The Dangers of Dabbling With the Occult By Keith Ward At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

It is only fair to first say that there is a danger with dabbling in anything that you are not educated about. Generally speaking there are three main misconceptions the general public have about the occult. The fear of mind control, the fear of devil worship and fear of the unknown, each of which Hollywood has taken great strides to ingrain in peoples' heads.

If you are looking for answers as to whether or not there is any real fear or danger then read on.

First we need to discuss what is meant by "dabbling." This can be anything from sitting with a psychic and having a reading done, to playing with an Ouija board, to meeting with a group of people to discuss beliefs and practices. It is better to call this experimenting. There is a natural curiosity that we all have to find out what everyone is talking about. We should also draw a very clear line to distinguish the difference between occult and cult. Occult means "of, pertaining to, or dealing with supernatural influences, agencies, or phenomena." This would cover just about every religion out there that believes in a God as Gods are supernatural.

Cult can be defined as, "followers of an exclusive system of religious beliefs and practices." -- fad: an interest followed with exaggerated zeal; "he always follows the latest fads"; "it was all the rage that season" -- followers of an unorthodox, extremist, or false religion or sect who often live outside of conventional society under the direction of a charismatic leader -- a religion or sect that is generally considered to be unorthodox, extremist, or false; "it was a satanic cult" -- a system of religious beliefs and rituals; "devoted to the cultus of the Blessed Virgin."

Again, as you can see you can also group most religions under "cult" as well depending on the extremeness of the group.

There is danger in dabbling or practicing anything that impacts your life in an adverse or unhealthy way. There is good and bad in everything, there are good Christians and there are bad Christians, there are good Pagans and there are bad Pagans. When you follow a certain path of spirituality you should do so with your eyes open, never fall under the control of someone else. It is important that you remain a person of free will, which means that you are able to make decisions on your own. I find that it is just as unhealthy to believe that you are going to be condemned to an afterlife surrounded by fire and stuck in sinking mud than it is to believe that you can inflict harm on another human being and not suffer consequences.

If your intent is to do good, be a good human being and act in harmony with the nature around you then you are leading a happy and safe life. If you are going to constantly look for ways to get ahead by stepping on those around you then there is danger in your life regardless of your beliefs.

It is of the utmost importance that you educate yourself on what it is you say you believe in. Know why you feel the way you do, why you practice the things you practice. Do not base your judgment off the words of a close friend or a person you see as a leader of your movement. Instead read books, talk to others and form your own opinion. Be strong enough to exercise your free will and make decisions that are in line with being a good human being.

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