Love and Light...How very "unheathen" of me.



In my work with Freyja, I have spoken with, studied, and been exposed to many groups and individuals who follow modern day heathen paths, such as Asatru, Vanatru, Northern Traditions, etc. Like any spiritual path or religion, there is a wide variety of folk, and a diversity of viewpoints. In my experience, the large majority are wonderfully intelligent, eloquent, and open-minded. What irritates me the most about modern day heathenism is that there is a small minority of those involved who seem to have a very negative viewpoint about any type of activity or practice or even thought process that is not in line with there own simpleminded views.
Yesterday I was reading a group discussion in which a heathen individual dedicated to Thor asserted that the idea of "seigr" or victory, was the be all and end all of traditional heathen virtues...I did not respond to this discussion for obvious reasons, but I did take interest in this individuals particular view of what it means to be heathen.
Now, I am all for an attitude of purposeful action in life, and agree in some sense that will is an important part of living a noble life in general. However, this person's view point seemed heavily influenced by a large dose of machismo which left a sour taste in my mouth. But taking into account that he described himself as "traditional" and was dedicated to Thor, okay, I get the thought process.
What really pissed me off though was when he questioned the use of the term Love and Light by "certain members" of the site who "claim" to be heathens dedicated to the Gods. He then asked...(Come on, where in Norse/Celtic/Germanic traditions is "love and light" to be found?) Which honestly irritated the fuck out of me. Being that I am a regular member of the site, run a fairly decent sized group dedicated to my Goddess Freyja, and oh, I also use the term LOVE AND LIGHT as a closing remark for my posts and messages...STFU.
That is my honest response...just Shut the F@ck up already...one does not have be obsessed with physical might and strength to be a heathen. I do not have to put forth an attitude of Hate and Dark Evil shit just so a few idiots consider me "heathen enough" to call myself such. I do not have to body build until my veins pop out and carry around a replica Mjolnir with me and smash my enemies skulls in to call myself a heathen. GROW UP.
Saying that there is no love and light evidenced by the Norse Gods, as well as the Celts, Teutons, Saxons, or any other culture is just pure ignorance. Adding Love and Light at the end of my post and messages is not a personal "motto." It is a simple blessing of words which wishes good things upon my friends and fellow group members. I certainly am not going to start ending them by wishing hate and darkness upon them. That is not what my Goddess stands for, and pretty sure its not what Thor stands for either.
Freyja is a multi-faceted Goddess who just happens to be called "bright and shining" on more than one occasion in the historical sources, and who is also associated with passion and love in general. She is also associated with death and seidr, among a thousand other things which I am fairly certain this particular individual could not begin to comprehend. So yes, love and light has its place just as much as victory and strength, darkness and death. But there is a time and a place for all those things.
Which ONCE UPON A TIME, I thought was common sense.

Comments

  1. Krystal HendersonJun 20, 2011, 1:17:00 PM

    Hi Cena,

    I think a lot of people associate the phrase "love and light" with New Age fluff bunny types who use certain phrases without knowing where they come from (like "Namaste").
    I also think that there's a resistance to anyone who seems to be "diluting" or changing Heathenry to be something it isn't. I for one think that all this dogmatism in modern Heathen groups hurts Heathenry as a whole.

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  2. AnonymousJun 22, 2011, 2:40:00 AM

    It's interesting, because even Thor is known for "love" or at least "generosity". He is the one who frequently shows up and enjoys his endless feasts, feeding people with goats that spring back to life, and being a much more jovial person than the "warrior" part of his behavior reflects. Many worshippers in his home country still worship those aspects of who he is as a guardian and God....not just the parts the Nazis decided to place all the focus on. :-/ I wear a Mjölnir hammer and my husband wears a Freyja pendant, so this is a truth to me. These Gods are complex.

    I think people who are unable to see that duality exists in ALL things, ie: the light and dark, the anger and sympathy, the 'ying and yang" of all the gods and goddesses is sadly missing 50% of the equation. Nothing in life is 100% consumed by hate or love.

    Freyja alone is both love and beauty, protection and grace AND death and destruction. She is all.

    I have always felt the rest of the Norse are not unlike this in their complexity either.

    This Thor worshipper is walking about with blinders on. Thor would NOT be proud at the way this person represents him. Personally, I find Thor to be one of the more cuddly of the Norse gods. (And I have personal reasons to feel this...big ones) I'm sure this Thor fan would punch me in the face for even saying this though. LOL Truthfully he is far less "fear invoking" then Freyja is on a "business" day. Freyja has shown me both sides of her might and both are beautiful, whether she is a warrior or a beacon of light.

    Anyway, I'm talking in strict terms and perhaps that's not wise, since people always question when you make an exact statement, but it's what I'm trying to get at that matters. (which you are already aware of) There is a balance in all things. Chest thumping has it's place but it isn't the ONLY thing out there, as you well know, though in some heathen's realities, I guess it is. ;-)

    Oh well, thanks for reading....I'm definitely preaching to the choir here though.


    - Tree - (from PaganSpace)

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