God Post: Nerthus

Hail!

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.

God Post: Njord

Hail!

Time for another god post. I got this from 'Norse Mythology for Smart People.' Check them out.

 

Njord (pronounced “NYORD;” Old Norse Njörðr, 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]

God Post: Freyr

Hail!

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 Norse Freyr, “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.

What Happened in Charlottesville

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.

Blog of an Independent Asatruer Up for Nine Months

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Today marks nine months that my blog has been up. Thanks, everyone, that has come on here and read my blogs. Means the world to me.