Harrowman Ealdham

Someone made the claim that the Anglo-Saxons worshipped a different God from the Norse Óðinn because he “has two eyes”. This mostly comes down to an ignorance of archeology. The Sutton Hoo burial helps us out with this… The scepter found in the burial depicts 8 faces. One of them has the eye ritualistically removed. This one-eyed symbolism can be found on the helmet that was also found in the burial. Behind one of the garnet inlays of the brow of the helmet, there is a sheet of gold, but there is no gold behind the other. Given the right lighting conditions, the brow on one side of the helm would shine brighter than the other. The burial indicates that a person of high status, possibly a king, was buried there. Given the blatantly Pagan context of the burial and Óðinn’s association with kingship; it’s not hard to piece together what this symbology means. Is a God as powerful as Óðinn limited to one form? Of course not. This argument is also quite weak considering that during the Vendel Era; the iconography for Óðinn in Scandinavia and England was nearly identical. If your kinsman migrate to an island, do they create a new pantheon of Gods all-together? This is lazy philosophy at best.

Syncretic AI art of Óðinn-Shiva

Across the Indo-European cultures there seems to be an overlap between the shield and the courage of its wielder. If you were in the Roman military and returned without your shield; it was a sign that you were a coward and you discarded it to run away from battle. The Germanic tribes had a similar belief. It was seen as unmanly and made one worthy of being outlawed if they returned from battle without their shield in some cases. In Germania, by Tacitus, he mentions that the only acceptable retreat done by the Germanic peoples was a strategic one. In a more famous example; the Greek philosopher and historian Plutarch records where a Spartan woman would tell her son to either return from battle with his shield, or to die upon it.

It reminds me of this buckle from the same period depicting interlocked wolves.

Here’s an 11th century mount found in England. The hair seems to depict interlocked serpents and the face seems to reflect other odinic artifacts found in England and other Northern European countries. I believe the symbolism would imply that this is a depiction of Óðinn.

Thank you all so much for 500 subs! :)

Here’s a poem to Thunor that I wrote out of devotion. Great Thunderer and beholder of mighty deeds, You who cares for mankind’s needs, Rider of a chariot pulled by goats, Slayer of the stone-ettin who plots and gloats, The rolling of your wheels bring flashes and thunder, Leaving all good beings with joy and wonder, Steadfast wielder of the fiery sledge, Guardian of all lands to Middle-Earth’s edge, Father of courage, might, and strength, Your limitless wisdom knows no lengths, Fall, the great Thunor, shall you never, In your fastness and fortress may you reign forever!

“I would believe only in a God that knows how to dance.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche

Here is something this interesting while looking at the etymology for the words “goat” and “oak”. They ultimately derive from the same in Proto Indo-European word; “*h₂eyǵ”. This implies that the connection between the Thundergod, oak tree, and goats has existed for a very long time.

It’s believed that the statue of Thor found in Eyrarland, Iceland, and the famous Icelandic “wolf cross”, have Christian influence in regards to their design. Specifically because the hammers in this context have a cross shape. I personally theorize that these are late Germanic expressions of a weapon that is commonly depicted throughout the Indo-European world. Commonly known as a Vajra This weapon is a materialization of cosmic order in the form of a weapon or lightning bolt. (which makes sense in this case given the nature of the deity that these objects are associated with). As you can see on this carving of Thor found in Sweden (pic #3), the head of his hammer is interestingly depicted with three prongs; much like the vajra. I am not denying the fact that Christianity could have indeed played a role in the evolution of the design, but ultimately I think these depictions of the Thunderer’s hammer are indeed Pagan.

Another misconception that I see pop up every now and then is that Thor is associated with smithing. I’m unsure of where this comes from, but folks who subscribe to this belief also think that the sound of thunder is his hammer pounding on an anvil. While this idea is very cool; the sound of thunder is more likened to the wheels of his chariot. We in the Germanic tradition already have a God/deity associated heavily with smithing. He is legendary elf-smith Wayland,(ON: Völundr) and if you have not read his story in Völundarkviða; I highly recommend doing so.

A rune-stone someone in Vermont, USA raised for their pet wolf-dog named Sigi. Credit to Scott T. Shell

Another lesser-known association with Óðinn is his connection with snakes. Across the Germanic world there are odinic depictions showing him alongside them. The connection between the Sky-Father deific and serpents across the Indo-European world is widespread. Shiva himself is almost always depicted with a snake wrapped around his neck to show his fearlessness. (this could be related to the sacrifice made by Óðinn on Yggdrasil. In Germanic tradition snakes are sometimes called by the poetic name “Hel-Ropes”. This could emphasize Óðinn’s fearlessness in the face of death to fulfill his duty of discovering the runes).

Happy Leif Erikson Day!

A friend of mine noticed the similarities between the depiction on the left and this medieval motif from a German church.

Two interesting Alemannic zierscheiben, with a likely Alemannic depiction of Wodan, surrounded by eagles (or ravens) forming a fylfot. The arms entwined through the knees could indicate a meditative stance.

Truth in the cosmos is comparable to mathematics. Despite separate cultures writing numbers or equations differently, they ultimately come to the same answer. Though the answer will be written and said differently because of isolation. Pic: A depiction of Óðinn from Sweden and an odinic figure called Nanabozho that existed among the Ojibwe tribe in North America.

Russian women near the Sharshenga River praying to trees.

I started collecting and processing my own pine resin for Blots/rites. I recommend anyone who uses resin and has access to pine trees to go out and collect some yourselves. Pine has an association with purification and fertility in many cultures. It was very commonly used in temples and shrines throughout the European world.