Heathen Hymns

Hymns are an important part of what makes up the idea of religious culture for many people. Those old, OLD church hymns are an indelible part of my childhood and early upbringing. And indeed; I miss hymns, I miss church music, and I know I'm not alone. But we don't have to give these things …

Sunne

Name, Pronunciation, & Meaning: There are two extant names for this goddess in Old-English, either Sunne or Sōl. I typically opt to use Sunne but I know several heathens that use Sol, including Wodgar (Sundorwic). The argument could be made for either term.   Sunne, pronounced /ˈsun.ne/ (IPA), means Sun and is the root of …

Order Versus Chaos

Chaos and Order are concepts which underpin religion. There is a deep-rooted belief in Chaos and Order that appears to be a commonality among Indo-European religions. Germanic paganism is no exception. Cosmogical Chaos is different from any chaos you’re familiar with. There is almost a devaluation of what constitutes chaos in our society. However, Chaos …

The Grump that Stole Yule

All the heathens down in Heathenville liked Yule a lot, but the Grump who lived just east of Heathenville did not.The Grump hated Yule the whole yuletide season, now please don't ask, why no one quite knows the reason.It could be perhaps that his wingas weren't wrapped just right, it could be perhaps that his …

Against the Sassites

Every Easter, Midsummer, and Yule a very curious and indeed annoying thing happens. From seemingly every corner these three times a year in particular a small but vocal cohort of heathenry crops up to tell everyone they’re doing it wrong – enter the Sassites. The Sassites follow a peculiarly restrictive and seemingly joyless vision of …

Climate-Change and Mythology

It is time we rethink our view of the myths of the North with the climate of the time in mind. For that matter, we should rethink the myths of Rome, Greece, Egypt and indeed Israel with the climate of the time as well.

There is no Future in Online Heathenry

If you’re not part of some kind of online heathen community whether that is a group on Facebook, or Twitter, or Discord, or wherever, you are the exception. It is far more common that heathens are all over internet groups, and usually several. The internet is rife with heathen groups, little cohorts of like-minded heathens …

Polytheism and Interpretatio

Something that comes up frequently in polytheist circles is how to tackle the issue of the nature of the gods when there is such a diversity of gods out there and yet upon examination many seem similar. Part of the discussion invariably turns to what is polytheism. Monism, otherwise sometimes called “soft” polytheism, is the …

A Heathen Book List

The Poetic Edda The usefulness of this should be obvious. This is one of our best sources for the myths of the Norse. I would consider this important reading regardless of the variety of heathenry you practice. Henry Adams Bellows Translation Free Online https://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/index.htm Henry Adams Bellows Translation Volume I https://www.amazon.com/Poetic-Edda-Mythological-Poems/dp/0486437108/ Henry Adams Bellows Translation …

The Swastika: There is Nothing to Reclaim

So if you've been around pagan circles long enough you've heard people talking about reclaiming symbols from racists. Inevitably you've probably heard someone bemoan that the racists made the swastika off limits and wish they could "take it back". I'm here to inform you that there's nothing to take back, that all the importance you …