gullindagan | Entries tagged with heathen

Here's my translations of the Old English Rune Poems, let me know what you think!

Old English Rune Poems

ᚠ Feoh byþ frofur fira gehwylcum;

sceal ðeah manna gehwylc miclun hyt dælan

gif he wile for drihtne domes hleotan.

Wealth is welcomed by everyone

Yet each should deal it out freely

If they wish for a lot from the Lord

ᚢ Ur byþ anmod ond oferhyrned,

felafrecne deor, feohteþ mid hornum

mære morstapa; þæt is modig wuht.

The aurochs is bold and high-horned

a ferocious beast that fights with its horns

a well-known wanderer in wilderness, that is a mighty one!

ᚦ Ðorn byþ ðearle scearp; ðegna gehwylcum

anfeng ys yfyl, ungemetum reþe

manna gehwelcum, ðe him mid resteð.

Thorn is very sharp for anyone

it is an evil thing to grasp

and awfully uncomfortable to rest among

ᚩ Os byþ ordfruma ælere spræce,

wisdomes wraþu ond witena frofur

and eorla gehwam eadnys ond tohiht.

God/Mouth is the source of all speech

wisdom's foundation and comfort of the wise

and to every noble person, prosperity and promise

ᚱ Rad byþ on recyde rinca gehwylcum

sefte ond swiþhwæt, ðamðe sitteþ on ufan

meare mægenheardum ofer milpaþas.

Riding, seems easy for one who sits inside

but tough to he who travels

on a mighty horse over many miles

ᚳ Cen byþ cwicera gehwam, cuþ on fyre

blac ond beorhtlic, byrneþ oftust

ðær hi æþelingas inne restaþ.

Cen/Torch is known to the living by its bright, pale fire

it most often burns where nobles rest within

ᚷ Gyfu gumena byþ gleng and herenys,

wraþu and wyrþscype and wræcna gehwam

ar and ætwist, ðe byþ oþra leas.

A gift is for everyone grace and glory,

help and worthiness, and for the homeless wanderer

substance and sustenance when they have nothing else

ᚹ Wenne bruceþ, ðe can weana lyt

sares and sorge and him sylfa hæfþ

blæd and blysse and eac byrga geniht.

Happiness is had by he who knows few troubles,

suffering and sorrows, and has himself

blessings and bliss, and a good enough house

ᚻ Hægl byþ hwitust corna; hwyrft hit of heofones lyfte,

wealcaþ hit windes scura; weorþeþ hit to wætere syððan.

Hail is the whitest of grains;
it is whirled from high in the heavens
and is blown about by bursts of wind
and then it turns to water.

ᚾ Nyd byþ nearu on breostan; weorþeþ hi þeah oft niþa bearnum

to helpe and to hæle gehwæþre, gif hi his hlystaþ æror.

Need constricts the chest

yet to the children of men, it can often turn

to help and healing nevertheless

if heeded in time

ᛁ Is byþ ofereald, ungemetum slidor,

glisnaþ glæshluttur gimmum gelicust,

flor forste geworuht, fæger ansyne.

Ice is overly cold and awfully slippery;
it glistens clear as glass, just like gems;
it is a floor wrought by frost, and fair to see

ᛄ Ger byþ gumena hiht, ðonne God læteþ,

halig heofones cyning, hrusan syllan

beorhte bleda beornum ond ðearfum.

harvest is the hope of mankind,

when god grants, holy king of heaven, the earth to offer

her bright fruits to the noble born and the needy

ᛇ Eoh byþ utan unsmeþe treow,

heard hrusan fæst, hyrde fyres,

wyrtrumun underwreþyd, wyn on eþle.

The Yew is a tree with rough bark,
fixed fast in the earth, fire's herder

upheld by roots, it is a joy on the estate

ᛈ Peorð byþ symble plega and hlehter

wlancum [on middum], ðar wigan sittaþ

on beorsele bliþe ætsomne.

Peorth is ever play and laughter to proud men,

where warriors sit in the beerhall, blithely together

ᛉ Eolh-secg eard hæfþ oftust on fenne

wexeð on wature, wundaþ grimme,

blode breneð beorna gehwylcne

ðe him ænigne onfeng gedeþ.

Elksedge is found most often in the fen

it waxes in the water, and can grimly wound,

and burn with blood, anyone

who in any way tries to take it

ᛋ Sigel semannum symble biþ on hihte,

ðonne hi hine feriaþ ofer fisces beþ,

oþ hi brimhengest bringeþ to lande.

The Sun, to seamen, is always a joy

when they fare far over the fishes' bath

until the surf-stallion brings them to land

ᛏ Tir biþ tacna sum, healdeð trywa wel

wiþ æþelingas; a biþ on færylde

ofer nihta genipu, næfre swiceþ.

Tyr is a guiding star, it holds trust well with nobles

it always travels its track over night's fog, it never fails

ᛒ Beorc byþ bleda leas, bereþ efne swa ðeah

tanas butan tudder, biþ on telgum wlitig,

heah on helme hrysted fægere,

geloden leafum, lyfte getenge.

Birch it fruitless, yet it bears

limbs lacking seed, it has beautiful branches

a lofty canopy, gloriously covered

crowned with leaves, it lifts the sky

ᛖ Eh byþ for eorlum æþelinga wyn,

hors hofum wlanc, ðær him hæleþ ymb[e]

welege on wicgum wrixlaþ spræce

and biþ unstyllum æfre frofur.

The steed is for earls, the noble's joy

a horse on proud hooves, where heroes,

wealthy men on war horses, trade words about it

and it is ever a comfort to the restless

ᛗ Man byþ on myrgþe his magan leof:

sceal þeah anra gehwylc oðrum swican,

forðum drihten wyle dome sine

þæt earme flæsc eorþan betæcan.

Man in his mirth is dear to his kinsmen

yet every man shall fail his fellows in the end

since the Lord sentences

that frail flesh to be taken by the earth

ᛚ Lagu byþ leodum langsum geþuht,

gif hi sculun neþan on nacan tealtum

and hi sæyþa swyþe bregaþ

and se brimhengest bridles ne gym[eð].

Water seems ceaseless to men

if they should sail on a wobbly ship

and the sea-waves frighten them

and the surf-stallion does not heed the bridle

ᛝ Ing wæs ærest mid East-Denum

gesewen secgun, oþ he siððan est

ofer wæg gewat; wæn æfter ran;

ðus Heardingas ðone hæle nemdun.

Ing was first with the East Danes

seen by men, until he went eastward

over the waves, the wagon ran after

thus the Hard Men named the hero

ᛟ Eþel byþ oferleof æghwylcum men,

gif he mot ðær rihtes and gerysena on

brucan on bolde bleadum oftast.

The home is very dear to everyone,

if there they may enjoy what is fair and fitting,

with abundance in their house often

ᛞ Dæg byþ drihtnes sond, deore mannum,

mære metodes leoht, myrgþ and tohiht

eadgum and earmum, eallum brice.

The Day is sent by the Lord, dear to mankind

god's glorious light, happiness and true hope

to the rich and the poor, and helpful to all

ᚪ Ac byþ on eorþan elda bearnum

flæsces fodor, fereþ gelome

ofer ganotes bæþ; garsecg fandaþ

hwæþer ac hæbbe æþele treowe.

Oak is on earth for mankind

fodder for flesh, it often fares

over the gannet's bath; the ocean tests

whether the noble oak keeps it's oath

ᚫ Æsc biþ oferheah, eldum dyre

stiþ on staþule, stede rihte hylt,

ðeah him feohtan on firas monige.

Ash is very tall, dear to men

Stiff and sturdy, steady in it's spot

though many fight against it

ᚣ Yr byþ æþelinga and eorla gehwæs

wyn and wyrþmynd, byþ on wicge fæger,

fæstlic on færelde, fyrdgeatewa sum.

Yew Bow is for every noble and high-born

happiness and honor, fair upon horseback

a trusty piece of tackle on the trail

ᛡ Iar byþ eafix and ðeah a bruceþ

fodres on foldan, hafaþ fægerne eard

wætre beworpen, ðær he wynnum leofaþ.

Beaver is a river-fish and though it always enjoys

its food on land, it has a fair house

hedged by water, where it happily lives

ᛠ Ear byþ egle eorla gehwylcun,

ðonn[e] fæstlice flæsc onginneþ,

hraw colian, hrusan ceosan

blac to gebeddan; bleda gedreosaþ,

wynna gewitaþ, wera geswicaþ.

The earthen grave is dreadful to everyone

though, of course, the flesh will grow cold

and the dark earth will embraces its pale companion; fruits fall to rot

pleasures pass, promises fail

Current Mood: accomplished

This is a Supreme Ritual of the Pentagram, you can do any one of the elemental Greater Rituals by using the symbolism from the corresponding corner. You shouldn't practice this ritual until you have the Heathen LBRP as described by JMG here completely ingrained, at least a few months, if not a year, you should also have the Heathen Temple Opening & Closing down and perform it in the temple at least the first 5 times.

The Heathen Supreme Summoning Ritual of the Pentagram

1. Stand in the east and perform the Hammer Sign.

2. Go to the Eastern corner and draw a pentagram in glowing yellow light, starting from the top left corner and working clockwise.
Point to the center of the pentagram and say:
"By the name of WODANAZ (vibrate), spirits of Air, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn, come ye forth and assist me in this work of Air."
Draw a yellow Ansuz rune in the middle of the pentagram and say:
"By the spear of the High One, who hung himself on that windy tree, spirits of Air, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn. Come ye forth and assist me in this work of Air."
Take the Ansuz posture (straight spine, put arms out in the front so that your body looks like the Ansuz rune) and say:
"By the Dwarf of the East
And the dawning of Day
By the thrill of the thaw
And the whirling of wind
And by the great lung-gift
That the Spear-God gave
Spirits of Air, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn
Come ye forth and assist me in this work of Air."

3. Trace a circle of pure white light around from the center of the Air pentagram to the South and draw a pentagram in glowing red light from the bottom right corner and working clockwise. Point to the center and say:
"By the name BALTHRAZ (vibrate), spirits of Fire, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn, come ye forth and assist me in this work of Fire."
Draw a red Sowilo rune in the middle of the pentagram and say:
"By the sword of the Summer Lord, which fire giants fear to face, spirits of Fire, come ye forth and assist me in this work of Fire."
Take the Sowilo posture (spine straight, feet together, knees slightly bent so your body looks like the rune Sowilo) and say:

"By the Dwarf of the South
And the sweetness of summer
By the height of bright noon
And the hearth of the home
By the lament of ice
And the light of the land
Spirits of Fire, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn
Come ye forth and assist me in this work of Fire."

4. Trace the circle in pure white light from the center of the Fire pentagram to the West and draw a pentagram in glowing blue light from the top right corner working clockwise. Point to the center and say:
"By the name NEHELENIA (vibrate), spirits of Water, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn, come ye forth and assist me in this work of Water."
Draw a blue Laguz rune in the middle of the pentagram and say:
"By the horn of the god who's ear hears from Memory's Well, spirits of Water, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn, come yet forth and assist me in this work of Water."
Take the Laguz posture (spine straight, feet together, right arm out in the front at an angle so that your body looks like a Laguz rune) and say:

"By the Dwarf of the West
And the darkness of dusk
By the happy harvest
And the highway of ships
By the wisdom of water
And the most sacred Well
Spirits of Water, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn
Come ye forth and assist me in this work of Water."

5. Trace the circle in pure white light from the center of the Water pentagram to the North and draw a pentagram in glowing green light from the bottom left corner and working clockwise. Point to the center and say:
"By the name NERTHUS (vibrate), spirits of Earth, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn, come ye forth and assist me in this work of Earth."
Draw a green Berkano rune in the middle of the pentagram and say:
"By the Ring of Earth's Lover, which births eight new rings every ninth night, spirits of Earth, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn, come ye forth and assist me in this work of Earth."
Take the Berkano posture (spine straight, right elbow and knee out to the side so that your body looks like a Berkano rune) and say:

"By the Dwarf of the North
And the nadir of night
By the silence of winter
And the strength of the stone
By the wondrous tree
Coated with clear white clay
Spirits of Earth, behold the rays of the Golden Dawn
Come ye forth and assist me in this work of Earth."

6. Trace the circle in pure white light around to the East, then go back to the center, and say:

"Before me, the Spear of the High One and the Powers of Air, behind me the Horn of the Golden Toothed God and the Powers of Water, to my right hand the Sword of the Summer Lord and the Powers of Fire, to my left hand the Ring of Earth's Lover and the Powers of Earth. For about me shines the five pointed stars, and upon me shines the Aesir's light"

7. Perform the Hammer Sign again.

The Heathen Supreme Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram

1. Do the Hammer Sign

2. Go to the East, say:
"By the name of WODANAZ (vibrate) and by the Spear of the High One, and with thanks for your assistance, spirits of Air, you may return to your rightful habitations in peace, and let peace be between us."
Draw a pentagram in glowing yellow light, starting from the top left point and going counter-clockwise.

3. Draw a line of pure white light from the center of the Air pentagram to the South and say:
"By the name BALTHRAZ (vibrate) and by the Sword of the Summer Lord, and with thanks for your assistance, spirits of Fire, you may returns to your rightful habitations in peace, and let peace be between us."
Draw a pentagram in glowing red light, starting from the bottom right corner and going counter-clockwise.

4. Draw a line of pure white light from the center of the Fire pentagram to the West and say:
"By the name NEHELENIA (vibrate) and by the Horn of the Golden Toothed God, and with thanks for your assistance, spirits of Water, you may return to your rightful habitations in peace, and let peace be between us."
Draw a pentagram in glowing blue light, starting from the top right corner and going counter-clockwise."

5. Draw a line of pure white light from the center of the Water pentagram to the North and say:
"By the name NERTHUS (vibrate) and by the Ring of Earth's Lover, and with thanks for your assistance, spirits of Earth, you may return to your rightful habitations in peace, and let peace be between us."
Draw a pentagram in glowing green light, starting form the bottom left corner and going counter-clockwise."

6. Trace a line of pure white light from the center of the Earth pentagram back to the East and then return to the center, say:

"Before me, the Spear of the High One and the Powers of Air, behind me the Horn of the Golden Toothed God and the Powers of Water, to my right hand the Sword of the Summer Lord and the Powers of Fire, to my left hand the Ring of Earth's Lover and the Powers of Earth. For about me shines the five pointed stars, and upon me shines the Aesir's light"

7. Perform the Hammer Sign again.

Viet ek at ek hekk
vindga meiði á
nætr allar níu,
geiri undaðr
ok gefinn Óðni
sjálfr sjálfum mér
á þeim meiði
er manngi veit
hvers hann af rótum renn

- Stanza 138 of the Havamal
from notendur.hi.is/haukurth/norse/reader/runatal.html

So what are we doing with all this occult training? What is the goal? I may have asked this before, but it bears repeating. Again and again. Just as you train your eyes far down the road in front of you when driving, to keep the eye on the prize, to keep the head on the problem, to keep the goal in mind is of utmost importance. There are often times when I forget why I do what I do, when I get caught up in mundane activities, in petty drama, when my daily practices feel more like chores than the deeply sacred rites they are. This is when having trust in yourself, and strong commitment is important, but this is also when the reminder of the highest goal is most needed.

I recently read a book by W.E. Butler, titled Lords of Light: The Path of Initiation in the Western Mysteries, and I highly recommend it. The introduction of the book is a condensation of the path of an initiate, and drips with Butler's wisdom, after having been on the path for 60 odd years (this was his last book.) It was one of those reminders that illuminated my mind with the truth of what is important, and why I do all that I do. To quote in full: "The path is not a path of those who are wanting something; it is a path for those who are going to be something, who are going to take of themselves and forge from themselves an instrument in the hands of the Divine. We are going to offer ourselves, all of ourselves, everything in us, to the Eternal. And from the Eternal comes the gnosis, the knowledge that is above knowledge." (pg 8)

The goal is to become my greatest potential. This is something that I, as a personality, cannot even fathom. If I could, I don't think that would really be my greatest potential, though it is of great importance to try to imagine what I want to become as much as I am able to from this perspective. Only then does the ring of darkness recede, creating both more light and darkness, more potential actualized, and more possibilities potentiated. More possibilities, but also less. As the potential is defined, more potentials are evaporated. Work leads to more work. Hopefully, each work leads to greater works, and as the higher potential is manifested, the less pleasant possibilites are annulled.

It is easy to take this train all the way to Narcissusburgh, but that is why we must remember that we are not doing this just for our own sake, for the lower personality's sake, or the sake of our baser urges. We don't do this for flimsy gratification, but to make of ourselves a more capable instrument of service, and a more perfect sacrifice for the divine, which is my (and all of our) highest, deepest identity. As Butler says "Service, true service, is the only key. And that is the reason, service to ourselves, to make of ourselves true sacrifices, to give something worthwhile, to make of ourselves a jewel. And that means occult training." (pg 6)

Occult training is not necessarily fun. It requires discipline, will, sacrifice. Meditation is not fun. It can be, but often it's really boring and a lot of hard work. Ritual is maybe more fun, but doing the same thing every day is not easy. We lose some friends, we gain some new ones. Maybe. We give up certain habits and take up new habits. We give up certain pleasures to make higher pleasures possible. Transformation is not easy, it never is, but something deep inside very quietly roars that it's necessary.

But service, service is the key. Have you ever tried to help somebody? Have you ever tried to help somebody and it made their situation worse? Have you ever really thought about what "service" means? In the Hippocratic school of ancient medicine, they said "Practice two things in your dealings with disease: either help or do not harm the patient". (Lloyd, Geoffrey, ed. (1983). Hippocratic Writings (2nd ed.)) In regular life, not just in medicine, this seems like a good rule of thumb, but too often in our attempts to help other people, or to provide service, we trip over our own psychological hangups, ignorance, or even just plain arrogance. Maybe that's how we learn, but this is also why working on ourselves is so important. To see how our actions actually affect others takes clarity of mind and perspective, and to have the ability and wisdom to either not act or to act decisively when the time is right, requires self-knowledge, will, and a clear intuition. These are all things that are developed through occult training. By focusing on our own development, for the sake of service and not just for the sake of the personality, we actually serve the whole world. As Butler says experiencing gnosis convinces you deeply by experience that "you are linked with every form of life in this universe, that you are part of the living universe." (pg 7) That's another pay off of doing these practices, and another way in which working on yourself helps everybody else. When you act from a place of deep connection and of reciprocity, you're much more likely to help instead of hurt. There is another, deeper layer here too, for when we take into account the "tracks in space" that we help cut by doing these practices, focusing on our own development also helps out everybody else.

So we follow Odin, we hang on the Tree of the World, the Tree of Terror, the Great Tree flecked with White Clay by the Well of Origin, and we sacrifice ourselves to the Divine, we sacrifice ourselves to ourselves, that we might discover the Great Mysteries, the Runes, that we might be Transformed, to become our Highest Self, to be of true service.

And what is our "highest self"? Well, as Butler says "When the old initiate of the Greek Mysteries came to the well where the White Tree grew, the guardians stopped him and asked, "Who are you?"" (pg 7) So who are you? "The god within us, that is our real self, our true self." (Butler, pg 12) But don't take my word, or Butler's, for it. The task is to experience this, to have gnosis of this, for yourself. To experience your Self, for your self, and your self for your Self.

"There was a man called Svan, who lived on a farm called Svanhill in Bjarnarfjord, to the north of Steingrimsfjord. Svan was extremely skilled in witchcraft; he was Hallgerd's maternal uncle, and a very unpleasant person to have any dealings with." This is from Njal's Saga, page 57-58 (translated by Magnus Magnusson and Hermann Palsson) In the saga as a whole, Svan has a rather tiny part, but it was quite notable to me as someone with an interest in historical accounts of heathen magic. In the story, Svan is a renowned magician, who apparently has some power over the weather, as he causes a thick fog to settle in the path of his friend's pursuers. His friend is Thjostolf, who is the foster father of Svan's niece Hallgerd, who's husband was killed by Thjostolf after hitting her. The account of the magic is rather interesting: "Svan took a goat-skin and swung is round his head, chanting: 'Let there be fog / And let there be phantoms, / Weird marvels / To baffle your hunters." (pg 61) Fog and darkness then enveloped Thjostolf's pursuers until they decided to go back home. This is where I might wish that I had an Icelandic version of the text, and a reading knowledge of Icelandic, because I would like to know what words these were translated from. But I don't, and it doesn't matter too much for this essay.

Now, it should be stated that the Icelandic sagas were written about 300 years after the events that they are said to record, many years after Iceland became Christian, so we cannot be sure that this is really a completely accurate portrayal of heathen magic. But, the time, place and culture of the saga writers are certainly much, much, closer to the pre-Christian period than we are. As Peter Hallberg says in The Icelandic Saga (translated by Paul Schach) "Judging from the contemporary document Sturlunga, the leaven of the new religion, even in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, had scarcely permeated the habitual manner of thinking of the Icelanders." (page 113) So, whether or not these are completely accurate portrayals, they're definitely not completely false, or completely useless to us, in fact, I think they can be very helpful, especially if read with the knowledge of a critical perspective.

Overall though, Svan's little ritual is a pretty small snippet. In another part of Njal's Saga Queen Gunnhild lays a spell on her lover Hrut, who has decided to leave Norway and go back home to his native Iceland, where he has betrothed. He lies to Gunnhild about this though, saying that he doesn't have a woman back home. Gunnhild gives Hrut a gold bracelet and tells him "If I have as much power over you as I think, the spell I now lay on you will prevent your ever enjoying the woman in Iceland on whom you have set your heart. With other women you may have your will, but never with her. And now you much suffer as well as I, since you did not trust me with the truth." (pg. 49) When he goes back home, he is never able to consummate his marriage, which ends in divorce.

Svan's act of magic was about protection from enemies, Gunnhild's a vindictive act towards a lover leaving her. Both of these fit in with a lot of magic practiced across the world, though one might consider both of these more "low" magic, if "high" magic means "theurgy" or "initation." The last place that Svan appears in Njal's Saga is when his fishing boat "encountered a fierce easterly gale that drove their boat ashore at Veidilaus with the loss of all lives. Some fishermen at Kaldbak thought they had seen Svan being warmly welcomed into the innermost depths of Kaldbakhorn Mountain; other people denied this and said that it was all lies. But no one could deny that no trace of Svan was ever seen again, either living or dead." (pg 68) I was very intrigued when I read this, as I found two very different interpretations forthcoming in my thoughts. One one hand, it is very interesting that this wizard who used the weather to foil his enemies is destroyed by the weather. Were his wizardly powers so deficient that he could not foresee the gale or avert it? Was this a 'karmic' repercussion for using the weather to destroy his enemies? Or a magical reprisal from a different enemy? (there aren't many details of his life given, but I might remind the reader that he was "a very unpleasant person to have any dealings with.") Or, was he such a great magician that he entered into the earth as an Initiate, as Elijah rode the chariot of fire into the heavens? Of course, we do not know. He may have been a real historical figure, he might have been a literary device. If he was a just a literary device, he also may have been based off of oral legends of heathen magicians. What is remarkable to me is that this ambivalence and ambiguity is preserved in this Christian-authored saga. Well, that and of course the image of the widely feared magician being welcomed as a guest of the great mountain.

Svan was a well-known wizard, and Gunnhild an infamous witch, but the sagas are chock full of more normal persons with psychic powers. Premonitory dreams, second sight, and fateful pronouncements seem to be rather common, even if they also fulfill many literary functions. It seems like these sorts of psychic powers were taken for granted amongst the audience of 13th century Iceland. This of course brings up to me the question of fate in Icelandic society. These psychic powers showed people their fates, their doom. And it seems to me that in many cases, the characters, being forewarned, acted as if they wanted to manifest their doom.

In The Icelandic Saga, Peter Hallberg argues that "If one were to try by some sort of magic performance or incantation to exert an influence on his destiny, that would in fact mean that one did not really regard that destiny as destiny in the strict meaning of the word." (pg 88) That must mean though, that when Sven wrapped a goat skin around his head and made an incantation to confuse his enemies, he was destined to do so. Or, that he didn't really believe in destiny in the "strict meaning of the word." Hallberg later states that "Even the greatest hero was unable to influence fate as such. What he did have control over was his own bearing and attitude toward fate" (pg 99) This may have been what the viking age heroes believed, it certainly seems like that when one considered the Voluspa, but this may also have been just what the later saga writers believed. This level of fatalism seems absurd to me though, and it seems like something that you can't prove one way or another. I prefer to act as if I have free will, whether or not I do, or how much of it I have.

To me, it makes sense that every action that one performs is etched on their character, and the grooves that are produced by these actions determine one's future possible actions. It is possible to change the grooves, but only by much time and effort. Magical ritual is one way to work towards changing the grooves towards what one wants to become. At this point though, one must ask, what do I want to become? And why do I want to become that? The perspective that one has of the world, and one's place in the world, is of vast importance in the answering of these questions.

Here it might be useful to recite JMG's recent contribution to definitions of magic: "magic is the art and science of participation in the spiritual forces of the cosmos" Using this definition, we can see ourselves as a node in a massive, living, interrelated cosmos. A cosmos with beings much greater than we are, ones we can ask for help. But also beings who might use us for their own ends, as so many innocent (and not so innocent) characters were used by those more conniving in the sagas. So what do we do? Keep working, treat others well, keep seeking towards a higher and deeper understanding. Or at least, that's what I'll be doing.

So how does Magic actually work again? Well, in ALU:An Advanced Guide to Operative Runology, Thorsson quotes the scholar Ronald Grambo as saying that "the first step in understanding how a magical act works is the comprehension of the "frame of reference" in which the act takes place." Ok, so there is a whole cultural context that has to be understood in order to even comprehend what actually happens when somebody does "magic", and perhaps, the cultural context both informs and limits the effects of the magical act. Maybe that can explain the legends of magicians from previous ages who did things we can only dream of. Of course, to somebody who is not an inmate of industrial civilization, I'm sure much of what we take for granted would be considered "magic." Thorsson states explicitly that "For an operation to work, it must work within a frame of reference." Whether or not he is right is one question, but this thread leads me to a concept coined by the great 20th century occultist/prankster Robert Anton Wilson: "Reality tunnel," which, according to Wikipedia means "a theory that, with a subconscious set of mental filters formed from beliefs and experiences, every individual interprets the same world differently"

This would imply that one's world view impacts the way that one can affect the world magically. The modern atheist-materialist thus can't even imagine the things that magically literate inmates of the same culture can do; he can only imagine Harry Potter. Of course, since we all inhabit the same world, even though we all experience it differently, that materialist can still be affected by magic, and according to folks like JMG, the ones who don't believe in magic (or have an unrealistic view of it) are even more easily influenced by it.

Thorsson continues his thought by saying that "Our major endeavor in current operative runology is to restore our lost frame of reference, which will in turn cause our operations to be better. Our ancestors lived in a culture with a high level of cultural context--they spoke a Germanic language, worshiped Germanic gods... We on the other hand, live in a society with a relatively low level of cultural context. We speak a Germanic language, but one that has been hybridized with French, Latin, and Greek elements; the majority of the people worship a foreign god; and our aesthetic universe is eclectic, if not chaotic, in the extreme."

I see what he's saying, but here is the part where we diverge. I like the eclecticity of our world, and I think that it's a possible source of great strength, if one can get over the feelings of overwhelm and nihilism that is... the fact is we don't really know that much about the magic the old Germanic tribes performed, but we do know that the Roman Christians very systematically converted them. Sometimes by massacre, as with Charlemagne, but more often by having more powerful magic, and using the cultural capital of "Romanitas." The systems of magic from the Mediterranean are powerful, even the fragments that we have. Just Astrology alone is way more powerful of a tool than anything we know of from the North. So this is one of the reasons that I am excited about this Heathen Golden Dawn project, and think that it's a project that the Wandering Wise One approves of. Why would we not seek far and wide for the greatest magic to integrate into our kit?

Well, it can be easy to get overwhelmed, to stake out in too many directions, get nowhere except diluted, and never hit water. So this is where I agree with Thorsson. By grounding ourselves deeply in a particular mythos, and I mean deeply, we can cultivate a frame of reference that we can then integrate new skills and tools into.

For instance, the concept of "the planes". This tool has been very helpful for me, especially in my goal of personally integrating the Northern and Western traditions. We have the Material, the Etheric, the Astral, the Mental and the Spiritual. Divinity, which is unknowable to a human, resides on the highest plane (but also, imo, in everything) The human mostly exists in the Material, semi-consciously on the Etheric and the Astral (if you can watch your thoughts, then you're working more consciously on the Astral), but are only at an early stage of developing a Mental body. The Astral and the Mental planes are then the interface between the Human world and the Divine world, or a Rainbow Bridge between Midgard and Asgard... The god forms that exist as images are a way for both the human to reach up towards the divine, and for the divine to reach down to the human. By immersing ourselves in the myths, by making offerings to the gods, by making images of the gods, by praying and listening, we open that channel. We cultivate a frame of reference.