Though Frigga and the others were warned
And (nearly) all the world made to swear,
The God of Tears (nearly) all the world mourned.
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Author Archives: Sorn
Baldr’s Blood!
A handout for our April 2013 meeting:
Theories, Speculation, UPG, and Modern Worship
Alternate Versions of Baldr’s Death:
Though Snorri’s account with blind Hoðr being tricked by Loki into hurling the fatal mistletoe at Baldr is the most widely-known version of the death of Baldr, Saxo Grammaticus tells a different story in Book 3 of the Gesta Danorum. Continue reading
Vafrlogi, Gambanteinn, and Skirnismal
A handout for our March 2013 meeting:
The poem appears in its entirety in Codex Regius, and most of it (1-27) can also be found in AM 748 I 4to (a fragmentary manuscript from ca. 1300 best known for having the only extant text of Baldrs draumar). It is in the second manuscript that the poem is called Skirnismal; in Codex Regius, it is called For Skirnis (Skirnir’s Journey).
Skaði: Building on the Old Foundations
The handout for our January 2013 discussion:
Literature:
(Compiled primarily from Arlea Anshutz’s Skadhi Page at http://www.wyrdwords.vispa.com/goddesses/skadhi/index.html
Skaldskaparmal 3
Skadi, daughter of giant Thiassi, took helmet and mail-coat and all weapons of war and went to Asgard to avenge her father. But the Æsir offered her atonement and compensation, the first item of which was to choose herself a husband out of the Æsir and choose by the feet and see nothing else of them. Then she saw one person’s feet that were exceptionally beautiful and said: Continue reading
Kold Rað
From father’s foundations old
Grey silence as first flakes fall,
While warmth and laughter fill gods’ hall;
She strides to Asgard’s walls, bold. Continue reading
Yule 2012 Report
On December 22, 2012, Keeper of Seasons Hall met to observe Yule, its last official holiday celebration of 2012. Like previous years, we had an indoor celebration, and Debbie and I hosted the event at our home. Continue reading
CUUPs Winternights Script 2012
In October 2012, I had the privilege to lead a Winternights celebration for the Coyote Willow Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans. While CUUPs welcomes the participation of persons from all religious backgrounds, it seems that the majority of the participants practice different kinds of Wiccan-influenced eclectic Pagan tradition. Creating a ritual that was accessible to those participating while remaining true to my own form of Heathenry was an entertaining exercise. Continue reading
Is, Was, and Shall Be (alternate lyrics)
The original song is by Beverly Frederick. While it’s a quite fun song, for use in Heathen celebrations I’ve changed the lyrics to express a more Heathen understanding of the norns. Is, Was, and Shall Be are not particularly good translations of the names Verðandi, Urð, and Skuld (the names given to three female figures in Voluspa who are probably norns); the translation of Urð as “Was” is especially problematic. Also, the norns in pre-conversion Germanic mythology actually don’t seem to do much weaving; when
they do any kind of metaphoric textile working, it seems to be more like twining. Continue reading
Hail to the Hammer lyrics
Hail to the Hammer
Longing eyes turn into the sun
Low in the winter,
Grey as a wolf, now the wind has come
Cold as a hunter.
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Winternights 2012 report
Keeper of Seasons Hall met to celebrate its fifteenth Winternights November 10, 2012. While for the most part the weather to date had been warm and dry, the morning we met at the Pueblo Montaño trailhead was cold, overcast, and windy. Intermittent drops of rain fell as we made our way to our destination on the bank of the Rio Grande, the same site we had used last year. Perhaps because of the weather, we saw less wildlife than in previous visits, though we did see a few ducks and crows, and at least once we heard the sound of cranes flying overhead. Continue reading