Magic Workers in Northern Paganism

Since childhood we have heard about those who work with magic, in stories, fairy tales, books, movies etc. about wizards, sorcerers, prophets and so on. In this post i will give you some examples and names that you might hear or read when searching for lore or academic material concerning the northern european traditional ways of magic, rune-reading, witchcraft and such, in this way you will get use to those names and you won't be lost when you encounter them.
Europeans have always been people really close to the magic arts, this may sound like something taken out from a fantasy book, but when i mean magic,  i am referring to those who practiced shamanism or any other form of tribal spirituality and divination, or those who worked with herbs and drugs in terms of healing the body or to induce trance. The first word one might hear or read a lot when searching for the Norse lore and people who practiced these things is the word "Völva" the name given to a prophetess, there are many women with such title in the lore, in the sagas especially in the Völuspá. Another word ( not so much heard ) is "Thul" the title used to for "wiseman" a sage or a bard, a person with the gift of singing and with the gift of words, a very eloquent person, who uses those gifts to tell or sing stories of truth, with morality and warnings, with wisdom and also a person who describes the lineage of kings and heroes, having great knowledge in the matter. The word Seiðr or Seidhr is a very common word to hear about, used to describe those who practice the old ways, the traditional shamanism of the northern peoples of Europe and in this field, women were the ones to prectice it, they were called seiðkona or spákona, there were also men who practiced it, but since seiðr was always closely associated with women and the female gender, men who were caught practicing these things could be outraged, insulted, reviled and even sentenced to death, but these men where called seiðmadhr or spámadhrmadhr. There is also a title for the wizard, those famous men filled with wisdom and knowledge in the magic arts, the title is "vitki". For those who read runes and are the rune masters, the title is "rúna-meistari" and also "galdra-meistari" or "galdra-kona" for a man or woman who uses spells. There are also those who deal with the black arts which are called "fjölkunning" and those who work with mysterious and sinister spirits and wights who are called "trollkjerring" however, these titles are not often used nor often seen in the lore.
The general term for magic in the old norse or the term refering to norse magic is "gand" this is the closest we can get, a term associated with magic workers, magical beings linked to the person who practices magic and also objects used for magic. The word for spell or song is "Galdr" this word may also be refering to items, objects to practice magic, since people had to use them to chant a spell, and this term is also used in such mater because spells were sung in a high voice, very much verbal.
So these are a few words you might encounter when studying the Norse lore and the old ways of spirituality.

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Working with the gods: Surt

We have all heard about Muspellheim, one of the nine realms in the Norse cosmology but it isn't a famous place as much as Asgard is for exemple, people tend to stick with the knowledge most appealing to them, we know better about the beautiful landscapes and beings of Asgard or Vanaheim or even Álfheim because those are places of light and beauty, of magic and wondrous powers, but all the other realms are equally important. What ever you might know of Muspellheim, the first thing you need to know is about the deity who rules over that realm.
Muspellheim is the eternal land of Fire where the fire-etins live, their king is Surt / Surtur the Black , whose sword gave the first sparks to create all the other realms, and it is said that he is the oldest living being in all the nine realms, few have seen him and even fewer had the opportunity to meet him, but for those who have, they have shared their knowledge with us and i am here today to talk about Surt as a contribution to the vast lore of the Norse/Germanic pagan traditions.

Surt is the king of fire, the supreme deity who has turned all his powers to the fire element in the Norse Mythology, he is also the king of all the fire-giants/etins and his realm is Muspellheim. We know about Ginnungagap, the great vast blackness of the universe and the only existing thing in the beginning and Surt appeared out of that blackness with his flaming sword eventually creating the land of Fire called Muspellheim which in some time got close enough with the realm of ice Niflheim and as such, the frozen earth melted revealing Ymir the primal frost-giant and Audhumla the great cow. Thus life was created in such matter, the meeting of fire with ice in the Norse mythology. Surt's children had connections with Ymir's children and they mixed their bloodlines. Surt was the only living thing in the beginning, lighting all that blackness with his great sword Laevateinn, and he is the oldest living being also, unfortunately, no one knows where he came from or how, or what brought him, but it is interesting to know that the element of fire and of ice is indeed the first things to appear in the creation of any planet, and so he is the very symbol of creation.
Most people don't know, but Surt is the godfather of Loki and raised him as his own son, as it is told in Loki's birth tale, when his mother Laufey came to Muspellheim to give birth to him when running away from the most powerful clans of Jotunheim after defeating Farbauti, Loki's father.
Surt is a powerful being, having the knowledge about all kind of fires, even the primal fires from which stars and worls are made of, he knows about the energy of such fires and the power of heat.
In the lore, it is said if Ragnarök comes to pass, Surt will rise up with the legions of Hela's dead beings and attack Asgard, and if that happens, Surt will kill Freyr who gave up his sword for love, after that, much of the world will be consumed by flames and Surt will rebirth it again. This is the very symbol of the power that fire has over nature, Freyr the god of fertility and light with his powers over the land, giving life to it, as we see all the landscapes around us filled with life, and when a great fire comes, in this case Surt, bringing death with him ( Hella ) burning all the land, and as Freyr will do, giving up his sword, refusing to fight the inevitable chaotic power that is too powerful to face, such as nature does, it has no powers to face the fires and it stands there, waiting to die and be consumed by it, just to rebirth after that in great beauty and stronger.

For those who want to call upon Surt and ask for his aid, Surt gives energy and courage, and the fire within all of us is lit, he is the very force that kindles the fire in all of us, that little spark that might spead into a great power which gives us the capacity to face all the hazards of life when we feel saddened and unmotivated. He can also be called upon for inspiration, for those who are musicians and those who are dancers, for all fire-etin love to dance and love to hear music.

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The Afterlife in the Northern-Tradition paganism

The Afterlife has always been a subject of many studies and doubts, mankind seeks to know and understand what's behind the veiled curtain between this world and the next, we have been seeking it since we exist. The ultimate fight against the greatest fear we have, the fear of death.
In this post i will talk about the Afterlife as it is seen in the Northern European Paganism, the vast realms, different from one to another and the purpose of each place.

All living creatures have a soul, it is real and it is as free as any of our dreams, the only thing which is indestructible. Free as we are, the Afterlife as a variety of possibilities and most of the time it's a matter of individual preference.
The most famous place in the Norse/Germanic Afterlife is Valhalla, in Gladsheimr in Asgard, the halls of Odin, were the bravest of all warriors go after death carried by the Valyries, where they spend eternity fighting and feasting, preparing for Ragnarök the last of all battles. Well, fighting everyday and feasting all night for eternity, would soon become a painful and cruel life rather than a pleasant one, because in truth, Valhalla is not only about the handling of weapons and warfare studies, it is a place of personal growth, the continuous evolution of our soul, of ourselves. Most of the time, the Afterlife is seen as a beautiful place where we can be in constant peace, walking in green gardens, doing nothing, well in the first years that would seem great, but we would soon be extremely bored, becoming ignorant for the lack of things to do and too lazy. So Valhalla is the place to continue our studies, evolving the mind, learn new things, the place to study and gain knowledge of all the things we did not have the time to learn while we were attached to our mortal bodies, a place to expand our wisdom, to become better and most people don't realize that, especially the younger ones who are just now discovering this pagan strand through music, for those people, it is all about feasting, drinking and fighting, that would turn us into hollow beings, ignorant and all that we learned or should have learned in this life to become better persons, would be in vain, and we would be worse then ever. See Valhalla as a great beautiful city where we can learn all that we wish if we are willing to work hard to gain knowledge and wisdom. But not all go to Valhalla, there is also a similar place, Fólkvangr the halls of the goddess Freyja and there are many other places and halls to where we can go after death, a person might be connected to a god or a goddess for some reason, they might be a priest or a priestess of a specific god, and they can go to the halls or realms of those gods, for exemple a Thorsman can go to Thruthheim, or if a person is more connected to the Vanir gods, they can go to Vanaheim, there is also the possibility that a family might be connected to some god, and all his family goes to the same place where that god or goddess lives, linking us to our ancestors, being part of a great family group that works with a specific god.
There is also that old story of Helheim, the ream of Hela/Hel the goddess of death, the place from where christians made their Hell, the place for punishment and torture for all those who have sinned, but in truth, Helheim isn't such a place like the Christian Hell, in fact it is a very a pleasant and cheerful realm, where the dead go too, a realm divided for the needs of each group of people or how they behaved while alive, for exemple, where Hela lives, that is the place for all of those who have suffered greatly, with diseases, whether physical or psychological, which changed their minds giving them paranoia, emotional breakups, depressions, nervous breakdowns well.. all the psychological problems which exhausts the brain and people live in constant fear and sadness, Helheim is the place to be healed, mentally healed. There is also the place of where murderers and oath breakers go, Nastrond, no matter how evil you might have been, there are places to learn how to become better, of course for these people, rehabilitation is not a pleasant job, evil people get what they deserve, but they will not be tortured for eternity, that would just made them even worse, they can become better. In the Norse/Germanic Afterlife, there is also lots of villages and towns and even cities where people live, i could say all over the nine realms, but some places aren't safe unless you have friends there or if you are used to go or somehow you might be protected by the connections you make in your journeys. There is also the possibility, that a person might choose to stay near  or with their families, in the vicinity of their graves and burial mounds and also in the house, watching over their decendents, helping and taking care of them, also if they had farms and the family keeps working the land, people can choose to stay there and help in every way they can, and the decendents after their death, can stay there also, near by doing the same kind of help their ancestors were doing. The soul or spirit is free, and most of the time is a matter of personal choise to where we can go after we die, death is seen as a natural part of life, a continuation of our being, constantly evolving and learning new things.

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Working with the gods: Skadi

Well, now that the spring finally came, i had to talk about Skadi, the Norse goddess of Winter, as in a farewell to her powers, while she can take some rest. I will not hide that my favorite season is Autumn, when the world is changing in flaming colours, the preparation for winter, another season i love so much and my spirit is comfortable with.

Skadi is the Norse goddess of hunt, winter and archers, the queen of ice and frost, fair and cold as the chill winter winds. The wolves howl calling upon her while the snow falls from her mantle which brings arsh blizzards and storms.

One interesting thing, is that people don't know much about giants, or the Jotun folk, but one of the most famous giants of all time is Skadi, the frost-giantess, not only for her greatness and her powers, but beause she gained her place among the Aesir gods. She is the goddess of winter, and she is often seen as a huntress, with bow and arrow in a sled pulled by while wolves in the cold regions. She is the figure which gave inspiration to so many writters while speaking of the Winter Queen of the Frost maiden.
Skadi is the daughter of Thjassi the son of Olvalde, the one who captured Idunn and he was killed during the event of her rescue. The story of Thjassi is an unusual one for a Jotnar, apparently he was married with one from the Aesir, but he didn't came to Asgard to live with her, she went with him, living in his fortress in Jotunheim, but she died of cold and being the husband of an Aesir, he cold go to Asgard, claming his position, but he hasn't done it, however, his daughter, Skadi, claimed that estate for her own even not having any connection with the dead Aesir wife of her father, and she also did that when her father was killed. She marched to the gates of Asgard fully armed, ready to take her vengeance for her father's murder, she demanded a reward, her father's inheritance and a husband. She wanted Baldur to be her husband, but some say that Odin blindfolded her and made her choose an husband from all the unmarried males in Asgard, by feeling their feet, others say that all of them hid behind a curtain with only their feet showing, and she had to choose by looking at them. Whatever was the way to choose an husband, she chose the one with the finest feet believing he might be the beautiful god Baldur, but it was Njord, the Vanir sea king. They married, but after some time together, they came to the conclusion that they were not made ​​for each other. Skadi's dwellings made Njord uncomfortable, in her homeland Thrymheim in Jotunheim and in place she got in Asgard, were both in the mountains, these where the places she preferred to live in and Njord couldn't stay so far away from his own dwellings, he couldn't stand the cold, the snow nor could he sleep with the holwings of the wolves, on the other hand, Skadi wasn't comfortable where Njord dwells, his home in Asgard, Noatun, by the sea and also in Vanaheim on the other side of the ocean, she was always complaining about the noises of the sea-birds and the sound of the waves. The two separated after a time but Skadi got her place in the council of Asgard, the first Jotun to do so.
It seems that shortly after this, she had an ill-fated affair with Loki. Some sources claim that Odin sent Loki to her in order to cement her bonds with Asgard; others merely suggest that the opportunistic Loki saw a chance to take advantage of the depressed Skadi. Apparently she had fallen into sadness, and Loki decided to cheer her up by making a spectacle of himself. He tied his testicles to a goat, and let the goat pull him around screaming and staggering, much to the amusement of the onlookers. At some point the rope snapped, and he fell headlong into Skadi's lap, and she laughed, finally. This rite is echoed in legends of sacrificial rites to the cold, implacable death goddess, where a man is castrated and flung bleeding into her lap, with the idea that only blood, not semen, can fertilize a death goddess. It may be that Loki was deliberately mimicking this rite as a way of offering himself to Skadi. At any rate, she seems to have taken him more seriously than he took her, for they had an affair that did not last, and it filled her with a rage against him so bitter that when he was caught and bound after Baldur's death, Skadi placed a poisonous serpent over his head, to drip venom onto him until he was released. One senses not only the wrath of a woman scorned, but that of a priestess/goddess who was cheated.

Hunters and Archers can pray to her to gain, maintain or improve the skills in that matter. A person might also call upon her to find his way back home when lost in the wilds, to survive the cold weather and the arsh trials of winter. Having been married with Njord, both of them help in terms of divorce, keeping things at peace and revolving it the best way possible without many problems, annoyances, discussions or disputes. Skadi also helps women when they pass through difficult times, keeping a sane mind without losing their nerves.

The Goddess of Dreams Niorun

Dreams are an important part of our lifes, the realms of fantasy, the places where our most wildest dreams come true. In dreams we are free, such as the shaman is when freeing his/her soul in a altered state of consciousness, sometimes all of us do the same, but we aren't aware of that and most of the time we can't perceive or distinguish what is a dream and a journey of the soul, it all seems the same, nonetheless dreams helped us understanding the world around us, they give us the imagination to create art, they even give us clues to understand the most complex scientific matters, when we reflect on something and fall asleep with those questions in mind. As dreams are an important thing is our daily lives, there is a Norse goddess for dreams, her name is Niorun.

From the old Norse lore, practically nothing is known about this goddess, actually i had a difficult time trying to search something about her, for i am a dreamer and personally i have lots of great stories and journeys to talk about since i was a baby, but this post i will dedicate exclusively to this goddess and a special thanks to Raven Kaldera, whithout him, i wouldn't get much of the information i have about this goddess and i wouldn't share with you how important she is.´

Niorun or Njorun, lives in Svartalfheim, and she is an important goddess of dreams and of the night to the Duergar ( the dwarves ) and to the Dark Elves, from whom most of the knowledge about this goddess, comes. Svartalfheim is a dangerous realm, if one must cross it, there aren't much places to hid, or get shelter, a safe place.. traveling fast, straight to the destination is the best thing to do, however, where Niorun dwells, is the only place one might find peace and stay without being chased, haunted or stalked by anyone. They might find protection there, although, as soon as anyone leaves the place, that protection is over and they must carry their journey on their own again. Her face is seldom seen, she walks in her halls as a shadowed figure, she speaks with people of course, but most of what she says, no one can remember ( for me that wouldn't be a surprise, most of the deities i speak with, i can rarely remember what they told me, fortunatelly i remember everything else and i learn valuable lessons just with the things and places they show me ) it is like living a dream inside those halls, and it can be dangerous to fall asleep. She can be called to have prophetic dreams, to find answers while you sleep, but those dreams might not be clear, but at least you might learn something new, something that might prove useful in your life, the dreams can inspire you in all the you do.

The Nine Handmaidens of Mengloth

In a previous post i talked about Mengloth, the goddess of healing in the Norse pantheon and her handmaidens. This post will be about those nine handmaidens what what are their healing expertise for those who sick the specific kind of healing of each one. To have an idea what i will write about, i advise you to read the previous post.
 
Who is Hlif?
 
Hlif is one of the nine handmaidens of Mengloth, the Norse goddess of Healing. Her name means "Help", she is specialized in women's problems. She works with all the women who are pregnant, or those who unfortunately are unable to become pregnant and want to and all problems that might appear in women's reproductive organs. She can be invoked for a safe birth, and she is extremely protective when it comes to infants, she can also help women who became recent mothers, in those early stages of the baby, when he/she is too fragile and needs the best care and nourishment possible.

Who is Hlifthrasa?

Her name means "Help-Breather", and as the name suggests, her speciality is the respiratory sistem. She can be called upon those who have any kind of problem in the lungs or other difficulties associated with the lack of oxygen. She helps people with colds, coughs, lung cancer, she also helps people who are trying to heal their lungs when they quit smoking after so many years, but also if people were expoused to any kind of chemical, pneumonia, tuberculosis etc.
Breathing is the natural impulse which gives life to our body by letting the air flow in it. without this natural element the functions in our body are not the same and we wouldn't be alive.

Who is Thjodvara?

Thjodvara's name means "Folk-Guardian", her expertise involves all the physical mechanics of the body, bone, muscle and tendon. Her skills and knowledge are about physical therapy. She can be called to those who might have any kind of bone diseases, or in the movement of the body which helps the external and internal body by exercising the limbs. She also helps with skin problems.

Who is Bjort?

Bjort is the old Norse name for "bright", and this goddess is very concerned with the body temperature, this might seem familiar, when we have the fever the first thing we check is the body temperature. But it's more than that, because too much heat or too much cold in the body, might affect the tissues, not only of the skin, but also of our internal organs, and it can complicate diseases. Like everything else, there must be a balance between these things, and Bjort can help with that. Think of it as the heat or cold therapies, the ones today and those of our ancestors, like saunas for instance, the purification of the body, the physical body, its welfare reflects in the state of the mind. Like the Heat of the sun, it has certain effects on people, the kind of natural energie the body needs, not excessively of course, but always trying to keep the balance.

Who is Bleik?

As i have spoken about  purification in Bjort, well.. Bleik is the handmaiden in charge of purification. Her name means "White". She helps with the detoxification of ills in the body, of all organs. She works with the different ways to cleanse to body and the purification of the same.
There are many ways for the body to be intoxicated or poisoned, but the most obvious way is the problem we all face in modern times, the mass pollution everywhere in our daily environment.

Who is Blith?

Her name means "happy", this goddess' expertise is with the brain and all mental problems. She helps people with mood disorders of any kind, even grief. She also helps those who can't sleep, because of insomnia or because other problems in the brain such das epression, or even physical pain, she helps those people to have a good sleep, for the lack of sleeping only worsens the other mental disorders.

Who is Frith?

Frith is the goddess in charge of integrating the systems of the body, helping people to find the inner balance, or what is out of balance and putting it right. Her name means "peace" or "order", so by this you can already see the connection of the name with the problems of the body. She is the figure who finds out what people have and diagnoses the patient. Everything in the body must have a balance, however, it  may not be the perfect balance, but some times the organs or anyother thing in the body is so out of balance, that help is needed, and she can link things, so the body might work naturally healthy.

Who is Aurboda?

Aurboda is married with Gymir, they are the parents of Gerda, Freyr's wife. Aurboda's speciality is the compounting of medicines and she has the knowledge of their effects and the effects of each substance has on the body. The powers of each herb, which is something our ancestors worked with, the traditional medicine. When people take any kind of remedy, all sorts of questions pop out in their heads, if that will actually help? what are the side effects? for how long will we have to take that? if it causes any kind of pain? and so on... well Aurboda knows about it all, her vast wisdom helps in these cases, when so many doubts in healign terms affects us. She is Mengloth's Delivery Woman, carring herbs to so many in need. She reminds me of my grandfather's (from my mother side ) grandmother, or shall i say, my great-great grandmother, she had the knowledge of so many herbs, and she knew where to catch them, for what purpose, to heal what and what were the effects, she know how to brew each of them in the specific manners required.

Who is Eir?

Eir might be the same healing goddess of Asgard, she is not only Mengloth's handmaiden, but also a very powerful colleague, helping Mengloth in Jotunheim, as Mengloth might also be called by Eir to assist her in Asgard. Eir coming from Asgard, the realm of warriors and gods associated with war, it isn't a surprise that her specialty is surgery, healing and taking care of physical wounds, flesh wounds from the battlefield, in other words, she knows how to open the body and repair it, healing the massive injuries that constantly happen in a battlefield. She is the goddess with the tough job of making the fast decisions in all the situations a patient is between life and death, much like any surgeon, people who have to face the most terrible and frightening sounds. She can be called upon those people in a very bad state, almost dying, when life is hanging by a thread, but she can also be called upon all those who are there to help healing the wounds, we might see her as the patron of surgeons.

Working with the gods: Mengloth

We are used to hear about gods of healing in many religions and spiritual paths, they have always been important, because our fragile mortal body can be sick and get a lot diseases, not only physically but also psycological.
There is a goddess in the Norse pantheon who is an expert in healing, many gods are in their own ways, even healers of the land, of the soul, mind and body, but this goddess is the right one if you have any problems of the body or mind, her name is Mengloth.

Mengloth is the Norse goddess of healing, although being a minor goddess, she is very important and powerful. She is the healing goddess of the Jotun people, so do not confuse her with the healing goddess of the Aesir called Eir. She dwells in the mount Lyfjaberg in Jotunheim in a fortress called Gastropnir, and the gatekeeper is her own uncle Fjolsvid, a very large daunting giant, but friendly, enjoying a good conversations with those who come to and fro. Mengloth is married with Svipdag son of Aurvandil and Groa.
People used to pray to her for healing and left offerings by her shrines, she helped in any health issues, she also wanted to give her knowledge to mortals, however, it wasn't anyone at random, she would only take as a student, someone sent by an other god or goddess she trusts, so people would actually had to make a close contact with another deity, ( possibly a deity with healing powers or connected with Mengloth somehow ) before they could learn from her.
The best gifts someone can give her, is jewelry, especially when those objects are made with materials that can't be mined, or are hard to mine, in her homeland.
Working with her, she has nine handmaidens, whose names are Hlif, Hlifthrasa, Thjodvara, Bjort, Bleik, Blith and Frith ( who are twin sister ); Aurboda ( Mother of Gerda, Frey's wife ); and Eir ( no one is certain of she is the same healing goddess of the Aesir who serves Frigga ). These nine handmaidens help Mengloth in all sorts of healings needed, they are some kind of specialists in a certain area, if anyone has a problem which lies in one of those areas of expertise, they might want to go to the specific handmaiden who can treat the problem with more competence.

I will write about each of these nine handmaidens at another post.

You might think that nowadays medicine is very advanced, the doctors are more competent, know what they are doing and medical research, is constantly evolving, well fortunately that is true and great, but Mengloth is known to be a goddess of healing called by the desperate, she doesn't waste her time in those who can be easily healed or those who can get help elsewhere, this is why her fortress is in a high place, in a mountainous path, well guarded, difficult to reach, because only the really desperate will pass through so many difficulties to heal themselves or those they love. Mengloth will only help when all other healing options have been exhausted and excluded, however, her handmaidens will help people less desperate.

The fact that only those who are willing to go through difficulties to be healed or heal their loved ones, reminds me of a true story, when my great-grandparents ( from my mother side ) made everything to save my grandfather. They lived in a small village in a valley, surrounded by thick forests and mountainous paths, and my grandfather was very sick, dying as a matter of fact, they had to go to a hospital in the city, and it was far off and in those times very few people had cars in the early XIX century. My great-grandparents had to make it on foot through the forest with my grandfather at their back, a dark and cold forest at winter, filled with wolves and wild boars. They reached the city, safe and sound, and my grandfather was saved. Today when he goes to sleep, he can still hear the sound of my great-grandparents' accelerated breath, while they ran fast up the steep paths to reach the city in time.

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