Welcome to the first issue of Thunder, a journal devoted to the cults of the North European thunder gods: Donar, Thunor, Thor, Perkunas, Perun, Taranis etc. This is the joint venture of two organisations from opposite sides of the Atlantic. Thunderway Hall in America which promotes the revival of the Anglo-Saxon Thunor cult, and Thorshof in homely Buckinghamshire which encourages research into the Teutonic religion as a whole (though with an emphasis on the cult of Thor and the Teutonic goddesses). The journal's title is deliberately neutral, and is the name our native sky god would have today if the old faith had survived. If anyone would like to submit articles, poems, rituals, letters, stories or artwork their assistance would be greatly valued, but please note no political or spiteful submissions will be printed.
In our first issue the theory of Thunor/Thor's supposed low intelligence gets picked to pieces. This first approach is written by Jason Hutchinson of Thunderway Hall, so be wary of American English and Anglo-Saxon jargon!
I've read dozens of articles which are supposed to tell you all you need to know about Thunor, but most tend to be on the schlocky side. One of the things I read time and time again is the ongoing debate over Thunor's IQ. People point to the Harbarzljodh and the Gylfaginning and say "Look, Thunor's about as bright as a box of rocks." Still others will point to the Alvissmal and say "No, he's really a bright fellow." Sorry folks, but I just don't think you get it. The purpose of this article, then, is to first address the most common argument for Thunor being a bonehead, dispel it, and then see if there are some other speculative conclusions that can be drawn from the same data that might be more useful.
First, I would like to make my position clear: I don't know how smart Thunor is. I do know that there seems to be no mythic evidence to indicate that he is not at least of average intelligence. It is also my understanding that Thunor is, first and foremost, a GOD. He may be a bit over- trusting of people, he may even not be as smart as Woden, but it has generally been my experience that he is smart enough to know what he excels in, and what he does not. Note how, in Thrymskvidha, when he notices his hammer missing he doesn't just run out to Jutenheim and start kicking Jotun butt. His first response is to get Loki and to go and see Freo (ON Freyja) to borrow her falcon cloak. This seems like a good place to start. Then, he lets Loki use the falcon cloak and fare into Jotunheim to deal with the giants instead of trying to do it himself. All of this seems like good rede. It may not seem like much, but acknowledging that there are people who are better at certain things than you are, and then getting them to help you, is a very special skill, and one which we are often too proud to develop. Some might go so far as to call it strategy. This doesn't seem like the impulsive "Id driven" Thunor many would have believe exists. All of this reminds me of a story related to me by a friend of mine who spent a summer in the Ozarks. He was sitting on the steps of a old general store with a local who was sharpening his knife, and they got to talking. To keep a long story short, my friend was amazed by the inspired words of wisdom coming from this man who many would consider "back woods" and "inbred". He said, "I may not have much of an education, but I am smart enough to know exactly how dumb I am. I know some things real well, and can talk your ear off all day about them, but things I don't know about, well, I just keep my mouth shut and listen." Truer words were never spoken.
The general argument, if it can be called that, for Thunor's idiocy is essentially that since Thunor was tricked by Utgarda-Loki so easy, and since Harbarth was able to give him such a tongue lashing from across the sound, well, then Thunor must not be very bright. Of course, this leaves out a middle term which needs to be inferred, that people who are tricked by Utgarda-Loki and who lose a battle of words with Woden aren't very bright. It's this middle term that really rips their argument apart. First, let's look at the Gylfaginning, from the Prose Edda.
The Gylfaginning is the tale of how Thunor went a travelling with Loki and Tialfi, and how they were tricked by the giant Utgarda-Loki. There was a series of contests, in which Loki lost an eating contest with Logi, wildfire in disguise, Tialfi lost a race with Hugi, who was a thought, Thunor was dropped to his knee in a wrestling match with Elli, old age, and a couple of others. Essentially, the giants laugh at Thunor in hall, but later Thunor finds out the truth behind the games, and gets most wrathful. Many people then use this story to support their argument that Thunor is stupid. They seem to miss an important point - Loki, grand-daddy of all hijinks in Asgard, was deceived as well. If this giant's dreecraft was so powerful as to fool Loki, then how can we say that Thunor should have seen his way through the deception? If this lay is to used to show Thunor's lack of intelligence, then it seems to imply that Loki was a bit of a dim bulb himself. I don't think that's the case.
In Harbarzljodh Thunor comes to a body of water and hails the ferryman to carry him across. The ferryman, Woden in disguise, gives Thunor quite a bit of guff, and harsh words are spoken. Thunor comes out the worse, infuriated and maybe a bit humiliated by a simple ferrymen. To those who think this makes Thunor an idiot I would propose the following: I consider myself an educated and intelligent man, but I have every reason to believe that if Woden were to come down and verbally spar with me he would certainly come out on top. It's WODEN! Ever heard of the mead of inspiration? Thought so. How do you think you'd do if put into the same situation?
So simply put, I don't see how either of these classic examples show any sort of lack of intelligence in Thunor. Then why were they told? Because they're funny. They show a very Human side of the All-mighty God (Thunor) that we don't see very often. Thunor spends most of his time being very impressive smiting the enemies of the Gods. So much of Thunor's character revolves around this image of Thunor as cosmic warder (or whatever term you want to apply) that if we didn't see this more "human" side of Thunor we might forget that we are kin to him, and that he really does understand what we go through here in Middle Yard. To draw a parallel with the Iliad, the portrayal of Achilles which is the most interesting and most depicted in Greek and Roman art is his relationship with Petroklas. This adds depth to a character who would otherwise seem shallow and one sided. So too in the Eddas. People need to be reminded that we share certain qualities with our gods. Our gods, like us, have children, get angry, make mistakes, and the like. This is a good thing. Even the briefest look at the yore days gives evidence for Thunor's importance, from his statue at Upsalla to the amulets worn by the folk, by the frequency with which people named their children after him. I don't think that anyone who needed their fields saved from hail, their homes warded, and their children looked after would have told stories that portrayed Thunor in this fashion if all they wanted was to badmouth the god. With this in mind, I took a good look at two sources, and would like to share some thoughts.
The Thunor in the Gylfaginning doesn't seem all that dumb, but rather over-trusting. Let me clarify. Thunor doesn't trust Jotuns, that much is made clear. The trust I'm talking about is appearances. He assumes that everything is as it seems, and these giants wouldn't pull tricks on him in their hall, once hospitality has been extended to him. He trusts these contests to be fair, and doesn't even think to look for treachery. I think this trustingness is one of Thunor's many endearing qualities. It seems, to me, that if we all were as wary as Woden, then we wouldn't make many friends. However, I think that we would do well to remember that trust should never be extended too far when one wanders away from home. As the first lines of the Havamal tell us:
Have eyes about thee when thou enterest
be wary alway, be watchful alway;
for one never knoweth when need will be
to meet hidden foe in the hall.
(Hollander trans, Poetic Edda)
This, more than anything else, is the "lesson", if there is one, that lies in Gylfaginning. It's an almost archetypal tale about how the good guy gets screwed because of his trusting nature. I've heard it said that the wise are those who learn from the mistakes of others. Perhaps that's the best reason to tell this story.
When you look at Harbarzljodh without regard to the supposed "intelligence" of the participants you notice an interesting phenomenon - Thunor is bragging of keeping Asgard and Midgard safe from incursion by the Jotuns, while Woden is more interested in telling of the strife he's stirred, the wars he's fought, and the women he's loved amongst the sons of men. This difference is quite telling. I don't know if the gods have specific "jobs" or "functions", a la Dumezil, but it does seem that Thunor considers his most important work that of keeping the worlds safe, while Woden seems to be most proud of the passions of all sorts that he has stirred in the Middle Yard. This makes perfect sense to me, as it seems that one of Woden's main interests is the separation of the worthy from the unworthy in this life. He, to wax metaphorical, provides the heat for the crucible that is the world in which the iron is separated from the dross. Thunor seems more interested in helping those who place their troth in him and warding the world from the wilds outside our garths. I don't really know why Woden played at being Harbard and mocking Thunor, but I do know that in their exchange we can find a lot of insight into what it means to be Woden and what it means to be Thunor. I think you can learn quite a bit more from the myths when you drop all ill-formed notions of who the gods are and stop filtering the Eddas through a faulty paradigm.
In closing, I'd just like to say that I don't think this is everything anyone need to know about Thunor. Not by a long shot. But it does seem to me that this "Thor as oaf" assumption that so many make completely unfounded. The reason why I didn't just point to Alvissmal and say, "Look, he's clever!" is that to do so without addressing Harbarzljodh and Gylfaginning seems to lend legitimacy to their basic premise. So, instead of pointing to lots of places where Thunor is clever I chose to address the basic assumptions that this sort of argument for Thunor's stupidity rests on. I think it's more effective. I don't know if Thunor is going to win the next Nobel prize in physics, but I can guarantee you that he isn't sitting around Asgard saying "'Bout a hundred dollars. Bout a hundred dollars."
Well so much for Thunor's endearing qualities, now we are really opening the cupboard and watching the skeletons rattle out. Though Gautrek's Saga shows Thor to have considerable intelligence it also awards him jealousy and spite.
The Norse beliefs concerning fate are somewhat contradictory. Most retellings of the myths state that the Norns control the destiny of men and gods, their word is law and cannot be changed. However this does not explain the importance of Odin and the Valkyries in deciding the fate of warriors or the ability of men and women to lay curses to change one another's destinies (4).
Other than the highly Christianised prophecy of Ragnarok (6) there is no suggestion that the gods are subject to the decrees of the Norns. Snorri says that the gods meet for council beside the hall of the Norns (2) and as in Gautreks's Saga the gods clearly meet to decide destiny, the Norns could be seen as conveying the gods' wishes to the world of men. This relationship has parallels in Lithuanian mythology where the high god supplies the wool from which the fates spin the destiny of mortals (5).
Snorri tells us that the more beneficial Norns are the daughters of the gods (2). Thor himself is named as the father of nine of the Norns in Barlaams Saga and his daughter Thrud is listed among the Valkyries and probably shares their powers. Even Sif is credited with the gift of prophecy in Snorri's prologue to the Edda (though as she is described as a queen of Troy this reference should be taken with a hefty pinch of salt!)
Gautrek's Saga clearly shows the influence of the gods over fate, not just by Odin but all of the gods from the highest to the lowest. It is of special interest to us because of Thor's involvement. As this saga is not well know and is often quoted in meaningless detail I have summarised the aspects relating to Thor in context.
Thor's role in the story starts with the abduction of the Elf King's daughter by the giant Starkard. King Alf was greatly distressed by this loss and asked Thor to go and rescue her. Thor was happy to oblige and slew the giant. Unfortunately Alfhild had fallen in love with Starkard and was none too pleased to be dragged back to her father.
Alfhild gave birth to the giant's child and named him Storvirk. Skorvirk grew to manhood and named his son Starkard after his father. Skorvirk died while Starkard was very young and from the age of three the boy lived with the warrior Grani Horsehair. As the grandson of a giant Starkard excelled at the battle arts and became a favoured champion of King Vikar.
On one of King Vikar's expeditions the fleet met unfavourable winds and the army decided to use divination to find out when they could sail on. They realised that Odin wanted a human sacrifice and lots were drawn from the entire army to choose a victim and King Vikar's name came up. The army were horrified and tried again but King Vikar's name appeared every time. Eventually the army retired for the evening, miserable and undecided.
That night Grani Horsehair led Starkard away from the camp and they took a boat to the next island. In a woodland clearing the council of the gods was assembled and Grani Horsehair took his place among them for he was no other than Odin. Odin said that they had met to decide on Starkard's fate. Thor was still angry that Alfhild held a giant in greater esteem than himself. Starkard was the living proof of Alfhild's union and even bore the name of Thor's former rival. Thor was determined that Starkard's fate should be a poor one and decreed that Starkard would have no children and would be the last of his family. Odin countered the curse by saying that Starkard would live for three life spans and Thor responded by saying that Starkard would commit a foul deed in each one. Odin bestowed many blessing on his foster son but Thor matched each blessing with a curse. Starkard would have the best of weapons but would never own land. He would be wealthy but never satisfied. He would be successful in battle but would always suffer injury. He would be a gifted poet but would never remember his work. He would be loved by kings but hated by the common people.
Odin then gave Starkard a magical spear which had the appearance of a reed. Starkard returned to the army camp and showed the reed spear to King Vikar and suggested a mock sacrifice to appease Odin. King Vikar agreed but was killed by the magical weapon. The subjects of King Vikar were furious and chased Starkard out of Norway and he spent the rest of his life in exile blaming Thor for his misfortune.
It is difficult to say how much of this story is based on pagan belief and how much on the saga teller's imagination. Both Odin and Thor are needlessly cruel and Starkard is placed in an impossible situation. The hero appears at first to be Odin's favourite, but Odin demands the death of King Vikar and it is this act which sets Thor's curse in motion. It seems rather unusual for Thor to be holding a grudge over three generations and the humiliating episode with Alfhild suggests a post conversion comedy (similar to the Lay of Thrym) rather than a pagan myth.
It should be noted that the decree of the gods or Norns is just a guide to the future and it is up to the individual to decide how to live his life. Even Starkard is given a choice. Odin expects him to kill King Vikar but he is not forced to do so, he has to make a choice between his loyalty to his foster father and his loyalty to his King.
The gods have clearly replaced the Norns in this instance. The disagreement between deities over the fate of an individual is very common in North European mythology. Similar scenes also occur in the story of Nornagest in Flateyjarbok, the description of the fates by Saxo Grammaticus and Sleeping Beauty. This pattern of disagreement over fate is ingrained in our folklore because no one is perfect and we have positive and negative attributes in balance.
This episode gives many points of relevance for the cult of Thor. Odin promises the friendship of kings, his major worshippers while Thor calls on his own followers, the common people, farmers and warriors to drive Starkard out of Norway. Thor's injured pride over being rejected by Alfhild makes excellent sense when compared to the tale of Queen Eagle Beak in Egil and Asmund's Saga (1) where giantesses murder one another to sleep with him. Romantic stories of affairs with gods were not uncommon! The unliftable power of the curse suffered by Starkard is suffered by Thor's favourite in this story, but in this case it was imposed by a mortal woman. Please note, those of you who still consider Thor a simpleton, he is quite capable of standing up to Odin and matching him comment for comment with no hesitation.
It is clear that Thor was perceived to have the same influence over fate that Odin has in his control over the battlefield. It is possible that Thor's nine daughters were believed to pass his protection on to his worshippers, and that their names were known and invoked. Thor's only named daughter Thrud appears to have this function as her name appears in the list of Valkyries given by Snorri (2). The Valkyries and Norns are very similar in their influence and the youngest Norn Skuld also shares both roles.
The writer of Gautrek's Saga seems to have been rather damning of the pagan religion and has combined several negative aspects here. Thor's role in the slaying of the giant is very much the 'thump first and think afterwards' character typical of the more Odinic and Christian sources. On the other hand his contribution to Starkard's fate displays a crafty and intelligent side to his personality which would be more expected from Odin and Loki. This aspect of Thor's character is also evident in the Lay of Alvis (3) and the story of Queen Eagle Beak (1).
1). Seven Viking Romances. Trans. by Hermann Palsson and Paul Edwards. Penguin Classics 1985.
2). Edda. Snorri Sturluson. Trans. by A. Faulkes. Everyman 1987.
3). The Poetic Edda. Trans. by L.M. Hollander. Univ. of Texas Press 1987.
4). Wyrd, Fate and Destiny in North European Paganism. Alby Stone. Privately Pub. 1989.
5). Teutonic Mythology. J. Grimm. Trans. by J. Stallybrass. London 1883.
6). The One That Got Away? Thor and the Midgard Serpent. Thorskegga Thorn. Talking Stick issue 21 1996.
In Norwegian folklore Yule is the time of year when every precaution must be taken against the invasion of supernatural forces. Evil spirits ride through the air on wild horses, blowing horns and ringing bells. There is nothing unusual about this, fear of the Wild Hunt at Midwinter was widespread, normally attributed to Odin, Satan or the nameless Hunter. The 'Asgardsreien' is different, it was led by Thor, hammer and all. According to folklore the disorderly divine rabble travelled the land searching for a Yule time party which had got a little over merry for a pious Christian festival. The Asgardsreien would then join in the fun, drink all the beer, chat up the women and drag of the most drunken revellers by the hair.
In this absurd situation the old gods are actually defending a Christian festival. You can almost hear the old women cautioning 'Don't get drunk dear or the demons will come and get you!' This situation is also known in Germany where the pagan goddesses Holda punishes spinners who work on Sundays or over the Christmas holidays.
There are two interesting points to note here. Firstly the 'hunters' are led by Thor rather than Odin suggesting that where this superstition developed he was considered the highest of the gods. The myths refer to Thor's huge consumption of alcohol which make him ideal for this role. Furthermore being dragged of by a boisterous fun loving Thor cannot have been quite as bad as being claimed by the satanic figure of Odin (in Christian eyes anyway). Secondly this superstition may have its roots in paganism, not as warning against good parties obviously but as a 'hunt' for some other purpose. The driving off of evil spirits for example.
This information was taken from 'Norwegian Folklore Simplified' by Zinken Hopp, published by John Griegs Forlag in 1959.
A recent article in the English occult magazine 'Talking Stick' by Allan Marsden implies a connection between this ancient children's game and the old religions of Europe. He draws on the research of a Mr N W Thomas who wrote on this subject in 1900. Mr Thomas compared the names for the game across Europe which range from 'Blind Cow' in North Germany, 'Blind Mouse' in the Faroe Isles, 'Blind Hen' in Spain etc. Across Scandinavia and in parts England the game is known as 'Blind He-goat' and Marsden quite rightly points out that if Mr Thomas's reasoning was correct this name would link Blind Man's Buff with the cult of Thor. Unfortunately the other animals do not have such convincing religious connotations which makes the connection somewhat shaky.
Thomas believed that all the games sprung from the use of ritual masks depicting sacred animals. Dubious or not it sounds good fun and would certainly help pass the time at any midwinter revel, (space allowing). If a mask was used it would have to be very easy to remove so it could be passed easily from one player to the next.
Allan Marsden's article 'Blind Man's Buff' was published in issue XVIII of Talking Stick (spring 1995). Mr N W Thomas's article 'Animal Superstitions and Totemism' was submitted to the Folklore Society in 1900.
Thunderway Hall is sponsoring a contest for the best religious song or poem about Thor/Thunor submitted before the end of February 1997. There will be a tempting and suitable prize for the winner. Thunderway Hall reserves the right to publish any entries that are submitted. Send entries to Jason Hutchinson at the address below.
Two excellent journals have appeared in the last couple of years covering the Norse/Anglo-Saxon goddesses.
FOLKVANG HORG - covers the Norse goddesses in general, edited by John Thornborrow. Published erratically but third issue is due out shortly. Subscription is 8 for four issues. Folkvang Horg, 20 Ascot Drive, Longford, Cannock, Staffordshire, WS11 1PE. John Thornborrow also runs a mail order book service for titles on the Norse and Saxon Religions, well worth a perusal.
LINA - the journal of the Frigga's Web in America, a group dedicated to Frigg. Editor Alissa Sorenson. Content varies between scholarly theology and practical home crafts. Members are encouraged to join specialist guilds in skills governed by Frigg's influence. Subscription for the UK is $23. Frigga's Web, PO Box 75952, Oklahoma City, OK 73147 USA.
That oft quoted and seemingly unobtainable tome 'The Cult of Othin' by H M Chadwick and first published in 1899 is back in print. It has been reprinted by Looking Glass Press who are based in Stockholm. ISBN 91 - 88708 - 00 - 4.
Those who like reading a good sticky saga, your lucks in. Richard Ellender has put pen to paper to produce a contemporary saga with a very dark age flavour, 'Thorvaldsaga, The Canvey Island Viking'. It is privately published and available from the author for 5. Richard Ellender, 2 Richmond Gardens, Canterbury, Kent, CT2 9ES.
United Kingdom: Thorskegga Thorn, Thorshof, 106 Oakridge Road, High Wycombe, Bucks, HP11 2PL. Thorskegga can also be pestered at thorskegga.thorn@ooh.dircon.uk.
UK subscription is £2 for four issues. Please make cheques payable to 'Thorskegga Thorn'.
United States Jason Hutchinson, PO Box 68, Hopkins, MN 55343, USA.
US subscription is $8.00 for four issues. Other countries please write for details.