Shannon Larratt is Zentastic

I've gotten this particular email a number of times in a number of incarnations from well-meaning but misguided people. I get similar messages about ManWoman as well, regarding the swastika — those have mostly disappeared though as people learn more.

Hate to break it to you, but you're just repeating propaganda and misinterpreted history typical of neopagans that don't really have any understanding of the history of Wicca or the history of the pentagram or the meaning of the word — sort of like how many Christians don't understand anything except some messed up rhetoric told to them by the minister.

A pentagram is a five pointed star, with no indication of orientation. If it's called an “inverted pentagram” the two points are up. If not, it's called an “upright pentagram”. The words pentagram and pentacle are interchangeable — look it up in a dictionary and under pentacle you'll quite likely see “see pentagram”. It's only modern (20th century) neopagans and satanists who have attempted to create a difference between the two. It should be noted that this is primarily a political action, and has no real basis in history as either a purely Wiccan or “Satanic” symbol. Like many other “basic” symbols, it was used by numerous other groups, the Greeks, Egyptians, Christians, Babylonians, Jews, etc.

Why don't I just label it a “Pentalpha”? That's what the Greeks called it, since it was composed of five A's.

In any case, if you want to assign religious value to it on some level, that's your problem. But don't try and tell me that a five pointed star isn't a pentagram. Next you'll want to tell me that I can't call a four-sided shape a square any more — it has to be called a “sacred google box”.

If someone sends me a picture and says “this is a tattoo of my holy cross”, I'll label it as such. If someone tells me that the cross in fact means they're straightedge, I'll label it as is. But if someone doesn't tell me what they'd like theirs called, I'll just say what it is.

It's a PENTAGRAM.

Ack… Are we in over our head? I've made some big investments before, but…

Those of you that have emailed me about investing — I will definitely be getting back to you. Ryan is actually the guy you'll be dealing with but they're getting married this weekend, so that takes priority! Next we'll be finding out they're having kids, damn breeders! :)

In any case, the book is going very well — I'm spending this afternoon doing another run of editing on it, and then it'll go to various people for serious proofing. Next week I'll start work on the DVD. I might even throw up some teaser clips from it on BMEradio. Which reminds me, I have at least three other BMEradio shows in the queue.