Islamic perspective on Neopaganism/Wicca/Witchcraft

[BigJoeNobody]

Hi, I am new here but I have been questioning things a lot lately and I find my self drawn to Islamic values but I am highly protective of women and have a strong tie to Wicca especially Freya. I found through some research that she has a counterpart named Allat. Then as I began to think about it spirits really dont have a gender but perhaps for people who have been abused by Christian male leaders aka phonies ... its difficult to embrace another world view that centers on the masculine. I am straight so nothing like that and quite chaste. Its just that I am so close to if not already embraced Allah but difficulty moving past the some what negative record of Islam with women's rights. Have you any thoughts on that? Especially Allat?

I don't know enough about Pagan traditions to really compare. Sorry. What I can say is depending on what your definition of protecting women's rights is, I'd say we very much focus on maintaining a woman's rights. In Islam everything is fairly well defined. Roles based on gender and marital status are set along with roles in parenthood. It would be a lengthy article, that I may get around to writing one day, to explain through all the phases of life a woman's rights and roles.

I will say this. In Islam when a woman gets married she has the right and obligation to enter into a contract with her husband on expectations from each side. These can be broad, such as "love me", to as specific as " every Thursday at 8PM consummation will occur with 20 minutes of Foreplay minimum, as long as it is Halal to do so" (last part is for menstrual cycles and if fasting were to last longer than specified time, as well as times of sickness or when she would be harmed if doing so). Although a man is permitted to marry more than 1 wife (up to 4 maximum), a woman has the right to contract him to divorce her if he should ever decide to take another bride. She has the right to ask for a salary from him and demand that he pay. She can demand that they attempt to have children and a specified number. She can negotiate this contract with her prospective husband and negotiate his demands until she is happy. She can cancel the contract at any time and once she is married she has the right to divorce as simply as requesting it (there are waiting periods for finalizing and even initializing divorce but the moment it is mentioned the man's rights to her stop. They can be resumed if as she calms she feels it was just in a moment of anger, and she is able to remarry him if she wills at any time if she divorces, or she can marry another man.)

I see Spirits as entities that help us and not bow down and worship.

loosely I would say what you refer to as spirits I would call Angels, also maybe Djinn in certain ways.

I would love to hear from some one who is Islam about the ideas of Indigenous religion ... ie pre Monotheism.

The Islamic View is that there has always been only 1 god, and no others. Indigenous religions and even other mainstream religions are results of misunderstanding and/or perversion of the original messages of messengers Allah has sent to those people.

Is polytheism accepted in some Islamic circles? Is it prohibited? Is it overlooked for the good that it does?

It is not only prohibited, it is a absolute disregard for the main tenant of faith. Our view is there is 1 god, and there is nothing worthy of worship than Allah. No man, woman, child, statue, tree, rock, stream, angel, djinn, etc. A common belief is that even those without Following the correct path that accept 1 god are to be accepted into Paradise (Jannah).

And I'm going to say this in a way that sounds insensitive, and I apologize ahead of time. There is no "good" that comes from Polytheism. From an Islamic perspective Polytheism is the worst offense to Allah. It doesn't offer you anything of true benefit. It is harmful as no one who worships other "gods" or lesser beings will find Jannah as a home in the afterlife. In this life those who worship and ask help from others aren't rewarded with good, even if it were to seem that way.