Technopaganism

Technopaganism is the use of modern technology or music within neopaganism and magical ritual. This can include the substitution of technology for traditional magical tools, such as using their oven for a hearth, keeping a "Disk of Shadows" instead of a "Book of Shadows", and using a laser pointer as a wand. In other practice, technology is the target of the magical work, such as the use of stones and other charms to help improve the performance of mundane items or online role-playing avatars. Modern tribal and urban primitive movements such as urban shamanism and rave culture are associated with electronic dance music.

An example of the modern merging of ceremonial magic and technology; a videoconference allows participants to practice the ritual when not physically in person

Technopaganism deals with spiritual and magical facets of technology and technological society. Associated with this is the use of technological metaphors (most often computer or telecommunications metaphors) to describe spiritual phenomena, as well as the use of symbolism from popular culture in spiritual contexts.[1]

Beliefs

When used to describe belief systems, technopaganism focuses on the spiritual side of technology. This can include the belief that technological items and artifacts of modern living - such as buildings, roads, parks, cars, and other such items - have pseudo-spirits, or totem spirits, of their own. This also extends to cities.

One belief that faces substantial objections is that the Internet itself is attaining a unique spirit. Indeed, it is the stated objective of the creator of VRML to bring about the merging of the spiritual world with the physical world.[2]

In the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the major character Jenny Calendar is a technopagan.[3]

gollark: Is this some sort of joke?
gollark: So I guess I can increase the size now?
gollark: I mean, there are already billions of those and OpenCL is wildly overkill.
gollark: Good, good.
gollark: Not even offline necessarily, just on a different, secure channel.

References
  1. Steven Vedro, "teleconsciousness"
  2. Erik Davis (July 1995). "Technopagans". Wired. Archived from the original on November 20, 2008. Retrieved May 15, 2008.
  3. "I, Robot... You, Jane". Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Season 1. Episode 8. April 28, 1997. The WB. I, Robot -- You, Jane - Buffy Episode 8 Transcript. Ms. Calendar: Mm. I don't have that kinda power. 'Technopagan' is the term.

Further reading
  • Erik Davis. TechGnosis : Myth, Magic & Mysticism in the Age of Information. Harmony, 1998. ISBN 0-517-70415-3
  • Mark Dery. "Deus Ex Machina: Technopaganism," in Escape Velocity: Cyberculture at the End of the Century. Grove/Atlantic, 1996. ISBN 978-0-8021-3520-9.
  • Raven Kaldera and Tannin Schwartzstein. The Urban Primitive: Paganism in the Concrete Jungle. Llewellyn, 2002. ISBN 0-7387-0259-5
  • Christopher Penczak. City Magick: Urban rituals, spells and shamanism. Weiser, 2001. ISBN 1-57863-206-4
  • Steven Vedro. "Digital Dharma: Expanding Consciousness in the Infosphere". Quest, 2007. ISBN 978-0-8356-0859-6.
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