If by personal path you mean inventing your own practices and be free from any responsibilities and external initiations, then I doubt you will be able to invent practices on your own, which will be at least as good as those, which are kept in secrecy by well-established Magic Traditions.
Some people like to indulge in self-deception with eclectic approach personal paths, but if you want power (real power), then you need to seek actual authentic Traditions and real practitioners.
@Alarion: I disagree with your statement.
I personally believe that you do not need to follow any particular tradition or path to achieve results.
Where do you think that they came from? They themselves have been created.
People are free to pick and choose what they wish to do, to believe in, to practice, and it does not make them any less successful than compared to someone who follows the strict teachings and practices of a particular tradition.
Yes, you can create your own practices, your own beliefs, your own deities and whatnot. You can follow it and you can achieve some results with it. However, what do you think will be more powerful and effective: a tradition with one follower or a tradition, such as the Egyptian deities, that has had the energy of followers for thousands of years pumped into it?
You should also look at the reason for your wanting to create your own tradition. I do not mean the psychological, egocentric reason (although that would be the first thing that I looked at) but rather what goal are you trying to achieve with it? Spiritual development and enlightenment? Personal power? Fame and fortune? Depending on your reason for wanting to create it, you may want to examine more traditions in detail first. No need to reinvent the wheel.
As far as your original post, which I believe was directed at becoming eclectic, working with deities and practices from various traditions, you certainly can. However, I would recommend that you do choose a tradition as a starting point, learn at least the basics from it, and then modify or add to it as you see fit. That time spent learning the foundations will not be wasted.
A lot of good arguments here for both sides. Personally, I would opt for traditional or established ways of doing things. But, when I think about it, I have strayed a bit from tradition a lot of times. Sometimes it was successful and sometimes not. The deciding factor for me was that I perhaps needed a fresh way to approach something at the time.
As for creating or reconstructing a faith in its entirety, wow! That’s a huge undertaking. Definitely out of my capabilities. There have been some success stories in that respect. For those who go that route, I wish you the best.
Absolutely. Creating your own spiritual path is one of the most enlightening experiences. In my experience, it has been the most uplifting and eye opening things I have ever done. It helps build an identity outside of cultural norms and shows a lot of independence. It's wise to take knowledge and wisdom from other existing practices, so that your current understanding has some sort of foundation.
I enjoy the thoughts shared here. I am very much inspired by all cultures i have come into contact with. Though i do not adhere to any of them, i allow them to unfold organically in my practice into what is most suitable for me personally.
I find carving your own path is more enjoyable than the well-trodden one, it is within my nature.
Your path is your pride. It has everything to do with you. It's not something you can follow and then abandon. If you have beliefs, traditions and practices different from other paths, yet you feel content following yours. do it.
You can follow any path you want. You can even make a up a path for yourself. You don't have to follow any specific group or religion. You do what feels right to you. A path is something very personal and spiritual.
