Seasonal reckoning: Michaelmas, Equinox and Vetrnætr Northern European Pagans often complain that we know almost nothing about the old religion, only to fill the gaps with shallow inventions or practices appropriated from other cultures. I think much of this problem comes from our unwillingness to scrutinize early Northern European Christianity and recognize the wealth of… Continue reading What Michaelmas Preserves of the Pagan Autumn
Tag: Winter Nights
Grógaldr, Part 4: His Dead Mother Gives Him Words That Break Iron and Silence the Sea
Gróa’s fourth, fifth, and sixth charms turn hostile minds toward peace, break fetters from her son’s body, and quiet wind and water around his boat. On Áss, as the Moon begins to wane after the fullness of Vetrnætr, her spoken protection moves out of the grave and acts upon the world.
Grógaldr, Part 3: His Dead Mother Surrounds Him With Protection
Today, under Thorn ᚦ and the full Moon of Vetrnætr, Gróa begins to sing. Her first three charms protect her son from despair, danger on the road, and deadly waters. Each spell draws a boundary around the traveler—not a wall that keeps the world away, but a power that lets him pass through it.
From the Autumn Equinox to Winter Nights: Ancestors, Stories, and Seasonal Practice
From the autumn equinox toward Winter Nights, preparing for winter brings us closer to death and the ancestors. Explore northern seasonal traditions, stories of encounters with the dead, and ways to work magically with the Norse Runestav calendar through offerings, remembrance, and protection.