what do pagans believe

Paganism is a spiritual movement consisting of various groups practicing nature-based polytheistic religions, loosely based on the religions of the ancient world. Pagans view the world as a place of joy and life, not of sin and suffering, and believe that the divine is here with us in the natural world, not in some faraway place in the sky. Pagans believe that nature is sacred and that the natural cycles of birth, growth, and death observed in the world around us carry profoundly spiritual meanings. Pagans understand deity to be manifest within nature and recognize divinity as taking many forms, finding expression in goddesses as well as gods. Goddess worship is central in paganism. Pagans tend to be earth-conscious and hold a deep reverence for nature and the earth. Human beings are seen as part of nature, along with other animals, trees, stones, plants, and everything else that is of this earth. Most pagans believe in some form of reincarnation, viewing death as a transition within a continuing process of existence. Pagans generally do not proselytize, and while classes and retreats may introduce people to the path, the initiative to practice is with each individual. Pagans might perform a wide variety of spiritual exercises on a daily basis, though probably no two Pagans practice their faith exactly the same way. Ultimately, Paganism is about reconnecting back to the natural world, and a belief that all living things interact in a natural symbiosis.