I've decided to change my blog to The Norse Witch. I've decided to practice Norse Wicca, even though I do consider myself to be a Norse Pagan, or Norse Polytheist. This is just something that I feel that I need to do and I feel connected to this path. I hope that you'll continue to come on here and read my posts.
Today marks one year that I redid this blog and started posting again. After this post I will not post any more about how much time has passed until November of next year. Thanks, everyone, that has come on here and read my blog. Means the world to me.
Nidhogg (Old NorseNíðhöggr,
literally “Curse-striker” or “He Who Strikes with Malice”) is the
foremost of several serpents or dragons who dwell beneath the world-tree
Yggdrasil and eat its roots. This is highly injurious to the tree, which holds the Nine Worlds of the cosmos.[1]
Nidhogg’s actions have the intention of pulling the cosmos back to
chaos, and he, along with his reptilian cohort, can therefore surely be
classified among the giants (or, as they were called in pre-Christian times, “devourers”).
From this it would make sense for Nidhogg to have a prominent role in Ragnarok,
the cyclically recurrent event in which the giants succeed in
destroying the cosmos. This does indeed seem to be the case. In one
especially important Old Norse poem (the Völuspá or “Insight of
the Seeress”), Nidhogg is described as flying out from beneath
Yggdrasil during Ragnarok, presumably to aid the giants’ cause.[2]
Later in the same poem, Nidhogg is also said to preside over a part of the underworld called Náströnd (“The Shore of Corpses”) where perjurers, murderers, and adulterers are punished.[3] However, this conception of the afterlife
as marked by moral retribution is totally foreign to the indigenous
worldview of the Norse and other Germanic peoples, and must be an
instance (one of many) of Christian influence upon the poem.
I got this from Norse Mythology for Smart People. Enjoy.
Garm (Old NorseGarmr, whose meaning/etymology is unknown) is a dog or wolf associated with the underworld and the forces of destruction.
Little is known about him, since the references to him are sparse and
vague. There’s just barely enough material in the surviving Old Norse sources to get a general idea about the kind of being he was perceived to be during the Viking Age.
In the Grímnismál, one of the poems in the Poetic Edda, Garm is said to be to canines what Odin is to gods and what Yggdrasil is to trees – that is, the greatest among them, the exemplar.[1]
In the Völuspá, another Eddic poem, Garm is mentioned as part of a refrain that repeats throughout the poem:
Now Garm howls wildly
Before Gnipa Cave.
Chains will snap
And the wolf will run.[2]
While the reference to Garm in the Grímnismál calls him a hundr, “dog,” this reference in the Völuspá uses the word freki, “wolf.” This refrain is recited as part of an account of the events leading up to and during Ragnarok,
the destruction of the cosmos and its re-submergence into chaos.
Another one of the events that heralded Ragnarok was the escape of the
wolf Fenrir, who had been tied up by the gods
and left in a remote swamp so that he wouldn’t devour the cosmos. The
two images of bound wolves breaking loose at the same time can’t help
but make one wonder whether or not Fenrir and Garm are ultimately the
same figure.
This interpretation is supported by the fact that, as the gods and the forces of chaos battled during Ragnarok, the god Tyr is said to have engaged Garm in single combat.[3]
Since Tyr had earlier tricked Fenrir into allowing himself to be bound
in an unbreakable chain, and since Fenrir had bitten off the god’s hand
in the process, it would make sense for the two to have had a vendetta
against each other, which in turn makes it likely that the wolf Tyr
fought during Ragnarok was none other than Fenrir.[4]
Some scholars have also linked Garm with the nameless hound of Hel mentioned in another Eddic poem, Baldrs Draumar. The reference to the dog in the poem is only in passing; he barks at Odin as the god rides into the underworld.[5]
The identification of Garm with this hound is difficult to demonstrate
conclusively due to the fact that we have no idea what or where “Gnipa
Cave” is. Still, cave imagery is used to depict the underworld in
mythologies from all over the world, which makes the suggestion that
Gnipa Cave is an entrance to the underworld, and Garm its guardian, far
from unreasonable.
Regardless of whether or not Garm, Fenrir, and the hound of Hel are
the same figure, they certainly seem to be little more than
multiplications of the same type of figure: a canine associated
with the underworld and the forces of chaos who breaks free at the
world’s end as an omen of its destruction and in order to aid its
destruction. The exact differences between these figures are highly
ambiguous, and, in any case, superficial.
Note: I've mentioned Aegir but Ran had no info. This site has info about Ran. So I'm including both info for Ran and her husband.
Aegir (pronounced “EYE-geer;” Old NorseÆgir) and Ran (pronounced “RAN;” Old Norse Rán) are two of the most often-mentioned giants in Norse mythology. Unfortunately, as fragmentary as the sources
for our knowledge of Norse mythology are, that doesn’t come out to a
particularly large number of mentions. Still, some of the most general
characteristics attributed to Aegir and Ran by the pre-Christian Norse
can be discerned.
Aegir and Ran are, respectively, husband and wife. They dwell in a magnificent hall beneath the ocean, and can be seen as the animating
powers of the ocean and its varying qualities. Aegir (“Ocean”), who is
often portrayed as a gracious host, seems to correspond to its more
benevolent aspects. Ran (“Robber”[1]) seems to correspond to
its more sinister aspects; in Old Norse poetry, she’s usually mentioned
in the context of drowning unfortunate seafarers and dragging them down
to dwell in her underwater abode.
While the relationship between the Aesir
gods and the giants is ambivalent at best, and often marked by
considerable strife, Aegir and Ran enjoy an overwhelmingly friendly
relationship with the gods. The gods are apparently regular guests at
Aegir’s magnificent feasts.
Together the couple has nine daughters, who are usually interpreted as being spirits of the waves.
Today marks eleven months that my blog has been up. We've moved and I will be, hopefully, coming around and doing more posts. Have to wait for the net to get on, which is why this is written at the library. Have a great month and thanks for reading.
Odr (pronounced “O-der,” from Old Norse Óðr, “ecstasy, inspiration, fury, frenzy;” sometimes shortened to Óð or “Od”) is an obscure, seldom-mentioned god. According to the medieval Icelandic scholar Snorri Sturluson, Odr is the husband of the Vanir goddess Freya, who is the mother of his daughter Hnoss.
Snorri also briefly mentions one story about Odr, in which the god
plays an entirely passive role: once, Odr went far away from the other
deities. His destination and the reasons for his departure are never
stated. Freya searched in vain for him, and wept tears of gold in his
absence.[1]
Odr’s existence, at least, is corroborated by two of the poems in the Poetic Edda,[2][3] and he is alluded to in an 11th-century poem by Einarr Skulason.[4]
It’s therefore impossible for him to have been merely an invention of
Snorri’s; Odr was an authentic, if perhaps rather late, feature of
pre-Christian Norse mythology.
As sparse and cryptic as these mentions of Odr in Old Norse
literature are, the evidence points ineluctably toward a single
interpretation of Odr: he was an only nominally distinct counterpart to Odin.
Freya, Odr’s wife, can hardly be distinguished from Odin’s wife, Frigg, as I show in the articles on Frigg and Freya. The name Odin (Old Norse Óðinn) is Óðr with the masculine definite article (-inn) attached to the end to mean “master of óðr” or “exemplar of óðr.”
Odin’s and Odr’s names, therefore, are practically identical. Odin was
once exiled by the other gods for a long period, and Odr’s absence
surely corresponds to this time.
However, it’s noteworthy that Snorri doesn’t mention any children of
Odr besides Hnoss. Odin has numerous children, including very prominent
gods such as Thor and Baldr. If Snorri had seen Odr and Odin as being truly identical, he certainly would have mentioned Odin’s children amongst Odr’s.
It seems that by the medieval period at the latest, and quite
possibly in the earlier Viking Age, Odin had been split into two gods,
and Freya/Frigg had been split into two goddesses. This change must have
occurred relatively shortly before the 11th century, given how
indistinguishable the characters of the bifurcated deities still were to
each other by the time the major Old Norse literary sources were
written.
This, of course, begs the question of why this change occurred. While
we aren’t certain of the reasons why, it’s probably highly significant
that in each of the split pairs, one deity belonged to the Aesir tribe of gods, and the other to the Vanir
tribe of gods. The split between the Aesir and the Vanir was itself
unique to later Norse mythology; such a division of the deities doesn’t
seem to have occurred amongst any of the other branches of the Germanic
peoples, nor amongst the Norse in earlier times. And as with the two
pairs of deities we’ve been considering here, it’s difficult to point to
any concrete features that distinguish the Aesir and the Vanir. There
may have been differing tendencies or differences of emphasis, but any
formulation that states that “the Aesir were the gods of such-and-such”
and “the Vanir were the gods of these other things” is oversimplifying.
Perhaps, then, the split between Odr and Odin and between Freya and
Frigg occurred as part of the larger split between the Vanir and the
Aesir. This division would have still been young enough at the time of
Christianization to be more of a change of name than of substance, given
how difficult to differentiate the characters of the deities in
question remained.
That suggestion, in turn, begs the question of why the gods were
being cut into two groups just prior to the 11th century. That, however,
is a topic for another article.
I got this from Norse Mythology for Smart People. Enjoy.
Gullveig (pronounced “GULL-vayg”) is a female figure mentioned only in two stanzas in the Völuspá, one of the poems in the Poetic Edda. The stanzas describe the events leading up to the Aesir-Vanir War, the war between the two main tribes of deities in Norse mythology, the Aesir and the Vanir.
The two stanzas read:
Now she [the seeress recounting the events of the poem] remembers the war,
The first in the world,
When Gullveig
Was studded with spears,
And in the hall of the High One [Odin]
She was burned;
Thrice burned,
Thrice reborn,
Often, many times,
And yet she lives.
She [Gullveig] was called Heiðr
When she came to a house,
The witch who saw many things,
She enchanted wands;
She enchanted and divined what she could,
In a trance she practiced seidr,
And brought delight
To evil women.[1]
The following stanzas describe failed peace talks between the two tribes of gods and the beginning of the war.
These stanzas tell us that Gullveig was a practitioner of magic, often called “seidr” (seiðr) in Old Norse.
As in most ancient societies, magic was seen as highly ambivalent
amongst the Norse. Its practitioners often provided valuable services,
but their art inherently increased their personal power in ways that
others often felt to be underhanded and antisocial.
The second verse’s last lines, “And [she] brought delight / To evil women,” underscore this point. The Old Norse phrase illrar brúðar, “evil women,” is not the least bit ambiguous; brúðar literally means “brides,” but here it clearly means “women” in a more general sense, and illr (here illrar
for grammatical reasons) means “ill, bad, evil, malevolent, injurious.”
(I’ve seen a few attempts to translate these lines in a way that
renders them morally neutral or positive, but these are utterly spurious
and are based on nothing more than wishful thinking by people who would
do well to come to terms with the fact that historical pagan religions
typically had a highly ambivalent view of magic and the people who
practiced it.)
“The hall of the High One” is a reference to Asgard,
the celestial fortress of the Aesir gods. Gullveig had evidently come
to Asgard from elsewhere – in context, almost certainly from Vanaheim,
the homeland of the Vanir – and was performing magic that the Aesir
deemed to be gravely antisocial and dangerous. Their response was to
burn her, which should be unsurprising given the instances of witches
being put to death in the sagas
due to the frequent malevolence of magic noted above. But, by means of
the same abilities that got her into trouble in the first place, she
survived.
Magic wasn’t the only alluring yet disruptive force that Gullveig introduced to the Aesir. The name Gullveig is a compound word comprised of the words gull, “gold,” and veig, “alcoholic drink, intoxication” or “power, strength.”[2] Its meaning, then, can hardly be anything other than “the madness and corruption caused by this precious metal.”[3] She is also called Heiðr,
which, as a noun, means “fame,” and as an adjective, means “bright,
light, clear,” another probable reference to gold.
This second name,
like the first, has to do with wealth and prestige. Also, it’s surely no
coincidence that witches called Heiðr are likewise found in Landnámabók and The Saga of King Hrólf Kraki.[4]
Norse society’s ambivalent attitude toward magic was mirrored by its
similarly ambivalent attitude toward wealth. On the one hand, wealth was
desirable for the prestige, comfort, and pleasure that it brings, but
on the other hand, it was seen as a potentially socially disruptive
thing that had to be distributed in such a way that social harmony was
preserved.
This latter attitude is indicated in, for example, the stanzas of the rune poems that deal with the meaning of the F-rune, fé or fehu, literally “cattle” but more broadly “wealth.” The Icelandic Rune Poem has this to say about fé:
Wealth
source of discord among kinsmen
and fire of the sea
and path of the serpent.[5]
And from the Norwegian Rune Poem:
Wealth is a source of discord among kinsmen;
the wolf lives in the forest.[6]
And from the Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem, with a slight Christian overlay:
Wealth is a comfort to all men;
yet must every man bestow it freely,
if he wish to gain honour in the sight of the Lord.[7]
We can also say with a reasonable degree of certainty that Gullveig is the Vanir goddess Freya by another name. Freya weeps tears of gold and owns the golden, jewel-studded necklace Brísingamen, perhaps the most precious piece of jewelry in Old Norse literature. It was she who, according to the Ynglinga Saga, first brought seidr to the Aesir, and who first taught it to Odin.[8]
Thus, the connections between Freya and Gullveig’s defining
characteristics – magic and material wealth – are quite clear, making an
identification of the two quite probable.
Today marks ten months that my blog has been up. Two more months and it will be a year. Thanks, everyone, that has come on here. Changes are happening right now, as we're moving in a couple of weeks. I will per-write all my blog posts so that you get them.
Time for another post. I got this from the site 'Norse Mythology for Smart People.' Enjoy.
[The Reudigni, Aviones, Anglii, Varini, Eudoses,
Saurines, and Nuitones] share a common worship of Nerthus, or Mother
Earth. They believe that she takes part in human affairs, riding in a
chariot among her people. On an island of the sea stands an inviolate
grove, in which, veiled with a cloth, is a chariot that none but the
priest may touch. The priest can feel the presence of the goddess in
this holy of holies, and attends her with the deepest reverence as her
chariot is drawn along by cows. Then follow days of rejoicing and
merrymaking in every place that she condescends to visit and sojourn in.
No one goes to war, no one takes up arms; every iron object is locked
away. Then, and then only, are peace and quiet known and welcomed, until
the goddess, when she has had enough of the society of men, is restored
to her sacred precinct by the priest. After that, the chariot, the
vestments, and (believe it if you will) the goddess herself, are
cleansed in a secluded lake. This service is performed by slaves who are
immediately afterwards drowned in the lake. Thus mystery begets terror
and a pious reluctance to ask what that sight can be which is seen only
by men doomed to die.[1]
Tacitus’s account has been corroborated by archaeology, as a number
of finds have demonstrated that practices such as the one he describes
here did indeed take place during the period in question, and, in fact,
even farther back in the history of the Germanic peoples. As philologist
Rudolf Simek summarizes, “Remains of cult carts and models of the same
are known from finds from the Iron Age and rock carvings confirm the
tradition of cult processions as early as the Bronze Age in southern
Scandinavia.”[2]
These traits – the cart that ritually processes from village to
village and the laying down of arms during this time – are traits that
were powerfully associated with the Vanir
gods and goddesses, deities who presided over “peace and plenty,”
during the Viking Age. Nerthus can comfortably be grouped with the
Vanir, or can at least be considered to be something of a “proto-Vana”
goddess.[3]
Nerthus’s name also suggests a connection with the Vanir deities. The Old Norse name of the god Njord
is exactly what the Proto-Germanic name Nerthus would look like if it
were rendered in Old Norse. Two main theories have been put forward to
account for this. In the first, Nerthus and Njord form a divine pair,
much like the other two Vanir deities whose names are almost identical
to each other, Freyr and Freya.
Proponents of this theory can also point to evidence from grammar and
the frequent plural usage of the name “Njord” (effectively “the Njords”)
in early Old Norse poetry. The second theory argues that Nerthus/Njord
was a hermaphroditic deity.[4]
Given Tacitus’s identification of Nerthus with Terra Mater (“Mother Earth”), it’s also tempting to identify Nerthus with Jord (Old Norse “Earth”), the obscure mother of Thor.
Time for another god post. I got this from 'Norse Mythology for Smart People.' Check them out.
Njord (pronounced “NYORD;” Old NorseNjörðr, whose meaning/etymology is unknown) is one of the principal gods of the Vanir tribe of deities. He’s also an honorary member of the Aesir gods, having been sent to them during the Aesir-Vanir War along with his son, Freyr, and his daughter, Freya. Freyr and Freya’s mother is Njord’s unnamed sister, who, based on linguistic evidence, is probably Nerthus.
Njord was particularly associated with wealth, fertility, the sea, and seafaring in historical Germanic religion.[1][2] A saying among the Norse peoples held especially wealthy people to be “as rich as Njord.”[3]
The tale in which Njord features most prominently is The Marriage of Njord and Skadi. Skadi, a giantess,
had come to the Aesir seeking restitution for the slaying of her
father. As part of the settlement, they agreed that she could have any
of the gods she desired as her husband. She chose Njord by mistake,
thinking him to be Baldur.
Their marriage was short and unpleasant. Half of their time was spent
in Skadi’s home in the snowy mountains, which Njord couldn’t tolerate;
the other half was spent in Njord’s home, Nóatún (“The Place of Ships”), which was located on the beach. Skadi couldn’t tolerate Njord’s home, either, so the two parted ways.
Unfortunately, that’s about all that the surviving sources
tell us about Njord. Despite this paucity of literary descriptions,
though, other forms of evidence show us that he was once a very
widely-worshiped god amongst the Norse.[4]
Sorry for not doing this at the beginning of the month. I've just been really busy with work and so on. So here's the next one. And I got this from the website 'Norse Mythology for Smart People.' Do check them out.
Freyr (pronounced “FREY-ur;” Old NorseFreyr, “Lord;” sometimes anglicized as “Frey”) is a god who belongs to the Vanir tribe of deities. He’s also an honorary member of the other tribe of Norse gods, the Aesir, having arrived in their fortress, Asgard, as a hostage at the closing of the Aesir-Vanir War.
Freyr was one of the most widely and passionately venerated
divinities amongst the heathen Norse and other Germanic peoples. One Old
Norse poem calls him “the foremost of the gods” and “hated by none.”[1]
The reasons for this aren’t hard to understand; their well-being and
prosperity depended on his benevolence, which particularly manifested
itself in sexual and ecological fertility, bountiful harvests, wealth,
and peace. His role in providing health and abundance was often
symbolized by his fylgja, the boar Gullinborsti (“Golden-Bristled”),[2] and by his enormous, erect phallus.[3]
It shouldn’t be surprising, then, that Freyr was a frequent recipient
of sacrifices at various occasions, such as the blessing of a wedding[4]
or the celebration of a harvest. During harvest festivals, the
sacrifice traditionally took the form of his favored animal, the boar.[5]
His father is Njord, and his mother is Njord’s unnamed sister[6] (presumably Nerthus). Freyr himself has been the lover of numerous goddesses and giantesses, including his own sister, Freya.[7]
Apparently incest is a common and acceptable practice among the Vanir
(although amongst the historical Germanic peoples it certainly wasn’t).
Freyr’s residence is Alfheim, the homeland of the elves.[8] This could mean that Freyr is the ruler of the elves, but since this is never stated explicitly in the surviving sources,
it must remain a fascinating conjecture. The relationship between the
gods and the elves is sufficiently ambiguous to allow for a number of
possible connections between Freyr and the elves.
Another one of Freyr’s signature possessions is his ship,
Skíðblaðnir, which always has a favorable wind and can be folded up and
carried in a small bag.[9] Its name, which means “Assembled
from Pieces of Thin Wood,” suggests that it served as the mythological
archetype of ships that were constructed for particular ritual purposes
and were never meant to be seaworthy. We know from archaeological
evidence that ships played a major role in the pre-Christian religious
rites of the Germanic peoples,[10] which is perfectly in
accordance with the major role played by ships in the Bronze and Iron
Ages, particularly among the Scandinavians.
On land, Freyr travels in a chariot drawn by boars.[11]
This is another mythological feature that was reflected in historical
ritual. We know from medieval Icelandic sources that priestesses and/or
priests of Freyr traveled throughout the country on a chariot which
contained a statue of the god.[12] The significance of such
processions is described by the Roman historian Tacitus, who vividly
depicts the processions connected with the early Germanic goddess
Nerthus, whose name is the Proto-Germanic form of the name of Freyr’s
father Njord. When the chariot reached a village or town, the people
laid down their arms and “every iron object” and enjoyed a period of
peace and joyful festivities, reveling in the deity’s kind presence.[13]
Such processions and celebrations appear to have been a common feature
of the worship of the deities the Norse called the Vanir from at least
as far back as the first century CE through the Viking Age.
During Ragnarok, Freyr and the giant Surt destroy each other.
Freyr Throughout the Germanic World
Much like the name of his sister Freya (Old Norse Freyja,
“Lady”), the word “freyr” (“Lord”) is only a title rather than a proper
name. Freyr’s original Proto-Germanic name seems to have been *Ingwaz, which became Ing amongst the Anglo-Saxons and Yngvi (or Yngvi-Freyr or Ingunar-Freyr)
amongst the Scandinavians. (Unfortunately, the meaning and etymology of
this name are unknown.) Whenever he’s mentioned in Germanic literature
or in foreign works that describe the Germanic peoples, he’s noted for
possessing and dispensing the same qualities: fertility, well-being, and
prosperity. His connections with chariots and ships are frequently
noted, as is his being the founder of various tribes, groups of tribes
(such as the Ingaevones), and royal lines (such as the Yngling dynasty
of Sweden).[14][15][16]
Thus, it’s hard to overestimate the size of the role played by Freyr
in the pre-Christian religion of the Germanic peoples, as well as the
esteem with which they thought of him.
Hail!
Sorry about not blogging in a week, I’ve been really busy with work
and today I’m going out to pay the other half of the security deposit so
that we can get the key and move in when our lease is up. Over the past
several days Charlottesville has been on the news and not for good
things. Protests against confederate monuments turned into a blood bath
when someone that supported raciest pigs rammed his car through the
crowd of counter-protestors and killed one soul and injured many more.
What makes me sick is that the former leader of the AFA, and we all
know who I’m damn talking about, thinks that these people are so great.
He even twitted about it. I think it’s Twitter, I don’t really know. As a
Heathen/Celtic Polytheist (yes, I honor the Celtic gods as well) I find
this sickening and disgusting. I’m white, yes, but I don’t support
what’s going on and I don’t support these raciest assholes. And then my
least favorite hate group, The Brotherhood of Odin was there as well.
Dear gods, give me some strength.
This is the problem that we have to put up with as Americans and as a
country as a whole. Racism was started by the Church and we need to
stop teaching it to our children. Only then will we be able to move on.
This is the last god post for this month. I will finish the others next month and have them up. I got this info from Norse Mythology for Smart People.
Freya (Old NorseFreyja, “Lady”) is one of the preeminent goddesses in Norse mythology. She’s a member of the Vanir tribe of deities, but became an honorary member of the Aesir gods after the Aesir-Vanir War. Her father is Njord. Her mother is unknown, but could be Nerthus. Freyr is her brother. Her husband, named Odr in late Old Norse literature, is certainly none other than Odin, and, accordingly, Freya is ultimately identical with Odin’s wife Frigg (see below for a discussion of this).
Freya is famous for her fondness of love, fertility, beauty, and fine
material possessions – and, because of these predilections, she’s
considered to be something of the “party girl” of the Aesir. In one of
the Eddic poems, for example, Loki accuses Freya (probably accurately) of having slept with all of the gods and elves, including her brother.[1] She’s certainly a passionate seeker after pleasures and thrills, but she’s a lot more than only that. Freya is the archetype of the völva, a professional or semiprofessional practitioner of seidr, the most organized form of Norse magic. It was she who first brought this art to the gods,[2]
and, by extension, to humans as well. Given her expertise in
controlling and manipulating the desires, health, and prosperity of
others, she’s a being whose knowledge and power are almost without
equal.
Freya presides over the afterlife realm Folkvang. According to one Old Norse poem, she chooses half of the warriors slain in battle to dwell there. (See Death and the Afterlife.) Freya the Völva
Seidr is a form of pre-Christian Norse magic and shamanism concerned with discerning destiny and altering its course by re-weaving part of its web.[3]
This power could potentially be put to any use imaginable, and examples
that cover virtually the entire range of the human condition can be
found in Old Norse literature.
In the Viking Age, the völva was an itinerant seeress and
sorceress who traveled from town to town performing commissioned acts of
seidr in exchange for lodging, food, and often other forms of
compensation as well. Like other northern Eurasian shamans, her social
status was highly ambiguous – she was by turns exalted, feared, longed
for, propitiated, celebrated, and scorned.[4]
Freya’s occupying this role amongst the gods is stated directly in the Ynglinga Saga, and indirect hints are dropped elsewhere in the Eddas and sagas. For example, in one tale, we’re informed that Freya possesses falcon plumes that allow their bearer to shift his or her shape into that of a falcon.[6]
During the so-called Völkerwanderung or “Migration Period” –
roughly 400-800 CE, and thus the period that immediately preceded the
Viking Age – the figure who would later become the völva held a
much more institutionally necessary and universally acclaimed role
among the Germanic tribes.
One of the core societal institutions of the
period was the warband, a tightly organized military society presided
over by a king or chieftain and his wife. The wife of the warband’s
leader, according to the Roman historian Tacitus, held the title of veleda,
and her role in the warband was to foretell the outcome of a suggested
plan of action by means of divination and to influence that outcome by
means of more active magic, as well as to serve a special cup of liquor
that was a powerful symbol of both temporal and spiritual power in the
warband’s periodic ritual feasts.[7][8]
One literary portrait of such a woman comes to us from the medieval Old English epic poem Beowulf,
which recounts the deeds of King Hroðgar and his warband in the land
that we today know as Denmark. The name of Hroðgar’s queen, Wealhþeow,
is almost certainly the Old English equivalent of the Proto-Germanic
title that Tacitus latinised as “veleda.”[9] Wealhþeow’s
“domestic” actions in the poem – which are, properly understood,
enactments of the liquor ritual described above – are indispensable for
the upkeep of the unity of the warband and its power structures. The
poem, despite its Christian veneer, “hint[s] at the queen’s oracular
powers… The Hrothgar/Wealhtheow association as presented in the poem is
an echo of an earlier more robust and vigorous politico-theological
conception.”[10]
This “politico-theological conception” was based on the mythological
model provided by the divine pair Frija and Woðanaz, deities who later
evolved into, respectively, Freya/Frigg and Odin. Woðanaz is the
warband’s king or chieftain, and Frija is its veleda. In
addition to the structural congruencies outlined above, Wealhþeow and
Freya even own a piece of jewelry with the same name: Old English Brosinga mene and Old Norse Brísingamen
(both meaning something like “fiery/glowing necklace”). That both
figures refer to the same ancient archetype, whether on the human or the
divine plane, is certain.
Freya and Frigg
While the late Old Norse literary sources
that form the basis of our current knowledge of pre-Christian Germanic
religion present Freya and Frigg as being at least nominally distinct
goddesses, the similarities between them run deep. Their differences,
however, are superficial and can be satisfactorily explained by
consulting the history and evolution of the common Germanic goddess whom
the Norse were in the process of splitting into Freya and Frigg
sometime shortly before the conversion of Scandinavia and Iceland to
Christianity (around the year 1000 CE).
As we’ve noted above, the Migration Period goddess who later became
Freya was the wife of the god who later became Odin. While somewhat
veiled, this is ultimately still the case in Old Norse literature.
Freya’s husband is named Óðr, a name which is virtually identical to
that of Óðinn (the Old Norse form of “Odin”). Óðr means “ecstasy, inspiration, furor.” Óðinn is simply the word óðr with the masculine definite article (-inn)
added onto the end. The two names come from the same word and have the
same meaning. Óðr is an obscure and seldom-mentioned character in Old
Norse literature. The one passage that tells us anything about his
personality or deeds – anything beyond merely listing his name in
connection with Freya – comes from the Prose Edda, which states
that Óðr is often away on long journeys, and that Freya can often be
found weeping tears of red gold over his absence.[11] Many of the surviving tales involving Odin have him traveling far and wide throughout the Nine Worlds, to the point that he’s probably more often away from Asgard
than within it. Many of Odin’s numerous bynames allude to his
wanderings or are names he assumed to disguise his identity while
abroad. Thus, it’s hard to see Freya’s husband as anything but an only
nominally distinct extension of Odin.
Freyja and Frigg are similarly accused of infidelity to their
(apparently common) husband. Alongside the several mentions of Freya’s
loose sexual practices can be placed the words of the medieval Danish
historian Saxo Grammaticus, who relates that Frigg slept with a slave on
at least one occasion.[12] In Lokasenna and the Ynglinga Saga, Odin was once exiled from Asgard, leaving his brothers Vili and Ve in command. In addition to presiding over the realm, they also regularly slept with Frigg until Odin’s return.[13][14]
Many scholars have tried to differentiate between Freya and Frigg by
asserting that the former is more promiscuous and less steadfast than
the latter,[15] but these tales suggest otherwise.
Frigg is depicted as a völva herself. Once again in Lokasenna,
after Loki slanders Frigg for her infidelity, Freya warns him that
Frigg knows the destiny of all beings, implying that she also has the
power to alter them if she so chooses.[16] Frigg’s weaving
activities are likely an allusion to this role as well. And, as it turns
out, Freya is not the only goddess to own a set of bird-of-prey
feathers for shapeshifting – Frigg is also in possession of one.[17]
The word for “Friday” in Germanic languages (including English) is named after Frija,[18]
the Proto-Germanic goddess who is the foremother of Freya and Frigg.
None of the other Germanic peoples seem to have spoken of Frija as if
she were two goddesses; this approach is unique to the Norse sources. It
should come as no surprise, therefore, that in the Norse sources we
find a confusion as to which goddess this day should have as its
namesake. Both Freyjudagr (from Freyja) and Frjádagr (from Frigg) are used.
The names of the two goddesses are also particularly interesting in this regard. Freyja, “Lady,” is a title rather than a true name. It’s a cognate of the modern German word Frau,
which is used in much the same way as the English title “Mrs.” In the
Viking Age, Scandinavian and Icelandic aristocratic women were sometimes
called freyjur, the plural of freyja.[19] “Frigg,” meanwhile, comes from an ancient root that means “beloved.”[20] Frigg’s name therefore links her to love and desire, precisely the areas of life over which Freya presides (perhaps a more theologically
correct wording would be “within which Freya manifests herself”). Here
again we can discern the ultimate reducibility of both goddesses to one
another: one’s name is identical to the other’s attributes, and the
other name is a generic title rather than a unique name.
Clearly, then, the two are ultimately the same goddess. But this
raises the question of why they’re portrayed as distinct goddesses in
Old Norse literature.
Germanic mythology acquired its basic form during the Migration
Period, and is, accordingly, a mythology especially suited to the
socio-political institutions and prevailing ways of life that
characterized that era. The cornerstone of this schema is the divine
pair Frija and Woðanaz, the veleda and the *xarjanaz
(“warband leader”) respectively. During the Viking Age, the formal
warbands of earlier times gave way to informal, often leaderless groups
of roving warriors – the vikings. Since the warband was no longer a
feature of the lives of the Norse people, the mythological structures
that had accompanied it lost much of their relevance. Now that Odin was
no longer thought of as the leader of the warband of the gods, nor
Freya/Frigg its veleda, the opportunity arose for their roles
to be reinterpreted. For unknown reasons, part of this reinterpretation
evidently involved splitting Frija into two goddesses, a process that
appears to have never been fully completed, but was instead interrupted
by the arrival and acceptance of Christianity.
A good holiday to celebrate a rotten person ticking off the wrong person, thus getting himself killed.
Olaf the Lawbreaker (?St. Olaf?) was killed at the battle of Stikklestad
on this date in the year 1280 R.E. Olaf acquired a reputation for
killing, maiming, and exiling his fellow Norwegians who would not
convert to Christianity, and for carrying an army with him in violation
of the law to help him accomplish his oppression. Today honor the Asatru
martyrs who died rather then submit to him. Also honor the
warriors who brought justice to the Lawbreaker.
Time for another post and I got this from the same site, Norse Mythology for Smart People.
Sol (pronounced like the English word “soul”; Old NorseSól, “Sun”) and Mani (pronounced “MAH-nee”; Old Norse Máni, “Moon”), are, as their names suggest, the divine animating forces of the sun and the moon, respectively.
Sol and Mani form a brother and sister pair. When they first emerged as the cosmos was being created,
they didn’t know what their powers were or what their role was in the
new world. Then the gods met together and created the different parts of
the day and year and the phases of the moon so that Sol and Mani would
know where they fit into the great scheme of things.[1]
They ride through the sky on horse-drawn chariots. The horses who
pull Mani’s chariot are never named, but Sol’s horses are apparently
named Árvakr (“Early Riser”[2]) and Alsviðr (“Swift”[3]). They ride “swiftly” because they’re pursued through the sky by the wolves Skoll (“Mockery”) and Hati (“Hate”),[4] who overtake them when the cosmos descends back into chaos during Ragnarok.
According to one of the poems in the Poetic Edda,
a figure named Svalinn rides in the sun’s chariot and holds a shield
between her and the earth below. If he didn’t do this, both the land and
the sea would be consumed in flames.[5] Elsewhere, the father of Sol and Mani is named as “Mundilfari,”[6] about whom we know nothing. His name might mean “The One Who Moves According to Particular Times.”[7]
The medieval Icelandic historian Snorri Sturluson, whose Prose Edda
can’t be taken at face value but nevertheless is in most low-quality
introductory books on Norse mythology, tries to compile these disparate
references into a comprehensive narrative that’s utterly ridiculous and
useless as a source of information: Mundilfari had two children who were
so beautiful that he called the girl “Sol” after the sun and the boy
“Mani” after the moon. Sun married a man called Glenr (“Opening in the
Clouds”[8]). The sun, which had originated as a spark in Muspelheim,
was pulled through the sky in a chariot, but the chariot had no driver.
The gods were outraged by Mundilfari’s arrogance in the names he chose
for his children, so they forced Sol to drive the sun’s chariot.[9] The Trundholm sun chariot from Bronze Age Denmark.
The conception of the sun and the moon riding on chariots through the
sky is evidently a very old one among the Norse and other Germanic
peoples. It can be found on rock carvings and other Scandinavian
artifacts from the Bronze Age, perhaps the most notable of which is the
Trundholm sun chariot (pictured). The idea that the sun deity was
female, and with a name that means simply “Sun,” is also attested among
the continental Germanic peoples.[10]
So while we don’t know much about Sol and Mani, we can be sure that
the basic conception they indicate is not only authentic, but was a part
of pre-Christian Germanic religion from the earliest times.
Time for another god post. I got this from the same site, Norse Mythology for Smart People.
Jord (pronounced “YORD;” Old NorseJörð, “Earth”) is an obscure and seldom-mentioned giantess and goddess in Norse mythology. She plays no active part in the tales whatsoever, and is referenced only in passing as being the mother of Thor[1] and as being the daughter of Nótt (“Night”) and Anarr (“Another”).[2]
However, Thor’s mother is also called Fjörgyn, Hlóðynn, Fold, and Grund throughout Eddic and skaldic poetry. These names, like “Jord,” all mean “earth,”[3]
so, given the context, it’s unlikely that they were thought of as being
truly distinct personages. But were they all different names for the
same personage?
Such an interpretation seems to be overly literal. In all likelihood,
what these passages are really saying is that Thor is the son of an
earth goddess, but not necessarily any one specific earth goddess.
“Earth” here seems to be more of a general concept than a discrete
figure.
The Norse and other Germanic peoples were part of the larger Indo-European
group of peoples.
Throughout the Indo-European world – for example,
among the Celts, Slavs, Greeks, Romans, and early Hindu society – the
idea that femininity and the earth are intrinsically connected, as are
masculinity and the sky, was one of the most basic and common ideas.
This is borne out especially clearly in Celtic mythology (wherein all
goddesses, with very few exceptions, conform to the
earth/fertility/mother/sovereignty type), Aristotle’s cosmology, and the
famous Indian marriage formula wherein the groom addresses the bride,
“I am heaven, thou art earth.” The union of the sky god and the earth
goddess, which maintains the cosmic order and bestows prosperity on the
land as it’s fertilized by the sun and the rain, is often referred to as
a hieros gamos or hierogamy, “divine marriage,” by historians of religion.[4]
It would be extremely strange if this concept weren’t also found
amongst the Norse and other Germanic peoples, and we can indeed find
numerous examples of it. One example of the hieros gamos is the
union between Thor and his wife Sif. Sif’s most-noted attribute is her
long, flowing blonde hair, which is surely meant to be understood as
corresponding to a field of grain ripe for harvest. Thor, whose name
means “Thunder,” is the animating spirit of the storm whose rain
fertilizes the fields.
Another Germanic goddess, Nerthus, was specifically identified with the Roman Terra Mater, “Mother Earth,” by the Roman historian Tacitus.
Another especially striking example of the Indo-European “earth
mother” archetype amongst the Germanic peoples comes from an Old English
prayer to an Erce, eorþan modor (“Erce, mother of earth”). The
charm was recited when the plow cut the first furrow of the growing
season, and milk, honey, flour, and water were poured into the soil.[5]
Ultimately, then, when the Old Norse poets referred to Thor’s mother
as “Earth,” they seem to have been referring more to a general concept
that was ambient and taken-for-granted in their society than they were
to a particular mythological figure. The fact that the references to her
in Old Norse literature are so sparse and insubstantial lends further
credence to this interpretation. Before the Norse and other Germanic
peoples were converted to Christianity, their sacred tales and divine
personalities were never systematized or rationalized like they are in
modern storybook versions of mythology.
They wouldn’t have necessarily
felt a need to explain exactly who Thor’s mother was. That she was
“Earth” was apparently enough.
Today marks eight months that my blog has been up. I want to thank everyone that has come on here and read, and liked, my posts. I really appreciate it. Thank, once again, for reading.
Here's another one. I got this from Norse Mythology for Smart People.
Fjorgynn (pronounced roughly “FIOR-gen”) and Fjorgyn (also pronounced
roughly “FIOR-gen”) are a divine pair in Norse mythology. Fjorgynn (Old NorseFjörgynn) is male and Fjorgyn (Old Norse Fjörgyn) is female.
References to either of these giants and/or deities in Old Norse literature are few and far between. They play no active part in the surviving mythological tales.
Therefore, everything that we know about them has to be cobbled
together from passing references and the study of comparative religion.
Fjorgyn is sometimes said to be the mother of Thor.[1] Elsewhere, Thor’s mother is said to be the equally elusive Jord. Since “Jord” (Old Norse Jörð) is the Old Norse word for “Earth,” and since fjörgyn (as a common noun with a lowercase “f”) is commonly used in Old Norse poetry to signify “earth” in a general sense,[2] Jord and Fjorgyn seem to be identical or at least closely related.
While the etymology (linguistic origin) of the words “Fjorgyn” and
“Fjorgynn” is unknown, many scholars have proposed that the former could
be related to Old English fruh, Old High German furuh, and Latin porca, all of which mean “furrow” or “ridge.”[3] This in turn suggests a connection to an Old English prayer to an Erce, eorþan modor
(“Erce, mother of earth”), which was recited when the plow cut the
first furrow of the growing season, and milk, honey, flour, and water
were poured into the soil.[4] All of this indicates that
Fjorgyn was extension of the “earth mother goddess” type that was so
prevalent throughout the ancient Germanic (and wider Indo-European) world.
And what about the male Fjorgynn?
References to him in Old Norse literature are even sparser than those to his female counterpart. In the Lokasenna, one of the poems in the Poetic Edda, the goddess Frigg is called Fjörgyns mær.[5]
This phrase can be literally translated as “Fjorgynn’s maiden,” which
could mean either “Fjorgynn’s daughter” or “Fjorgynn’s mistress.” The
medieval Icelandic historian Snorri Sturluson claimed that Frigg was Fjorgynn’s daughter,[6] but Snorri can’t be taken at face value. The passage in the Lokasenna has Loki taunting Frigg over her infidelity and promiscuity, and in that context, mær can hardly mean anything but “mistress.”
So this passage tells us nothing about Fjorgynn except that he slept
with Frigg. Of course, few if any of the Norse gods and goddesses have
been noted for their chastity or fidelity, so this passage tells us
essentially nothing about Fjorgynn.
Unfortunately, those two throwaway mentions are Fjorgynn’s only
appearances in Old Norse literature. To gain any insight into Fjorgynn’s
character, then, we have to turn to another kind of source: comparative
religion.
The thunder god of the Slavs and Balts of Eastern Europe, who was
called Perun (“Striker”) or Perkunas, was essentially identical to Thor
in his attributes and role within the Slavic and Baltic pantheons and
mythologies. There are also many areas of overlap between those deities
and the Hindu storm god Parjanya.[7] Such correspondences are relatively common amongst the various branches of the Indo-European peoples, which include the ancient Slavs, Balts, Norse, and Indians (India’s Indians, not American Indians, of course).
This makes it all the more intriguing that the names “Fjorgynn,”
“Perkunas,” and “Parjanya” all seem to derive from the same
Proto-Indo-European word. If you reverse the sound shifts that
eventually differentiated the Germanic, Baltic, and Sanskrit languages
from the Proto-Indo-European language thousands of years ago, you end up
with something like *Perkwunos. In the Proto-Indo-European religion, *Perkwunos
was likely a prominent god of the sky, storm, and rain. Since the
Proto-Indo-European language and religion are unattested, there are no
written documents that could explicitly confirm this, but the functional
and linguistic similarities here are simply too close to be
coincidences.[8]
If Fjörgynn corresponds to the Lithuanian Perkunas/Slavic Perun/Indian Parjanya, and if Fjörgyn
means “earth,” then Fjorgynn and Fjorgyn would be a pair that
corresponds exactly to Thor and his wife Sif and to the wider
Indo-European hieros gamos or divine marriage between a sky god
and an earth goddess. Thus, Fjorgynn and Thor are effectively
identical, as are Fjorgyn, Jord, and Sif. Here we have a replication of a
deep-seated concept rather than a set of storybook-like discrete
deities. It’s by no means straightforwardly clear how this constellation
of related conceptions gave rise to the almost identical names Fjorgynn
and Fjorgyn, but it seems likely that this feature, too, goes back to
the Proto-Indo-European period, given the similarity of the Norse fjörgyn and Latin porca.
This also demonstrates a larger point about the mythology and
religion of the Norse and other Germanic peoples. The names of the
deities, and many of the details of their attributes and personalities,
changed considerably over time, as did the details of the sacred stories
that were told about them. The essence of Norse/Germanic religion,
therefore, lies not in such superficial characteristics, but in the
deeper concepts like the hieros gamos and a cyclical view of time.
Those of us who are interested in reconstructing ancient Germanic
mythology and religion, whether for scholarly or personal reasons, would
do well to remember that the details (“Thor” or “Fjorgynn”?) mean
little in isolation, and derive their significance from pointing back to
that bigger picture.
Today will be a remembrance and a prayer day. Here's some info about Unn the Deep Minded.
Unn was a powerful figure from the Laxdaela Saga who emigrated to
Scotland to avoid the hostility of King Harald Finehair. She established
dynasties in the Orkney and Faroe Islands by carefully marrying off her
grand daughters. As a settler in Iceland she continued to exhibit all
those traits which were her hallmark-strong will, a determination to
control, dignity, and a noble character. In the last days of her life,
she established a mighty line choosing one of her grandsons as her heir.
She died during his wedding celebration, presumable accomplishing her
goals and worked out her orlog here in Midgard. She received a typical
Nordic ship burial, surrounded by her treasure and her reputation for
great deeds.
Odin's World Prayer day will focus on those fighting to finally rid the Middle East of Daesh. I wish them well and may Odin and Thor give them the strength to continue to fight.
So today is Founder's Day, or the Fourth of July here in America. Founder's Day is supposed to be a holiday that you remember those that laid the groundwork for modern Heathenism. However, I'm using this holiday to celebrate the independence of the colonies and pour out libation to Thor and Odin. I'm doing all this outside because I had to put my altar away due to the move that's coming up. I hope that you all will have a good fourth.
Time for another god post. I'm getting good at posting these things. Got this from the website Norse Mythology for Smart People.
Gefjun (pronounced “GEV-yoon” and sometimes spelled “Gefjon,”
“Gefiun,” or “Gefion”) is an ancient Norse goddess of agriculture,
fertility, abundance, and prosperity. Her name is derived from the Old Norse verb gefa, “to give,”[1] and her name can be translated as “Giver” or “Generous One.”
Most of our information about Gefjun has been filtered through the mind and pen of the thirteenth-century Icelandic historian Snorri Sturluson.
While Snorri’s retellings of Norse mythology can’t be accepted
uncritically, his descriptions of Gefjun surely do contain much that is
authentic.
As Snorri tells it, Gefjun traveled through Sweden disguised as a
homeless woman. When she appeared before the generous King Gylfi, he
granted her as much land as four oxen could plow in one day. Gefun
summoned her four sons, which she had had by an unnamed giant, and
turned them into oxen to plow the land. Not only did they plow the land;
they also dragged it from Sweden, where the resulting depression became
the lake Mälaren, and out into the ocean, where it became the Danish
island of Zealand, upon which the city of Copenhagen is today located.[2][3]
A similar, but shorter and more ambiguous, version of this same story can be found in the ninth-century poem Ragnarsdrápa by Bragi Boddason.[4] This poem probably formed much of the basis of Snorri’s version.
Associations between an earth goddess of prosperity and the act of
plowing were common throughout the pre-Christian religion of the Norse
and other Germanic peoples. The name of the goddess Fjorgyn, which by the Viking Age had come to be used as a synonym for “earth,” is likely derived from a Proto-Indo-European word for “furrow.”[5]
Another example of this tendency is an Old English prayer to an
otherwise unattested goddess named “Erce” that was recited when the
fields were first plowed in the spring. While it was recorded after the
conversion to Christianity, it certainly originated in the pre-Christian
period. In it, the Christian god is assimilated to a classic pagan
Indo-European role: the sky god who fertilizes the earth goddess in the hieros gamos (“divine marriage”). H.R. Ellis Davidson translates the charm as follows:
Erce, Erce, Erce, Earth Mother,
may the Almighty Eternal Lord
grant you fields to increase and flourish,
fields fruitful and healthy,
shining harvest of shafts of millet,
broad harvests of barley…
Hail to thee, Mother of Men!
Bring forth now in God’s embrace
filled with good for the use of men.[6]
The association with the island of Zealand also suggests a connection between Gefjun and Nerthus, another earth mother goddess whose cult was also said to be centered in Zealand.[7]
There are few other references to Gefjun in Old Norse literature. In the Eddic poem Lokasenna, Loki accuses Gefjun of having exchanged sex for precious jewels, something that the goddess Freya is also said to have done.[8]
Since Freya was also an earth goddess of “peace and plenty,” this
passage raises the question of the degree to which Freya and Gefjun can
be distinguished from one another. Indeed, one of Freya’s other names is
Gefn, which is also derived from the verb gefa and also means something like “Giver” or “Generous One.”[9]
In any case, Gefjun’s apparent promiscuity makes Snorri look rather
ridiculous when he claims that Gefjun is a virgin and that girls who die
virgins go to her company when they die.[10]
In conclusion, then, Gefjun can hardly be distinguished from other
Germanic goddesses of the “earth mother goddess” type, which includes
Freya, Frigg, Nerthus, Fjorgyn, Jord,
Sif, and others. This is not to say that they were all necessarily
thought of as being the exact same goddess, but rather that they’re
multiplications of and slight variations of the same type of goddess.
Why didn’t the Norse and other Germanic peoples just have one single
goddess of this type, then? To modern tastes, that would have made
things more efficient by eliminating redundancy. But one of the defining
traits of ancient Germanic religion was its lack of systematization and
rationalization, and the fluidity that existed between various divine
figures. You could say that the “earth mother goddess” of fecundity was a
divine model buried somewhere deep within the Germanic psyche
(regardless of the degree to which you might ascribe this to “nature” or
“nurture”), and that that model was allowed to be expressed in any way
that it and its worshipers chose.
After all, polytheistic
religions are characteristically permissive and lacking in dogma.
Generally speaking, only monotheistic religions, with their insistence
on a literalistic, black-and-white distinction between “good” and “evil”
and “true” and “false” tend to view a rigid, “one-size-fits-all”
codification of their tradition as necessary and desirable.
Today is the beginning of another month and one that will be filled with changes. We have to move, next month the house is put up for auction due to the landlord. I really can't stand people that don't pay their taxes. I will be doing plenty of per-writes so that the information is up when I want it to be up. I'm hoping that we won't be without the internet for long and that I can go back to blogging.
Getting around to doing this post. Here's some information about Forseti and I get it from Norse Mythology for Smart People.
Forseti (pronounced “for-SET-ee;” Old NorseForseti, “Chairman”[1])
is an obscure pre-Christian Norse god. He is mentioned only twice in
Old Norse literature. The first mention comes from the 15th stanza of
the Grímnismál, one of the poems in the Poetic Edda.
There, it’s said that Forseti’s dwelling-place, Glitnir, is a
resplendent hall made of gold and silver, and that he settles disputes.[1] He thus seems to be the divine equivalent of and model for the human “lawspeaker” (lögsögumaðr), the ceremonial head of the þing,
the Scandinavian legal assembly. The lawspeaker often acted as a judge
who decided the outcome of disputes in accordance with the law.
That’s the extent of reliable, relatively unambiguous information
concerning Forseti that we have from any primary source. The sole other
mention of him in Old Norse literature comes from the Prose Edda of Snorri Sturluson. The passage reads like a flippant embellishment on the Grímnismál. Snorri, ever concerned with tidiness at the expense of accuracy, claims, with no apparent basis, that Forseti is the son of Baldr and Baldr’s wife, Nanna.[2]
As I’ve discussed in numerous other articles on this site (do a search
if you’re interested), Snorri can’t be taken at face value, and there’s
no reason to assume that his remarks on Forseti’s parentage are anything
but his own invention.
Other possible references to Forseti from other kinds of sources are also ambiguous and problematic.
According to Alcuin’s eighth-century Life of St. Willibrord,
Willibrord once visited an island between Denmark and Frisia. There was
a holy spring on the island from which people obtained water, and they
did so in silence due to the holiness of the place. The Life records that the island was named Fositesland after the god who was worshipped there. This Fosite
could be Forseti, but this is far from certain, and if it were the
case, it would raise additional problems with the meaning and etymology
of Forseti’s name.[3][4]
In one medieval account of the origin of Frisian law, twelve
lawmakers were set adrift at sea as a punishment by Charles the Great.
They prayed to the Christian god for assistance, and their prayers were
answered when a thirteenth man carrying a golden axe mysteriously
appeared among them. He used his axe to row the ship to land, and when
they reached land, he threw the axe on the ground, and a spring gushed
forth from the spot where it landed. This thirteenth man taught them the
laws they needed to know, then vanished.[5]
While the element of the holy (or at least mysterious) spring in both
texts could point to a common tradition linking Forseti and holy
springs, and the golden axe of the second text could be connected to
Forseti’s golden hall, these correspondences are highly tenuous and
demonstrate nothing conclusively. It’s possible that the thirteenth man
was the god Forseti, but it’s more likely that he was Christ, since he
came in answer to Christian prayers, and was the thirteenth man among
twelve followers, like Jesus and his apostles.
Unfortunately, then, the one passing reference to Forseti in the Grímnismál provides the only reasonably trustworthy information we have about Forseti as he was understood in heathen times.
Today is Midsummer, when the sun is at it's height. We honor the gods and give them offering. Here's some information about this holiday.
This is the longest day and the shortest night of the year:
Now Sunna begins its ling decline, sliding into the darkness which will
culminate six months from now at Yule. Identifying the sun with the
brightness of Baldur, we celebrate in honor of both. Hold blot to Baldur
and High Feast. This was the traditional time for holding the AlThing
in ancient times.
Time for another one. And this is from the same site, Norse Mythology for Smart People.
Vili and Ve are the two brothers of the god Odin, with whom they shared a decisive role in the original shaping of the cosmos.
The medieval Icelandic scholar Snorri Sturluson tells us that Odin, Vili, and Ve were the first true Aesir gods to exist. Their parents were the proto-god Borr and the giantess Bestla. The three brothers slew the giant Ymir, the first being who had come into existence, and fashioned the cosmos from his corpse.[1]
While Snorri is not generally a particularly reliable source, there are
good reasons to accept this particular information as an authentic
account of pre-Christian Norse views, given how well it accords with
other evidence that we’ll consider below.
Vili and Ve also feature in one other tale that has come down to us: when Odin was temporarily exiled from Asgard, the Aesir deities’ celestial stronghold, for practicing “unmanly” magic, Vili and Ve slept with his wife, Frigg.[2][3] Unfortunately, no more is known about their role in this series of events.
Other explicit references to Vili and Ve in Old Norse literature are limited to passing mentions of Vili as the brother of Odin.[4] The characters Hárr (“High”), Jafnhárr (“Just as High”), and Þriði (“Third”) in Snorri’s Prose Edda, whose roles in the nominal narrative are purely didactic, could be Odin, Vili, and Ve,[5]
but it’s just as likely that they’re Odin under three different forms,
since all three names are applied to Odin elsewhere in Old Norse poetry.[6]
The most compelling information about Vili and Ve may be found in their names. In Old Norse, Vili means “Will,”[7] and Vé means “Temple”[8] and is etymologically closely related to other words that have to do with the sacred, and hallowing in particular.
Intriguingly, the Proto-Germanic names of Odin, Vili, and Ve would have been, respectively, *Woðanaz, *Weljon,[9] and *Wixan.[10]
This alliteration can hardly be coincidental, and suggests that the
triad dates back to the time when the Proto-Germanic language was spoken
– well before the Viking Age began in approximately 800 AD, and quite
possibly no less than a millennium or two prior to that date.[11]
Although they are only mentioned sporadically in literature from the
Viking Age and shortly thereafter, Vili and Ve must have been deities of
prime importance to the Norse and other Germanic peoples, at least
during the time of the Germanic tribes, and possibly later as well. No
mythological figure of only minor importance would have been retained
throughout such a large proportion of the thousands of years the
Germanic myths were in active use, during which they underwent numerous
significant changes. The fact that Vili and Ve are cast as the brothers
of Odin, perhaps the highest Germanic god throughout much of this time,
is a further suggestion of their lofty stature.
Indeed, Odin, Vili, and Ve – respectively, Inspiration, Conscious
Intention, and the Sacred – are the three most basic forces or
characteristics that distinguish any cosmos from chaos. Hence it was
these three gods who originally fashioned the cosmos, and surely
remained three of the most necessary pillars of its continued upkeep and
prosperity.
Today marks seven months that my blog has been up. I want to thank everyone that has come on here and read my posts, it's means the world to me. Thanks, again.
I've been thinking over this during the past several months, and with what happened on the train a couple of weeks ago it has really been on my mind. The man that killed two men, and almost a third, claimed to be a practicing heathen. He spoke about the gods and giving them glory, which isn't a bad thing as long as blood isn't shed. I've come to the conclusion that Heathenism will have nuts and we have to defend our religion against them and prove, by our actions, that we aren't like them.
It's sad that we have to do this but I don't see any other choice. Racism will be part of our religion and there's nothing that can be done to stop that. But we can work on changing people's minds.
A couple of days ago I was on Facebook, yeah I'm still on there, and it seems that the SPLC (Southern Poverty Law Center) is back to the original terminology of Heathen and Asatru. They called Asatru a racist Neo-pagan religion. After being called out by even African American followers of the religion there's little doubt that the term will change. The problem is that this affects those that practice the religion, it makes them hide their religion, which is in violation of the First Amendment. Later on they sort of changed it to it's not fundamentally racist.
This will continue to lead to problems. The problem with SPLC is that they will look for any reason to put something on their list. It makes them feel so good about themselves that they don't care who they hurt. Add to the rise in white morons that use our gods to attack and kill and the SPLC has gone back to what it said about the religion. Now anyone wearing Thor's hammer is a target by the FBI and local law enforcement. What needs to be done is that SPLC needs to be sued and sued big time.
I'm a follower of the Norse Gods, I have my views, however I don't attack people that are different, I don't make them feel excluded, I don't attack them in public. My views are private and will remain so. My views don't have any affect on how I treat others and that's the only thing that matters.
I'm finally getting back to doing these posts. Here's the new one and this is from Norse Mythology for Smart People.
Bragi (pronounced “BRAG-ee;” Old NorseBragi, “Poet”) is the wise and learned bard (Old Norse þulr, pronounced “THOOL-ur”) of Valhalla, the magnificent hall of the god Odin. Old Norse poetry from the Viking Age frequently features him regaling the einherjar, the dead who dwell in Valhalla, and welcoming recently deceased heroes into their midst.[1] One Eddic poem depicts him as having runes carved on his tongue.[2]
Bragi was originally the historical ninth-century bard Bragi
Boddason. His poems were so outstandingly artful and moving that
subsequent generations imagined that, upon his death, Odin had appointed
him the court poet of Valhalla. After all, a troop of elite warriors,
kings, and others favored by Odin needed an elite bard to sing of their
countless exploits.[3]
The Old Norse writers of the Christian Middle Ages took this a step
further and portrayed Bragi as having been nothing less than a god of
poetry. One such author even claimed that one of the Old Norse words for
“poetry,” bragr, was derived from Bragi’s name.[4] He was said to be the husband of the goddess Idun, whose fruits guarantee the continued immortality of the gods.
However, this seems to have been a misunderstanding on the part of
such late authors, and there’s no evidence that Bragi was ever actually
worshiped as a god while the pre-Christian Norse religion was still a
living tradition. [5][6]
Today we raise our horns to Sigurd of Volsung, a legendary figure in Norse myth. Who had a ring that would curse whoever owned it. His saga is called the Völsunga saga and it's something that I would love to read on my own. Hail to him and his saga.
Today is Lindesfarne Day, the day that marks the beginning of the Viking Age. They raided the monastery at Lindesfarne in reaction to Charlemagne killing over a hundred thousand Anglo-Saxon that were caught sacrificing to Odin. Hail to them, brave warriors.
Today will be Frigga's Blot, which I'm really excited about. Frigga is the wife of Odin and Queen of the Asir gods. Raise a horn to her and give her offerings.
Today marks six months that this blog has been up. I can't believe that my blog has been up this long. Thanks everyone that has come on here and liked my posts. It means the world to me.
Time for another heathen holiday. This one is a remembrance one. I won't be able to really celebrate it, maybe pour something on the ground, but the Astaru Alliance has information. However, ignore the Christian hate. I don't support it.
One of the upland minor kings. Guthroth had to the audacity to make a
speech opposing the policies of Olaf Tryggvason, who at the time was
busy killing people who did not want to become kristjans. For exercising
his Gods given rights to worship his tribal Gods, Guthroth was captured
and his tongue was cut out. Use your tongue for the Gods today! Sing
their praises and recite some heroic poetry, tell someone of the Gods
glory, and call a kinsman to keep in touch.
In my words sums up this day.
Guthroth had his tongue cut out for opposing the kings policies. Protect freedom of speech and remember those that were punished for speaking their minds.
I'm writing this ahead of time because I've got jury duty and I won't have any time to do them. Today is May Day. Here's some information about it from the Astaru Alliance.
The first of May is a time of great celebration all across Europe, as
the fields get greener and the flowers decorate the landscape with
colorful confusion. Freya turns her kindly face to us after the night of
Walburg. Celebrate the birth of Spring and the gifts of Freya on this
day.
This is the last heathen holiday for this month and it's the day before Beltane, or May Day. I got this from the Asatru Alliance, even though I don't support them.
Walburg: this is better known as Walpurgisnacht or May Eve. Walberg is a
goddess of our folk combining some of the traits of Her better-known
peers. Reflect on this day on Freya, Hel, and Frigga as the repository
of the glorious dead, and you will have an idea of Wulburg?s nature. On
this day pour a horn of mead upon the earth in memory of our heroes.
Tomorrow will be the first episode of American Gods. Based on the book of the same name by Neil Gaiman it's about a convict name Shadow Moon that is recruited by con man Mr. Wednesday to recruit older gods to battle newer ones. I read this book a couple of years after I arrived in MA and I really loved how he brought the gods to the modern world. Much better than Rick Riordan does. Even though I can't watch the show, I'm going to have to wait for it to come out on DVD/Blu Ray, I know that it will be good.
Today my package from Canada arrived. A fellow Asatruer, that's new to her own path, had an extra set of Norse gods and goddess. She asked me if I wanted them and I told her that I did. So she sent them and they arrived today. Here's a photo of them. Personally I also would like some help to figure out which gods and goddess that I can't identify are. Here's the photo and I hope that you enjoy looking at them as much as I enjoy having them.
It's been a while since I did one of these and so I decided to start with Frigga. I got this from Mythology.net.
Who is Frigga?
Frigg wears many hats in Norse mythology. She is often described as “foremost among the goddesses,” and was the wife of Odin. She was the Queen of the Aesir
and the goddess of the sky. She was also known as the goddess of
fertility, household, motherhood, love, marriage, and domestic arts.
Some of these domains were also overseen by another Norse goddess named
Freyja. In Norse mythology, Frigg’s primary roles were familial roles,
mostly surrounding her husband and children.
Origins
Many scholars believe that Frigg may have originated in a common
Germanic goddess. While there is no firm evidence to prove the
hypothesis, there are many similarities, such as mythological features
and their names, as well as locations associated with both of them.
Whether Frigg has a link to other types of mythology or not, she played a
very important role in Norse mythology.
Legends and Stories
The mythic representations of Frigg focus on her family life. While she
was greatly blessed, she also faced terrible heartache, which would
eventually serve as her legacy.
The Loss of a Son
The myth surrounding Frigg and her role as a mother is by far the
most famous. She gave birth to a son named Balder, who was the light of
her life. The entire world seemed to rejoice when he was born and she
was dedicated to helping her son grow. She was also incredibly
protective. This instinct became stronger when Balder had a dream that
predicted his own death.
Frigg went around to every living thing in the entire world and
demanded that her son would not be harmed. She was unable to demand
protection from the mistletoe, which seemed insignificant at the time.
With time, the gods made up a game involving Balder. They would throw
anything they could find at him and watch the objects bounce off him,
never causing a bruise or simple scratch. Balder was never hurt, no
matter the size or weight of the item.
This pastime continued until the day that Loki
gave a dart made from mistletoe to Hoor, Balder’s twin brother, who
also happened to be blind. Loki told Hoor that he would help him play
the game with Balder. With Loki’s assistance, Hoor threw the dart at his
brother. Instead of it bouncing off of him like every other living
thing on earth, it pierced his heart and killed him instantly.
When Frigg heard of her son’s passing, she fell to the ground in
despair. After the initial shock, she went to work trying to alter
Balder’s fate. She sent Hermodr to the Underworld
where there was an attempt to ransom Balder’s soul. The Queen of the
Underworld, Hel, agreed to release Frigg’s son, but only if all living
things would weep for him.
Frigg set out right away, asking every living thing in the world if
they would weep for her lost son. They all agreed until Frigg approached
the last living thing on the planet, a giantess with the name Thokk.
She refused Frigg’s request to weep and said, “Living or dead, I loved
not the churl’s son. Let Hel hold to that she hath!” Many interpreters
of Norse mythology believe that this giantess was actually Loki in
disguise. Either way, this cursed Balder to the Underworld forever.
Frigg's Switch
While Frigg was believed to have been an honorable wife, she did take
hold of an opportunity to outsmart her husband and end a conflict
between outsiders. Odin was known for being incredibly strong-willed but
in this myth, Frigg found a way past this. A conflict had broken out
between two Germanic tribes, known as the Vandals and the Winnilers.
Odin favored the Vandals, while Frigg supported the Winnilers.
One evening, Frigg and Odin got into an argument of their own over
the tribes. They each gave reasons supporting why their tribe of choice
was right and why the other was wrong. Finally, Odin swore that
whichever tribe he saw first thing in the morning, he would grant
victory to. He did this knowing that the Vandals would be visible
through the window on his side of the bed.
While Odin was sleeping, Frigg told the women of the Winniler tribe
to reposition their hair so that it would appear as long beards. She
also turned the bed so that her husband was facing in the opposite
direction. When he woke, he was taken aback by what he saw. He asked
Frigg who the “long-beards” were. He had been outsmarted but kept his
promise and granted victory to the Winniler tribe and even eventually
admitted that Frigg’s choice was correct.
Family
Frigg was married to Odin and they had a family together. Because of his
untimely death, Balder is the first child many associate with the
goddess.
Odin
Odin was one of the most popular gods in Norse mythology. He was often
associated with royalty, death, healing, battles, poetry, sorcery and
knowledge. He carried a spear named Gungnir and was often accompanied by
animal companions, including two wolves named Geri and Freki, and two
ravens named Muninn and Huginn.
Balder
Balder was a god with a central role in Norse mythology. He was the god
of love, peace, forgiveness and justice. He was the second son of Frigg
and Odin and had a twin brother named Hoor, who ultimately caused his
demise.
Appearance
Frigg is mostly depicted as a beautiful and strong spirited woman. In
many pictures, she is shown with her husband Odin, paying tribute to her
strong role as a wife in Norse mythology. She is often pictured against
soft and beautiful backgrounds, which seem to symbolize her calming
nature.
Symbology
Frigg represents family. She is known as a source of nurturing, patient
and devoted love. Even in situations where fate is already set, such as
in her son’s untimely death, Frigg still did everything that she could
to alter fate. Frigg’s main symbols include the full moon, the sky, the
spinning wheel and spindle, mistletoe and silver, many of which are
shown in artistic representations of the goddess.
