Saturday, March 15, 2008

How To Begin Practicing Asatru

How To Begin Practicing Asatru Cover Suppose you have decided that you are ready to begin practicing Asatru. How can you start?

First of all, you don't have to get anyone's permission, or join any organization. Nor do you have to be an expert in the traditional lore of the Germanic Peoples at this point in your Development. Academic knowledge is important, but it can come later. You can start following our ancestral Spirituality right now, today.
How? Here are some suggestions:

Begin living by the moral code of our ancestors. You'll find a list of appropriate virtues listed elsewhere on this site, in the article titled "Twelve Traits." Memorize them, or copy them and put them where you will see them every day. Compare your deeds to the standards of the Germanic Way and begin shaping your life along a nobler path!

Honor the Holy Powers. Walk outside, and somewhere where you have privacy, raise your arms in greeting, look skyward, and say something like:

"I salute you, the Holy Powers of my people! Not as a slave or servant, but as a freeborn member of the Folk and as your younger kin. Nor do I come to you on my knees, but standing proud and tall. Speak to my soul, that I may grow in wisdom. Be my inspiration as I strive to grow wiser, stronger, and larger of spirit. May my feet walk the way of my noble ancestors, as I continue my journey!"
Later you will want to honor the deities in a more individual way, but a simple declaration like the one above will get you started.

Honor the ancestors. Make a simple shrine for them in your house - on a small table, or your night stand, or on a shelf, for example. On it, place photos of your forefathers and foremothers and perhaps items that belonged to them. Remember them daily, talk to them, share your life with them. Placing flowers on this shrine every now and then would be a nice touch. Recall them on their birthdays.

Bless your meals. You can say something like -

"In the names of the Holy Powers may this food be blessed, and may it bless us who partake of it. May it connect us with the Earth and Sky from which it came, to the Holy Powers, and to each other. Let it help us to live, to grow, and to work our will in the world!"
All these things are simple, but they are things you can do right now, today. In the following section we will consider some of your next steps.

Books in PDF format to read:

Vovim Baghie - The Grand Satanic Ritual
Stephen Mcnallen - What Is Asatru
John Dee - The Practice Of Enochian Evocation
Anonymous - Wicca Beliefs And Practices
Anonymous - Odinism And Asatru