Welcome to the third issue of Thunder, the journal dedicated to the thunder gods of Northern Europe.
This journal 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, Freyr and the Teutonic goddesses).
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.
We have a very eastern flavour to this issue with very welcome submissions on Russian, Latvian and general Baltic beliefs. Valter's notes on the Summer solstice should give us all some ideas on celebrations for the rapidly approaching festival.
Everywhere you walk through the Rusland, beautiful Forests are around you, and the Land feels happy to see you. And near the Oak you stop, shocked by his might and strength. He has foliage which seems like a very old man's gray hair, full of knowledge unknown to us. In that time, you hear Great Thunder from the Sky, and Oak laughs the whole time the Thunder voice walks around the Lands... Stay where you are now, and I will tell you about a mighty God... He is Perun.
He is a God of War, of Warriors ("Drujina" means War Kindred), of Thunder, of Rain and Strength. His holy tree is an Oak (Drusus), and Slavs, long after the official religion was Christianity, celebrated Oaks, and if a man is ill, or on a holiday, he goes to the Holy Oak with gifts, and sings to him songs, and asks him about his life. Perun's weapons are the Axe, or Hammer, which symbolize Thunder and Lightning, and also certain Stones, or Thunderer Arrows, that all symbolize strong Thunder and Lightning. The people often wear Axe pendants, as was amongst the Finn's culture, and in Scandinavia betimes.
His brothers are Germany's Donar (ThorR) and the Finn's Ukko. Also in Baltic lands, Perun is known as Perkunas or Perkun, in Byelorussia as Pjarun, and in Serbia as Dunder (Donar, Thunder- similar words) Piorun in Polish. He was the most important Slavic God in the ninth and tenth centuries, when the big war was, and the Volhvs (priests) did what they could against the new Christianity. Perun's cult was a strong warrior cult. In the center of Kiev stood a big sculpture of Him, and about Him the Chronicler said: "And there was built a sculpture of Perun on the hill in the center of Kiev, and his head was silver, and his moustache was gold..." In every town and in every Temple stood his big sculptures, and people honored him. He liked human sacrifice. All week until Perun's day, Volhvs chose sacrifices to Perun. In the year 983 ce, Kiev's people sacrificed a Christian Viking's son to Perun. The Slavs sacrificed the son of the Viking, who lived in Kiev, but that Viking (or he may have been simply a Guardian) was Christian, and his belief in that time in Heathen Rus' was out of law, and his son also was Christian. Kiev's people were honorable Heathen people, what a pity, that after 5 years Knjaz baptized Kiev by the sword. The Thunderer has a big blond beard, and his eyes seem like Lightning; he is Really God! Today, people remember him as a fairy tale hero-- Iliya Muromets or Saint Yuriy Thunderer. Many enemies of the Rus were filled with fear at hearing his name; our warriors followed him, the Mighty Perun... Bow to Great Oak, look to the face of Him, and continue your travel.
The Latvians call the summer solstice 'Jani'. It is one of eight seasonal festivals which are celebrated by all the Baltic peoples. The name 'Jani' is connected to the Roman god Janus, an ancient Sanskrit word yana-h which means continuous way or movement, and is possibly also connected to the Chinese sun god Jan-di.
Traditionally the preparations for Jani day started a few days before the solstice itself. People finished off work in their gardens and fields and tidied their houses. Beer and cheese, the special food for the solstice were made.
The day before Jani (23rd June) was called 'Herb Day', because special plants were collected from the meadows and the forests. These herbs were gathered to bestow health, fertility, good luck and holiness. Homes yards and livestock were decorated with garlands and wreaths made of flowers, foliage, oak leaves and branches. Some plants particularly burdock, thorn, nettle and rowan branches were displayed to protect the home from evil forces. The people also wore wreaths during the celebrations, men wore wreaths of oak leaves while women wore clover or flowers.
A feast was held in the evening of 'Herb Day' with the obligatory beer and cheese. Beer symbolised the blessing of the cornfields while cheese symbolised the blessing of the cattle yards. During the feast songs were sung in honour of the deities Dievs, Mara and Laima in thanks for the rich food. Janis, the personification of the summer solstice was invited to join the celebration. In earlier times Janis was welcomed with bugles and drums.
After the feast the revellers wandered from house to house and walked though the fields. They sang songs to bless themselves, their gardens, fields and livestock. If the met anyone who hadn't finished their labours in time for the feasting they became the subject of ridicule. This wandering was especially enjoyed by the young who searched the forests for fern blossom which was said only to bloom on this night. Whoever founds the blossom would have good luck, secret knowledge, love and happiness.
Once the procession was completed the people met up on a hill top, a large bonfire was prepared to burn all night long. The feasting continued with singing and dancing and leaping over the fire. The fire of Jani was held in great esteem, the field that was not illuminated by Jani fire would be infertile, people who do not attend the ceremony would be miserable and have no children. The purpose of the fire was to give strength to the sun on the day before the nights grew longer again. It represented rebirth which explains the connection between the fire and fertility.
On the dawn of the 24th the people bade farewell to Janis and reminded him to return the following year. As the sun rose people collected dew and swam in waters that flowed towards the rising sun. Thus both fire and water are incorporated in this ritual of rebirth.
In several tales the Norse gods seem greatly reduced in power once they were abandoned by their worshippers. One very clear illustration of this is recorded by H R Ellis Davidson (2).
An Icelandic pagan named Kodran was converted to Christianity. Formerly he had 'received counsel' from a wise man who lived in a large stone on his farm. This man guarded Kodran's cattle, advised him and foretold his future. When Kodran's bishop heard about this he visited the farm and said prayers, sung psalms and sprinkled holy water over the stone. That night the old man appeared to Kodran in a dream, the man was begging and weeping for Kodran to drive the bishop away. He complained that the bishop had poured scalding water over his house and his children had cried in pain. The next day the bishop returned to the farm and repeated his praying and applied the holy water to the stone. That night the man appeared again, his fine clothes had gone and he was dressed in black animal skins, gloomily he begged for Kodran to intercede. Kodran was unmoved and the third day the bishop returned. The man visited Kodran in his dreams for the last time. He said he had been forced into exile, and he had hoped for better treatment from Kodran after protecting his property for so many years.
Thus a glorious pagan god is transformed into a black clad troll. Trolls in Scandinavian folklore are very strong but extremely slow witted, and are terrified by the sound of church bells. In the following folktale Thor survives in the Christian world, but like Kodran's abandoned god, as a troll with a troll's mentality.
Tor Trollbane looked down the mountainside at the farmstead below him, welcoming light gleamed, the cheery cries of revellers drifted across the valley, he caught the smell of ale and festive food. Tor's stomach growled as he imagined the fine fare laid out in the farmer's hall. It was a party, a wedding feast, surely they would spare some of their food for him. Tor lumbered down the rocky slopes to the farmhouse and ducked under the door into the glow of firelight.
The revellers fell silent, Tor was huge and none felt it wise to challenge him, the troll made his way to the table and helped himself. As the food dwindled and Tor downed bowl after bowl of ale the revellers feared that he would consume everything, his huge stomach seemed bottomless and his appetite showed no sign of abating. The wedding guests soon asked him to leave as he had overstayed his welcome and Tor became extremely angry.
One of the neighbouring farmers took pity on the troll and offered to give him a barrel of ale. The farmer led the way to his own house with Tor following eagerly behind. Tor broached the barrel with his fist and raised it like a cup, it was empty within minutes. Tor was grateful for the farmer's kindness and told him to bring his family up to the top of the hillside so they could see what would happen next.
Once the kind farmer's family were safely out of the way, Tor took out his hammer and struck the top of the mountain, causing a massive rockfall to tumble down the valley towards the farmstead where the wedding guests were celebrating. Everyone in the valley was killed except the kind farmer's family, as a further gesture of appreciation, Tor cleared the farmers farm for him.
However when Tor had struck the mountainside he had used such strength that the head had flown off the hammer. Tor was desperate to find it and he threw the boulders this way and that, excavating a road through the rockfall. This road was of great use to travellers who needed to get through the rockfall.
The purpose of this story is to explain the natural rock features of the Rauland parish in Telemark, such stories are very common in Scandinavian folklore and as late as the sixteenth century Olaus Magnus was still attributing strange rock formations to the work of giants, so old supersistions die hard.
There is no doubt in this story that Tor Trollbane is a demoted Asa Thor, his strength, his hammer and his very name 'slayer of trolls' all point to the redbearded god. However the stupidity that Thor shows in the later Christian period myths comes across very strongly in this tale, Thor is now a troll and therefore as stupid as they come. This story also appears to be a lesson in hospitality, the wedding guests are braking the old Norse tradition of welcoming strangers recorded in the Havamal (Poetic Edda).
The story implies that they deserved their fate. However Tor also breaks these codes of conduct by arriving so hungry he can eat his hosts out of house and home.
Sources:
Folktales of Norway. Reidar Christiansen. Trans by P S Iverson. Christiansen. Univ of Chicago Press. Scandinavian Mythology. H R Ellis Davidson. Newnes Books. 1982.
In this article, written for "The Journal of Indo-European Studies," Marija Gimbutas discuses the close similarities of the depiction of and beliefs concerning the Thunder God between the Baltic and Slavic peoples. Gimbutas discusses the etymology of the names of this God (Lith 'Perkûnas', Russ. 'Perun') and shows cognates in other Indo-European languages.
"The root of names in many Indo-European languages for a Thunder-god as well as for an oak, an oak forest, or a mountain top is per-/perk (or perg) signifying 'to strike.' A Lithuanian verb perti, and the Slavic prati have the same meaning. The root occurs in the Baltic and Slavic languages, in Indic, Hittite, Armenian, Albanian, Greek, Latin, Celtic, and in the Germanic languages."
She also lists place names in Baltic and Slavic areas, specifically Lithuania, Poland, Serbia, Rumania, Croatia, Macedonia, Bosnia, and Bulgaria, indicating the once wide-spread belief in the God.
Gimbutas then goes on to describe "folk beliefs" concerning Perkunas/Perun, such as what animals he rides, how he appears, where he can be found, what he does for mankind, how one can elicit his aid, and the names by which he goes.
"According to popular belief he is a vigorous man holding an axe or a hammer. He traverses the sky with great noise in a fiery two-wheeled chariot drawn by a he-goat. He has a castle on a stone hill. When thunder is heard, a proverb says, 'God is coming- the wheels are striking fire.' He flashes or throws his axe or hammer at evil men or devils. The Slavic Perun merged with the image of St. Elias, who, in the Old Testament, rules over fire and water and rides throughout the sky in a fiery chariot."
In Baltic and Slavic area, Perkunas/Perun i intimately related to oaks and oak forests. oak groves considered sacred to him were fenced off or surrounded by a rampart and a ditch. He was worshipped at tall oak trees, and when they were cut down by missionaries, the people expressed that "they no longer knew where to go and pray, or where to find their god." A fire was kept burning for him and if it went out, it had to be rekindled from oak wood struck with grey fieldstones. The penalty set upon the priests for allowing the fire to go out was death.
Also associated with him is, of course, lightning. Objects or people struck by lightning were considered sacred, and the holy fire was thought to remain in that object or person. He would hurl his hammer or axe as lightning to strike the wicked, and at the same time those struck by lightning (who lived) were regarded as holy men, chosen by the God. Gimbutas tells a story to relate this:
"In 1652 three people, a visitor from Poland, Mikele Uzupys and an old Zemaitis, were traveling in western Lithuania when a bad thunderstorm arose. The old man expressed regret that he had not been struck when everything around him was smitten. Perceiving a smashed saddle, burn to ashes, he seized the ashes and ate some. To him, this meant lifelong protection against illness, the gift of oracular powers, and the power to conjure fire." (from Praetorius, Preussische Schaubuehne)
Certain animals and birds were also associated with him, particularly the bull, he-goat, dove, and cuckoo. It's recorded that in the 14th century peace treaties were ratified in Lithuania by smearing the face and hands with the blood of bulls. In 17th century Lithuania, a goat's skin lifted on a pole was considered a way to bring rain. Until the 19th century, the spring plowing in southern Lithuania was initiated by two holy black bulls, and in Latvia, Lithuania, and East Prussia as late as the 20th century, the skulls of he- goats or bulls, horns intact, were set on poles as roof ornaments to ward away illness, the evil eye, hailstorms, and other such dangers. Grey doves were thought to carry acorns and were divine birds not to be killed or eaten.
Axes and hammers were particularly associated with him, and to find certain stones, particularly meteoric iron or belemnites, prehistoric stone axes, was considered lucky as only the God's own people were permitted to find them. Farmers carried these around, and they were rubbed on cow's udders and placed in the cradles of newborn babies. Southern Slavs wouldput the stone axes under their roofs to ward against lightning. Ukrainian herdsmen would strike the walls of their huts with an axe in the springtime; if it stuck, the herd would not wander into the woods. In Lithuania, and axe was placed under the bed of a woman in labor and on the sill to be crossed by a newly-wed couple, while in the Ukraine, a woman in labor sat on an axe during the purification rites, and stone axes would be ground up and drunk with water to help eased the pains of childbirth. Axes were thrown into the field during sowing, and through the herd and into a bonfire before the fumigation of cattle in Voronezh. Lithuanians dropped stone hammers into the kneading trough so that the bread would bake well, and in Kerensk, upon the burial of the deceased, an old woman would strike the bed where the body had lain, "so as to chop off the death with an axe."
Here is the winner of the Yule poetry competition run by Thunderway Hall
I give great honor to Thunor!
Bane of World Serpent,
the one who struggles
against the bonds of eternity.
You are the one who never abandons,
any who call upon your name
in time of trouble or crisis.
Your strength and hammer might
keeps at bay
the primal chaotic energies known as Etins,
those who envy the goddesses' and the gods' immortality.
Those beings and creatures who would plunge Midgard
into darkness and ice.
You are our defender
against those who have overstepped their boundaries.
Those who give you honor are never abandoned;
to call upon your name just once is to dwell in Truthheim,
even in this life.
Thus I honor Thunor!
This poem has inspired a poem in Anglo Saxon written by the members of Thunderway Hall which will be included in the next issue.
This piece starts an on-going series in which I'm going to try to stir up some dialogue about some things like the Holy, who the gods are and where they come from, and why we see them the way we do. Philosophically speaking, the piece is weak. My arguments, where they exist are poorly supported. Frankly, this, as it stands, is nothing more than a "hey, think about this" essay. Now, as the months progress, you will be seeing more on this subject, a particular piece fleshed out here and there, hopefully winding up somewhere useful. It starts like this:
There's an old saying, "You are your deeds." To me, this seems a common theme when one looks at the Eddas, Sagas, Chronicles, and other written sources pertaining to the heathens and the heathen age. The reasons for this are many, and it's not my intent to reproduce them here, but essentially, what we see in the literature is a tendency to sing the praises of ones actions- take the tradition of the scop. These, as we all know, were the folks who earned their bread singing the deeds of the great. In this way, one was remembered through the years, beyond even death. Quoth the Havamal:
Cattle die and kinsmen die,
thyself eke soon wilt die;
but fair fame will fade never,
I ween, for him who wins it. (Hollander, 25)
What, then, is this fair fame if not your deeds? Bauschatz, in The Well and the Tree, says in reference to an ancient Germanic ideal that, "Rather, their conceptual process seems to have involved . . . an opposition of stasis or inaction, seen as negative, against movement or action, seen as positive." Never do we hear praise for anyone who merely sat on his hind end and never did anything in his life- indeed.
The heathen ideal, then, seems largely to be a question of action. What do I do? Why do I do it? What ought I not do? If one is seeking to win fair fame, then one must know which deeds will win this praise. This qualitative judgement, which course of action to take, seems to be an ethical question. Ethics, the codes and standards which lend themselves to the governance of one's behavior, now take on an even more important meaning. This is in direct contrast to an attitude of "Your faith alone will save you," found in some religions, where it's not your actions, not your deeds that are important, but merely what you believe. To the heathen, your faith is less of an issue than the worth of your soul, a worth wrought with deeds, not empty belief. Now, we Theodsmen often speak of our 'Tribal Thews.' That is, certain ways of doing things and ethical standards that come down to us from the yore-days in the form of myths, legends, heroic lays, histories, and the like. With an understanding of these, one knows in one's heart what the right action is. It seems largely to be a process of internalizing the lore, looking beyond the hero, and seeing what makes an action heroic. To go beyond the lore, to take it to a higher level, to the place where our heathen ethic, the heroic actions of the tales, come from. Where's that? Rudolf Otto, in The Idea of the Holy, touches on something that rings true.
"'Holiness'-'the holy'- is a category of interpretation and valuation peculiar to the sphere of religion. It is, indeed, applied by transference to another sphere- that of Ethics- but is not itself derived from this."
This notion, that an understanding of the Holy must precede the formation of an ethical system is not all that radical. Indeed, it seems that the Holy relates to Ethics in the exact same way that Physics relates to Engineering. The former lays the groundwork for the latter in that the former develops an understanding of the laws of the system, laws which the latter then puts into practice. Essentially, we are dealing with the complimentary nature of theory and method, general and specific, and inasmuch as it would be foolish in the extreme for an Engineer to attempt to span a chasm without some notion of Physics, so too is it foolish for a Heathen to think that he or she is in a good position to judge right and wrong without a firm grounding in the Holy.
But what, then, is this thing we call the Holy? That's a complex question. Thinkers have been struggling with this question for ages, with varying degrees of success, but never ultimate understanding. Indeed, Otto wrote an entire book about it. I would direct the reader to Edred Thorsson's article on the Holy in Green Runa for a start. In the sense in which I am using it, the Holy is a thing that resists description, it seems a thing that rests more on the intuitive level than the rational, but perhaps this is merely the ordeal to make understanding in any way meaningful. Given the difficult nature of the discussion of the Holy, how can anyone, especially someone as lacking in words for it as me be so bold as the think he or she knows anything about it? Otto has some thoughts on this- in some ways the Holy can never be known and quantified. He speaks of the Holy as a category so unto itself that to attempt to define it in any way other than "A=A," that is to say, to attempt to say that 'the Holy is X', where X is other than simply 'the Holy', will never yield a good definition, as the Holy is, in the sense of a bi-conditional, only the same as itself. Indeed, in many ways it seems to me that the Holy is like the Space, Time, and Being, the assumptions of which underlay almost every human endeavor, but the nature, indeed the very existence, of which are constantly being debated. For instance, metaphysicians still debate whether space is a container or if it is merely the area between boundaries, but anyone whose ever loaded a truck knows that space exists, gets filled, and so forth. So, even though we might not have all the bugs worked out of the system, we have a good feel for the underlying principles of the thing. I see a similar situation here for us. Given that the Holy, assuming Otto is correct, was the source for the understanding of right action (Ethics), then if one looks at our historical literature, folklore, and other such accounts of our forbearers "doing the right thing" we can look back and get a glimpse of what made these acts the right acts, much in the same way we can theorize about the equation of a line once we know where a few of its points lay, or know that for some reason . To put it all in a heathen fashion, we must look deep into Urth's well, and see what has come before, in this way we can see what ought to come in the future. To quote Bauschatz- "He must act in accordance with prescribed codes of conduct received from the past; by so doing, he will be governed by what he knows; therefore, the wise man seeks to discover all he can." (Bauschatz, 28)
Now, I hate to go beyond my humble Frisian roots, but any time anyone uses the phrase 'the Holy,' there needs to be a discussion of the Euthyphro. In the Euthyphro, Socrates asks Euthyphro a question dealing with right action. Euthyphro (if memory serves) says that the gods love right action, which is holy. Socrates asks the question which stumped the Greeks- "Is it holy because the gods love it, or do the gods love it because it's holy?" To us heathen, however, the answer seems simple. The gods love it because it's holy.
First, let's take a look at what we get out of this. Given the set-up of the question, we have two premises: the action in question, we'll call it X, is a) right, and b) holy. For many, this is all the consideration that needs to be made. If we know what the right thing to do is, why pursue it any farther? I could think of a fancy answer here, but the truth is that I ask because I'm naturally inquisitive, and I'm curious as to why. First, the answer "it's holy because the god's love it" is completely off. If you're curious as to why, then read Euthyphro. Now, the answer "the gods love it because it's holy" is a much better answer, but not without its difficulties.
First, how do we know that the gods love right action? Two simple reasons, that may be developed more in a later essay- 1) The gods themselves perform these sorts of actions in spite of their difficulty. As Thunor wards the gods (and the folk), we hold it right and holy to ward one's family and othal lands from the sorts who would infringe and destroy us. This isn't a "real" argument, but I think it strikes enough of an intuitive chord to make some sense. The second would seem to be the existence of a place like Valhalla, or any other hall of a god where folks who live praiseworthy lives go after death. There seems to be a reward for the almost super-human effort expended to live such an upright life. Now, what makes this question such a dilemma? Well, to admit that the gods love something because it is holy, it means to say that the Holy is not the creation of and by the gods. It also means that it might be possible to live a good life without an understanding of the gods. That is, if one had a knowledge of the Holy but not of the gods (assume, for a minute, this is possible) then one could live a life full of right action, but never once worship a god. Now, the Christians can't accept this because it would mean that Jesus isn't the only way to salvation- any peat digger from the North Sea with a good head on his shoulders can lead a good and upright life, without a lot of need for priests or Bibles to tell him how to live. I know there will be many who disagree with me on this point, but this is the direction that my thoughts are leading me. Certainly, the gods are guides to right action, in that the myths give us great insight into what the right thing to do is, and indeed, I myself find many reasons to worship the gods, and think it's a good thing to do. Some have even said that the gods may even like me, so if they're right, I can't be completely wrong.
Now, as an interesting aside, some have noted that it is strange that the gods should have taken as much interest in us humans as they seem to have. Bauschatz, if I recall correctly, mentions that this is evidently a sign that the gods are capable of learning something from us. I don't know if that's true or not, but I think their protection of and involvement with us is more of a sign that we are capable of doing holy things, and that in and of itself would make it worthwhile for the gods to deal with us. I reject the notion that they deal with us solely because they're bored, I think Thunor has better things to do than to ward the heck out of Middangeard and risk battling all those giants for our sake because he finds it amusing. Could this tie into Havamal, 132?
Those who sit within hall oft hardly know
of what kin be they who come;
no man so flawless but some fault he has,
nor so wicked to be of no worth.
I don't claim to know as yet, or what, but I think that perhaps this might be one way to go about unlocking this riddlesome piece of poetry.
Speaking of Thunor, what does any of this have to do with him? A great deal, I think. In the Lokasenna we see Thunor telling Loki to just "Get the hell out!" Now, when other gods or goddesses try to deal with him, Loki just brings up some uncomfortable memory of the past, and they back down, rather than have their exploits brought up in sumble. Thunor, however, is unfazed. Why? Because Loki's presence there is simply wrong and unholy. He then does rectify the situation- rectify is when you put your boot up someone's ass. Whenever giants want to run off with Freya, or the AEsir have been a little too clever for their own good, and it looks like someone caught them on a technicality, Thunor comes bursting in, and says "Wrong answer, buddy!" Now, there's a lot of attempts to make an appeal, we hear the "But you agreed, you promised!" clause being brought up, but Thunor just know's what's holy, and doesn't put up with it. We tend to live in a law-filled society, much of that law being contract law. Sometimes it seems strange to us that these actions of Thunor should be considered a good thing when they seem to violate our modern notions of promises and contracts, but I think we need to look at it another way. Even today we say "you can't sign some basic human rights away." For instance, you can't write a note of permission and sign it saying that it's okay for someone to shoot you, and then make it okay. It's still considered murder, whether you consent or not. To this day, to enter into a contract with a minor is fiscal suicide, as a minor isn't considered a responsible agent, and as such, you can't collect from him. There's all sorts of little things we consider it wrong to do regarding these sorts of contracts, and a single violation of one of these principles can lead to the voiding of an entire contract. I don't know whether or not modern contract law is right or wrong, but I think this provides an analogy for what Thunor is doing. He's saying, in effect, that what was promised was not there to give, or was not right to give, and that even among the gods there are some things that can't be bargained away. What is the deciding factor behind all of this? The Holy. I have a strong hunch that if it was holy to let Loki stay at the sumble of the gods then Thunor would have let him. Of course, this all needs to be developed more fully, but more of that later.
Now, in the future, I'd like to go into more detail, hopefully talking about things in terms of hailigaz and wihaz in new and interesting ways. I'd also like to develop some of my intuitions into premises, and construct it all into an argument, but this is all tomorrow's business. For today, I'd just like to see people considering the notions and implications of the Holy in heathenry.
Eyrbyggja Saga gives a rare glimpse of a devotee of Thor's beliefs in the afterlife. No mention is made of lofty halls in Asgard, Thorolf Mostur-Beard expected to live under a sacred mountain near his farm 'Thors Ness' in west Iceland. This mountain was called Helga Fell, literary 'holy mountain'. After the death of Thorolf's son Thorstein Cod-biter a shepherd on the farm had the following vision...
'.....he saw the whole north side of the mountain open up, with great fires burning inside it and the noise of feasting and clamour over the ale horns. As he strained to catch particular words, he was able to make out that Thorstein Cod-Biter and his crew were being invited to sit in the place of honour opposite his father'
This belief that the dead lived on below the ground (in some comfort it must be admitted) must be linked to the local practice in Thors Ness of burying the dead. These beliefs would have varied from place to place and the size of Thor's hall in Asgard probably indicates an alternative destination for his worshippers.
Source: Eyrbyggja Saga. Translated by Hermann Palsson and Paul Edwards. Penguin.1989.
Magnus Magnusson has the following to add about Thorolf's holy mountain:
'To this day, Helgafell has a special quality about it. On the grassy summit there are the remains of a small stone structure that some people think was once a chapel, and from there the view over the farthest reaches of Breithafjorthur and its innumerable islands is breath-taking. Tradition has it that those who make the short, steep climb up the hill without either talking or looking back will have three wishes granted, if they face towards the east, tell no one what the wishes were, and wish them from a good and true heart.'
So the mountain remains holy despite the centuries but is this due to Christian or pagan tradition? It is tempting to think that todays pilgrims to the hill top are invoking the early farmers of Thors Ness who are still protecting the farmstead from their graves, or even Thor himself who can be invoked towards the east, the direction in which he travels to fight the giants.
Source: Iceland Saga. Magnus Magnusson. Bodley Head. 1987.
Both of these books hold considerable information on the cult of Thor and are a must for the Thorists bookshelf.
Thorshof is now on the Internet at the following address:
http://homepages.nildram.co.uk/~skegga
The website is still under construction but Thorskegga has put up most of her articles from a variety of pagan journals. It also includes the current copies of 'Thunder' and the new Vanir journal (see below). The members of Thorshof hope to encourage scholarly research into the cults of Thor, Frey and the Norse Goddesses. Concentrating on both purely historical study and serious attempts to bring the religion up to date. This summer members will be experimenting with costume designs, the difficult task of merging traditional women's attire with modern practicality. The question is 'how does an Asatru priestess dress the part, but not look like an escapee from the British Museum?'. Results will be published in Thunder, the Wain and on the website.
Anyone who wants to assist in Thorshof's research is very welcome, please write to the UK Thunder address for details.
If you are unable to access the internet an want to know what you are missing, the following articles are currently available:
The One That Got Away? (Thor and the Midgard Serpent) by Thorskegga.
The Deep Souled One. (Thor) by Thorunn
Frigg. by Thorskegga.
Frigg & Thor (The relationship between the two) by Thorskegga.
Holda. by Thorskegga.
Sif. by Thorskegga.
UK subscribers can obtain these by sending a first class stamp for each article required and one more to cover postage. Back issues of Thunder are also available at 50p a copy but please note that they will be printed 'text only' on white paper.
Thunder#1 Thunor- Rainman or God of Thunder?, Thor and Fate in Grautek's Saga. The Asgardsreien. Blind Mans Buff.
Thunder#2 Thor & the Goddesses, Old Frisian Thuner Biad, The Folks Noisy Friend, Hill Figures - Survivals of Anglo-Saxon Paganism?
In April this year an Anglo-Saxon grave was discovered in Northamptonshire which included the very rare find of a boar crested helmet. The boar is the symbol of Frey and Freya, the Vanir patrons of the battlefield.
Other finds from the same grave included a decorated bronze hanging bowl, (a relatively common find in Anglo-Saxon graves but their exact function is still open to question) a pattern welded sword and a knife. All of the finds are currently undergoing conservation work.
For more information check out the 'Angelcynn' website.
There is a new journal to keep 'Thunder' company, 'The Wain', this time covering the Vanir gods. The first issue has been produced for Midsummer this year and it contains the following: The Riddles of Gestumblindi, Freyja-Lady of the Wildwood (poem), Freyr in England ( an historical appraisal of the evidence) and Turning of the Wheel (thoughts on the solstice). Subscription for the UK is £2 for four issues, Europe £4 and US £5. Cheques should be made payable to Pat Deegan and sent to 'The Wain', PO Box 16071, London, SE16 3XJ. Please note 'The Wain' is also available on the Thorshof website.
By Bill Griffiths, published by Anglo-Saxon Books at £14.95 245pp. ISBN 1-898281-15-7
The Northern Tradition is going through something of a revival at the moment. Make up your own minds if that is a good thing or not. This means that bookshop shelves are groaning under the weight of books on various aspects of Norse mythology and magic. Most of these are of a dubious standard unfortunately.
What a refreshing change then for a book on the often overlooked Anglo-Saxon spirituality. The author, Bill Griffiths will need no introduction to those already familiar with his other books and booklets, including a recent excellent audio tape of Old English verse. 'Aspects of Anglo-Saxon Magic' is an excellent book. You know with Bill Griffiths that the subject matter has been researched upside down and inside out. He challenges ideas about the line drawn between 'magic' and religion', and offers some interesting ideas and insights into all aspects of Anglo-Saxon heathen beliefs. The book itself is divided into two parts. The first deals with historical analysis, while the second is a selection of Old English texts and translations. Here we see such well known charms as the 'Land Ceremonies' charm etc and the less well known 'Water-Elf disease' charm and the ever useful 'A Prose Charm against Conspiracy' (useful for any pub moot!). What you won't find in this book are clear and easy answers. If you are looking for a New Age, shallow book that just lists 'spells' and (un) interesting things to do with crystals this is not the book for you. What Bill offers is a clear and interesting view of Anglo-Saxon pagan beliefs which may help those of us following this ever crooked path. Go on, treat yourself, buy this book!
D. T. Thorshof
Well here is a sight for sore eyes! A well presented good quality magazine covering the northern tradition in the UK. Kvasir is produced by the Ring of Troth UK but is also available to non-members. The spring edition for 1997 included an lengthy article on Holda, an Ostara ritual, an epic poem dedicated to Disir, applying Asatru to the world of technology, ethics and a recipe for birch sap wine. Great stuff! Subscription for ROTUK members is £8.00 UK, £10.00 Europe and £12.00 elsewhere. For non members subscription is £10/£12/£15 respectively.
Available from BM Kvasir, London WC1N 3XX.
United Kingdom and Europe:
Thorskegga Thorn, Thorshof, 106 Oakridge Road, High Wycombe, Bucks, HP11 2PL.
NEW E-MAIL ADDRESS! skegga@nildram.co.uk
WWW http:/homepages.nildram.co.uk/~skegga/
UK subscription is £2 for four issues, Europe £4. 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.
Thorcake, an old Derbyshire recipe, Taranis the celtic thundergod, Thunderway Hall's Anglo-Saxon Thunor poem, a prayer to the rowan tree and lots more!