Wane Wyrds

My Own Altar with Offerings One of the first questions people ask when they begin working with a particular God or Goddess is how to offer to them. Virtually ever forum I have been in, someone at one time or another has asked this question, "What offerings are good for (insert God/Goddess name)." Inevitably what follows are list of foods, drinks, crystals, incense types, etc. that are either mythologically inspired or have been found to be personally relevant to the particular divinity through upg. I myself have answered this question just as many times as another, with a list of materials and matter I found to have been well received. This in itself to me is not a problem, if we are able, I cannot see any reason we should not invest in the Gods which help and guide us through our journey of life. However, sometimes I think that our focus on the material aspect of offering is skewed by our lifestyle in the first world. We hear the word offering or gift, and our mind sw...

Odin by Victor Villalobos I would like to put a disclaimer here just to assert that this post is in no way intended as an attack on Odin, or those who worship him. I would also say that I have respect for all the Northern Gods, Aesir and Vanir, within my own spiritual hierarchy. As a Vanatru, I do feel it is important to express my feelings about this most well known of Aesir Gods, so that others may have some perspective on just how a heathen might not feel so comfortable dealing with the Aesir pantheon, and choose to focus on any number of Gods and Giants as well. I was an eclectic Wiccan with Euro tendencies when I found Freyja. I purchased a wonderful deck of Goddess cards which I loved, and one of them happened to be Freyja. It is a very well known image by the artist Lisa Iris. I used this deck exclusively for a few years when I was having an aversion to Tarot. The image was one that seemed to come up often, or perhaps I noticed it more because I was naturally dr...

Yesterday was the deadline for my Midsummer Magic Giveaway, the prize being a small box, herb sampler, and brand new copy of Beowulf! So without further ado......THE WINNER IS.... JAMIE LEIGH MARTIN! I will be sending those items out to you as soon as I get in touch! I very much hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed creating this giveaway and some of its components! I also want to say thank you to the wonderful ladies who entered, and say thanks to everyone else who reads and enjoys the blog. This giveaway was more about saying thanks than anything else. There was a time not so long ago when I would have given anything for the chance to share my writing and my thoughts with like minded individuals. Being a late bloomer in the tech department, the creation of this blog, and my work on other forums has given me the opportunity to engage with so many wonderful people who I may never have met before, and had the opportunity to learn from. So thanks again to all who read th...

Modern interpretation of the Goddess Nehalennia The figure of Nehalennia is an interesting yet ambiguous figure of the European divine. No one had ever heard of her until the 15th century, yet there is evidence that she was worshiped on a large scale near the seaports of the North Sea in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD. Since she is wholly unattested in the mythos, she has and likely will remain a rather mysterious figure for all heathens. So what do we know about Nehalennia? In the 1600s, erosion of the sands near the Dutch town of Domburg revealed a previously unknown temple dedicated to the goddess, containing 28 inscriptions to her. Further archeological finds in Cologne, Germany and the town of Colijnsplaat in the Netherlands also attested to her existence as a divine figure. Many of these finds contain votive altars specifically created in honor of her, and are comparable to many other such votive altars in Northern Europe which are commonly devote...

Nacre is the technical term for mother of pearl, referring to the secretions of mollusks and oysters which line the inside of their shells. Nacre is also sometimes used to described the surface of a pearl, as it is essentially the same material which has formed around a small foreign object while inside the oyster or mollusk. One of the most common forms of nacre we see in spiritual terms is the abalone, with it's shimmering rainbow of color used in everything from jewelry to smudge bowls. For brevity sake, I will focus solely on the properties of mother of pearl, rather than traditional pearls. Red abalone shell The correspondences of mother of pearl are attached to both it's purpose for the animal and it's use in human history. Due to it's role in the creation of the prized pearl, nacre is traditionally seen as a symbol of fertility and rebirth. Fertility is connected to the mother of pearl (or nacre) as it plays a major role in the creation of  the pearl. It ...

As a heathen blogger, I can't help but think about weighing in on the elephant in the room this week. It seems one of the well known American Asatru authors has gone and gotten himself into a world of shit...yet for some odd reason, I really don't want to blog about this... so instead I will leave you with a few links and let you draw your own conclusions. For any who may not know the person in question is one Mr. Mark Stinson, the "chieftain" of the well known Jotun's Bane kindred out out of Kansas City, Missouri. http://www.kctv5.com/story/18943111/kc-cop-accused-of-stealing-from-his-mother http://fox4kc.com/2012/07/03/more-details-emerge-about-cop-charged-with-stealing-from-mom/ As a Vanatru, I don't really have much to say about this. It is unfortunate that such a widely known figure of Asatru in America has gotten himself wrapped up in such a mess. I feel sorry for those whom are let down, and generally hope that these alleged crimes by an individ...

Yes, I know technically Midsummer itself has past, but still. I been planning this giveaway for awhile now and  I guess it is time I get down to it already! I have been doing so much craft hoarding in recent months, to be honest I am running out of space to keep my creations! So I figured what better way to spread some love to my fellow heathens and pagans than to have a little giveaway. =) So what am I giving away you ask? Well all the items pictured in the moderately crap quality photo above! The whole package includes... One new copy of the Signet Classic Edition of Beowulf, translated by Burton Raffel One small wood box, which I stained and painted with a small vine and hammer, and also added a couple metal spirals to the top. It has been lightly  sealed with a very thin modge podge coat, which kept the wood texture yet gave a dull sheen to the wood itself.It has hinges and invisible magnetic closure. If desired, I would be happy to woodburn the small space at th...