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Welcome Spring 🌼🐰🌼

[blackcrowing]

May - Family

Part of the Weekly Devotional Series

Week One - Core Concept

Family bonds are not ones that we choose, but they are some of the most fundamental bonds in our lives. While they are not always healthy or stable they have a massive impact in shaping us into the people we are, sometimes for generations. It is not in our power to single-handedly change the cultures of our families, but each member (present or absent) contributes something to the family culture and in turn to how that culture and those bonds shape each individual.

Week Two - Mythology

Aided Óenfhir Aífe, 'The Tragic Death of Aife's Only Son'

In some versions of the tale, Cu Cuchulain is given the benefit of not knowing that the approaching threat of the boy is his own son. As he laid the geis upon him not to reveal himself to any one man. However in this version Emer herself begs him not to go and fight his son and Cu Cuchulain replies that not only will he ignore her advice but paints a grizzly picture of what he plans to do to the boy, son or not.

The scene plays out as something absurd and obscenely cruel, Cu Cuchulain goes forth alone to meet the boy knowing who he is and the geis upon him and still demands that the boy name himself. Leaving the boy no choice but to fight him, as they fight we see they are evenly matched, though the boy is only 7, until Cu Cuchulain uses Gáe Bulg, a fighting style the boy was never taught, a defeats him.

It is only at this point, with the killing blow struck that Cu Cuchulain greets the boy as a son and takes him before the men of Ulster. Where he meets the men and is given a grand burial befitting the warrior he would have been.

This feels like the most toxic parental encounter in the entirety of the Irish mythology. The only motivation for the death of such a fine warrior to be, not to mention his only son, is honor. For Cu Cuchulain honor and face are all, not even his own blood or the potential for his kingdom to have an even greater warrior than he on its side is enough to sway him. To make matters worse, he orchestrated the whole event knowing the geis he laid on the child and how he could have avoided them (by going forth with someone at his side so the boy could identify himself). It feels like such a waste, and sometimes that is how family relations can feel. The expectations laid on us can be too much and the following of those expectations can kill us for nothing more important than the ideal of a parent.

Week Three- Contemplation

What do your family bonds look like? What values are held by your family culture? What contributions have you made to your family culture? How does that make you feel? Ideally what would your personal family culture look like?

Week Four - Integration

If you are someone who is either in contact with the family you came from, or has your own family system, carve out some dedicated time to spend with them.

If you are someone who does not currently have that kind of relationship with family, take some time to look at older generations, get to know those ancestors who have past and see if they may have been the kinds of people you would have appreciated. Maybe this is an opportunity to connect more deeply with the practice of ancestor veneration.

My Kofi

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facts

Studying Irish myth and folklore is all fun and games until you find out pretty much all record of the roots of this shit was either lost, destroyed by the Christian churches that took over, or destroyed by the English. Which means trying to write literally any paper for class means digging for hours trying to find any credible source on the pre-Christian myths and finding the grand total of three surviving paragraphs on the thing you need. Head in my hands.

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To be quite honest, I'd be pretty weirded out if a dude murdered my dog and then started sleeping on my back porch like, "I'm your dog now."

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Hey, don't be afraid of things that challenge your faith. Seriously, don't.

Either they'll give you a new perspective on things, or you'll become more secure and confident in your current beliefs. But avoiding the hard questions leaves you in an echo chamber with half-baked ideas and an insecurity in yourself. Step out of your comfort zone so you have room to grow.

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🎄🔥Nordic Holidays🔥🎄

Let me start off by clarifying that these are the Norse holidays I personally celebrate. I have it split up into major holidays(holidays I try not to miss aka major holidays) and minor holidays(Smaller celebrations, I might not even celebrate these, etc.). This information will vary from person to person, you can celebrate whichever holidays however you want! Enjoy ~ 

✨Major✨

Jól

Jól otherwise known as Yule/Yuletide is a Nordic holiday celebrated between sundown on the Winter’s Solstice for a following twelve days(now you know where the Christians got it). It is also during Jól that the Wild Hunt takes place, Óðinn rides out with his dead, elves, or the dwarves may ride out across Midgard. Seeing the Hunt was thought to bring famine, plagues, and war but offerings of food and gifts could be left out for blessings and prosperity.  Jól was said to mark the return of Baldr from Helheim and the loosening of grip of winter of the Earth.

There numerous references to Jól in the sagas including Skáldskaparmál, Heimskringla, and poetry written by the skald Eyvindr Skáldaspilli which when translated reads:

“again we have produced Yule-being’s feast [mead of poetry], our rulers’ eulogy, like a bridge of masonry”. Most of these references testify to Jól being celebrated with blóts, feasting with family, drinking, gift giving, and dancing.

To be more specific, you can celebrate the twelve days of Jól by being hands on in your devotion! This was traditionally a time of year that was largely devoted to baking, finishing the mead making process, and hand making decorations and offerings to the heathen home and gods!! There was typically at least one julbord(feast) and an animal sacrafice. 

For example, straw animals in the shape of goats(Þórr), stars, boars(Freyr), horses, and ravens(Óðinn) were made and hung up around the house or a Jól tree! Yessss, that was something that German immigrants brought over to the U.S. The Jól tree was traditionally a tree outside that was decorated and offerings were left at in honor of Yggdrasil! You can also make wreaths, garlands, and woven rugs or wall hangings! 

The first night of Jól is typically called the Mothernight, this was in honor of the All Mother Frigg and the Disir. The first night(the longest night) is supposed to be symbolic to the rebirth of the world from winter. This is the perfect night to start on some weaving or crafts! Frigg is known for her weaving.

Disablót

Disablót was a sacrificial holiday(blót) in honor of the female deities, women, disir and valkyries. It’s purpose was to enhance the upcoming harvest and prepare the grounds for sowing. 

 It is mentioned in Hervarar saga, Víga-Glúms saga, Egils saga and the Heimskringla. This  celebration still lives on in the form of an annual fair called the Disting in Uppsala, Sweden(I really want to go to this). There’s a lot of debate to when the holiday was originally celebrated because the sagas all are slightly different. However, it is currently celebrated at the end of February by Sweden!

It was around this holiday that the first furrows were plowed in the fields and that there was a feast of new beginnings.

Nordic folk customs would include getting ready for the gardening season, preparing for the gardening/farming season ahead, and making a feast for your loved ones and female deities you work with.

Sigrblót

Sigrblót also known as Summer Finding or Ostara is the celebration of the spring equinox and welcoming good weather. It is a celebration of the rejuvenation of the earth, fertility, and growth.

This is a holiday often used to celebrate the Germanic god Ēostre, the embodiment of springtime and life, Iðunn, god of youth and renewal, and Frigg/Freyja, for their key elements in fertility magic. Is more commonly seen in modern days as a celebration of the renewal/awakening of the Earth(Jörð), the deities, and life. It is also a celebration to welcome joy and light into one’s life.

Nordic folk custom would include a large bonfire, smorgasbord(as always), baking sweets, and honoring the gods mentioned above or ones important to you this holiday.

Midsummer

Midsummer is probably the second biggest celebration next to Jól. It is pretty much just the celebration of the summer solstice and can also be celebrated in hopes of a good harvest at the end of fall. 

This holiday is attested to in the Ynglinga sagas and has long been a passed down celebration. Folk custom for celebrating would be large bonfires, speeches, smorgasbord, dancing around a majstång(traditionally for fertility), lots of drinking, and galdr. This is another holiday with a lot of hands on folk tradition; wreath making, kindling fires, making toy viking ships of wood and filling them with offerings to be burned, burning corn figures, adorning homes, halls, and the fields with fresh flowers and greenery.

A lot of of historians believe this is a particularly good time of year to make blessings to Baldr. This was also the time of year for sailing and war. With crops planted at home, vikings would set off to go to other lands. 

Freyrfeast

My favorite holiday!! There is no actual surviving name for this beast but it’s believed to be held around the star of August and most modern Norse pagans celebrate it on August 1st. The  Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar en mesta has an account of a priestess of Freyr traveling across Sweden at the start of winter with a picture of his god as a sacrifice for fertility and to honor him. Traditionally it’s a celebration of the first harvest where the primary god honored is Freyr with Sif and Þórr also celebrated as gods of harvest.

Traditionally the very first sheaf of grain harvested(I use my first bundle of lavender) is bound and blessed as an offering to the aforementioned deities and spirits of the field.

Folk customs include decorating the village well and springs, holding a grand feast of the gathered harvest, and baking a bread in honor of Freyr to give him at the end of and then plit among family. Preserving meats and vegetables was also done along this time of year and is a great time to start new batches of mead for upcoming  blóts.

Haustblót 

This is the celebration of the Autumn Equinox, the second harvest of the season, and when Norse folk would start preparing for winter by bringing livestock + stored food inside. It is referenced to in the Ynglinga sagas as well as the Eddas. It’s not as celebrated in modern times but farmers and agriculturalists still celebrate it and you can too!!

It is another joyous holiday celebrated with grand bonfires, large feasts, drinking, and dancing. It is believed that villagers would cast the bones of their slaughtered cattle on the flames to help them survive the winter.

There is a belief that once the village fire and all other fires were extinguished the families would go back their homes and light their hearth from the common village flame, bonding the community! I don’t know if this true but I’ve heard the story a few times and I honestly love the idea of it.

Vetrnætr/Álfablót

Otherwise known as Winters Night(or Samhain). This is the celebration of the last harvest, honoring of the landvættir, ancestors that protected the land through harvest, the vanir, paying respects to Death, and the welcoming of winter. Vetrnætr and Álfablót are celebrations of the same holiday but Álfablót is a blót that’s held privately in the home on the day of Vetrnætr.  

Similar to Freyrfeast, for Vetrnætr the last sheaf of wheat/grain was bundled up and blessed and often given as an offering to Óðinn and his dead setting out for the Wild Hunt. It was believed with the start of the Wild Hunt the dead could return to the places where they had lived and a large feast, celebration, and fire were commonly used in their honor. 

This was also a time for serious contemplation of death. To the Norse people, death was always around the corner and was viewed as a natural part of life. Death wasn’t viewed as negatively as it is in modern times but rather the Norse lived their lives in a way to live & die with honor, so their future ancestors would have something to celebrate on this day.

Álfablót in particular was typically run by a woman but we’re past gender norms now so whoever is comfortable running a ritual do it. It is a sacrifice to Freyr and the elves of Alfheim, in honor of the families ancestors, the life force of the family and the hearth, and is believed to also be a ritual for fertility. It is done the night of Vetrnætr.  

Minor

These are not necessarily minor, they are just not holidays that I always keep up on, don’t celebrate, days of remembrance, etc. There are definitely more Scandinavian holidays I’m not including because I’m not knowledgeable on them all and they’re not as widely celebrated(like celebrating Flag Day in America).

January 19 - Þorrablót is an Icelandic midwinter feast in honor of winter and Þorr which contains song, story telling, and traditional Icelandic foods like blóðmör and Brennivin. It is typically celebrated during Þorri February 2 - Barri is the celebration of the union between Freyr and Gerd and a celebration of fertility and the earth. February 9 - Remembrance for Eyvind Kinnrifi, he refused to convert to Christianity so Olaf Tryggvason tortured him to death. March 28 - Ragnar Lodbrok Day! Cheers to one the most legendary Vikings in history, King of Denmark and Sweden, and raider of Paris. April 31st-May 1st - Waluburgis Night, a celebration of the saint Valborg a nun who was the niece of Saint Boniface.  May 9 - Remembrance for Gudrod of Gudbrandsdal, whose tongue was cut out by the Norwegian king ‘St. Olaf’ for speaking out against the tyranny of the Christian Tryggvason, and urged others to resist him and continue worshiping the old gods.  May 20 - Frigg Blót! This actually a fave but it’s not really major so I’m keeping it down here. It’s a celebration of warmth and spring. Traditionally the time of year to go camping, hold a bonfire, and perform a blót for Frigg and honor her as the All Mother, pray for good blessings and health to those of your hearth. June 8 - Lindisfarne Day: It’s believe that on this day in 793 CE three Viking ships raided the Isle of Lindisfarne which is marked as the start of the Viking age. July 9 - From the Laxdaela Saga, it is a day of Remembrance for Unn the Deep Minded, she was well-known and respected cheiftan in Iceland. October 8 - Day of Remembrance for Erik the Red, founder of Greenland. October 14 - Vetrablót is a celebration of the harvest and honors Freyja as the god of fertility and honors the disir as well. November 11 - Feast of the Einherjar, a holiday where the fallen heroes of all the halls(Valhalla, Fensalir, etc.) are remembered. November 27 - Feast of the winter and hunt gods  Ullr and Skadi, also a day to celebrate Weyland one of the greatest Germanic craftsmen.

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April - Creation

Part of the Weekly Devotional Series

Week One - Core Concept

Creation is a natural process for all things. As living things we're compulsed to create the next generation of life, but this is far from the only creative instinct we poses. We have a deep innate desire to create something meaningful. Perhaps that meaning is to feed, or to bring a smile, maybe it is to speak to those generations yet to come; but we all desire to create something worth the effort it takes to make it.

Week Two - Mythology

*Dian Cecht's Evny - Part of Cath Maige Tuired

We can see both sides of creation reflected in this story. First we see Miach create a hand for Nuada that is even better than that his father made, he not only manages to create something that was beyond the wildest dreams of the best healer among the gods, but he also created a way for [the king] to retake he's place on the thrown. This is followed however with the opposite of creation, destruction, as Dian Cecht ends his life as well as (he believes) his son's ability to create anything ever again. This is wrong however, since from Miach's body healing herbs for every ailment grow, a last creation to make the efforts of his death meaningful. While Dian played a direct role in this creation (for without having killed his son, these herbs could not have grown from him), he fails to see the truth of this and once again in a fit of jealousy tries to reap destruction by scrambling the herbs.

Week Three - Contemplation

Do you give yourself credit for the creations you have had a hand in or do you only credit others for their accomplishments? What creative acts are you most proud of? in what ways have you celebrated that pride?

Week Four - Integration

decide on something you can do at set periodically times (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly) to ensure you're giving yourself the opportunity to exercises your creative instinct, but also make sure that with this time you also decide on a way to ENJOY what you create. To celebrate yourself and your creations (share with friends, give yourself a little treat for a job well done [or not so well done, creativity is sometimes messy and brutal and ugly, you don't have to make something "good" to celebrate it all the same])

My Kofi

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Hey, to all the people who are sad we as Hellenic Polytheists don't have a temple to worship in:

We never had temples to worship in, that was never a thing.

I keep seeing posts of people lamenting that we no longer have places to worship the gods in, in the same way people use churches and other places of worship today, but as someone with a degree in this, that was never officially a thing. This is what I mean when I say people need to deconstruct from their previous religion because the religions are different and what you might miss from one, you'll bring to the other, like missing a place of worship.

The temples were solely places to either hold things given to the gods, like thank you offerings, etc. or in some cases, where you got your prophecy told (Delphi), or some people slept in temples for Asclepius in order to dream of cures they believed the god would give them.

The ancient Greeks worshipped the gods in nature and had little altars in their homes.

This is why there were so many sacrificial altars outside in nature or outside the temples.

I understand it can be frustrating not having a place to worship because religious places of worship are great places to find like-minded people and find community, but the ancient Greeks didn't have to do that because the religion was a government mandated religion. Their literal governments would do things with the whole city-state outside of the temples. The closest thing we got to that were mystery cults but those were usually for the elite and still did things outside just in more secluded areas: (LINK)

Most of the time people weren't allowed to go into the temples, just priests, and the very few people that were allowed (to either drop off a gift, dream of a cure or get their fortune told) had very strict rules on making sure they were super clean because the priests would have to clean after them and they really didn't want to do that.

My point is that if you are worshipping the gods in nature (especially outdoor areas that inspire you because they believed a god resided in those areas) or in front of your altar at home, you're already doing what the ancient Greeks did.

Places of worship later got popularized with the rise of mystery cults in Rome and Roman Christians needing a secret place to worship, usually in someone's house which would later get converted as official places because of the persecutions.

I understand it can be frustrating to not have what more modern religions around you have but I need Hellenic Polytheists to understand that official places of worship were never a thing in the ancient Greek world.

They are worshipped in nature because the gods ARE nature itself.

So understand that your place of worship is all around you, and the gods will always be with you whenever you need them, as soon as you need them, and I think that's beautiful.

[blackcrowing]

Magic at Stonehenge by Spiralpathdesigns 

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Anyone who's been around for a while will know that I've been struggling with the dangerous political climate (and for an even longer time) the religious isolation factor that seems inherent in being a practicing pagan (being that we lack any true organized religious structures).

So I've been toying with the idea of finding a church my family and I could attend to gain some kind of support system as things become more and more terrifying, but being VERY pagan its hard for me to imagine even the most open and well meaning church not making my skin crawl once a week or causing me to worry about how to explain to my son that 'while we need community, here are all the ways that mommy and daddy don't agree with what we're taking you to weekly.'

So with all this in mind I cautiously started looking (mind you I live in the deep south). I say all this to say that to my surprise I discovered the local Unitarian Universalist church. My grandmother was raised in a Christian Universalist church so I thought I knew the gist of what I was going to encounter but I was WRONG.

If you are someone like me who has lamented the lack of community in your religious life I CAN NOT RECOMMEND ENOUGH looking into your local UU church. They have so many pagans among their congregations that there is a suborganization called CUUPS (Covenant of United Universalist Pagans). My first service the Reverend (a women to my pleasant surprise) called the state and federal political system a dumpsterfire.

I'm actually looking forward to the celebration they hold on Easter, called the flower communion, where each attendee brings a flower and offers it up and at the end each person takes a different flower than they brought.

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So I spent like 8 hours in the local ER yesterday because I became severely dehydrated (from what I assume is norovirus). My heart rate was up to like 168pbm and blood pressure was bottoming out and ended up getting 4 liters of fluids. With all the other tests I found out I also have a respiratory cold and a uti on top of being VERY sick with the stomach bug.

So my point is, pull those masks back out and stay safe out there. I literally only leave my house to take my kid to the park or get groceries. So this sick season is seriously nothing to mess with. I'm really a fairly healthy person and was told several times they've never seen that much fluid have to go into someone in one sitting before.

[blackcrowing]

We are dancing around the old stone, At night in the forest by firelight For we are still alive, Phantom Queen. But whoever sees you in the dark, For them there is no turning back - a dead man soon, Morrígan.

"Morrigan" by Feuerschwanz

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Old meme. But that was my first thought after reading "The cattle raid of Regamain" and "The death of Cu Chulainn"

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Come read with me and we both get $5 to spend on books 📚❤️

(also seriously, reading is like the only thing getting me through each day at the moment, so having more people to talk about my favorite books with would give me life rn)

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In a world that is terrible, I managed to have an amazing day today because I relized the area around the playground hasn't been mowed yet this season and it is FULL of henbit

so I've now made a tea, I'm working on an oil defusion (its my first 🤞) for a salve and have a bundle drying for later use

[blackcrowing]

March - Protection

Part of the Weekly Devotional Series

Week One - Core Concept

There are countless things in life that we wish to protect, from our loved ones to our property, our reputations to our ideals. However, most things in life require a give and a take, in order to protect something we find the need to sacrifice something else. We might sacrifice our time to gain security for our families, or sacrifice our pride to maintain an ideal. What we are willing to sacrifice in order to protect these things can vary, but sometimes were can be surprised by how far we're willing to go to make sure they are secure.

There are times when what we wish to protect is beyond our power to do so, in these instances we appeal to the Other to act on our behalf and in these instances too there is an exchange. Something given and something gained.

Week Two - Mythology

The Combat of Ferdiad and Cu Chulainn

This story demonstrates two men that by all accounts should never have taken up arms against each other. They were brothers as well as companions, who should have been fighting back to back, not face to face. However, each is spurred forward by something they value even more than their bond and each other (which I think there is little doubt that they held their bond and each other in the highest regards, even after the battle begins). Firdiad could not be persuaded to fight Cu Chulainn for gifts, not even for the hand of the lovely Finnabair, but he is at last coerced to fight on the grounds of his wounded honor. When he believes that Cu Chulainn, himself, was the first to throw aside their bond and even to go so far as to imply he was a coward for not having faced him on the field before this point. It is for this he decides he must fight to protect, even at the expense of his brother's life or his own. For Cu Chulainn the price is similar, for he could have chosen to give up his duty to Ulster, step aside and refuse to fight his brother, but he decides that his duty is worth fighting to protect despite the sacrifice that it will demand of either his life or the life of Firdiad.

Week Three - Contemplation

What are the 5 things you value most? How many of those things would you be willing to die for? to betray for? how often do you go out of your way to honor the things you value? What things do you expect the Other to defend you from? What people or things in your life do you have a duty to defend? Against what?

Week Four - Integration

make a plan (mundane and spiritual) of how to protect and honor those things you value most, set aside a time (weekly, monthly, yearly, whatever is most appropriate) to implement that plan.

My Kofi