Working with the Gods: Heid

When Heid comes to work in the spiritual matter, she appears with an human body as a little old woman. She prefers black and gold for her colors, and likes very peaty whisky. Heid usually only comes for a circle of seidworkers, in order to give them advice or training. She can work with both men and women, but they should be older, middle age at the least. Her attendants should be seidworkers.

Working with the Gods : Gerda

Gerda is Freyr's Wife, she is an etin. She has a more quiet personality, she doesn't like crowds that much, unless Freyr is present, she will not come to a gathering of people, she only comes to be with him in those moments. She is modest, preferring long gowns that cover from neck to wrists to floor, usually in dark brownish earth tones or greys or dusky purples, and likes having a veil that she can pull around her face if it is sunny. She speaks quietly according to her personality, and she is serious and introverted. She likes having fresh-cut herbs on a table next to her, rather than flowers. Like all etins, she prefers the harder stuff when it comes to alcohol.

She will onlu appear in a time, when there is the need to work with her by a single person only or a very small group of people who might need her help, advice and information. She is the patron of the women who make aborstions, because that is a very difficult thing to be handled and it might bring complications to the body. If this is the situation, have the woman in question bathe first in salt water, probably with several herbs that Gerda will dictate. Have a tea of the same herbs ready for her to administer to the woman, with more salt water.

Gerda might seem calm, very quiet, but be carful, she is a giantess, remember that and be respectful, or you may be in trouble. Also, she isn't interested in working with people who are not female.

Suported By RavenKaldera

Reading runes - The World Tree Method

The World Tree

The world-tree arrangement is another complex rune divination that comprises eleven randomly chosen runes. It is an elaboration on the square-of-nine method, with the addition of two extra runes to provide links between the three levels ( although the order of runes is different ).

This pathern makes up three levels: the lowest, called Utgard, refers to the past; the middle, called Midgard, refers to the day-to-day life; and the upper, called Asgard, relates to spiritual life and the future. This is a particularly useful type of reading for questions of a spiritual nature.
The arrangement looks like a central axis comprising five runes, with three runes on either side of it. The first position is at the base of the vertical axis.

For those of you who can't properly read the design in the image, these are the themes of each position:

Position 1 - Past events or the basis of a spiritual journey.
Position 2 - That which is unknown concerning the past.
Position 3 - That which is known concerning the past.
Postion 4 - The link to the present.

Position 5 - Present circumstances.
Position 6 - Unconscious decisions.
Position 7 - Conscious decisions.
Position 8 - The link to the future.

Position 9 - The future and spiritual evolution.
Position 10 - The unknown.
Position 11 - Expectations.

Haust blót / Haustablót - 20th - 21st of September

In the Northern pagan Traditions, there was a celebration held in this time of the year, at the 20th - 21st of September,called Haust blót, or the Autumn Sacrifice, the begining of the Autumn Equinox, and it is still held today by the neo-pagans who worship the norse pantheon. As the season indicates, this is the time when the days grow shorter and the night and darkness will prevail till the winter times come to an end. The last crops are coming to an end, people start to gather their food and store it, to survive the long and harsh winters of Northern Europe. This was also the time to make festivities around the Fire Element, because the world it self would take its colours, and the fields are veiled by a cloth in tones of fire, dark yellow, red and orange, the skies at dusk emit a red light that resembles blood, a warning that the days ahead will be hard, the forests and the mountains become silent, most animals also store food and hid in holes or inside old trees, others will hibernate, ravens will go to and fro, from place to place, in search of those who did not survived the hazards of the season and the harsh weather, this is a time where everyting becomes more magical and mysterious.

This is the time to pray and to thank, to the landvaettir, the spirits of the world, of nature, of the soils and land, to pray to the ancestors who still look over their decendents and protect them, and in some way still work the soils for better crops, so the family can survive in prosperity, happiness and wealth. People also prayed to the elves of that place, who work along with the land spirits, to maintain the area fertil and the soils rich. The celebration starts with the sound of the horn, people also pray to the God Freyr and to Freya, the Gods of fertility, because the land it self also needs fertility, it needs to be prepared to be planted again, with need seeds, when the winter comes to an end.

With hard work, perseverance, patience and love the land gives us so much, enough to survive and live with health, and a gift always calls for a gift, so we in turn must give something to the land, a personal object, or food, the mead that is passed amongst the folk in the drinking horn, will be poured into the land, so out ancestors and the gods, may also drink with us, giving to them what we can create with the things the earth gives us. people dance and sing, tales of old are told, to relember the deeds of our ancestors, and so we might find inspiration and strength.

Mabon - 22nd of September

Mabon is often a term referring to the celebration of the autumn equinox, and to know why this name was adopted, we must understand its meaning and where it came from.

 The name "Mabon" was introduced in the neo-pagan religions and the seasonal list of celebrations of the year, from the god of hunting "Mabon fab Modron " in the Welsh mythology, this god was kidnapped, tree days after he was born, and was taken to Annwn.

Mabon is the celebration of the year, when the days start to grow shorter and the nights and darkness will prevail till the winter time comes. A preparation for the harsh winter, when the crops come to an end, and people start to gather food to survive the long dark and cold days of winter. It is also a time to burn the soil and the fields where the crops were, in order to fertilize the land that will be covered by frost and snow, and at the spring time nature will do its work, and the land is ready to be planted again.

There is a similar Northern pagan Tradition at this time, called the Haust blót/Haustblót or Haustablót, but a bit more complex, which i'm about to right it in here at the "Norther Pagan Traditions" folder, and in that writting, maybe you will get to understand the true porpose of this celebrations and enter in the pagan spirit of the thing.

Bragi the God of Poetry

Note: To illustrate this work, i added one of my latest watercolour paintings called Bragi.

In the Norse Pantheon, Bragi is the god who gives inspiration to poets, to writers and all those who work with words and also the god of music. He is one ofthe sons of Odin, the eldest next to Thor.

A very long time ago, existed the Mead of Poetry, that was guarded by the giant named Suttung who kept it in a cave under his house, and Gunnlod, his daughter, was its guardian. Odin was determined to steal the sacred mead, and after many attempts, he took the form of a snake and slipped into the cave, going back to his normal form, he ofered himself to Gunnlod as a lover. Odin drank most of the mead and during the time he stayed with her in the cave, he gave her a child. Odin returned to Asgard, and later, Gunnlod sent their son, Bragi, to live with his father in Asgard among the Aesir gods. Bragi was Brilliant and Eloquent, with a beautiful singing voice, a great talent to the music and his presence could charm an audience. Odin made him the Skald of Asgard, but Bragi doesn't always stays there. Bragi is one of the few gods that is welcomed anywhere in any world by any people. Rather than being a warrior, he is a speaker of peace and a diplomat. Everywhere he goes, he leaves the people of the Nine worlds, with ideals of peace and cooperation. He is married to Idunn/Iduna, the goddess of orchards whose golden apples keep the Gods young.

His name comes from the Norse word for poetry, bragr, and is cognate to the modern word "brag", as Norse poems were often songs of praise. His name may also be cognate to the word bragarfull, or the cup of mead that is passed in the hall.

He wanders the nine worlds, he is welcomed into the halls of the Aesir, Vanir, Jotun, Duergar, Alfar of both light and dark, and even at the halls of humans.

It is said that Idunn carved runes in his tongue, so that he may be even more a master of words.

The Mead of Poetry has a long history, it was first made by the Vanir god Kvasir, and about this god, many things are said, things that are equal or very similar to the things that are spoken about Bragi, some say that Kvasir is Bragi reborn.

Symbols in Shamanism

I have talked about some of the symbols used in shamanism, symbols that have been present in the human history for almost 40.000 years, with powerful meanings, and today some of them are still used and most people don't even know where those symbols came and what they stand for. Most of the Shamanic symbols have been so deep into the humans' everyday life, that is something "carved" in the DNA of each person, and we born drawing or painting those same symbols, without even knowing them, such as a spiral or circles with dots in the middle, the symbols for the sun and its rays etc. But today i will talk about Rock Art and the symbols that came to help us understanding the world, the first drawings and paintings in caves, their meanings, and how people lived with them.

All over the World, from Europe to Africa, the Americas and Asia, we can find lots of paintings in caves, on cliffs, under overhangs, etchings and boulders, pictures that span a great length of time, so far, the oldest of this painting that was found is dated about 35,000 years old. These symbols have inspired the cultures that they are related to, in a time before writing was developed, important information was passed on orally,  but our ancestors used symbolic representations of the aspects of their lives. By this way, paintings and drawings of hunting scenes, helped out ancestors to visualize these happanings, and to learn how to do it and succeed in the outcome of a hunt. Also these paintings were a record of an event, an important celebration, as well as honouring the animals and their importance. Paintings of crops, were also positive visualizations of good harvest as well as a recognition of the gifts that the Earth can give to us. Certain symbols, such as masks or totems, were boundary markers for a particular group of people or tribe.

Some rock art scenes show human figures with animal characteristics such as antlers and wings, these are representative of shapeshifting in shamanic journeys, where a shaman would adopt another form for learning, healing, or communication with the spirits or gods. As i have said, some cave paintings show the day-to-day activities such as hunting, fishing, working, cooking and praying. These paintings show the antiquity of shamanism. 

People have used symbols for millennia, as charms for luck, protection, health and inspiration. A symbol has its own energetic vibrations nad this is what influences the spirit. In the rock art of the ancestors, there are certain symbols that appear in many ancient places around the world, and from many different periods, indicating their fundamental unniversal importance for the human spirit. Among these powerful signs, are the spiral and the circle in their various forms.

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Why do you call it, Northern Pagan Traditions?

Why do you call it, Northern Pagan Traditions?

Well, i do call it by this name or, northern traditional paganism, as a reference to the old ways and custom of the northern countries of Europe, in Scandinavia, before the Christianization of Europe, not only the religion, but also the spiritual paths of the northern shamanism and the connections with the land spirits and ancestors, spiritual ways and beliefs such as this, that date about 40.000 of history.

Why not call it, wicca?

In terms of beliefs, culture, ethics, history, religion, teachings etc. there is a big difference between being a wicca or a wiccan practitioner with being a person that follows and practices the northern ways. Wiccans tend to belief in many gods of different pantheons, a mixture of Norse gods, with Celtic ones, Egyptian gods, Greek etc., there is also a tendency to leave things in a shallow way, a limitation of festivities and celebrations, and people dont dig further into the matter of the soul, there isn't questioning, most of the time it seems that wiccans, are former christians who are tired of christianity and are looking for different religions and beliefs, and go looking for the ancient ones that seem more reliable, and have no connection to any of the Abrahamic religions. As a matter of fact, many wiccans use the image of christ and his mother, as the figure of the god and of the goddess, there is also that tendency to worship a goddess as the mother nature or the moon goddess, and a god, Cernunnos, the celtic god of the forests, animals, beasts and mystery. These is also a connection to the Indian word "Karma" and the following of that belief, that fate exists and everything in out lifes will happen according to an astral plan, and the wrong you do to others, it will come back to you twice as much. So in terms of being a practitioner or a follower of the northern ways, things dont get too superficial, there is also a lot of gods and it is also a pagan belief yes, but there isn't that tendency to mixture other gods, there is an exposure of faith to these gods and only to them, to stay true to the beliefs, convictions and virtues. In the Traditional Nordic paganism, people do not seek a better place elsewhere, in an other world in the afterlife, because this world is beautiful and life is a blessing, each one of us has a purpose, and victory must be attained. Fate is a subject, much different than the other religions, the tree Nornes build the fate of each, and it will intertwine with the fate of others and with the happanings of the world, in a great web that connect us all to this world, the afterlife and to the gods, spirits and ancestors, so we must take care of each other, and take care of all living things, but fate isn't fixed, the only thing that can be certain, are some aspects of life that must happen, like the birth of a child or the death of someone in a certain time, or one person meeting another, or certain problems and obstacles that must appear in our life, in order to make us stronger, constant tests, that will decide if we are capable of living in this world and learning something, so fate isn't a book where everything is written, in the northern pagan beliefs, free will is given to us all, and it is always up to us to decide how we will live this life, and how we will face all the problems, all of us must fight, and our hearts and minds will make us a good person or not. 

We can speak to the gods, and they will help us, giving the best gifts of all, which are, advice, love, wisdom and strength, strength of mind, body and spirit, they will not intervene in our lifes, because all of us have free will, if they did help us, more than they already do, they would take away the credit of each one, and the capabilities and skills that we have.

In the Northern Pagan Traditions, people don't just pray to the gods or to the spirits of the land, but also to the ancestors, seeking protection and wistom, because they too have lived in this world once, and they know more than us and also what is beyond the veils that separate this world from the other, and they are older and wisest, because one they we will also be the ancestors of someone, and we have to make our descendants proud of what we have became.

Life can't be always a good thing, there must be hard times also, sorrow and grief, because by that way, we can enjoy life and appreciate it, giving value to it.

The gods of the Northern pantheons are divided into tree groups, the Aesir, the Vanir and the Underworld gods, and each god has a purpose and his/her wisdom is needed in many life stages. The Aesir are more concerned with the strength of mind and body, with the power to achieve victory, to be strong enough to protect ourselves, those we love, and protect all who don't have the capacity to protect themselves. The Vanir, are more into the fertility of the soils and of all living creatures, and their teachings show us how to respect nature and as we take from it, we also must give, because a gift always calls for a gift, and we must not forget love, because he who doesn't know love, shall never find peace. The Underworld gods as they are called most of the time, are the gods more concerned with the matter of the soul and how we can enrich it while living. After death, the soul continues to exist, and we continue to learn and to grow as an individual, as a being, and we continue to learn. There isn's such thing as Hell or Heaven or a bad god and a good god, there are a very big group of teachers and friends that will accompany you through life, and they will give you friendship, advise, love and wisdom, if you ask for it and if you prove you are worth having these gifts. Those who follow the Aesir gods are often called Asatru, and those who follow the Vanir, are called Vanatru, and the underworld gods, the Rökkatru.

So why not just saying, Ásatrú, instead of Northern Pagan Traditions?

That is because, what i write in here and my beliefs, go further into just worshiping a group of gods, and there are people who are just Ásatrú, or Odinists/Wotanists or Heathens or those who follow the neopagan religions linked to these gods, for exemple "Theodism", "Germanic Reconstructionism" etc. each group of these is linked to the Northern Pagan Traditions and old beliefs of Scandinavia and Germanic countries, and as i speak of it all and also about northern shamanism, i prefer to "pack" it all into the lable of Northern Pagan Traditions or Northern Spiritual Ways.


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