Well, I've only found out about Asatru four weeks ago, so I'm a total newbie to this. I would like to know all the basics of Asatru and how to put it into practice in daily life. Where should I start off?
And if I were to give a gift to a certain god, where should I put it?
Very sorry about the newborns, but please help!
Thank you ahead of time!
I have several Asatru contacts so I'll star this. They'll find it I'm sure.
BB
Ah here we go, here's a link to a question that was asked with several really good links.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AvmQi10_1Pv1AAVnBdIjSAMjzKIX?qid=200707 20043129AAzAwC1
If I was a Christian, I would point you to the nearest Church and say that you are going to be condemned to hell if you didn't change your ways. But as a Greek Polytheist, I believe that you will be judged by your actions in the end. I also respect your beliefs. Heck, until a few months ago I only believed in one god!
RIGHT is ruled over by Tyr. It is the justice of law shaped by the lore of our folk and meted out with good judgment and true by those who can see the truth. This is a goal rationally sought and rationally administered--the rule of rationality and enlightenment in the world. From this our desire to see a world ruled rationally is derived.
WISDOM is watched over by Odin. This is the hidden lore and powers welling up from the darkest depths of our souls and hovering high over our heads, shining beyond the clouds, and leading us into the unknown. This is the mysterious force that has the ability to hold all things together, ruled by those who can see and understand the whole. Above all, wisdom must be preserved, for in it are the wells of all memory; if it and only it survives, all other parts of the whole may be regenerated. From this is derived our sense of adventure, our curiosity about the unknown, our seeking and questioning character.
MIGHT is wielded by Thor. In might is embodied the two-fold goal of victory and defense, which both depend on pure power or might for their ultimate right. Without this pivotal goal, all others will fall into decay and be overcome by things outside the truth--as indeed they have been. But might must be ruled over by right and wisdom, and must serve the purposes of harvest and froth. There is worth of might in and of itself, however, in the bodily expressions of power is found the joy of victory which can act as a balm on the soul of the warrior. The goal of conquest and exercise of might can be turned without or within the true man or woman--but it must find expression. From this is derived our hunger for conquests, big and small, and our great will to power.
HARVEST is holy to the Vanir. This is the reaping of the things of the good cycles of nature, which ensures that the folk continues to flourish in the world, that the livestock abound in good health, and that the seed is rightly planted, cut and threshed. Harvest is the overriding need for organic continuance--for the continuance of organic life. Harvest here includes all of the fruits of economic cycles. It is the goodness of plenty, o wealth, and physical well-being. Today our society and our desire for abundance and wealth is dominated by this value system.
FRITH is ruled by Frey and Freyja. Frith is our own word for "peace." Frith is the true state of "peace" wherein all parts of the Six-Fold Goal are successfully pursued and attained by a society. In froth is true freedom, for froth is the essence of freedom, the state in which self-directed, self-willed growth and development can take place. Frith usually implies an absence of war but not of struggle or conflict, which must always be present on some level when true growth is taking place. In froth we do not stand still; in frith we learn how to take our fights to ever higher fields. Right/Might/Frith form a powerful axis. Might provides the protection frith needs to promote freedom, but might must be ruled by right to protect frith from ungoverned might. From frith comes our almost universal desire for "peace" but if we misunderstand what this means, we can bring ourselves not "peace" but stagnation and death.
LOVE is the law of life and is embodied in Frey and Freya, the "Lord and Lady". This is the pure powerful love, or the "lust" of eroticism. In it is our sense of play and pure pleasure. The stem word from which "love" is derived really has to do with the enjoyment of (physical) pleasure. That we all seek this as a goal is natural and good, but it is not without its non-natural or "spiritual" sides, to be sure. In seeking pleasure, we show and more importantly experience an unbridled lust for life itself. This deep well of desire acts from below much the way wisdom does from above; in fact, there is a secret bond between them. Wisdom and love hold the six goals together.
And this...
NINE NOBLE VIRTUES:
COURAGE is the bravery to do what is right at all times with no regard to possible consequences or repercussions.
TRUTH it the willingness to say what is honest and right at all times.
HONOR is the feeling of inner value and worth from which one knows that one is noble of being.
FIDELITY is the will to be loyal to one's gods and goddesses, to one's folk and to one's self.
DISCIPLINE is the willingness to be hard with one's self first, and then if need be with others, in order that greater purposes can be achieved.
HOSPITALITY is the willingness to share what one has with one's fellows, especially when they are far from home.
INDUSTRIOUSNESS is the willingness to work hard--always striving for efficiency--as a joyous activity in and of itself.
SELF-RELIANCE is the spirit of independence which is achieved not only for the individual, but also for the family, clan, tribe and nation.
PERSEVERANCE is the spirit of stick-to-it-iveness that can always bring one back from defeat or failure--each time we fail, we recognize failure for what it is and, if the purpose is true and good, we persevere until success is won.
And you should read "A book of Troth" by Edred Thorsson, Teutonic Religion by Kveldulf Gundarsson, and the Poetic Edda (the Lee M. Hollander Translation is the easiest to find), and The Prose Edda (any translation you can find will do, although personally I prefer the one done by Jean Young).
Essential Asatru, by Diana Paxson
Exploring the Northern Tradition, by Galina Krasskova
Our Troth, Volume 1, by Kveldulf Gundarsson
Northern Magick, by Edred Thorsson
Teutonic Religion, by Kveldulf Gundarsson (out of print)
Lore:
Beowulf
Poetic Edda
Prose Edda, by Snorri Sturluson
Saga of the Volsungs
Sagas of the Icelanders
Njal's Saga
Saga of the Jomsvikings
Nibelungenlied
That's quite a bit. Most of it is available at your local library (probably), or with interlibrary loan. Almost all of it can be found at Amazon.com. There is, obviously, A LOT MORE references I could give you for things like retellings of the Norse myths or rune work, but this is enough to get you started.
Kveldulf posted the 6-Fold Goal, and the 9 Noble Virtues that many Asatruar hold dear...
I'll give the Aesirian Code of Nine as supposedly (because I haven't been able to personally verify, though the evidence would seem to bear out) set out by practitioners of our faith in 825 CE.
1. The Code is to HONOR
Honor yourself with truth and fairness.
Your word is your bond; give your word power by adhering to it.
Honor your family and friends with reverence and respect.
Honor your love and the way, above all else.
Honor is the mark of strength and nobility.
2. The Code is to PROTECT
Protect with savagery your blood and kin.
Let no one and nothing violate your love or the way.
Let there always be inequity in defense.
Always protect thrice as fiercely as one is attacked.
Protection is the mark of the warrior spirit.
3. The Code is to FLOURISH
Prosperity and growth are key to the survival of the way.
Such is the mark of intelligence.
4. The Code is KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge is power.
Seek ever to expand the mind.
Never stagnate, for knowledge is a gift from the Gods.
5. The Code is to CHANGE
Adapting and changing are important for growth and survival.
That which cannot adapt or change is doomed to perish.
Change is the mark of insight.
6. The Code is FAIRNESS
Pay all debts, pull your own weight, always hear and consider all sides.
Treat others with equity and fairness.
Expect the same.
7. The Code is BALANCE
Remember the law of balance; all that which you do or wish, for good or ill, shall return to you one day.
Strive for the good.
8. The Code is CONTROL
Never lose control to anger or be baited by hostility.
Never strike a woman unless your very life hangs in the balance.
Never violate the weak or innocent.
Never tolerate those who do.
Control is the mark of a disciplined mind, a sign of the greatest warriors.
9. The Code is CONFLICT
Those who follow the way must know the art of combat, weapons, and vengeance.
War is part of the path.
Always be prepared for hostility.
It is a destiny woven into the fibers of our people.
Keep body, mind, and training up at all times.
Have no remorse in the savagery of conflict.
Win, prevail, and survive.
Aside from these, you need to read the Havamal, and I suggest reading the Sagas. I particularly suggest Egil's Saga, and the Saga of the Jomsvikings.
The Niebelungenlied is a good source for lore, as well. Just don't take it necessarily as a literal transcription of events that truly happened. They may or may not have.
Asatru basics?
