Pagan originally meant simply a dweller in a rural community, but since those country people were often the last to be converted, it came to be used by city dwellers as applying to all who did not adopt their professed Christian beliefs. These dwellers worshiped idols and false gods and often times offered up sacrifices to them.
Being a pagan to me, means to love, respect, and work with nature. To be in touch with my own spirit and other spirits. Respecting that every living thing has a spirit. Understanding energy and being able to harness it for good.
A pagan is someone who follows paganism. Paganism is term used to describe a wide set of beliefs which are spiritual in nature. One who practices paganism, that is a pagan, performs naturalistic and polytheistic practices. Paganism as a practice emerged in the West.
Paganism literally means someone who idolises a God (or Gods) other than Abraham. Hence, it can be said to consist of all those belief groups that are not a part of the monotheistic set of Islam, Christianity and Judaism. This set can consist of religions that are Dharmic in nature, which, speaking technically, possess paganistic features like the reverence of several Gods as well as Goddesses, and nature worship. The term, in the historical sense, has a derogatory connotation.
This term is not fully accepted by ethnologists as it has too many meanings and interpretations. They use terms like shamanism and animism as they cover a more specific area.
