The Night Sky

The last week or so, I've been watching the night sky. Even with the nights becoming crisp, I've been drawn outdoors for a couple of hours at a time. I've taken to grabbing a blanket and my backpacking mattress and driving a good distance from the light pollution cast off from the brightly lit Twin Cities.

What first drew me outside last week was a comet called 17P/Holmes. A friend and I had heard about the comet and decided to try to get pictures of it. We drove out to a spot that allowed us a good look at the sky, pulled over to the side of the road, and set up our cameras.

We were too late. As we were setting up our photo equipment, we noticed that the full moon was rising in the north-eastern sky right where the comet was. Although the comet was bright, it was quickly overpowered by the light of the moon.

Instead of taking pictures of the moon, I took a few minutes to lean up against the car and look at what else was in the sky as I waited for my friend to finish taking pictures. I saw the usual stars, satellites, and planes and my friend and I both saw a shooting star that streaked across the sky.

But the one thing that really caught my attention was the Big Dipper. No matter what I watched or where I looked in the sky, my gaze always went back to that constellation that has been acknowledged in many cultures throughout the ages. My thoughts continued to be centered on this famous constellation for the next few days as I found myself going outside to watch the night sky.

Tonight, as the air was very brisk (there were even some snow flurries today here in Minnesota), I decided to stay in and read tonight. A few days ago, I had picked up a used copy of American Gods by Neil Gaiman on a recommend from Paul at Evoking the Goddess, and I decided that it was the night to start reading it.

Soon after starting it, I realized that can't get away from the Big Dipper even when indoors. Two of the characters in the book climbed up on the roof of a house, where the woman points out the Big Dipper and tells the man about how three cultures view it. The one that caught my attention was Odin's Wain.

Learning The Lore

I've spent a lot of time over the past 6 months or so reading the Lore that Heathenry bases it's beliefs. There are so many ideas and opinions on the translations and the interpretation of what has been written that I'm having a hard time sorting through everything. Unfortunately, there is not much out there that helps a person that is new to the information.

It's hard learning about a religion on your own. With no one to guide you, you have to figure things out on your own. Questions that come up are:

• Where does one start?
  
• What information should be learned first?
  
• Which authors are good ones?
  
• And in the case of Heathenry - what translation(s) of the do you use?

One of Ravencast's episodes, Asatru 101 - Lore, gave me a great idea: Start with one of the sagas, Eddas, etc and look up several different versions/translations of it. Learn the different versions and compare and contrast them. Form an understanding (and know your reasons behind that opinion) about that particular set of a saga or Edda that you have started to research.

With this in mind, it becomes more about thoroughly thinking about the meaning behind the passages rather than just reading and familiarizing yourself with the information. It's about forming your own opinion on their meaning rather then having that interpretation force fed to you. And it's about being able to defend your opinion using the sources as inspiration.

While I have a long way to go before I would feel comfortable with debating my ideas about the Lore with anybody, I think that that this approach laid out by Sandi and Dave at Ravencast is something that I will adopt for my own studies.

Heathen Hospitality

As I read more about Heathenry, one concept that is mentioned a lot is hospitality. It is mentioned on websites, blogs, forums, and mailing lists. It is also mentioned in the Poetic Edda, which is one of the books that Heathens use as inspiration on how to live their life. Here are few of my thoughts on the concept of Hospitality.

What does hospitality mean to me?

When I think of hospitality, I think of inviting people into my home with the intention of making them feel welcome so that they have the space and opportunity to be themselves as well as letting me be myself. They are my guest and as such I have given them a promise that while they are in my home, I will treat them with respect and take care of them.

But hospitality doesn't just have to be that invitation into my house, my space. The concept of hospitality can happen anywhere. This idea was brought to my attention the other night when I was at a restaurant. It was busy, yet the restaurant remained "seat yourself." There was a couple that was having trouble finding a table and were a bit stressed; my friend and I were waiting for our check. I invited them to sit with us, telling them that we would be leaving as soon as the waitress came back. They were grateful. I had the opportunity to show hospitality to someone and put them at ease in a situation that was causing them stress, even if it wasn't in my own home.

Just as your hosts have the responsibility of being welcoming and gracious, you also have the responsibility of being a gracious guest. To be a guest means cleaning up after your own messes, offering to help out with various task, and as well as a few other things that are necessary depending on the culture.

What does hospitality mean to Heathens?

As mentioned above, hospitality is talked about in the Poetic Edda, especially the second poem, Havamal. From the first few stanzas, you get an idea of what hospitality meant to the Germanic peoples:

2.
Hail, ye Givers! a guest is come;
say! where shall he sit within?
Much pressed is he who fain on the hearth
would seek for warmth and weal.

3.
He hath need of fire, who now is come,
numbed with cold to the knee;
food and clothing the wanderer craves
who has fared o'er the rimy fell.

4.
He craves for water, who comes for refreshment,
drying and friendly bidding,
marks of good will, fair fame if 'tis won,
and welcome once and again.

What I find interesting is that even though guests are to be welcomed, the guest himself is supposed to "keep his wits" and be wise to what is going on around him as shown by several stanzas including:

6.
Let no man glory in the greatness of his mind,
but rather keep watch o'er his wits.
Cautious and silent let him enter a dwelling;
to the heedful comes seldom harm,
for none can find a more faithful friend
than the wealth of mother wit.

Is It Appropriate Not To Extend Hospitality?

When does the concept of hospitality end? I mean, is there a time and place where it is okay to not to extend hospitality? I was looking at what Bernulf wrote when he was a guest blogger back in January and found that this is what he had to say:

True hospitality does not lock itself indoors, nor does it suffer the hindrance of inconvenience. In other words, wherever I happen to be standing, it's within my power to offer hospitality, and unless I've been insulted or offended somehow, I can generally be counted upon to do just that.

Hospitality In Other Contexts

As I leave for Europe, I find myself thinking about hospitality in context with visiting other countries/cultures. Just getting a passport doesn't mean that I will be welcome in a certain country, some countries require permission (in some countries, as represented by a visa) for you to enter. When you are given this visa, you have been granted hospitality.

However, this doesn't mean that you can do what ever you want (when in the other country) just because you have been given permission to enter. I was talking to a friend about this and we came up with the idea of being like acting as a type of Ambassador - a social ambassador. As world travellers, we are required to (informally) represent our country and show respect (keeping the concept of hospitality in mind) for that country's customs by how we act. I am going to keep this in mind as I travel.

Paganism With Homework

I've seen the phrase "paganism with homework" when referring to learning about Heathenry. I am beginning to understand why as there is so much information available.

As there is so much to read about, sort through, find references for, and learn a whole new vocabulary on top of everything else that it is much like taking a class on the religion and mythos of Heathenry - home study version. And because it is the home study version, it is hard to know where to begin, what to do with all the incoming information and how to sort through it and keep it straight. (I've been trying to keep a notebook, but it is already pretty thick with the pages that I have printed off from the internet as well as the notes that I have been taking as I read.)

While I started with looking up information on Odin and few other gods, I have recently been delving into the books that contain much of information that is known about the gods. The Poetic Edda (translated by Hollander) is where I have started. I will soon be starting in The Prose Edda followed by a book on Norse Mythology. This should give me a good base; a good starting point. But as I don't know a lot of the terminology, I've had to do a lot of learning as I go. (Internet browser open so that I can type in a word or phrase that isn't explained or write it down in my notebook and look it up later.)

I find it interesting that while not much information of pagan religions have survived the arrival of Christianity, the Norse myths did. I guess it all has to do with timing really, as I have read that the northern countries were more difficult to reach and therefore it wasn't until later that the Germanic people were influenced by Christianity.* Surprisingly, it was Christianity that brought with it the ability to write down the stories of their people that had been passed down orally throughout the ages.*

I'm kinda liking the fact that Heathenry is considered "Paganism with homework."


*Hollander, L.M. (2004). The poetic edda. University of Texas Press: Austin.

Heathen Gods: Odin

I was given some advice by a friend regarding the beginning of learning about a new religion, in this case Heathenry. He told me to start with the Gods. So, that is what I am doing. And who better to start with than the God that is said to be the main God of Heathen religions? Today, I start with some of my notes that I have taken down as I have found information about Odin.

What Is Odin The God Of?

Odin is considered to be the chief God of the Æsir clan.

Although the most likely realm attributed to Odin is that of war, battle, and death, he is also the God of wisdom. He is considered to be the patron of poets, writers and thinkers. He also has been known to use magic, both rune and seidhr magic. Seidhr magic was typically used by women and for that reason Odin was driven out of Asgard for a while. Odin was the God who gained to the knowledge of Runes for the Æsir and used that power to resurrect himself.

He is the God that is most concerned with human affairs and watched the human race from his high seat.

He is said to be the shaper of Wyrd.

What Does He Look Like?

Most say that Odin appears as an older man with a long beard. He is most likely to be depicted as wearing a dark blue cloak and is carrying his spear, gungnir, which he uses as a walking staff. He is missing an eye after sacrificing it to gain wisdom at the well of Mimir. His eye is said to remain at the bottom of the well.

No one seems to know which eye is the one that has been sacrificed as there are depictions of him missing either eye.

He is also known for his ability to take on other shapes.

Odin’s Connections With The Other Gods

Frigg – Frigg is Odin’s first wife and helps him to look over the world.

Balder – Odin and Frigg’s son.

Hod – Odin’s blind son who represented darkness.

Thor – Odin’s son by the Goddess Jord.

Loki – A giant that is often sited as Odin’s blood brother. He is also the mother of Odin’s eight-legged horse, Sleipnir.

Common Stories of Odin

Sacrificing his eye, he throws it into the well of Mimir to be able to take a drink to gain wisdom.

To gain the knowledge of Runes, he hangs himself from a tree for nine days and nights and pierces his side with his own spear.

What Else Is He Known For?

He is known as the leader of the Wild Hunt.

Giving poets the mead of inspiration.

The slaying of the giant, Ymir, to form Midgard.

Updated 3/3/07 at 6:40pm to reflect corrections as told to me by Bernulf of Expanding Inward.

Concept Of Wyrd

Recently, okay, within the last few days, I have started to read up on Heathenry and I am finding that I am very interested in what I have read so far. I am coming to realize just how different the path of Heathenry is from general Paganism, when I never really thought there was much of a difference. That's what you pick up from reading.

The concept within Heathenry that has really stood out for me is the concept of wyrd. Some people would say that it is similar to the concept of karma, and to some extent, it is. At the same time, there is more to it as it is something that you yourself have a little more control over as it is about the decisions you make and what reaction comes after. At it's core, it is the concept that every action has it's consequences. Of course, that is over simplifying things a bit.

One of the explanations that I read regarding this concept, used the idea of weaving to explain the effects, which made perfect sense to me because I used to weave, so that is what I will use as an example here. With every pass of the shuttle through the warp (the vertical strands), a new thread (the woof/horizontal strands) is laid down into the fabric and pressed down against those that came before. These new threads are, in turn, connected to the previous threads that came before and creates a pattern for the world to see.

In the terms of wyrd, each new action that you make is not only determined by the decisions you have made in the past but will also determine what actions are to come in the future. Every decision you make is connected through your life pattern and effects the choices you will make in the future. Not to say that you don't have free will; it's just that you are laying down the patterns for how you react to various events in the future. Your wyrd is being constructed at the same time that it has a hand in constructing your reaction.

The thing that I like about this concept is that with this deeper understanding of every action has a reaction, you also have to take greater responsibility for your actions. You are responsible for you do. Those actions that you have chosen color everything in your future and there is only one person that can take responsible for those actions: you.

I'm not sure if I've got it quite right and I know there is more to it than what I have written, but this is my initial thoughts on what I have read. I'm sure as I learn more about Heathenry, I will be writing more regarding some of the concepts I am learning about.