

This is something I've never really understood. There are so many of them out there and so many interpretations of which is what and why it's used the way they use them. Intense research would have to be done in order for me to see which one would be worth even looking into. I don't understand any of them enough.

for starters, they are different or they wouldnt have to have different names, secondly, everyone knows that wica and voodoo has nothing to do with each other. All these things are just different cultures beliefs.

I believe they are just different ways of expressing the same thing. I am personally familiar with several of the ones you mentioned and at their core they have the same base.

I agree with wat everyone has already stated and it comes down to what you want to follow.

Well here is what I have read.



Wicca - Practice involving roots, herbs, and incense. A practice of magic which came from Great Britain in the 1940's. Classified as a "folk practice."

Voodoo ~ Came from Haiti. Voodoo involves rituals with drums, dancing, herbs, sacrifices (ETC) Voodoo is a religion because they believe and worship god.

The other two I'm not sure of. I believe Santeria is a practice that came from South America in ancient times. Don't take my word on that though.

I would have to agree with a lot of the previous posts here. The main thing that I feel makes these different are the ways that you practice them as a person.

Different things practiced in different part of the world, some are older then others and different rituals involved.

I believe that they are just different ways of doing the same things depending on beliefs.

Santeria is a combo of the Catholic faith and West African beliefs...I need to study more about is - one of my sisters studied it in depth.
I borrow and enjoy bits of many beliefs...

Wicca, Voodoo, and all those have basically the same undertone, however, the diversity in the beliefs and what not is what makes them different. While they all have to do with Magick, they are far from the same. The culture ties and what not affect how they are enacted and who can do what.

Like Isis, I tend to take certain aspects of a lot of religions and use them to create my own form of religion. Organized religion is a joke, no offense, but I truly think it is.

i say look them up mate really look it up and find the difference because asking and you get a lot of different answer and none of them are wrong but when you get a lot of different answers you still end at point A and the thread would be here for nothing yeah people post and told you what they think the difference is but you will still be lost so just look them all up and find your own answer to what the difference are

They are all practices of an old tradition. They have been altered throughout time to suit the different walks of life and the area they live. None of these are the first or close to the first type of magic done. They hold many of the traits of the old traditions but are not near what the first one would have been.

their in my opinion the same thing with different ways of doing things but the principle is basically the same