What the Heck is an Esoteric Book Shop?

Hey everybody!  Lets talk about Paganism!
When my major group was in London, we had the opportunity to go to Treadwell's Bookshop, an esoteric bookshop in Bloomsbury owned by Christina Oakley Harrington.  Christina was really interesting to talk to because of her story and how she was drawn to Paganism.  She grew up in Liberia (her parents worked with the UN in community building type stuff) and when she returned to the west she began to seek something more similar to the spiritual traditions of the tribesmen she had grown up with.  She found Paganism not in her rebellious teenage phase but as an adult looking for a spiritual tradition with which she could connect.  And Paganism is a really interesting faith spanning many different traditions...

Bookshops like Treadwell's serve as meeting places and to attract new members to the faith.  Pagans do not proselytize.  If you are interested in Paganism, you have to seek out the information on your own.  For the most part, Pagans are big readers and interested parties are encouraged to learn more through the books in a book shop.  Additionally, esoteric bookshops serve as meeting and classroom spaces for Pagan groups.  Pagans don't practice their religion in a defined space, but they still have to get together to discuss mutually interesting issues and educate those interested in Paganism.  For this reason, all esoteric bookshops must have a classroom space in the building.  I think this is really interesting because it demonstrates the ways in which a new movement embraces the issues that face modern religions.  When I was confirmed, I had to do it in a storage room that our church had converted into a classroom space.  When the church was first built, this kind of space did not exist.  Conversely, Pagans recognize the need for a classroom space in their faith and make sure they meet that need.

We also got to talk to Christina about the ritual practices associated with Paganism.  Ritual practice varies wildly across Pagan sects (in fact this variety has given rise to the PaganDASH movement, which I will let you read about on your own) but they generally conform to a similar calendar.  Pagan rituals are associated with the seasons and the changes in the agrarian calender.  For example: Mayday and Halloween.  Mayday is a spring festival that celebrates rebirth.  For Christina's sect of Paganism, adherents are encouraged to ask "what am I insecure about?" and subsequently work towards removing the insecurities in that aspect of the psyche.  In that way they can be reborn in the new year.  Conversely, Halloween, an Irish pagan ritual day, focuses on death and regrets.  Adherents on this day remember those who they have lost in that year and on what they might regret occurring.

I found this talk about Paganism really interesting and informative.  I always encourage questions in the comments but I will warn you I have only a general knowledge of Paganism and some ever so slightly more specialized knowledge about Asatru and Druidism that is not enough to make up a post in and of itself.  With that in mind, question and comment away!