Anyhow, on with part two of the post.
26.
The unwise man thinks all to know,
while he sits in a sheltered nook;
but he knows not one thing, what he shall answer,
if men shall put him to proof.
27.
For the unwise man 'tis best to be mute
when he come amid the crowd,
for none is aware of his lack of wit
if he wastes not too many words;
for he who lacks wit shall never learn
though his words flow ne'er so fast.
28.
Wise he is deemed who can question well,
and also answer back:
the sons of men can no secret make
of the tidings told in their midst.
29.
Too many unstable words are spoken
by him who ne'er holds his peace;
the hasty tongue sings its own mishap
if it be not bridled in.
This applies to engineering/relating suspicious "divine intervention" stories as well. You don't need to prove to anyone how viking you are to have them respect you. Everyone starts from the same place. We all start with very little knowledge and then gradually, over time and with some study, we learn about heathenry and teutonic mythology (as well as dozens of other disciplines to a greater or lesser extent). In fact, broadcasting an obviously-invented supernatural story can often have the opposite to the intended effect. Heathens, for whom reputation is a very important trait, will find that being known as someone who makes up some spurious bullshit story to get attention is far from desirable. In fact, it is the kind of thing that may end up haunting you in a way you really come to resent. Five years down the line when you're trying to make a name for yourself as a gothi or skald, do you think it will help for people to remember you as the person who made up a story about Thor giving you a cuddle to help you feel better when you'd broken up with your partner?
The annoying thing about such posts is, it essentially is a little arrogant and/or self-centred for the new poster to think that no-one in the group will have the wisdom to see through the bullshit. That, somehow, a fresh faced newbie with only minimal knowledge of heathenry and teutonic mythology will someone find it easy to pull the wool over the collective eyes of heathens who have university degrees in appropriate subjects and decades of experience in heathenry. Even more annoying to me, as they seem to put so little thought into the stories of divine contact - most involving actions quite out of character for all the gods involved. Hence this anger-infused blog post.
On the subject of made up vs believable divine contact stories, here is some of my own, personal UPG to illustrate how transparent some of the tales of new heathens can be to older heathens such as myself. This isn't really intended to be "this is how you should see the gods", but instead an example of how many heathens see the gods and how these stories don't correllate with that view.
Odin
I have heard lots of tales about Odin. Understandably, he is a favourite - especially among new heathens. The thing to remember, though, is that Odin is not Yahweh. He is as different to the christian god as Lemmy is to Justin Bieber. With that in mind, try not to ascribe christian feelings and motivations to the Allfather. I have heard stories about him saving someone from a potentially fatal accident and even giving someone a cuddle when they were feeling down!
The thing to remember with Ol' One Eye is that he is a god of death and is renowned as being "a bit of a bastard". He regularly seduces unsuspecting women to get what he wants, he steals, betrays and even breaks oaths. As a god of death and a necromancer, he is not gonna save your life - he is more likely to be the god that put you in the life-threatening situation in the first place - just to see how you handle it. He definitely isn't gonna give you a hug - he is not the christian god and he certainly isn't the White Christ. Anyone who takes on Odin as a patron should be ready to see their life become much harder with many more obstacles. That is kinda his thing - he likes to test the mettle of heathens who are brave enough to accept him as a patron.
A good thing to bear in mind is his character in the book "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman, and its tv adaptation. In it, Odin is respected for his wisdom and power, but no one really trusts him. Everyone knows he has his own agenda and that he considers everyone else to be little more than pawns in his plot to get his own way. Does this sound like a loving, compassionate god figure?
Now, in recent years, there has been some pushback to this view of Grimnir. The general gist of which is the argument that there is no point in creating or worshipping a god that won't help you and will even make things harder for you. To me, though, that argument smacks of carrying a little christian baggage along with it. People pray to Christ/Yahweh to be bailed out of whatever situation is plaguing them. They submit utterly to the god and he protects them. That is the deal. I can't think of a single heathen god who would be happy to save you from your trials and problems without any work from you. To my mind, heathen gods aren't quite like that - and especially not Odin. He was originally a kind of Wild Huntsman archetype who gradually evolved into a god of nobles and kings. What this means is, he is not a god of the people - at least, not the common man. That is more the realm of his son. Odin does give boons to his followers - but they aren't touchy feely hugs, kisses and pleasant feelings. Additionally, they are all temporal. They don't last forever. Many are the tales of the chosen of Odin being betrayed and abandoned to die on the battlefield. What's more, Odin is pretty damn busy at the moment, what with impending Ragnarok - he's not really got the time, inclination, or the crayons to send messages to every Tom, Dick or Harry who wants to impress their new heathen buddies.
Thor
Okay, so Thor helped you in your dispute with your neighbour, did he? The one who borrowed your secateurs and didn't give them back? Again, Thor is a quite busy god. He is more concerned with common people and especially their protection. But he isn't gonna intercede on your domestic dispute with your neighbour. To my mind, he would only take sides in cases of actual oppression, where blame could be attributed 100% to one side or the other. Let's face it, most of the spats that we mortals get involved with are, at best, 30% our own fault. He may get involved if your neighbour happens to be a frost giant. But in that case it would be for his own reasons, and not really because he had any particular affection for you. He's got better things to do - like smash Hel out of those aforementioned frost giants.
Tyr
Tyr is conspicuous by his very absence. Likely to have been chief god of the pantheon originally before being usurped in popularity by other gods, he is very rarely chosen by new heathens as a source of inspiration, strength or justice. Admittedly, we don't know as much about him as we do about Odin and his son, but that shouldn't prevent him from trying to get in on the divine manifestation party, should it?
I could go on all day talking about my UPG regarding Tyr and how he often goes misrepresented amongst heathens, but I think I will leave that for another post.
Another thing to watch out for in disreputable stories is how the gods involved tend to be reduced to two dimensional, flimsy characters based around the popular conception of the god in question. Odin is essentially the christian god, Thor is big and strong, Loki is a fool/trickster, Freyja is a slut, Frigg is a housewife. That also kinda goes hand in hand with movie/tv tie-ins. Recently, Loki has begun to be seen as more of an attractive god. Due, in no small part, to his portrayal by Tom Hiddleston at the cinema in recent years. Any reference to how these gods look is now polluted by Marvel movies and tv adaptations of books.
As I said before, it is okay to start a heathen path without having had any kind of contact (real or imagined) with any gods or goddesses. Far more important are the following:
- Study. There isn't a central church that we can all go to for guidance. All us heathens each have to find our own path. This means studying what others do or have done in relation to their path or religion. There are a lot of books on the subject. Some are very good and some are very bad. The one recommendation that all heathens agree upon is to read the eddas. The Poetic Edda and The Prose Edda are easily found in online bookshops. Read them, then read them again as, while most heathens don't consider them canon or "the word of the gods", most do agree they are the groundwork upon which most heathen paths are and should be built.
- Beware fakers. There are plenty of heathens out there at all levels who talk the talk but can't or don't walk the walk. No matter what other heathens say, you are responsible for your own actions and beliefs. As such, you should cast a critical eye on everything you learn from whatever source (including the eddas) and decide whether it is true, relevant and/or appropriate. This also extends to books and websites. Just cos something has been published (I'm looking at you, Llewellyn!) or appears on a professional-looking website, that doesn't mean it's true.
- Unverified Personal Gnosis. UPG is fine, but don't blow it out of proportion. You can use whatever hunches or feelings you like to inform your heathenry. But remember two things. First, your UPG is yours and yours alone. No-one else is likely to understand it quite the way you do. More than that, they don't even have to respect it. Just cos it is important to you, doesn't give it any value to anyone else. Secondly, our minds have a tendency to play tricks on us. Nothing says that the gods have to be trying to communicate with you. Not every thing you observe has to be "a message". Now you're on your path, you will likely take notice of ravens a lot more. Odin kept ravens and they were very important and significant animals to the heathens of a thousand years ago. That said, ravens are a common sighting across the UK. Seeing one or more ravens in your daily travels doesn't mean the gods are trying to contact you. That's not to say that ravens are never a sign. But seeing them in their natural habitat behaving naturally isn't it. If you're in a library and one flies into the building to sit near you, that's a more unusual circumstance. But ravens outside in the UK? That's not enough of an event, frankly. The same goes for any sign. Kirk Douglas starring in "The Vikings" on UKTV Gold isn't a sign, either. It just boils down to using common sense. It is similar to the old adage, "If something seems too good to be true, it probably is...". Perhaps that should be in the Havamal? "If something lends itself to a mundane explanation - well, that's probably it."
- Desire to contribute. As I said, sometimes the excitement of having newly joined a heathen group and/or recently joined the faith can be overwhelming. The strong urge to commit ourselves and show how we belong can motivate us but also cause us to act questionably (e.g. the aforementioned divine contact stories). If you really are frothing at the mouth with enthusiasm, why not volunteer to work for whatever groups, kindreds or hearths you have decided to join? Not all tasks require in depth knowledge or experience and many organisers would really appreciate some of the day to day admin being taken off their hands. It's all important work and might even help you to make new friends, interact with fellow heathens and learn more about the faith while "on the job".
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