Asatru
Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 12 Aug 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.
| catlin |
12 Aug 2002 |
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Some days ago I had a discussion with someone about Asatru.
I did some internet research about them but I'd like to know more about your point of view about Asatru. Do you see it as just another Pagan group or do you see more behind it?
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| Pollux |
12 Aug 2002 |
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I see it as a sub-group of Paganism. Like Wiccans, for example.
Of course there are certain things in common, and others that characterize it.
But probably I should read some to get confident and very specific...
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| jema |
12 Aug 2002 |
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well, one of the main differances is in the history. asatro has a continous history in a way wicca has not. people in the scandinavian countries and in iceland have been keeping the faith alive all those years.
it is also not as eclectic as other pagan faiths.
most asatru kindreds will not do anything that is not "pure" asatru. it is only too bad that the pureness of the faith many times have been mistaken for some groups and they strive after the "pureness" of the blood too.
but after all - the rasicm in the asatru is there and oddly enough it is at its strongest in the american branches.
(or so i gather from the various internet sites and people i know)
i have friends in sweden who are asatru that are really open and accepting and who are not exclusivly for people with a northern backgrond.
asatru is a pagan religion is that it is a religion with many Gods and have pre-christian roots. but in many ways it is NOT an earhtbased religion. the vanatru is though.
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| catlin |
12 Aug 2002 |
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Hi Jema,
Yep, it was this "pureness in blood" stuff which I found in the sites I checked and which provoked me to start this thread. The background is that I was invited to a gathering with mainly Asatru folk and I just wanted to get some more information but I think I won't go there because I am allergic to "pureness in blood".
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| jema |
12 Aug 2002 |
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catlin, i think you need to check with that specific group. i can't really sit here and say all asatru are this or that. some may be racist - but i would dare say that at least about 80% are not racist at all. unfortunatly it only takes one rotten egg to shame the whole basket.
most kindreds are actually really nice and i see what they are doing as a way to restore and keep the old faith alive.
one has to remember that the asatru of the old was not racist at all.
if i were you i would go - keep and open mind and look around and judge for yourself.
if you find it to be a racist meeting just leave. but i really think you might be surprised.
a blot is a wonderful thing to go to. (or so i hear)
esp if you are interested in history, lore, runes, mythology, music, ritual etc.
and as i wrote earlier - it is mainly the american asatru associations that is striving for pure blood.
(which is kind of odd considering none of them would actually fit in in that category themselves)
one must also separate the asatru kindreds and groups from political groups that use asatru symbols.
(this just as a general statement, and not implying you have them confused)
well, whatever you do - i have no doubt it is what is best for you right now
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| Liliana |
12 Aug 2002 |
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Most I know end up being the worst Pagan Fundalmentalists, becuase they believe their way is the only right one. They can believe what they want but i cant say i agree
:THP
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| Pollux |
12 Aug 2002 |
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I didn't think there could be such a fundamentalist streak in asatru...
I probably just knew that their pantheon was Norse-oriented... and other little silly things...
You live, you learn... :(
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| Laurel |
12 Aug 2002 |
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I think Asatru is a very interesting and well-researched, well-grounded modern pagan religion. The spiritual roots they draw upon are significant and deep. The National Socialist party in the Nazi era did indeed attempt to pervert it, and there are racialists who consider themselves as devout followers and keepers of the "real" faith of Asatru. They are the minority, not the majority.
There's racialists and bigots within any and all religions, even the most life and love embracing tragically. (Well, I've never met a biggoted practioner of Baha'i but there's got to be at least one. *s*)
Laurel
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| raeanne |
12 Aug 2002 |
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Originally posted by jema
...(which is kind of odd considering none of them would actually fit in in that category themselves)...
I found this comment to be very interesting. My following comments have nothing to do with "pure blood" or anything else that should in any way be misunderstood as supporting racism or anything of the like. It is just a comment about Americans and their ancestry.
Most people who immigrated into the USA in the mid to late 1800s and early 1900s tended to settle in communities made up of people from the same motherland. Irish immigrants settled in communities of Irish immigrants and German immigrants settled in German communities. People married from within their own community so their children were genetically no different than they would have been if the parents had stayed in the “old country”. Even today, a lot of Americans are still predominately the same as their European ancestors. There are still "Dutch" communities and "Norwegian" communities, and just about every other type of community you can imagine. They have local celebrations honoring their country of origin. Maybe this is supposed to be a big secret, but most Americans really do take a great deal of pride in the country their ancestors came from.
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| catlin |
13 Aug 2002 |
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Hi raeanne,
Maybe this explains why so many Americans and Australians are fond of discovering their family tree.
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| jema |
13 Aug 2002 |
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Originally posted by raeanne
I found this comment to be very interesting. My following comments have nothing to do with "pure blood" or anything else that should in any way be misunderstood as supporting racism or anything of the like. It is just a comment about Americans and their ancestry.
in no way did i mean to offend anyone. i guess my communictions skills are just down this week.
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| raeanne |
13 Aug 2002 |
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jema,
I didn’t take anything you said as being racist or anything, I just didn’t want my comments to be misunderstood or twisted into something I didn’t say. I could easily see how someone could take what I said and turn it around to be me saying that most Americans are “pure bloods” which is not what I was saying at all so I just wanted to cover myself.
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| Kiama |
14 Aug 2002 |
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Two of my best friends, one being an ex-lover, are Asatru. Both are wonderful eople, very open-minded, and not racist. One is from Cologne in Germany, and the other is fom my country.
The most I know about Asatru i that members of this Pagan religion revere the Aesir, a certain group of Gods which the Norse revered along-side th eVanatru.
The Aesir are supposedly mainly war deities, whilst the Vanir (Vanatru) are fertility deities. Although, there were two Vanir wthin th Aesir who are worshipped by most Asatru, due to the fact that they came over to the Aesir as a sort of pact of peace between the two gous: Freyja dn Frey.
The view of th eafter-life is quite amazing to study. There are so many different places you can go to after death, such as Valhalla, the Hall of the Slain, or Hel (not a nice place to go) or Heimdall's mountains,.... Once you are dead, if ou died curageously by the sword, you go to Valhalla where you feast with Thor, and then do battle, practicing for the end of the world, Ragnarok, the final battle by which all creeatures are destroyed except one man and one woman, Lif an Lifthrasir, who hide beneath the root sof ggdrasil, the World Tree, and help tart out creation again... (It's a ciurcular thing)
One of the main festivals for Asatr is Yule, the Winter Solstice (I'm not sure if it is calld b another name by Asatruar though...) and Ostara I think.. Im a bit rusty on all this!
An Asatruar festival, as far as I have gathered in the time I have known my two Asatruar friends, is a big thing... Long halls are favoured, if not outside, and home-made meads a popular drink.
A common symbol for an Asatrua to wear is Thor's Hammer.
That's basically all I know about Asatru, oh, and that the Runes are the favoured Divintion system, but are also used for other things... The number 8 is considered a sacred number too.
Kiama
PS- I once rmember asking my Asatru friend what was so apealing about the Norse afterlife. He said that there was so much to do. I asked, like what? And he replied... 'Freyja'. ;)
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| catlin |
16 Aug 2002 |
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Hi Kiama,
Thanks for the brief summary on Asatru. Very interesting.
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| DarkElectric |
18 Aug 2002 |
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I'm really interested in Asatru.
I would like to find an Icelandic website where I can get information that would be less inclined to be tainted with American Racism. These people give whatever they touch a bad name. The American Neo Nazis also have adopted a form of Christianity and turned that into a "God given reason" for white supremacy. I wish these people would all just shut up and go away. They prove that bad ideas can get worse. I really would like to find some more legitimate information on Asatru. I see it as a separate religion, which also uses magick,under the general heading of "Paganism". It seems a lot more shamanic than Wicca.
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| catlin |
20 Aug 2002 |
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Hi Jema,
Thanks for the links!!!
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| DarkElectric |
23 Aug 2002 |
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Thanks for the links, Jema!
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The Asatru thread was originally posted on 12 Aug 2002 in the Spirituality board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Spirituality, or read more archived threads.
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