Blog Archives

Poem : ' A Friend Indeed '

11/30/2013

A Friend Indeed

Always by my side through thick and thin,
As close to me as any one of my own kin.
The one who will protect me from any attack,
The kind of friend who forever has my back.

The person who will not agree to spare my feelings,
The blood - brother I can trust in all of my dealings.
You are the one who sees past a blemish or a flaw,
The friend whose pledges they would never withdraw.

A sacred blood oath sealed with a clasp of our hands,
Lasting until mountains are reduced to grains of sands.
One that will never be broken by lies, deceit, or greed,
Yes, my brothers and sisters ! That is a friend indeed !

- Glenn Bergen, Copyright, 2013.

Poem : 'A Promise Broken'

11/29/2013

A Promise Broken

On the distant horizon Hildr spotted an unmistakable sail,
Inside she trembled, her body felt so very weak and frail.
Two years it had been since her husband had gone a Viking,
Three years since he had placed on her finger a wedding ring.

Vowed upon his return to start a family, said he wanted a son,
Told her that the wealth he gained was important in the long run.
He swore he would bring home for her jewelry of silver and gold,
Her husband made so many promises he said he would uphold.

As they beached the ship, and jumped out onto the shore,
She looked at the brave warriors through eyes red and sore.
The Chieftain looked her in the eyes, and simply shook his head,
Hildr slowly fell to her knees and cried, her husband was dead.

- Glenn Bergen, Copyright, 2013.

The Valknut

11/29/2013

The Valknut is one of the most sacred symbols in the Asatru religion. Associated with Odin, and some believe his brothers Vili and Ve, it means something like Knot of the Slain. It is believed to have been worn by warriors for protection in battle and as a reassurance that the warrior would be taken from the battlefield and brought to Valhalla. It is also a symbol for binding and unbinding. It is an extremely powerful symbol !

The Valknut is seen on several Rune Stones from Scandinavia two of which I show here.

- Glenn

The Stora Hammars I Stone :

The Larbro Tangelgarda I Stone :

Feast Of The Hunters

11/28/2013

I am really late with this ritual this year ! I usually celebrate The Feast Of The Hunters on the 22nd of November, but this year I have been EXTREMELY BUSY, ( I am almost done with my short story The Little Shield Maiden ), and will hold it tonight instead. For me this ritual is what the Christian and secular worlds call Thanksgiving. The below article I wrote a few years ago.

This I originally celebrated this as the Feast of Ullr, but the last few years I added the great ski huntress Skadhi to the celebration and ritual. Skadhi and I have one thing very much in common, we both hate the sea shore. In my younger days I hiked 1, 800 miles of the Appalachian trail, and climbed mountains so I feel that she, and I have similar tastes in the environments we feel comfortable in . I am also fair skinned, as most Scandinavians are, and burn to a crisp on a beach. The other reason I added Skadhi is that Freyja has given me the "hint" over the years that She feels that the Goddesses are short - changed here in Midgard compared to the male Gods. My rituals and articles tend to over - compensate for this shortfall. Skadhi, however, does not need me to promote her deeds. She is a warrior supreme who does not even fear the mighty Gods of Asgard. After the Gods killed her father, Thjazi, the Eddas recount her actions this way : " Skadhi then took up helmet, byrnie, and all weapons of war to avenge the death of her father Thjazi. " Either out of fear, or respect for her brave actions, the Gods offered her compensation instead of battle. If the Gods and Goddesses honor Her with the utmost respect, than how could I possibly not include Her in my Feast of the Hunters ?!  I noticed recently on - line that others have also combined the two great hunters into one ritual, though they hold their ritual, and feast, at the beginning of the New Year. To each their own.

Ullr is the son of Golden - Haired Sif, and the step - son of Thor. This great bow hunter lives in Ydalir, and it is upon his ring that warriors place their oaths upon. He is a great warrior as well, and fully deserves to be honored in any ritual that honors great warrior - hunters.

The main objective of the ritual, which of course is held before the feast, is to seek blessings for any weapons that are used for hunting. These weapons once blessed by the two great hunting Gods will then be more sucessful in the winters upcoming hunting season. This ritual is also used to ask for personal success in our lives. Life really is a little like a hunt. We find what we want ( the prey ), we track it down ( examine different paths in life to this end ), we target the game ( a career or goal ), and then we shoot for it, and make the prize ours. I ask more for personal success because I am not a hunter. In a modern world I personally do not need to kill animals to feed myself, and to kill for sport seems against the natural laws of our world, that govern the balance of nature. Besides, I do not believe that Sveinbjorn Beinteinsson, my mentor, would approve of killing wildlife for sport.

For the ritual I place every weapon I have. Don't worry none of mine are sharpened ! They are, however, museum replicas, and therefore very authentic. These include three swords, a dirk, a seax, a Danish axe, two spears, ( I cross them ), and a shield. In front of the altar I place a simple bow to represent the two great archer - hunters I am honoring. When I am speaking to the great archer Gods I hold up the bow in their honor   On the back of the altar I place a beautiful picture of a deer, to represent the hunters game, that I took while hiking in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I don't only ask these great God to bless my weapons, and maybe give me a little success, but also thank them for the wild game animals that inhabit our forests, and ask them to protect them from disease, and over - hunting, so that future generations can enjoy their splendor, and if it is their desire, a really good hunt. I also take this opportunity to ask Skadhi and Ullr to help those who do not have enough to eat . For in a modern world  no  one should have to go hungry ! Remember to use your own words ! The Gods and Goddesses do not want to hear you repeat something that you read in a book. Say it from your heart and the Gods and Goddesses will be truly honored.

The feast that takes place afterwards should reflect the wild hunt as well. If wild game is available, such as deer, duck, geese pheasant, grouse, or rabbit it should be placed on the table with other foods that are found in the forest such as berries, mushrooms, wild onions, etc.... DO NOT PICK WILD MUSHROOMS YOURSELF ! Go to a store and buy them. Many mushroom species look very similar, but are very poisonous. Mead, or ale should be available of course as well for the feast. And it is expected that you will invite Skadhi and Ullr, so put out a plate for each of them as well.

I love rituals that are followed by a huge feast. While the ritual enriches your soul as well as honors our great deities, the wild game of the feast brightens our spirits, and gives us a commonality with our ancestors, and our Gods and Goddesses. The wild hunt is in our blood, and has been passed down from the earliest men to walk in Scandinavia to the present day modern hunter. The Gods and Goddesses, represented well by Skadhi and Ullr, show us that we have one more thing in common with our great deities, the wild hunt.

Hail Great Ski Huntress Skadhi !
Hail Great Archer - Hunter Ullr !

Glenn Bergen

Go with Odin's wisdom, Freyja's love, and Thor's protection !

Ritual Of Tears

11/27/2013

Chief Joseph

I seldom honor other cultures or religions ritually, but in the case of the Native Americans the similarities of what happened to them and what happened to our Germanic / Scandinavian ancestors is just too stark to ignore. From the moment that Christopher Columbus stepped off of his ship, and onto the shores of the New World the Native American culture was doomed. The waves of Spaniards, Portugese, Dutch, English, and French " explorers " who followed were even worse ! The waves of Spanish conquistadors that hit the shores of what is now Central America, South America, and even the Southern United States saw some of the worst massacres in recorded history. These conquistadors along with their missionary Catholic priests not only destroyed a religion, but entire cultures as well. The shame is that these cultures were as fabulous as the Egyptian culture on the African continent.

I curse the name of Hernando Cortes, who massacred the Aztecs, and killed their leader Motchcuzoma ( Montezuma ). I curse the name of Francisco Hernandez Cordoba, who sailed along the coast of the Yucatan in search of slaves. I curse the name of Francisco Pizzaro for killing the indigenous peoples of Peru. I curse the name of Hernando de Soto for massacring 200 Timucuan warriors who tried to protect their ancestral lands. I curse Juan de Onate for his killing of 800 natives at what became known as the Acoma massacre. And I curse Major Samuel M. Whitside for his massacre of women and children at Wounded Knee. Unfortunately there are too many more who should be listed here, and their evil deeds recounted, but for the sake of time and space I will stop here.

I praise those great Native American warriors who tried to save their religion, their culture, and their people from the constant onslaught of the white man. I praise Big Foot, Black Elk, Cochise, Crazy Horse, Geronimo, Chief Joseph, Chief Pontiac, Red Cloud, Sitting Bull, Tecumseh, and Sakayengwartong, for trying to protect their people and their culture from the European invasion. But most of all I praise the hundreds of thousands whose names will never be remembered, but who fought and died for a cause that was thrust upon them. I will also praise of course the many, too many, innocent women and children who were also killed by European soldiers who saw them as heathen savages, and not as human beings. May their names and deeds be written forever in time, and never be forgotten !

To honor these wonderful people, who were for so long persecuted for no other reason than they were heathens, and in most cases just in the way of European progress, I will perform a ritual in their honor on Thanksgiving morning. I have named this ritual, " The Ritual Of Tears ". I do this for the countless numbers of Native Americans who were slaughtered in the name of Jesus Christ, in what was another kill or convert mission, by first the Catholics, and later all Christians in general. And what the Christians did not destroy, the concept of Manifest Destiny surely did. Like our Scandinavian ancestors, these Native Americans were stripped of their faith, pride, and also here in the New World, their land as well ! I feel for them, and raise my horn to them in great honor. Everyone has the right to honor their ancestors, spirits, and Gods ! A right that was denied to our ancestors, and to the Native Americans !

Glenn Bergen

Go with Odin's wisdom, Freyja' s love, and Thor' s protection !

Poem : ' A Debt Too Large '

11/26/2013

A Debt Too Large

There is not enough pure gold in the richest vein,
And far too few diamonds that I could ever obtain,
To repay the Gods for the gifts I have received,
Or to fully thank them for all I have achieved.

There is insufficient money in worlds that are nine,
Too few flawless gemstones, no matter how fine,
To repay the Mighty Gods for all they have done for me,
Or to thank them for setting my imprisoned spirit free.

I could never sacrifice enough of my life's blood,
Not even if I let it all rush out in a final great flood,
Every word from every culture would be far too few,
To honor our ancient Gods with what they are due.

No ritual performed, no matter how sacred or long,
No testimonial put to verse in poem, story, or song,
No word, no thought, nor sacred sentence or phrase,
Is sufficient to honor our ancient Gods with our praise.

- Glenn Bergen, Copyright, 2013.

Holda or Hulda

11/25/2013

The Goddess Holda or Hulda

Frau Holda, as she is sometimes called, is a Germanic Goddess who is associated with the protection of agriculture, and is also known as the Mistress of the Wild Hunt. She has very much in common with the Scandinavian Goddess Jord and the Germanic Goddess Nerthus, in her role as Mother Earth.

Holda also has much in common with Mother Frigga, in that she is known as the protector of women's crafts, such as spinning, and is also known for her love and protection of children. Finally, she is also the personification of Mother Nature in that it is said that snow, fog, thunder and rain can be attributed to her actions.

- Glenn Bergen

" Holda, The Good Protectress " by Friedrich Wilhelm Heine. (1882)

Huldra

11/24/2013

The Huldra is a seductive forest creature found in Scandinavian folklore. In Norwegian folklore, she is known as the skogsfru or skovfrue (meaning "Lady 0f the forest"). She is known as the skogsrå (forest spirit) or Tallemaja (pine tree Mary) in Swedish folklore, and Ulda in Sámi folklore. Her name suggests that she is originally the same being as the völva Huld and the German Holda. A male hulder is called a huldu, or, in Norway, a huldrekarl.

Male huldes, called Huldrekarl, also appear in Norwegian folklore. This being is closely related to other underground dwellers, usually called tusser. Like the female counterpart, the huldrkarl is a shapeshifter who often lures girls under a fair countenance.

- Wikipedia

My next post will be of Holda ( Hulda )

- Glenn

Huldra' s Nymphs by Bernard Evans Ward ( 1909 )

Nerthus

11/23/2013

Nerthus by Emil Doepler ( 1905 )

The Langobardi, by contrast, are distinguished by the fewness of their numbers. Ringed round as they are by many mighty peoples, they find safety not in obsequiousness but in battle and its perils. After them come the Reudingi, Aviones, Anglii, Varini, Eudoses, Suarini and Nuitones, behind their ramparts of rivers and woods. There is nothing noteworthy about these peoples individually, but they are distinguished by a common worship of Nerthus, or Mother Earth. They believe that she interests herself in human affairs and rides among their peoples. In an island of the Ocean stands a sacred grove, and in the grove a consecrated cart, draped with cloth, which none but the priest may touch. The priest perceives the presence of the goddess in this holy of holies and attends her, in deepest reverence, as her cart is drawn by heifers. Then follow days of rejoicing and merry-making in every place that she designs to visit and be entertained. No one goes to war, no one takes up arms; every object of iron is locked away; then, and only then, are peace and quiet known and loved, until the priest again restores the goddess to her temple, when she has had her fill of human company. After that the cart, the cloth and, if you care to believe it, the goddess herself are washed in clean in a secluded lake. This service is performed by slaves who are immediately afterwards drowned in the lake. Thus mystery begets terror and pious reluctance to ask what the sight can be that only those doomed to die may see.

- Tacitus

The Seeds Of Destruction

11/22/2013

The Seeds Of Destruction

I hear talk of The Apocalypse, Armageddon, Ragnarok, and The End Of Days,
We look outward for our destruction, when it is from within our world decays.
Forever look upon the Devil, Loki, Fenrir, or Jormungand as being cruel,
When it is here on Midgard where the evil exists as the unforgiving rule.

Humans take all of the goodness that the God's have given to mankind,
They destroy with their awful greed all that is beautiful they can find.
Corrupt that which is good, and then kill unmercifully what they cannot taint,
They act like little children who have not yet learned the lesson of restraint.

We will not be destroyed by a wolf, or a serpent coiled around the world,
Nor by an evil Devil from Hell named Lucifer, ready with wings unfurled.
It is by our own hand that we will destroy what the Gods have granted,
For it is within ourselves that the seeds of destruction have been planted.

- Glenn Bergen, Copyright, 2013.

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