Why did you become a Pagan or Heathen? Why are you still a Pagan or Heathen? Why will you be a Pagan or Heathen in the future? Why really is my favourite question and this element is the very soul of a marriage between Why and Paganism and Heathenry. This is the exception I spoke of previously when I described a pervious element of praxis as perhaps the most subjective. This is the exception because it is also the most personal; it is the soul to go with the heart. Knowing why you became a Pagan or Heathen does not directly affect the rest of your praxis, nor does it really play much of an active role in the pursuit of your praxis. What it does do however is provide you with the motivation to keep going and determine why you do some things as part of your praxis and not other things.
This is something different to the reason why you came to Paganism and or Heathenry. Those are no less valid reasons, but they are from a different part of you. In many respects the reason why is the truest representation of who you are at your deepest level. The reason why is the reason one Pagan or Heathen won’t curse and another will, the reason one Pagan or Heathen focuses entirely on healing practices and another on divination. I couldn’t really say whether this element is the most personal or not because it isn’t something that comes up very often and therefore can’t really be examined in any meaningful way. Even people saying ‘no I won’t share because…’ would mean something.
The nature of this one is such that not everyone is going to know their reason why at any given moment. I know mine, I’m fairly certain, but I think and contemplate a lot. There have also been things that have helped along the way to knowing.
