Plugging in to Deity

I've been thinking a lot this week about how we as humans connect to the gods.  It started at dinner with Jack the other night, when he got me talking about agnostic paganism and how it isn't necessary to believe a deity is a Divine Being in order to work with them.

I know for many agnostic pagans, they can still connect with the gods on a psychological level, as a construct within the psyche.  The Four Queens has several fascinating videos* on her YouTube channel where she talks about how as a pantheist she connects to her gods, who she sees not as discrete Divine Beings, but more as psychological archetypes.

"Moon Witch" by MotleyMitch on Deviant Art:
motleymitch.deviantart.com/art/Moon-Witch-153505544

I think that's a really powerful concept.  I feel like as a hard polytheist who does recognize my gods as discrete Divine Beings, as greater and wiser and "bigger" than me, I can still learn from that concept.  I feel like I can use it to better understand how I connect with them now and strengthen my connection in the future.

See, I've always recognized something of myself in my gods when I meet with them on the astral plane.  I always know when it's truly them, though, by a strong feeling of ...well, divinity (not sure how else to say it!  It's a feeling I don't really have a word for.)  How strongly I see myself in them is depends a lot on things like how open or "plugged in" I am at that moment and how strongly they have decided to (or are able to) come through.

I think that the "me" I recognize in them really is a part of me.  Like, a facet of my psyche or spirit that serves as an internal concept or archetype of that deity, and that piece of me connects with my god, and that combined/connected sort of being is who I perceive.  I suspect that internal archetype also allows the gods to come through better for possession, like something they can more easily fit in to and use to their Will.

I can't know if this way of experiencing deity is permanent, or maybe it's just in place until I am better prepared or able to experience them more fully without the more relatable filter of "me"-ness.

I'm curious how other people experience their gods.  Do you see them as Divine Beings?  Do you feel like you connect to them in a similar way?



*That's 3 separate links - I highly recommend watching all 3 videos when you have time!