BPAL: when wank actually spurs thought.
If there was any question about whether or not BPAL is a bona-fide fandom, well. It is. It's made it to Fandom Wank around four or five times by now. The most recent episode is actually kind of thought-provoking.
Some of you might remember that I posted on the opening of the Twilight Alchemy Lab preview site. All TAL oils come pre-consecrated. In other words, they are created with ritual in mind and are not to be used solely as perfumes.
Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, the perfume division, houses some oils that can either be purpose-oriented or perfume oriented. For instance, the "Excolo" section houses oils that pay tribute to specific Deities. They can be worn just because they smell pretty, or, if you wish, they can be used in ritual because they are also aligned to each Deity's correspondences. Technically, any oil can be purpose-oriented if you charge it to be so, but these were created with that versatility in mind.
Earlier today, a rather large update was made in which several Orisha oils were introduced. Some of these had existed solely as TALs to this point, and are now available in perfume-oriented blends, as well.
All hell breaks loose. Highlights include:
"White culture is appropriating my religion,"
"I'm going to make cryptic comments and not explain them,"
"You can ask me to clarify, but I'm not going to answer,"
"If you're an African-American woman, you should know what I'm talking about,"
... and, most amusingly, BPAL/TAL creator Beth's reply of "'Scuse me? I'm training to be an Iyanifa." As it turns out, the one being accused of commercializing the Orishas by creating tribute/attuning oils is actually a dedicant of Oya. Also, she ain't white. Oh, snap.
At any rate, there is all sorts of interesting discussion in the thread, despite the wank. BPAL draws some intensely spiritual people, and indeed introduces spiritual concepts to those who would otherwise not have known about them. I've definitely had my interest piqued on numerous occasions, and it's led to me being more knowledgeable about different religions/spiritual paths in general. I mean sure, it smells great and all-- but the community, the fandom, that comes with it goes so much deeper than that.
And as a side note, how funny is it that a good chunk of Fandom Wank's posters have been turned into BPALers because of BPAL wank? It amuses me to no end when wank threads de-evolve into comparing perfume notes!
Some of you might remember that I posted on the opening of the Twilight Alchemy Lab preview site. All TAL oils come pre-consecrated. In other words, they are created with ritual in mind and are not to be used solely as perfumes.
Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, the perfume division, houses some oils that can either be purpose-oriented or perfume oriented. For instance, the "Excolo" section houses oils that pay tribute to specific Deities. They can be worn just because they smell pretty, or, if you wish, they can be used in ritual because they are also aligned to each Deity's correspondences. Technically, any oil can be purpose-oriented if you charge it to be so, but these were created with that versatility in mind.
Earlier today, a rather large update was made in which several Orisha oils were introduced. Some of these had existed solely as TALs to this point, and are now available in perfume-oriented blends, as well.
All hell breaks loose. Highlights include:
"White culture is appropriating my religion,"
"I'm going to make cryptic comments and not explain them,"
"You can ask me to clarify, but I'm not going to answer,"
"If you're an African-American woman, you should know what I'm talking about,"
... and, most amusingly, BPAL/TAL creator Beth's reply of "'Scuse me? I'm training to be an Iyanifa." As it turns out, the one being accused of commercializing the Orishas by creating tribute/attuning oils is actually a dedicant of Oya. Also, she ain't white. Oh, snap.
At any rate, there is all sorts of interesting discussion in the thread, despite the wank. BPAL draws some intensely spiritual people, and indeed introduces spiritual concepts to those who would otherwise not have known about them. I've definitely had my interest piqued on numerous occasions, and it's led to me being more knowledgeable about different religions/spiritual paths in general. I mean sure, it smells great and all-- but the community, the fandom, that comes with it goes so much deeper than that.
And as a side note, how funny is it that a good chunk of Fandom Wank's posters have been turned into BPALers because of BPAL wank? It amuses me to no end when wank threads de-evolve into comparing perfume notes!