Asatru E-Book

Gudrun Victoria Gotved

• Herausgeber: Books on Demand
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 194

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

This book is about how I see Asatru. It is my personal view and a story about how I do things. This is not meant as an Asatru textbook. In my opinion, such a textbook cannot be written at all. Asatru is very individual, and you must form your own opinions and attitudes and find out, what feels right to me, otherwise it will not work. I do not think that, in this faith, you can just take over someone elses opinions. But I love to give other people inspirations. Tell what I do and why. So they can chose how to do them self. Therefor I wrote my first book back in 2000. Both to be an inspiration, but also to tell people about what Asatru is. Two years ago I wrote this book which contains more rituals an experience than the first one. A lot of people do not know anything about Asatru and have a huge number of prejudices. In this book I try to take Asatru down to earth, so to say. Make it more common. And explain what it is for me.

Leseprobe

The cover photo shows a Völva ready for an important ritual. The make-up is an interpretation based partly on lead white being found in a grave at Fyrkat near Hobro, partly on reports of Völvas being awakened from the dead. The Völva is in between worlds, dead as well as alive.

Photo: Jim Lyngvild

CONTENTS

Dedication

Introduction

Chapter 1 - It was Always So

Chapter 2 - The History of Asatru

Chapter 3 - Aesir, Vanir and Jötnar

Chapter 4 – Life, Death and the Nornir

Chapter 5 - Wights, Fylgjur and the Ancestors

Chapter 6 - The Poetic Edda

Chapter 7 - Being a Goði

Chapter 8 - Being a Völva

Chapter 9 - When the Gods Answer

Chapter 10 - Blót

Chapter 11 - Clothing and Accessories

Chapter 12 - Life’s Ritual Acts

Appendix I - Mead á la Gudrun

Appendix II - Inspiration for Rituals

Appendix III - Poems

Literature and useful links

DEDICATION

My father was of huge importance to me. For me becoming who I am, and for my faith. Even though there was a lot we disagreed on. Unfortunately, he passed away in October 2019, just before Danish edition went into print. Therefore, this book is dedicated to him. Without him, no me.

You gave me life - and I learned from you

about good customs - and gods from the north

About decency - so brave I could

in the mirror look - with laughter and pride

You played with words - and poems made

By them your memory – so mighty be set

the gods will find - you fully can stand

as Bragi’s apprentice - and peer in poems.

I learned that my actions – always have impacts

I need to take charge -of choices I made

about legends and sagas - and strength from gods

So grateful I am - that you were my dad.

INTRODUCTION

This book reflects my attitudes and my way of doing things. Therefore, you will probably encounter other Asatru who absolutely do not agree with what I write, as there are many different attitudes and ideas among those who collectively describe themselves as Asatru.

This is not meant as an Asatru textbook. In my opinion, such a textbook cannot be written at all. Asatru is very individual, and you must form your own opinions and attitudes and find out, “what feels right to me”, otherwise it will not work. I do not think that, in this faith, you can just take over someone else’s opinions. You can agree on many things and then disagree on others. The disagreements do not usually disassociate sensible Asatru, they just make a debate more interesting. We usually say that if two Asatru are present, there are three opinions. I will also mention other people’s points of view, but in those cases, they are made clear.

For good measure, I would just like to mention that named persons and their deeds are always mentioned with their knowledge and acceptance.

And who am I then?

I have been interested in Norse mythology as far back as I can remember. Helped by my father’s similar interest. I also found the Viking era exciting, long before it “came into fashion”. I have been a Viking Age Educator since 1996 and employed at Ribe Viking Centre since 2007.

I am a Goði. This is the person who is responsible for the various rituals at, for instance, weddings and funerals, i.e. a kind of priest. I am also a Völva, a kind of shaman or sorceress who, among other things, gives good advice with the help of runes. I was instrumental in founding Forn Siðr, an approved religious community for Asatru in Denmark. In 2016, I was honoured to be selected as Forn Siðr’s first Thul – religious inspirator – a task I had for 5 years. Times are changing, for me it was time to move forward, to leave this community, so now we have founded a new religious community for Asatru people in Denmark called “Nordisk Skik”.

And what exactly is Asatru? To me, it is not the literal belief in the Aesir1. Sure, they are there, but as images of myself and nature. I do not really believe Thor is driving his chariot cross the sky when there is thunder, but I still pay tribute to him during a thunderstorm, because that is where his power, the force of nature, feels strongest.

When, during a blót2, I pay tribute to Freyja, it is to become more aware of the love within myself and thereby become better able to convey this love. Or it could be to become more aware of the love that surrounds me, and thereby use it better. And yet – I’m sure the Aesir and Vanir exist in another dimension. Their roads rarely cross ours, but we come to them in a form of afterlife. I also want to go more into that.

Folklore3 is very important to me. There is much valuable knowledge stored here. The old ways of doing things and the old customs are very much a part of my world. I remember to thank the elder tree when I pick her flowers and berries to make juice, and the wights – the natural spirits – are also part of my universe. At blót I always pour a little mead on the ground for the wights, because it is their territory – nature – I borrow.

This book is not a review of Norse mythology. For that you can be inspired to read some of the books on my literature list which contains books recommended to me by good English speaking friends.

More information is also available on the internet.

There are quotes in this book from The Edda, one of the most important sources for knowledge of Norse mythology.

In the Danish edition of this book, I have mainly used my own translation of verses from the Edda. Obviously, I have looked at some of the excellent translations available, but I enjoy putting words together myself.

The translations in this English edition are mostly done by Henry Adam Bellows, because he is true to the old way of making rhymes.

When I quote from the Edda, I have chosen to use the old Norse name of the relevant poem. It is simply because different translators do not fully agree on what to call the poems. The stanzas are given the numbers given to them by the translators. The numbers are slightly different from translation to translation.

Also, in the Danish edition of the book, there are a number of modern poems, most of them written by my father, but also some by me. To translate them into proper poems with the right kind of rhymes, is too difficult for me at the moment. I have decided to put some of them in an appendix in Danish, along with a non poetic translation. If anybody has suggestions for translations that will follow the old poetic way, feel free to contact me.

Occasionally, the question pops up: “Who can be Asatru, and when are you one?” To that my answer will be a poem by my father, Ole Gotved:

Asatru

everyone can be called

Who owns the joy

by ancient myths

who pay tribute to the high

holy powers

or is simply friends

with the friendly wights

So, if you declare yourself to be Asatru then you are!

There are some (fortunately few) who have the idea that you can only be Asatru if it is in your blood. This is, in my view, terrible nonsense. I have met people from completely different backgrounds than the Nordic, who are Asatru; also, people with completely different skin colours than the one usually associated with the Scandinavian, but they are just as much Asatru as me and others I know.

And who is to say when one is a “real” Asatru? I would like to put it this way:

Some hear the call of the gods in the rush of blood

Some hear the call of the gods in the whisper of the land

Some have such good hearing that they need neither blood nor land to hear the gods call.

Those who answer the call of the gods with the heart are asatru, no matter how the call is heard.

In 2001, I wrote the book Asatro –De gamle guder i moderne tid (Asatru – Ancient Gods in Modern Times). The present work is not

exactly a second edition of the original book, but a whole new book, which nevertheless contains elements from the old one. When I find it necessary to revise and rewrite my first book now, it is because things are changing. Faith is not static to me and through conversations and experience I have gained a different attitude to some things. Furthermore, I have conducted several rituals, including funerals, of which I would also like to share my thoughts and experience.

I want to thank my family, and especially my father, for the upbringing I have had. It has greatly contributed to my attitude to life.

Also all my friends, who has been by my side through the years.

Jim Lyngvild needs a huge thank you for sparring and some of the photos. Marie Louise for critical reading. Thanks to Aziza, Søren Ryge and Ove Thomsen for their photos. Thanks to Suzanne for help and inspiration in the publication of the book. Thanks to Kirsten from Lemuel books for being the publisher of the Danish edition.

Thanks to Laila for the translation, and thanks to Leo for making the translation possible.

Thanks to Rachel and Sarah for the proofreading

Thanks also to all my fellow believers. Especially those of you, I disagree with. You are the ones that really makes me grow. Unity is boring because there is no development, whereas disagreement – especially when it is constructive – reveals thought and creates new thinking.

I will end this introduction by citing a creed written by my father. I have not managed to make it into a correct poem, but I think it is very important for understanding my background, so therefore I will include this version.

Even the Old Northern

gods live

as well as everything that came

of Ymer’s body.

Soul was me bestowed

by the sons of Bor,

and life itself emerges

from Ragnarok.

My fate is due to

the spinning Nornir,

My self I control

like the fate I take.

Take adversity,

endure success,

like the fate I meet,

my memory stays put.

The face of the gods

nobody knows,

we create a picture,

that looks like us.

We see the same thing,

but look differently,

no one can say

whose vision is more true.

(This translation is not poetically correct)

1 The Aesir are the dominant family of gods in Norse mythology. Together with the other family of gods, the Vanir, they governed the cosmos of the Norse world understanding.

2 Blót is what we call the ritual in which we pay tribute to the gods – more on that later

3 The professional term for superstition, notions of supernatural or inexplicable forces, beings and contexts.

IT WAS ALWAYS SO

Believing in the old Norse gods is not something I have chosen. It just seemed like something completely obvious and natural as far as I can remember. Although my father was Asatru, I was not brainwashed to be. I was baptised as a baby, as babies were back then (1964), and when puberty came, I had to actively opt out of the confirmation when the family figured that “of course I was to be confirmed”. However, I did not want to be, and it was respected, but there was no alternative, so no party.

I remember once – I must have been around 8-10 years old – when I started attending a Sunday school. It was mainly because one of the leaders, a sweet and lovable older lady, who may well be described as from the Inner Mission, wanted to see me there. I wanted to please her, so I started coming to the meetings. Pretty soon I agreed with myself that it was not really for me. My mother told me that I once said, “The meetings are nice, but why is the d... Bible necessary every time?”

At school I made a Thor’s hammer in a craft lesson, and I was quite familiar with the stories from Norse mythology. This was not so strange, as my father often used to read them aloud to us kids, just as his grandmother had done to him.

There was an oak tree that I went to when I wanted to be alone, and I calmed down there, I was in tune with nature and the forces that meant something to me, but otherwise I did not actively pursue the religion.

I was probably around 12-14 years old when I borrowed The Poetic Edda at the library and read it, in practically one sitting. When I was about 20, I found my first Edda in an antique shop.

The Asatru faith was almost always there, in the background. It was just there. When the talk fell on religion, I presented my Thor’s hammer (a gift from my father and mother) and proclaimed that I believed in Odin and Thor. However, without being able to explain what it entailed.

Gradually, however, I became aware that something that I found most important were life values such as “You must approve of yourself” and “Every action has a consequence”. The more I thought about it and discussed it with my father, the more things fell into place.

At the beginning of 1996, something momentous happened. I was at a health fair and suddenly I noticed a new edition of the Edda. While I was studying it, a fellow came over and asked if I was going to buy. It was Per Olsen. I replied that I had an Edda at home, but it was not the same translation. Then we got talking, and he told me that there were several who practiced the faith. This came as a surprise for me. I thought my father and I were the only ones crazy enough to believe in the Norse gods.

Later I came to play with, among others, Per in the band Eddagal. We performed Thøger Larsen’s translation of “The Poetic Edda” to Per’s lovely tunes. However, that is a completely different story. Per gave me the address of an active Asatru, who encouraged me to visit a Viking market, where the opportunity for contact, in his opinion, was probably greatest. Now I think it was mainly to see if I meant it seriously, if I wanted to do something about it, and I understand him very well. I am not one to serve the fried pigeons straight into people’s mouths either. This belief or spirituality requires an active effort from the individual.

Around the summer solstice, I conducted my very first blót, alone. It felt good.

A few weeks later I set out for Trelleborg in Sweden, where a large Viking market was being held. Here I met Bent Dahlin and his family, and as they had sold all the smoked salt they had brought, and therefore had plenty of time, I had a long chat with them. It was partly about Asatru and partly about Viking life as a hobby. I was sold. During the summer, I attended a couple of Viking markets as a Viking, and it felt just right for me.

I joined a real Asatru wedding when I somehow misunderstood the invitation in a Viking magazine. But I have to say that I felt welcome, and it was not until much later that it dawned on me that I had not really been invited.

At the wedding, I ran into a group that held their very own spontaneous blót on site and it was an intoxicating experience to be there.

I was then invited to the winter solstice by some of the participants, and of course I showed up. However, that was not a great success. Not everyone took it seriously and I decided that it had been a good party, but I would never hold a blót in that way.

That Christmas I got a very special gift from my aunt. It was Tjamtjala’s CD Futh. It was an excerpt of the Edda. And they sang in Old Norse!

I had a bit of a meltdown. I had to learn that! But how? After all, I only had a 9th grade exam, so university was out of the question. Then (randomly?) I met Per Olsen again. I expressed my distress and again advice was forthcoming. “Call Pelle” he said. It turned out that Pelle was the Goði who had officiated at the wedding I attended.

However, I had not talked to him on that occasion, but now I called him.

Pelle very kindly accepted my request and I visited him many times.

Never had I visited someone who had so many interesting books! We often talked until well into the night, and I imagine we both learned something.

Old Norse – I had to teach myself that! Following Pelle’s advice, I bought Ludwig Wimmer’s Old Norse Reading Book, which I studied closely. So now I know a bit of Old Norse – at least so much that I can read the scriptures in the original language with a little help.

The Viking interest persisted, and my circle knew that I was Asatru and saw a lot of Pelle. In the summer of 1997, two members of the Viking group asked if I would marry them the following summer. It was a very big thing to be asked, but after some hesitation, I said yes. Pelle reassured me and said that I could easily do it. He gave me a hand forged hammer like his own – in his opinion, the sign that I was now ready to act as Goði.

Later that year, the Viking group, Ravnene (the Ravens), whose members was all Asatru, asked me to be their Goði for the winter solstice. For a while, I was Goði for Ravnene until I moved to Jutland. Now I act as Goði when I hold my own blót and when people ask me.

It is very important for me to make clear that you are not necessarily Asatru just because you enjoy the Viking Age as a hobby. All sorts of religious directions exist within the Viking community. It is a hobby, a lifestyle, and does not necessarily have anything to do with religion.

Likewise, not all Asatru think it is cool – or feel the need – to wear Viking clothes and go to markets. Most are quite ordinary people with ordinary jobs, suits or jeans. One cannot tell by looking at people, whether they are Asatru or not. Not even if someone wears a Thor’s hammer; as it can easily be worn as just a piece of jewellery.

Meanwhile, Forn Siðr was “born”. The first meeting was held in August 1997 in a park in Odense. There were 10 of us and we were a weird bunch, but it was certainly interesting. We agreed to hold the Founding Thing on Mols on 15 November 1997. Twelve adults and one child met. After a long day, the statutes were in place, and after a night when the talk became more and more loose, some more or less usable names came up. However, we kept returning to “Forn Siðr”, which means “old custom”.

The next morning, we negotiated the name of the association: Forn Siðr — Ásatrú and Vanatrú Association in Denmark

A new association with very old ancestors was born.

As said before, times changes, we change, and as I, of various reasons, did not feel comfortable in Forn Siðr anymore, I decided to leave. Then I was asked, if I wanted to be within starting something new. So now “Nordisk Skik” (Nordic practice), is a reality as an alternative to Forn Siðr.

THE HISTORY OF ASATRU

We cannot say when it began. Many wise people have written thick books and dissertations on what they believe and think. I would recommend that if you want a scientific explanation, well then you have to resort to these, as I will only touch on the topic in a fairly brief way.

This chapter will be about how the history appears to me, partly based on the discoveries of various researchers, and partly based on my own common sense and logic; something that researchers are unfortunately not allowed to use, since they must always be able to document everything. Their words and hunches are not enough.

Like so many others, I call what I believe in Asatru. It makes good sense to me, as it is the belief in the Aesir and others from the universe of Norse gods that is the center. And it suits me well that it is a relatively modern word.

I am well aware that my way of practicing my faith or spirituality is miles away from the way my ancestors practiced it before Christianity arrived. But I have no problem with that at all, because nothing is static, everything evolves.

Just look at Christianity, to draw a parallel. The kind of Christianity introduced in this country as a substitute for “the old custom” was very far from the kind of Christianity practiced today. It was, in fact, closer to “the old custom” than modern Christianity. After all, it was Catholicism complete with a lot of saints, and it was probably not so difficult for our ancestors to make sacrifices to the Virgin Mary instead of Freyja. The holy springs, and whatever else, well, they got new names, but...

Many years later, the Reformation came, and it was markedly different. No saints, no sources of holy springs, only one God and going to church. Even later, people became so “enlightened” that the last bit of the magic disappeared.

Around 960, the Danes officially became Christians. Many years passed without visible paganism until the faith was taken up again.

However, it has always lurked beneath the surface. Now, in our time, we are enlightened. We know that it is not Thor who causes the rumbling and lightning in the sky, but we do feel his power. We know full well that the legend of the cow coming out of the fog is a great picture of the creation of the world, but it is only a way of explaining the inexplicable. We also know that the light returns, whether we are holding a blót or not. But we do it anyway.