Modern Animism Radio, a holistic spiritual path

There’s a kind of poverty that never shows up on a bank statement. In this episode, we begin Arc 3: Mental Poverty. We look at three ways the mind gets narrowed: by scarcity, by a world built to grab our attention, and by the stories our families hand down.
We explore the “bandwidth tax,” the research showing how scarcity crowds out reasoning and imagination. We also look at how overwork and distraction cut us off from the living world, and how animist practice can retrain attention. Finally, we turn to the inherited beliefs behind “people like us don’t...” and to ancestors as a source of both burden and wisdom.
You’ll leave with three simple practices:
Making room for possibility
Finding a sit spot outdoors
Sorting the beliefs you’ve inherited
https://pansociety.net

What if poverty isn’t only about what you’re missing, but about what you’ve been cut off from?In this episode, the start of our second arc, we look at physical poverty through an animist lens. We begin with the body as the first land we ever live on, and what hunger and housing insecurity do to our bond with it. Then we follow the river upstream to the systems behind poverty: land taken, resources extracted, and people bound by debt. We ask a strange question along the way: what if systems have spirits? Finally, we turn the mirror on wealth. Why do so many people with more than enough still feel empty? And what can communities with very little teach us about the webs of care that make a life feel alive, without romanticizing hardship?The episode closes with a simple three-part practice for reconnecting with your body, the land and each other. It costs nothing, and you can do it anywhere.In this episode:🌱 The body as the first land we inhabit🍞 What chronic hunger teaches the body to stop asking for🏠 Why housing is the ground a life gets built on⛰️ Land dispossession, extraction and debt as causes of poverty🌀 Gift vs. debt, and the spirit of a system🏚️ Wealth without aliveness: why things can’t love you back🤝 Thick webs of mutual care, and the cost of themAbout Pan Society:Pan Society explores animist spirituality and the many paths people take to reconnect with the sacred. Subscribe for more conversations on modern traditions, nature-based practice, and spiritual sovereignty.👉 Subscribe for more on animism and earth based spirituality~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Join our tribe! You're welcome here.https://pansociety.net~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What does it actually mean to be poor? Most of us only think about money, but there’s more than one way to go hungry.In this first episode, we introduce the four poverties: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. Through an animist lens, we explore a world made of relationships rather than things, where wealth is measured by how deeply you’re connected to your body, your mind, your people, the land, and the sacred.We look at how scarcity shapes the mind, why “never enough” grips people at every income level, and how a Lakota tradition turns our idea of wealth upside down. In Lakota culture, the richest person is the one who gives the most away. We explore the giveaway: what it is, what it does for a community, and why the U.S. government once tried to stop it.We close with a simple practice to give you a taste of a different kind of wealth.In this episode:The four kinds of poverty, and why we only count oneAnimism: living in a world full of personsThe scarcity mindset and the feeling of “never enough”The Lakota giveaway and wealth as a flow, not a pileThis week’s practice: give something awayReflection question: Who is the richest person you know, and what are they actually rich in?About Pan Society:Pan Society explores animist spirituality and the many paths people take to reconnect with the sacred. Subscribe for more conversations on modern traditions, nature-based practice, and spiritual sovereignty.👉 Subscribe for more on animism and earth based spirituality

What is an aswang, and why does it still frighten people across the Philippines? In this episode, Karl looks at Philippine mythology through its most notorious creature. He covers the many types of aswang, the misconceptions around them, and how centuries of colonization changed the way Filipinos understand their own folklore.Karl explains how myths shape communal fears, hold communities together, and form cultural identity. He shows how diverse ethnolinguistic traditions are across the archipelago, and he explores how scholars and practitioners are working to reconstruct pre-colonial beliefs. He also considers how movies, TV, and pop culture have reshaped the aswang, and why it matters to approach indigenous myths and practices with respect.📌 Chapters00:00 Introduction to Philippine Mythology and the Aswang03:49 Cultural and Societal Fear of the Aswang09:00 Types and Characteristics of Aswang Creatures15:11 Historical Influence of Colonization on Folklore19:58 Folklore as a Tool for Community and Identity26:09 Reconstructing Pre-Colonial Beliefs and Traditions29:58 Media, Popular Culture, and the Perception of Myth34:53 Respecting and Reconnecting with Indigenous MythsIf you enjoyed this conversation, like, subscribe, and share your own aswang stories in the comments. Which region’s version did you grow up hearing?#Aswang #PhilippineMythology #FilipinoFolklore #PreColonialPhilippines #FilipinoCulture #Manananggal #PhilippineHistory #decolonize Contact Karl Gaverza@phspirits - both Facebook and Instagramphspirits@gmail.com
Get Mythica Obscura here: https://link.amazon/B0g5ukfRCAbout Pan Society:Pan Society explores animist spirituality and the many paths people take to reconnect with the sacred. Subscribe for more conversations on indigenous folklore, nature-based practice, and spiritual sovereignty.👉 Subscribe for more on animism and earth based spirituality~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Join our tribe! You're welcome here.https://pansociety.net

Is The Story of B by Daniel Quinn really the best book on animism? I picked it up expecting a deep dive into animism as a worldview and a practice. In this review, I look at the plot, the message, and where the book falls short.The Story of B follows Father Jared Osborne, a Catholic priest sent to investigate a mysterious lecturer known only as “B.” Through B’s lectures, Quinn expands on the ideas he introduced in Ishmael: the divide between “Takers” and “Leavers,” the “Great Forgetting,” the rise of salvationist religions, and animism as humanity’s original way of understanding the world.The book raises powerful questions, but it has real problems. The thriller plot is unconvincing, the claims about what civilization causes overreach, and animism is never defined beyond a hunter-gatherer lifestyle lived in line with natural law. That leaves modern readers without a clear way to practice it.To fill that gap, I offer practical ways to embrace modern animism today, using the Pan Society’s animist path of sovereignty, connection, and Oneness. If you’re exploring Daniel Quinn’s books, animist spirituality, or nature-based spirituality, this review will help you decide whether The Story of B belongs on your reading list.About Pan Society:Pan Society explores animist spirituality and the many paths people take to reconnect with the sacred. Subscribe for more conversations on modern traditions, nature-based practice, and spiritual sovereignty.👉 Subscribe for more on animism and earth based spirituality