Yule Celebrations In Sweden

Yule or Yule-tide is a winter festival that was initially celebrated by the Historical Germanic Peoples as a pagan religious festival, though it was later absorbed into, and equated with, the Christian festival of Christmas. The festival was originally celebrated from late December to early January on a date determined by the lunar Germanic calendar. The festival was placed on December 25 when the Christian calendar (Julian calendar) was adopted. Some historians claim that the celebration is connected to the Wild Hunt or was influenced by Saturnalia, the Roman winter festival.

Terms with an etymological equivalent to “Yule” are still used in the Nordic Countries for the Christian Christmas, but also for other religious holidays of the season. In modern times this has gradually led to a more secular tradition under the same name as Christmas. Yule is also used to a lesser extent in English-speaking countries to refer to Christmas. Customs such as the Yule log, Yule goat, Yule boar, Yule singing, and others stem from Yule. In modern times, Yule is observed as a cultural festival and also with religious rites by some Christians and by some Neopagans.

As in many other countries in northern Europe Jultomten brings presents on julafton (“Yule Eve”), December 24, the day generally thought of as the main jul day. Many Swedes watch Kalle Anka och hans vanner (lit. Donald Duck and his friends), a compilation of Disney shorts broadcast at 3pm.

Almost all Swedish families celebrate with a julbord, which traditionally includes julskinka (baked ham), sill (pickled herring), janssons frestelse, and a Collection of meatballs, sausages, meats and pates. The julbord is traditionally served with beer, julmust, mumma (a mix of beer, liquor and svagdricka) and snaps. The dishes vary throughout the country. Businesses invite staff to a julbord dinner or lunch in preceding weeks, and people go privately to restaurants offering julbord during December. Swedes also enjoy glogg (mulled wine with raisins and almonds). Gifts are distributed either by Jultomten (usually from a sack) or from under the Christmas tree. In older days a julbock (yule goat, still used in Finland called Joulupukki) was an alternative to Jultomten; now it is used as an ornament, ranging in size from 10 cm to huge constructions like the Gavle goat. The following day some people attend a julotta and even more venture to the movies, as December 25 is a day of big premieres.

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The Gods And Us

We weighed monotheism against polytheism, and found the arguments for a multitude of deities more convincing than the support for a single God such as that proposed in the Bible. We focused on one particular pantheon, that of ancient Europe, and considered the idea that these deities might have a reality outside of mythological lore and the human imagination.

But if we are going to assume that these divine powers are real, another question quickly becomes important: What is the Relationship between them and us?

With Bible-based religions, there is no doubt where you stand...or kneel, as the case may be. The Abrahamic religions, as we call Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, decree that humans are utterly nothing in the face of The Almighty. Human beings have rights and dignity only because God has given it to them; they have no innate worth aside from this gift. Nor can they earn such right or dignity - these are gifts given unconditionally to those who could never, ever actually deserve them.

The Bible makes an attempt to portray its God as a father, and humans as his sons and daughters, but what really comes through is the idea of God as a patriarchal and arbitrary dictator of the kind popular in the Middle East. Yahweh wipes out cities, slays the first born of Egypt, urges his chosen tribe to commit genocide against their neighbors, and annihilates all who will not give him his due. In the New Testament, this harsh picture is somewhat softened, and we are given the image of Jesus as a shepherd looking over his flock of sheep. This is not much better, since sheep are herded to and fro, sheared, sold and slaughtered as the shepherd wishes. When we want to portray passivity and submissiveness, what animal do we choose? The sheep, of course.

The Germanic peoples, on the other hand, looked to their Gods as their kin. The kings of the ancient tribes listed Wotan or Freyr, two of our Gods, as their forebears. In one myth, the God named Heimdal travels among humans, impregnating women and establishing the social order. The Holy Powers are thought of as the Elder Kin, and we men and women as the corresponding Younger Kin.

The idea that Gods and humans are two parts of a single family is one that carries implications. Most obviously, it means there is a reciprocation of loyalty and duty. This stands in stark contrast to the Biblical religions, where only one party - God - is owed anything at all.

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Yule Celebrations In Finland

Yule or Yule-tide is a winter festival that was initially celebrated by the historical Germanic peoples as a pagan religious festival, though it was later absorbed into, and equated with, the Christian festival of Christmas. The festival was originally celebrated from late December to early January on a date determined by the lunar Germanic calendar. The festival was placed on December 25 when the Christian calendar (Julian calendar) was adopted. Some historians claim that the celebration is connected to the Wild Hunt or was influenced by Saturnalia, the Roman winter festival.

Terms with an etymological equivalent to “Yule” are still used in the Nordic Countries for the Christian Christmas, but also for other religious holidays of the season. In modern times this has gradually led to a more secular tradition under the same name as Christmas. Yule is also used to a lesser extent in English-speaking countries to refer to Christmas. Customs such as the Yule log, Yule goat, Yule boar, Yule singing, and others stem from Yule. In modern times, Yule is observed as a cultural festival and also with religious rites by some Christians and by some Neopagans.

On the eve of the Finnish Joulu, children are visited by Joulupukki, a character similar to Santa Claus. The word Joulupukki means “Yule Goat” and probably derives from an old Finnish tradition where people called nuuttipukkis dressed in goat hides circulated in homes after Joulu, eating leftover food. Joulupukki visits people’s homes and rides a sleigh pulled by a number of reindeer. He knocks on the front door during Jouluaatto, rather than sneaking in through the chimney at night. When he comes in, his first words are usually “Onkos taalla kiltteja lapsia?“, “Are there (any) good (well-behaved) children here?”. Presents are given and opened immediately. He usually wears red, warm clothes and often carries a wooden walking stick. His workshop is in Korvatunturi, Lapland, Finland, rather than at the North Pole like Santa Claus, or in Greenland. He is married to Joulumuori (tr. Mother Yule).

Typical Finnish yule dishes include ham, various root vegetable casseroles, beetroot salad, gingerbread and star-shaped plum-filled pastries. Other traditions with a non-Christian yule background include joulukuusi (“Yule spruce”) and joulusauna (“yule sauna”).

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Loki And Freya

Owing to his extreme acuteness of hearing, Heimdall was greatly disturbed one night by hearing soft, catlike footsteps in the direction of Freya’s palace, Folkvang. Gazing fixedly towards that side with his eagle eyes, Heimdall soon perceived, in spite of the darkness, that the sound was produced by Loki, who stealthily entered the palace as a fly, stole to Freya’s bedside, and strove to purloin her shining golden necklace Brisinga-men, the emblem of the fruitfulness of the earth.

As it happened, however, the Goddess had turned in her sleep in such a way that he could not Possibly unclasp the necklace Without awaking her. Loki stood hesitatingly by the bedside for a few moments, and then rapidly began to mutter the runes which enabled the Gods to change their form at will. As he was doing this, Heimdall saw him shrivel up until he was changed to the size and form of a flea, when he crept under the bedclothes and bit Freya’s side, thus making her change her position without really rousing her.

The clasp was now free, and Loki, cautiously unfastening it, secured the coveted ornament, with which he proceeded to steal away. Heimdall immediately started out in pursuit of the Midnight thief, and drawing his sword from its scabbard, was about to cut off his head when the God suddenly transformed himself into a flickering blue flame. Quick as thought, Heimdall changed himself into a cloud and sent down a deluge of rain to quench the fire; but Loki as promptly altered his form to that of a huge polar bear, and opened wide his jaws to swallow the water. Heimdall, nothing daunted, then assumed the form of a bear also, and fought fiercely with him; but the combat threatening to end disastrously for Loki, he changed himself into a seal, and, Heimdall imitating him, a last struggle took place, at the end of which Loki, vanquished, was forced to give up the necklace, which was duly restored to Freya.

In this tale, Loki is an emblem of the drought, or of the baleful effects of the too ardent heat of the sun, which comes to rob the earth (Freya) of its most cherished ornament (Brisinga-men). Heimdall is a personification of the gentle rain and dew, which, after struggling for a while with his foe the drought, manages to conquer him and force him to relinquish his prize.

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Groa List Of Recommended Heathen Reading

Book: Groa List Of Recommended Heathen Reading by Ann Groa Sheffield

This list contains only books that I have personally read and found to be of value in some way. Since I haven't read everything, this inevitably means that some excellent books have been omitted. My personal opinions and tastes are evident throughout; they are no
more and no less than that.

Mostly, I have listed only books that I believe to be in print, or at least easily obtainable. If you find that a work listed here has gone out-of-print or become hard to find, or if you find errors in ISBN’s or other key data, please let me know. -Ann Groa Sheffield

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History Of Nordic Runes

Book: History Of Nordic Runes by Anonymous

Runes are an alphabetic script used by the peoples of Northern Europe from the first century until well into the Middle Ages. In addition to their use as a written alphabet, the runes also served as a system of symbols used for magic and divination. Runes fell into disuse as the Roman Alphabets became the preferred script of most of Europe, but their forms and meanings were preserved in inscriptions and manuscripts.

There is some debate over the origin of the "alphabet" aspect of the runes. Cases have been made for both Latin and Greek derivation, and several scholars are once again arguing in favor of both these theories. However, the strongest evidence still seems to point to a North Italic origin. The parallels between the two alphabets are too close to be ignored, particularly in the forms of the letters, as well as in the variable direction of the writing, and certain structural and even symbolic characteristics. This would also explain why so many of the runes resemble Roman letters, since both Italic and Latin scripts are derived from the Etruscan alphabet (itself a branch of the Western Greek family of alphabets). This theory would place the original creation of the futhark sometime before the 1st. century, when the Italic scripts were absorbed and replaced by the Latin alphabet. Linguistic and phonetic analysis points to an even earlier inception date, perhaps as far back as 200 B.C..

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Learning Magic In The Sagas

Book: Learning Magic In The Sagas by Stephen Mitchell

The image of magic spells being taught by more seasoned practitioners to others eager to learn them comports well with what can be deduced about the actual practice of witchcraft and magic in medieval Scandinavia. For example, at the conclusion of that most remarkable document on love magic, jealousy and sexual intrigue from ca. 1325, De quadam lapsa in haeresin Ragnhilda Tregagaas, Ragnhildr tregagas of Bergen claims that the incantation and performative magic she uses against her erstwhile lover are ones she learned in her youth from Solli Sukk. In a similar case from Sweden in 1471, a witch in Arboga referred to in the surviving records as galna kadhrin 'Crazy Katherine' instructs Birgitta Andirssadotthir on how to prevent her lover from pursuing another woman.Another late 15th-century Swedish case likewise describeshow Margit halffstop says that she learned from another woman, Anna finszka, the spell by which she could bewitch a man from a distance.3 The Norwegian laws, especially Borgarflings kristinrettr hinn eldri and Eidsivaflings kristinrettr, express deep concern that people should not consult with the Sami: En ef madr faer til finna is a phrase which occurs often, and would appear to mean, as Fritzner writes about it in its nominal form, finnfor, "Reise til Finnerne for at soge Hjaelp af deres Trolddomskunst." All of the terms in this complex (e.g., finnvitka 'to Finn-witch, i.e., to bewitch like a Finn [or Sami]'), terms which seem only to appear in Norwegian and Icelandic sources, turn on the presumed greater skill, magic or learning of the Sami, and the practice of their sharing this learning or its outcome with others. This is precisely the sort of scene presented vividly in Vatnsdaela saga, when Ingimundr, Grimr and their men inquire of a visiting Sami witch ("Finna ein fj?lkunnig") about their futures.6 In addition to such testimony targetting the "lower" practices of magic, church statutes (e.g., the Arboga statute of 1412) and other ecclesiastical writing (e.g., the late 13th-century Fornsvenska legendariet) often cite the existence of grimoires (fj?lkyngisbaekr, galdrabaekr) and other learning aids associated with "high" magic.7 Nordic books of this sort are in fact known, albeit only from the post-medieval period,8 and are frequently mentioned in legends and other folklore texts (e.g., Raudskinna),9 suggesting wide-spread familiarity with the idea. A fully developed narrative about such a magic book is found in the 14thcentury story of the Skalholt bishop Jon Halldorsson.10 That the idea of learned clerics dabbling in the magical arts ran deep in the Middle Ages is also to be seen in the theme of "Escape from the Black School" (ML 3000), found in connection with Saemundr the Wise already in Jons saga helga.

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