20/20 Vision

By Asrad CG When I first discovered Odinism it was a revelation in many ways for me. I already had a very strong sense of the folk and it was those folk callings that led me on a path of one discovery after another. Each step along the path revealing yet another revelation and as I took each step so the metaphorical fog began to lift and things around me became clearer and clearer.

Odinism and Philosophy

By Vidar AOR Modern Odinism often lacks an in depth philosophical worldview, through no fault of our own of course, since our renewed faith hibernated for so many centuries. Searching for wisdom and truth, it is imperative that we learn the traditional branches of philosophy, make comparative studies where possible and work towards not only a stronger New Awakening, but a New Enlightenment as well. When it comes to heathen truth what is our true metaphysics? Ontology? Epistemology? Ethics? Metaethics? Logic? Aesthetics? Existentialism? And since ours is an indigenous organic faith, we can have, (once again), both science and spirituality.

The Polar Egoic Structures and Their Influence Upon The Path To Enlightenment In Men and Women

By Eowyn OR In our journey towards enlightenment, the biggest battle we face is control of the ego. Note that I say "control" and not annihilation. There has been an erroneous drive in spiritual conditioning through blatantly- and at times, deliberately manipulative and irresponsible psychological language- to suggest ego annihilation is necessary for evolution; this has caused great harm to those seeking enlightenment. The mind and ego are incredible forces within our intelligence and mental activity is the centre of consciousness: every thought creates a new centre of identification and what we describe as the ego is actually a flow of conscious or semi-conscious events, which can operate in a relatively integrated way.

Exploring the Blot – Part 3: Artefacts

,
By Mark Puryear As a ceremonial religion, Odinism utilizes various implements in the worship of our deities. These items are sacred symbols embodied within the very strata of our ancestral belief system, which allow us to connect to the ritual purpose of communication with the Gods on a deeper spiritual level.

Exploring the Blot – Part 2: The Sacred Verse

,
In ancient societies poetry was an incredibly important factor of religious expression, especially in Teutonic Europe where Skaldic and Eddic art forms were highly valued and praised among the folk. In fact, every piece of lore that has survived from the pre-Christian era in this region was written in verse. Therefore, it would be safe to say that this practice was also used in the writing of prayers (boenar) and blotar as well. When we consider the fact that the Hindus, our Indo-European cousins, have retained their sacred verse forms and meters (Anustup, Mahapadapunkti, etc.) in liturgical hymns and prayers for thousands of years, it is easy to see that the same would have been the case for us, had it not been for the Christian invasions.

Exploring the Blot – Part 1

,
By Mark Puryear The word “blot” is an Old Norse term designating a sacrifice or offering. It is etymologically linked to English “blood”, which was its original meaning; since in ancient times animal and even human sacrifices were performed to the Gods and Goddesses, with their blood being a central object of observance. This may be shocking to some, but what many should know is that every race in every land on earth has practiced some form of blood sacrifice at one time or another..

Positive Energy

Today I would like to talk to you about positive energy, and no I am not trying to sign you up to a new energy company with dual fuel discounts, no, today I want to talk about a mindset, the way in which we as Odinist can and do influence Wyrd's web, that web which connects all things, all matter, all life. The Great Web of Wyrd

Hierarchy of Needs

,
Often over dinner conversation in our household, we discuss the chaos that surrounds our Folk. We are usually left grasping at exactly “why” the terrible things in this world are allowed to continue. Why do the powers that be allow the most despicable activities to continue? Interestingly enough there is an explanation. It begins with the business world…the economic world.

Death: The path to vibrant life

By Eowyn OR Death is such a huge concern, that it is central to some spiritual traditions; so this brief discussion can do little other than whet our taste buds to its flavour and essence so we might gain a snapshot feel for its character. Hence, without further ado, let us define what we mean by "death."

The Solitary Path

By Mike P AOR I do not know the true figures, but I would hazard a guess that about 80% of the Odinic Rite membership celebrates its religion in a solitary manner. Which means that for the vast majority of us Blot and Sumbel are simply not going to happen – we have no-one with whom to share such occasions, no-one we can join in prayer or practice. Or have we?

Attracting Women to the Rite – Some considerations.

,
By Eowyn OR As a revolutionary organisation operating within the context of a modern universalist culture, the OR faces many challenges to not only sustain folkish ways, but also to build towards a better future for its people with an infrastructure that honours multiversal values. Amongst the most pressing challenges we face is that of attracting more women into the Rite. This is not merely an exercise in building numbers, nor even about trying to have equal numbers of each sex (as desirable as this might be); it is about a fundamental balancing of the energies that create the matrix on which the Rite's activities are woven.

Criticism or Endorsement of the OR Way?

By Heimgest CG This has been a very good year for the Rite on many levels. There have been too many initiatives and activities conducted this year to list them all here, suffice to say we have advanced in many areas.