Then I declare Skal to you. I had a major fight with family yesterday, my Christian grandmother despite knowing my faith let me crash with her for the night, and now I am enjoying a good drink while thinking about my faith as a Norse pagan
I'm not 2 minutes into this video but I wanted to say as a Christian I appreciate the mutual respect. I catch some grief a lot for not taking a bigger stance against Paganism or Islam. But as Jesus showed us you can't be spiteful to someone and expect them to want to join you. With so much fighting in the world, I'm glad to see some peace amongst the spiritual.
I like that he has respect for reigions other than his own. I am Christian, though I'm looking into Paganism (I'm looking into my ancient Cetic past). I have a deep respect for both paths and have for nearly 30 years. We all have a path that is best for us.
I was raised a Christian and what I've noticed is that most Christians are actually very rude (mainly older Christians). They're often homophobic, trandphobic, maybe even racist which is against what the Bible says. I believe that as long as you treat people with kindness and respect, believe what you want.
Norse Paganism, at least for me, is big on respect. My wife is Christian so if we both didn’t respect each others views we as a whole just wouldn’t work.
Its so difficult to explain this to christian-raised people who haven’t done research in to anything else. My wife asks me if I pray, and I tell her not exactly. I believe in destiny, and I live my life by trusting that what happens is the gods will and that it all will lead me to where my soul was meant to be to accomplish the task it was set forth to do. Here and there I will speak with the gods and ask for favor or guidance, but thats the extent of my “prayer”.
@@noregrveidr8178 In theory, christianity is just like paganism in that aspect. However, modern christians don’t understand the concept of destiny as their religion teaches. They dont even seem to consider it. Also, their idea of prayer is a regular thanksgiving and worship of their god, whereas what I do is more of pleading for an outcome. If anything, it reads pagan and christians behave more like pagans than actual christians as the religion is taught.
@@andrewgood7586 "what happens is the gods will" Nah mate that's just straight up Christianity. You can pretty word it as much as you want but it reads more like "I bugger the deities everyday because that's what they do in Christianity" Even when we know that the deities were only called on special occasions, not for random bs.
Pagans prayed daily, likely multiple times a day, they gave true devotion in the forms of mass sacrifices of various kinds of offerings. Prayer is very pagan, this is a known recorded thing by pagans of every culture in history.
I’ll be honest I’ve struggled A LOT trying to unlearn the Christian way of things. I catch myself repeating old behaviors & beliefs. It’s a rough battle when I want to wipe it clean so badly. Seeing videos like this definitely help me maneuver through it
@@philymcnillyhe may be your truth but not necessarily THE truth. We leave you to be a slave to your religion dont bash our freedom to live in our belief system.
@@TacticoolVIKINGBeardHe is THE truth THE way and THE life. Truth is objective by nature. Should look into the historical accounts of the death and resurrection of Jesus if you struggle to except things from the Bible or have past hurt from the church. God bless
One more thing that the christians bring with them is preaching, you’re a better believer if you try to shove your religion on others and justify your beliefs through others. Great video, all the best from Sweden!
The reason I subscribed to you a while ago was because you really do make it make sense. People seem to talk in vague circles about all of this, and you know how to get to the core of a concept and make it digestible. Its much appreciated!
Excellent video! I'm a Serb and we have a thing called "Slava" (literally just us, no other Slavs have it). It's a day when we celebrate our family patron, a tradition that descends directly from paganism. My family's patron is St. Nicholas who is more or less a replacement for the Slavic god Veles (a god very similar to Loki) and a protector of sailors and travelers.
St Nikola is the protector of sailors and travelers, he was a real man from greece. Veleš, Perun, Radogost and the rest of them are dead. My name is Nikola, was born on the day of st Nikola and baptized in the church of stNikola. Bog te blagoslovio rode moj, napustili smo drevne bogove davnih dana. Naši kraljevi su svakog idola zapalili da razbije poveznicu i kletvu njihovu. Slava Kristu i našem rodu brate, budi blagoslovljen.
Veles is still recognized and known by many Slavs & that recognition is growing, along with the Slavic pantheon, in Rodnovary for instance. I've met some in that community. I have seen Slava translated as glory. Slava written as Слава has cropped up in the last couple of years in a different context as I'm sure you've seen. Nice to hear the word & concept of it gets to have a peaceful celebratory usage too! My understanding of Nicholas comes from the Netherlands Nikolaas, Sinterklaas, different guy, patron of those same things and also unmarried girls. I grew up among many Dutch in New York state and we all, whatever our heritage, put out wooden shoes Dec 5th with a carrot & hay for his horse & found chocolate coins & spice cookies there in the morning. Among us girls it was in recognition that we have the right to choose, not be sold off / forcibly married off to whoever our father ordered us to marry. 😂 He used to put coins in stockings or shoes left by a hearth to dry for ancient girls to pay their own dowry so they too could choose, & it eventually changed how life goes for us. The one that's the bishop from Myra, did too, it is said. So I don't know if that interests you, but that's how he's recognized over here.
@@WildWoodsGirl65 that is very awesome. I didbt know he was a protector of unmarried girls. Here is the same thing with the boots and stokings. The real st Nikola was a great man. Punched a heretic right in his mouth when he was say some ungodly things about Jesus. Slava is glory or celebration in my language. The real meaning of the word may be lost. It was a tribal name of the Sclaveni and there was another great tribe called the Antes. Ante is the most croatian name you can find. And Slaven as well. But the difference is slava has a lot of meanings Ante does not.
@@skin4700 The spirit of generosity too. ... & He's also the patron of thieves, lol, especially those who have stopped it. And here we are on a video about Vikings... There's a joke in there somewhere I'm too sleepy right now to find. 😂 Thanks for telling me what you did. 🦌🌲🥀
This is a Brilliant Episode and vital to the understanding, communication and integrity of today’s International Peace Negotiations and Conflict Resolution. It will take a True Scholar, like Yourself to find the the right coarse of action on a Global scale. You may believe this is a rant , however I believe it’s vital for the survival of humanity. Thank You for Your Time and Incredible Work. Love and Respect from Texas
First of all I adore the random hummingbirds in the background 🙏🏼 Second I think you're absolutely right as to why your channel is growing. I'm very inquisitive myself, and understanding to me is one of the most important things in life. I will say that I did hold a grudge against Christianity as a whole when I was younger, but after finding my path it became clear that it was unnecessary. There's too much in life to experience and too little time, let the self righteous burn themselves down.
Thank you for this video it was something I personally needed ! I’m a Latino who’s been following the Norse spirituality for three years. My experience has been relatively good so far, growing up I lived in atheist household and looking back I think it was good that I did. I was able to see things from a different perspective and opened myself not just on relationships with people but in life and what’s really important, however even though I’m in the process of learning and figuring things out I can’t help but feel day by day a little closer to this pantheon. And again thank you for the informational video !
I'm just intrigued and curious now, how did you start following our ancestors beliefs? (I'm Swedish btw) 😊 I'm really interested in learning about ppl and a latino practicing asatro, your my first! 😁 You be true 2 what ur feeling ❤ /Swedish gal :)
@@ananannanas I’ve always been a fan of the classic poems like Beowulf, Epic of Gilgamesh, and Grendel as a kid in school they would always make us read these types of stories so it would always be a plus for me however during it all I found my passion at a early age and I’m great full for that. Once I heard that the stories were just based off of other older ones I became interested and started learning and finding the real sources to the point where I came across the Norse pantheon. Even before I found the pantheon I’ve always had the same views, thoughts, ideas, and beliefs of spirituality and nature to it. And i guess you can say from there the rest would be history I’ve been a devotie ever since. I may not have ancestors who are connected to it though it wouldn’t change the fact that I could still respect and appreciate the other spiritual side of it in my own way honoring and respecting everything that life has to offer.
@@Ravenoustu9 thank for your clear n nice answer. I really love learning how ppl think n work n so on. Especially when it comes 2 topics that I like. :) So may I ask; Do you practice it so u celebrate with midvinterblot/midwinter sacrifice instead of x-mas n so on? And do you really believe that Oden, Tor, Loke, fenrisulven and so on really exist?
@@Ravenoustu9 If you are Latino, depending on your ancestry you probably do have ancestors who were Germanic pagans, as well as greco-roman and even Celtic pagans although it would be pretty far back. Iberia has been home to many peoples. Celts, Romans, Germans, etc. I also assume you have some native ancestry, they have some pretty rich traditions you could look into and incorporate/syncretize with Germanic paganism or whatever you choose to follow, as this is what people in the ancient world did.
@@monkeymoment6478 I actually have family in Girona Spain where the old Aragon kingdom ruled before plus being so close to the border on the northeastern side of Iberia where the Bell Beaker invasion took part. I’m almost sure there’s history their connected to my ancestors dating back to those times. I was actually able to trace my family down to the Aragon era, and I’m almost certain I could go back even further which is what I’m in the process in doing at the moment.
Hey Brother! I've been watching your stuff for about a year or so now and your knowledge / content has really pushed me to look deeper into life. I've always had a connection with nature, but didn't know exactly how to dive deeper until I started researching and diving deeper into paganism (especially the Norse studies). I just want to thank you and say, Keep up the great work. I understand exactly why the Ancient Norse culture had their seasonal rituals. Living in Alaska, the summer months (grow season) is SUPER short and the winter months are VERY long. Life living off the land would be extremely difficult without a strong community working together and without nature to provide what is needed. Again, keep up the awesome content.. and enjoy your time in the sunny California state.
Techniacally the same could be said for any religion though. You follow a set of codes, laws, or morale principles, because it pleases your God(s). Religion is a way of life for everyone who beliefs...regardless of their particular religion.
@@theimperialnord38 Religion is simply finding the right way to live in a particular worldview. If you believe in germs, hand-washing is a logical thing to do. If you believe in a river goddess, you take care of the river. If you believe in gods, it makes sense to talk to them ritually.
As a Christian, I fully agree with everthing you have said and thank you for an informative video. I told several Pagan friends that aspects of what they are practising has more to do with the Kabbalah than any native practices of the British Isles. Similarly, the teachings of the man commonly called "Christ" is often tarred with the dogma of the Church - the two are not the same thing.
with all due respect, sir, Free Masons aren't Christians. everyone knows when you get to the 31st degree you find out that you serve and worship Lucifer. Not trying to be contentious, just truthful.
@@scientiautverum because there is plenty of evidence out there for anyone willing to learn the truth. Your secret society isn't that secret. There are masonic lodges in every town, and it's naive to think that everyone will be hush-hush about it when you've got millions of members.
@@jayharry2237 I can only speak for England, Wales and Scotland but we have never been a secret society partly because of that very reason - do you not see how you are undermining your own argument? Also, the rite to which you originally refer (probably the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite but there are others with 33+ degrees) is just one of many and which, in England and Wales at least, is open only to those who profess the Trinitarian Christian faith. As you have given an answer based solely on hearsay, may I again ask, how do you know?
@@scientiautverum I'm not doing your research for you buddy. It's out there for all to see. Let me who you you swear your alligence to when you hit that 31st degree, I'll be here to say "I told you so".
This was interesting to watch. I'm on the Hellenic side of things. I like that you mentioned Arizona and rain rituals, I live in Arizona and rain is a big part of my spirituality and my craft.
Christian dont represent their own religion. They allowed gay marriage under there roofs going against what the bible say about homosexuality. Their gods is freedom and wanting no consequences from nature. Most modern day christians are milk toast worldly people. Dont expect respect from someone who cant respect their own texts or ways of life.
Many are disrespectful because they are stuck with scripture that tells them they are the only right ones. And some of this was written way after the events took place. I love Jesus, but don't consider myself Christian.
A am a Christian, and you are spot on about everything. Blow my mind. The Bible is so clear about this, the Church is just to afraid to teach this. It's to "scary, and weird".
While I can appreciate things about Christianity now as an adult, it never really stuck for me. I've always been more Pagan. In many ways I also feel like an American techno-nomad searching for roots. I feel the need for a tradition, yet I feel pulled in too many different directions. Norse paganism fascinates me but I don't know whether it would fit. Though I do find that Hermeticism resonates with me a great deal. Its history runs parallel to that of monotheism (passed down in secret to avoid persecution), but its ideas are compatible with many other traditions, including Pagan ones.
I'm about the same, but went with the Greek because I'm just a big Helleno-phile who loves the myths and philosophers' takes on the myths (both old and new, Greek and non-Greek, spiritual and secular), but I don't really like calling myself a Hellenist... still it does seem to scratch that spiritual itch for me in a way that other paths just haven't. :)
The thing that really watered the roots I'd already uncovered for me was taoism and Buddhism. They see things in a way closer to how we do. They see the cycles. The Buddhists I find qualms with however. They do not love the cycles... They live to escape them. Fools... I guess I do get it, but it's not for me. However they taught me a lot about looking within tofind my gods instead of within the world.
Thanks for this. I'm a lifelong agnostic who grew up in a lax Christian household, and I've been casually exploring and steadily drifting into paganism this year. I've never been comfortable with terms like "worship" or "working with", and though I have some level of belief in the reality of the deities, online I still generally feel like I fit in more with the nontheistic-pagan groups than the polytheistic ones. Mostly I try to fit small levels of ritual into everyday life as best fits my personality and location in modern times, to increase my focus and intentionality in cultivating a sense of sacred in the mundane, for which I started to include deities (and for that I like to use terms like celebrate, honor, and invoke). I focus on the Greek pantheon personally but just use the title "eclectic pagan" because 1) I'm not Greek, 2) I'm still a 'baby' in the very slow process of reading all the things, and 3) I dislike labels in general / just like the process of exploring in and of itself, and still take inspiration and influence from other traditions too.
I love that you said basically to just follow your path. I was seeing a friend while traveling, we were at a bar. I'm a vet and wear til Valhalla perfect shirts, they do good stuff. Anyways, a couple guys, very tipsy, asked about the shirt. Then it turned into what's Valhalla, do you believe that, etc. It was annoying but whatever. Everything ended when I said, what if everyone is right? Christians, pagans, Muslims, Hindu, etc, each path is right for that person. So in the end of our time in this world, we are all right. If it brings you peace, makes you a better you, I'm so for people following what works for them. I've walked a few in my life. Now I'm feeling drawn to the belief system of my ancestors. Thank you for sharing with us.
I always found the notion of having a "patron" God as somewhat unbalanced and fragmented from a greater whole. I had to chuckle at the Loki and horse reference, as you are bound to trigger some furries. I agree that deep down, everyone is pagan. I was a monotheist years ago who always struggled with trying to find a rationalization for the nonsense that was presented to me as spiritual truth. I was always a pagan, I unbeknownst at the time, was always practicing minor rituals, feeling the animist connection to nature and true spirituality, and as I sought answers to some of my more perplexing experiences not answered adequately by monotheism nor the dead views of scientific nihilism; I found the right explanations, feelings, and completeness from the old ways of my ancestors. In essence, I quit resisting what I already was, I liberated myself from the cultural and religious shackles pushed on me from the world, and relaxed into simply being.
I’d also agree that matrons/ patrons are kinda weird, that being said it does make sense that modern pagans spend some more time on gods that further there specific dreams/ desires, or who’s presence in life has more to do with their day to day life/ occupation, as an example I tend to usually only pray to agricultural deities because I’m a botany major. My friend only prays to Astaria, titan goddess of shooting stars because she wants to be an astrologer. (Astrologer…..-Astaria. It’s literally in the name.) if that’s the only goal she truly cares about, then it makes sense that’s all she’ll invoke. But I’m sure one annyoying gripe we can all get behind is people only working with the big gods, the ancient world was filled with thousands of gods and you’re just picking between the 20 ones you can remember🙄? Drives me insane.
That's really the nature of the human species, transporting their culture, hierarchies and traditions to religion. In some Catholic countries, where societies are very matriarchal, the cult of Mary, mother of Christ, surpasses the one of Jesus and even God.
2:40 in "The Saga of Hrafnkel Frey's Godi" from the sagas of Icelanders, its mentioned a few times that Hrafnkels "favorite god" is Frey, and that he makes many sacrifices to Frey, which is how he got the title of "Frey's Godi." Would this be more of one of those patron god type things or just a spiritual worship?
at 6:30 you mention how Faith was brought in and I noticed behind you a little humming bird came in to view on your right hand side really quickly to check out your garden. Hail Woden!
Catholicism is much more pagan than many Christians would care to admit. For example, the saints are figures with particular influences whose help can be invoked when specifically required. St. Christopher is the patron saint of finding lost things. You can invoke his help to find your car keys, or have a little figure of him on your dashboard for when your Sat Nav stops working. Is this is any different from invoking Loki’s help to trick an enemy into falling into a trap? Or from the numerous Roman hearth gods, or the way many Hindus venerate different manifestations of Vishnu for different reasons and purposes? To me at least these seem to be distinctions without a real difference - practices based on deep seated human needs that have simply been overlaid with different theologies/belief systems.
That is an interesting way of looking at invocation throughout religions, but quick correction Saint Anthony is the patron of lost items. Saint Christopher is the patron of traveling.
As a Christian I agree catholicism is pagan. I'm Puerto Rican and I grew up in Puerto Rico 🇵🇷 and had friends who practiced santeria and they were Catholics. They mixed in a lot of Catholicism with their pagan practices. I found it interesting.
@@sally9352 I'm Catholic and I think sometimes it's hard to distinguish real Catholicism from folk Catholicism. Or basically, big T "Tradition" vs little T "tradition". The only time when it's required to invoke someone for a cause, is when you are trying to get someone canonized as a saint, because they need two miracles attributed to them before they are declared a saint. Other than that, the use of patron saints is not required and it's usage varies. My family is from the Caribbean and I notice that we don't have a lot of the little T "traditions" that Catholics from other cultures have and vice versa, especially regarding saints. We don't have things like Santeria and Voudoun and those aren't from Catholicism but from Yoruba tradtions. In places where the slaves became Catholic but weren't Yoruba you don't see it.
Since discovering Norse paganism, I've had a hard time understanding how I was supposed to "worship" so many gods. A friend of mine would always say I should pray habitually or try to allow them to come to me, but it always felt "too Christian" when I thought about it. A lot of my spiritual and magical working recently has helped disconnect from the Abrahamic worldview and focus on what paganism means to me. All that being said, this video has perfectly described what I've observed in other pagans and in myself, and has helped me even further understand my belief; fantastic work!
As someone still navigating religious trauma after having been born into a Christian family and being in that faith almost my entire life (mostly by force), and newly realizing my Pagan beliefs, I really appreciate this video. So much of what I've been doing for the past year of beginning to work through it has felt "wrong," in a sense, and now I'm beginning to understand why. Thank you so much for this! I will definitely be considering these things as I continue to grow. :)
I am in a similar boat. I am grateful that my Christian family are surprisingly accepting of my beliefs. Even my normally extremist Christian grandmother.
I'll respect a Christian if they also show respect. They call me a LARPer, and all bets are off, I'll call them something far worse. They try to reconvert me, I'll know I can't trust them. If they truly "love thy neighbor", they wouldn't care what their neighbors choose to worship, love, and live, so long as they contribute to the community for the betterment.
Representing a long forgotten fashion or practice or demeanor, does not depict one being a LARPer. Get a head on, man. Just because Marvel took some Gods and made money off them, which is just capitalistic blasphemy right there and are people that should be shoved in a porter potty and set on fire, doesn't mean people wearing some chainmail are fucking Role-playing Thor. We wear Mjolnir as a sign of strength, integrity, and health of the heart; the actual practice.. Not because a half witted steroid driven celebrity portrays him in a physical relevant modern standpoint to look like an absolute goof, conforming to the society you're a part of's standards. If anything, people performing plays of "the crucifixion of Jesus" whom never existed, are more of larpers than those meditating to Tyr. Just saying.
@@morphedtyphoon The Hellenic gods have been monetize for decades and you dont see dudes walking around wearing Greek or Roman robes on their day to day lives. If you're wearing chainmail you are definitely larping
I'm Christian and I don't know of any Christians that belive people who practice paganism are lapers. We do believe that what you practice is real. I have spoken to atheist that believe people who practice Norse paganism are larpers because most atheist are naturalist.
Personally I don't like how so many people take what they want from each cultures then recreate it in their own version and then demean everybody that don't believe in what they created. Or how people that just joined a certain group now they're experts and give others misinformation.
I've been saying these same things since the 90s. Historian and philosopher, though I never put the latter on myself, everyone keeps reminding me of that, I've been teaching about the natural origins of religion as a way to bring logic and understanding to things humans at the time had no other framework to understand, and this evolved as humanity evolved, and is still evolving today. That's gotten me one of two receptions, either kicked out of a group because they don't like what I say, or thanked and embraces because my words are founded in logic, and help the people I've taught understand why our spirituality is rooted in the beliefs and understanding it is. I'm just glad that someone with a bigger platform than the small classes I've taught is on the same wavelength, which is why I appreciate your work.
All the Christians I know are great people, I just don't jive with the beliefs that were shoved down my throat. As an apostate I agree with all of these, it's been easy for me to transition to paganism/heathenry because of how I grew up especially around my father who loved nature, he was a hunter and fisherman. But I literally just threw everything in the trash and started from scratch. I kept seeing certain stuff such as patron god, having faith, Ask and Embla...all too reminiscent of Christianity.
Wasn't the concept of patron saints descended from tutelary dieties from Greco-Roman paganism? I don't know if it was a Greco-Roman specific thing or if it was a general Indo-European tradition, but it definitely is more pagan in its roots than Jewish.
@@connorperrett9559 The gods don't give a shit about us. The Norns care more, just sayin. people wasting their time with this patron god shit, cringy too. Ancestors and wights are more important than "the gods".
Definitely one of my favorite videos from you that’s far! Thank you for making it so simple I’ve known I was in Animas my whole life but just never knew the name until recent years.
I love that the grass roots of our values comes from paganism , then is dispersed by our family’s religious belief system. I grew up catholic and loved this religion as a child but as an adult paganism resonates with me as I find it so relatable and as you mention logical. Thank you for your insights. I love your vids. I’m not sure if you’ve done this yet but I’d love to see you compare paganism holidays v Christian/muslin/Jewish holidays we see today. Where are these holidays derived from?
Our pagan ancestors were also violent and intolerant. See Scythians killing their own for worshipping Roman Gods. It's a common thing to all religions, but only monotheism is responsible for a system of mass conversion ideology.
It's not like our ancient pagan ancestors were a bunch of peaceful hippies having a kumbaya to commune with Mother Nature, and got steamrolled out of nowhere. They were just as violent and mean, and did plenty of their own steamrolling.
@@bezoticallyyours83 it was not over forced conversion, though, or imperialism. That's the difference. There are levels to invasion. Norwegians at least raided & went on about their business, for instance! 😂 Finns mostly stayed in Suomi & minded their biz. But when Christians invaded or went to war they applied religion itself as a justification, a motive, a scapegoat. Conflict ought at least to be honest ffs. Vikings weren't pretending the other place was heathen lol just, those monks have loot, let's go! That is somehow more honest than pretending God Said I Can Kill You bc You're Not Just Like Me while spouting "thou shalt not kill." I mean, at least own your real motive, man. And let people keep their own beliefs. Ya don't actually have to wipe out identity in order to swipe land, goods, or whatever.
@@bezoticallyyours83 Yeah lol, I don't think so. You think Vikings were forcing people to convert & christianity wasn't? What are you on about there? 😂 I prefer my trolls Scandinavian & mythological or at least able to comprehend comments. And out of my face. See ya. 🤙🙄😂
most Christians I will respect my great grandmother was very Christian and took me to church and she respected my change she passed away a few years back and I hope she gets to meet her God and in my case I'm in the military for almost 4 years now and I hope to go to volhol I'm still learning paganism and these videos helped and vids from Freyja norling help as well.
This was a beautiful video, thank you! I've never believed in Christianity, not as a child and while my parents had me baptized it was more from family pressure than faith. Heck, I was even confirmed with 14 but let's be honest here: who can *confirm* his believe in a religion at *14* ? I'm no longer member of any organized religion and I would describe myself probably best as a "syncretic pagan" - I feel a connection with the ideas of what we know of the old Gods, there isn't all that much left of continental Germanic religion though of course and as a descendant of Prussians (A Crusading order gone state, I get the Irony 😅) I sometimes feel that what little we have left of the Slavic Gods also resonates with me. And while I'm not averse to Christian believers (contrasting to vast majority here in Germany that just happens to "be" Christian but couldn't care less), heck my best friend since childhood is a LDS, the central ideas don't resonate with me. I've had a NDE over a decade ago now, I was on the edge and I had the chance to glance into the white shining abyss but I never encountered the father God and I never had the cliche Near Death Experience patterns but I came out of it with the firm conviction that nothing in this world or any other is simple enough to be boiled down to one God. Best regards Raoul G. Kunz
👍Well informative vlog, Thank You! TACK SA MYCKET! Living down in Bible belt country, the first years here, everyone wanted to know what church you belong to. Everyone wants to pray and bless you. I gave up stating none of above, as I am pegan. A shaman. In their response,, too much christianity saving religion , pushed down my throat. I quickly changed my tone ( acting a bit crazy in the head,) and said I am not from here, but you know "Alien, from other worlds". That got them shut up, and moving away from me quickly. No more offers of blessings & prayers. 🇳🇴 🇸🇪 🇺🇸
These are topics you don't really hear about in plain terms often. I had to navigate so much misinformation about paganism early in life, but I never just accepted something as "the right way" simply because some person on a forum said so. That's what I've always found so beautiful about paganism - the freedom (and encouragement) to ask questions and explore and never stop learning and seeking logical answers about the world and everything in it. Really enjoying the videos!
Catholicism is a fake religion. It’s the Roman propaganda about the Roman Jewish war, written from the Roman Perspective. Saul of Tarsus is the dude who threw James the Just (real name Jacob Zedek, or Jacob the Teacher of Righteousness) from the top of Temple Mount. Nobody who doesn’t have a reputation for lying has to constantly reassure everyone he writes to “I swear I’m not lying!” The Dead Sea Scrolls written by the Qumran community that produced John the Baptist and James the Just and Judah Thaddeus refers to Saul as “the teacher of wickedness.” Arian Christianity is at least as old, considering Constantine the Great was baptized by Eusebius who was an Arian Bishop. Wulfilla the Arian Bishop who invented the Gothic written language (he was likely the one who converted Alaric the King of the Visigoths) based the alphabet on Greek as he was from Cappadocia, but he included several Futhark letters in it, specifically I know the symbol for the number 900 in Gothic is the Futhark letter T. Arian Christianity in the time of Theodoric the Great featured a lot of the same ancestor Veneration practices that previous Gothic Pagans practiced, but it also featured elements from the Hellenic traditions that also featured prominently in Roman Catholicism. Theodoric was friendly with a LOT of Pagans, and it wasn’t until Roman Catholicism genocided the Arian Church that Roman Catholicism then genocided everyone else. Theodoric is mentioned by name on Rok Runestone in Ostergotland Sweden dated to the year 800. Oh, and everyone here should look up “Scythian Horse” there’s an image with a very distinctive hooked headdress on a horse that should come up. Compare that to the Straw Yule Goats and tell me if they strike anyone else as being a bit on the identical side. I want to make this clear; Jesus isn’t the problem with Catholicism; Saul of Tarsus is. Jesus has more in common with Arminius than he does Saul of Tarsus. They both lead a resistance and wanted the Romans out of their homelands.
As a follower of Islam, I find this video to contain a wealth of wisdom. I wholeheartedly support the notion that individuals should be free to choose their faith based on their personal preference, without any form of coercion. Read: "Whoever accepts guidance does so for his own good; whoever strays does so at his own peril. No soul will bear another’s burden, nor do We punish until We have sent a messenger. Quran
Christian here, but always interested in learning about other faiths. It is very important and often hard not to apply the lense of ones own faith, but really appreciate your detailed explanation of norse pagan beliefs. I have much respect for any man or woman who has a firm set of beliefs, those who don't are hard to trust.
Patron gods in paganism predates Christianity. Look at the Roman cults for example…adherents venerated one particular god or goddess with the understanding that the others within the pantheon also existed. The term is henotheism. And in Norse specifically there’s archaeological evidence that Thor had his own followers. Nothing wrong with having a patron so long as 1.) as Mike mentioned it’s for a specific reason (occupation related, for example…a farmer may find it advantageous to venerate Freyr, a sailor may choose Njordr, etc), and 2.) never worship any deity, veneration is the proper action…big difference.
Agree totaly, its all viking. The church tried to erase it, but thanks to the dutch guy who kept it in secret in his family, this important piece of history is preseved for humanity. When we live our lifes the way the Oera Linda tells us to, a lot of problems of modern times would be solved in a just way!
Why would it be important? It's a fake story, researchers were suspicious about the modern Frisian language that was used in some parts, that alone should make you question this shit enough.
I did the research... Not a fake story ahaha. It is different pieces of writing from different time periods and you can see the language change over time. It's not a story but it's a collection of stories. True historical document.
2:20 - Henotheistic worship of one particular deity while remaining observant and respectful of the rest of the pantheon is a lot more common than you describe here. Smiths and craftsmen would often have habits of worship that pointed more towards Thor than the other gods. Guards and Judges more towards Tyr. Leaders and Seers more towards Odin. There were also the archeologically proven Bear and Wolf cults of Germanic Europe that brought a more totemic approach to their rituals. While there was no monotheistic reverence for one god or another and a complete shunning of the rest, an individual alignment towards a particular god is very Indo-European, and to suggest it isn't - or that it wasn't common - is...a testament to a lack of education on this particular fine point, to put it as nicely as possible. I get that while on this path, everything we do is a learning experience, but I fear that in your efforts to make things so simple even the completely uninitiated can understand them, you've accidentally gone too far and made some things just plain incorrect.
Or people have had small pantheon of gods and godesses that was pray and made other ceremonial rituals daily or more often than others that was more state gods. This gods and godesses was worshiped more rarly in bigger festivities than to your personal or local pantheon ones like every year on special place.
2:56 "Even in the Norse world we have some evidence that a specific god was venerated by a specific people _for a purpose."_ He then goes on to explain exactly how Monotheistic worship differs from Henotheistic invocation. You're welcome. Oh, and maybe next time try not to nitpick before suggesting a lack of education on someone else's part, especially if it's you who clearly misunderstood something.
@@theendofoo Nice try, stupid dick. I was very careful in my wording and what I said was that he made it so simple that it teeters on there knife's edge of being incorrect. He does a wonderful job explaining everything else every other time, but Norse Paganism for Christians isn't something you can just Explain Like I'm 5.
@@theendofoo Christianity is a Semitic religion, whereas Norse Paganism is a European one. Just like with the language, the fundamentals of understanding things are very different between the two. That's why Christians have such a hard time understanding these concepts like not every god is almighty and invincible, having very human characteristics instead of having a God that acts more like a puppeteer.
Thanks for not being hostile toward Christians. I would still consider myself to be one, but totally agree with your points about how people tend to believe irrational things based on blind faith, without doing research into the actual history. If the Bible is supposed to be a rational and ethical critique of Greco-Roman and Levantine paganism (which is what I was taught as a Protestant), then it's still important to know what those pagan beliefs actually were. Otherwise, the critique can't be properly understood. This channel is helping me deconstruct. 🙂
Love the channel, brother! Of any Pagan i have followed, you are the most rational and knowledgeable. I'm pretty sure we are of like mind. Keep up the fantastic work, much appreciated!
I wouldn't have issues with someone exploring our old ways if they did so respectfully. But i see more disrespect than respect. There is so much anti-white vitrial these day, combine that with wokeness and well, we all know what happens. I see woke phd's trying to say we were multi-cultural and trans and lgbt and so and so on. Seen recently a video about the travels of Ibn Al Fadlan and the comments were atrocious. People who have no relation to us claiming true vikings were arabs and africans and it was WE who stole THIER culture. And it got worse. Funny thing is, they are the tame ones. The actual White woke Pagans are so much worse. Look, i don't care what a persons color is or who they screw.......JUST BE F**KING RESPECTFUL TO MY ANCESTRAL TRADITION.....PLEASE !?!?! I don't think it's much to ask for, but in this day and age it seems to be. We are all "nazis" if we believe our ancestral religious rights belong to us on any level. Lmao. You can't make this crap up. lol.
Its all Frissia, even Mhmd the prophd was a red haired man with a pale skin, so i think they flipped the tale to their advantage. Oera Linda book explains how 3000 years before chrst the last survivers of the great flodd set land in Frisia, today’s Friesland in the Netherlands. The last of the inhabitants of Atland, destroyed by the flodds.
Þere is no respect, if you don't show þe world þat you're worþwhile to be respected. Only whining about ain't going to cut. Wiþ þat being said: I remotely know your feelings, but þe frame "nædsi" is apparently directed at us wiþ þe intent to destroy us, so a rant won't do it.
I agree with many things you said, especially the last part, about all pagan religions basically being "the same"(/very similar) and having a focus on the gods and rituals, that are most important to their lands. I was in Japan twice and over there I gave thanks and "prayers" to the spirits and Gods of the Japanese lands, in Shinto-Shrines, I wanted to get to know them, befriend them. They were 'there', they were present and you could feel it. And why would the European Gods and Spirits bother to listen to me so many miles away :D. It just made more sense to me that way. BUT one thing I strongly disagree with is something you say in the beginning: That many people "practice and believe in the Norse Religion in a very incorrect historical way", because they "grew up in very Christian backgrounds" and are just "switching out the Christian gods for the Norse ones". (0:56) As you claim yourself to be a historian, you should be aware, that ALL of us are practicing and believing in the Norse Religion in a very incorrect historical way. The reason being simply, because none of us (NON of us: No historians, no scholars, no priests, not your favourite aunt, greatgrandmother or anyone else who might be claiming to "know the truth") has the capability to know, how our ancestors from 1000 years ago actually practiced or believed. None of us where there and christianity dominated Europe ever since. The Germanic (or Celtic, Slavic...) people of the times, in which they actually practiced pagan religions, left basically no written sources for us. Most of what we know, are things either the Romans or Christian Scholars (and yes, there were Christian Scholars, who took an interest in preserving the ancient ways for later generations, just look at the ones in Germany, who secretly wrote down pagan spells (most popular the Merseburger Zaubersprüche and Pro Nessia) in the 9th and 10th century or Snorri Sturluson, Adam of Bremen... ) so basically everything we claim to know about north/germanic religion is (and has) always been influenced and interpreted by either Christians or Romans. Therefor it shouldn't be anyones goal to "bring back the old ways" - you can try, but that's simply not possible, the old ways are lost to us in that way. Every one of your actions will always be shaped and influenced by the culture you grew up in. In the case when your ancestors are from (somewhere in north or central/west Europe) that will be the Greek and Roman and also very much the Christian Ways, mixed with some remainders of our pagan ancestors.) All we can try to do, is learn as much as possible from the little information we have left and make it work in a wholesome way.. By wholesome I mean something, most pagans will be very angry with and don't want to hear: Your ancestors were most likely some kind of Christians (or were part of another monotheistic Religion, depending, where you are from) - and Paganism is also about respecting and honouring your ancestors. You can't just pretend the last 1000 years of ancestors are irrelevant to you, your lineage, your personal or the history of the lands you live in. Your people were probably monotheistic for the last few centuries. Maybe they prayed to some saints, some angels or other deities, in a pagan manner, but they most likely practiced some kind of monotheistic religious rituals and believed there was only one God. I struggled with this for little while, when I was younger. (I consider myself part pagan since the age of 12, because that's when I just decided, that there is not enough worship of nature in the Christian believe I was raised in XD). And my parents where always very accepting, as they were not extremely religious. But they always taught me (and admonished me to have) respect for the believe of my direct lineage, for my closed relatives and ancestors. Not everything about the Christian (/monothestic) ways is bad. You can make it both work. Actually you have to be a rebel in one thing: Just don't believe in the notion, that the monotheistic God will send you to hell, if you dare to pray or worship other deities, spirits etc.. As long as you do your best to be a good human being, to tolerate, spread awareness, respecting nature, animals, your family, your ancestors, yourself and the way of others - you are already doing more than most people on this planet are capable of. And 'Neopaganism' maybe should be something for our generation, for our century, not just an imitation of old ways.😄 Some here already wrote, they pray to the Gods of traffic lights or something similar. Which makes perfect sense. It's an issue in our time, so you focus your rituals in that way :D
Completely agree. There's no possible way we can practice the "old ways" as they had done it so long ago. Not just because of lack of record keeping or what was recorded was destroyed by, for example, Romans. But also because the Gods adjust with the times (therefore we adjust as well). Like with the birth of Horus, he signified a new aeon of all life, which means we will never have the Osiris or Isis aeon ever again. We can try to emulate certain parts of those aeons, but it's impossible to fully copy it. So in my view, if you understand the Norse Gods to the best of your ability and what information is available to you and you believe in their reality, but you have a Christian lean applied, then you're still Norse pagan.
The "monotheistic" religions aren't actually monotheistic, when you dig into them. Christianity for example, you've got the the trinity, then Satan and all of the angels, which could be looked at as lesser deities. Some Christians I've said this to were kinda shocked. Others just ignored it and denied it.
As a Christian I can say that Christianity is monotheistic and yes Satan and the fallen angels are deities but anything can be a Deity it depends on what you want to worship, they are "gods" but not God. They have power because God gave them power, they are his creation and God is the creator. What Christians are saying is that you are worshipping creation not the Creator.
Christianity is a big umbrella. Not all sects recognize the trinity, etc. What you’re describing would be closest to Catholicism, which is indeed a Christian / pagan hybrid. I grew up Catholic so it was a fairly easy transition to paganism, as many of the core concepts are similar; unlike friends who grew up charismatic Christian and had a more difficult time.
@@VanirTraditionalist it also fits with the methodist, LDS and several others. Regardless of how many each act recognizes, though, they all believe in the trinity, but it's sometimes referred to as the God head. Either way, still polytheism, but with the label of monotheism. I grew up going to a methodist church, then catholic, Baptist, non denomination and LDS, so I always heard the top 3 being talked about. It never felt right or made sense to me though.
The thing I hate the most about modern Norse paganism is the Twitter brain politics. It took me forever to find people that didnt talk about facism, racism, and transphobia all day every day. The "my religion is political" and "no frith for facists" crowds are always the most angry, toxic, and aweful human benings.
I have come across some really good sources in TH-cam but also surprisingly, in Pinterest, without any of the drama nonsense & arguing & sheer fiction that persists in places like Twitter & TikTok. It has a search engine to find any topic & like here things can be saved either publicly or privately. If it exists, someone has probably saved it there & it tends to be reliable sources, from all over the world. Search engines keep giving me local results or asking if I want local results, & assume I can't click to translate. (Ad algorithms are in play). Pinterest lets me easily find source material from where something actually is or is from & how to do just about anything for that matter. I had not expected it to show me so much on cultures and paganism, but it has far more than searching browser, & shows me things I did not yet know to look up, that are related to other things I saved there, which is helpful. I scroll past the rest much faster too. It's not something that seems to be common knowledge, the pagan info in there, so maybe someone seeking an easier way to look will see this, & be helped. But I ve seen none of what bothered you there & more mature communication, so I thought it might interest you to know. I've seen no judgement or wild assumptions or dictating beliefs, at all, just sharing of valid info.
The one time I heard that quote was me being banned from a game store for shit I said on another Website that had nothing to do with them that the tard went out of his way to find lmao.
I never converted. I left the church when I was in my teens. I even rejected a baptism while I was still in church because I knew that I didn't want to be in their flock. Too much never made sense to me so I went searching on my own. I read many mythologies and I studied wicca at first for a while. It was a good place to start but I hit a brick wall so I delved deeper into the specific pantheons. Norse resonated with me more than any other. That's when I knew I found my path. I work with Egyptian, Greek and Celtic too but I mainly work with the Norse Gods.
15:00 The answer to the question if asian or black people or whatever can follow the Norse pagan path is a resounding yes! The term "Norse" does not refer to the origin of 'human race' within this religion, but to the origin of this specific pagan faith.
I love your lessons. It made me think on how some people never consider how practical many practices were, how someone tries to make 'one size fit all', when it simply CANNOT, by virtue of space, place & timing (winter climates versus tropical) etc. Sometimes people need to accept more & open their eyes & ears to reality of those situations instead of trying to make something fit that doesn't-'glass slippers'. Thank you for all your research! You would enjoy many of the groups out here in Montana!
It's funny how much some people will go on about "faith" and about their deity(ies) having "a plan" for them, but then they get hit by a car or get cancer. Was it because they didn't have "enough faith" or pray hard enough? No, man, it's because it was His/Their "will" (He/They work(s) in "mysterious ways", remember). Ok, so if everything is subject to the deity(ies)'s "will", it don't matter how much faith or praying you do, right? That's when you see the cognitive dissonance take hold behind their eyes and they get angry and end the conversation with something like "Well, everybody has the right to their own beliefs", which in this context translates as "I really don't have any idea what I believe." Faith in one hand, shit in the other, see which one fills up first.
I mean, a lot of religions teach that good and evil are perceptions we have on things, and that nature includes things that we would characterize as both. So you could technically believe in some higher plan or whatever will still obviously not appreciate it when things go badly for you.
I'm Christian and for us faith means trust. I have faith/trust in God because everything he says he will do in my life he's done. If I got cancer or died tomorrow it doesn't take away my faith/trust in him and it doesn't take away that everyone has the right to their own belief.
Why should anybody believe they are exempt from having to die someday, seeing that everybody does? Maybe we pray to be safe and to live a bit longer, ourselves and our loved ones.
I love this video, it showed up in my feed, so it's the first time I've ever seen you. I am not Pagan, and though I was raised Christian. I no longer practice any religion. Growing up in Christianity I was a bit of a black sheep, always questioning the teachings, the reasons, the meanings, and most of them I had to find answers for myself, even becoming a teacher in it for a short while. I traveled around a few countries doing "Missions", and while I found joy in the faces of the people we helped, I felt like part of it was a lie and only to try and bring more people into the religion than to just be good people, and I started to back away from the church. I dove deeply into Greek, Roman, Norse, Celt, Hindu, Islam, Egyptian, Buddhist teachings and histories to try and find answers and understand where the teachings came from, and in the end I found most of my current non-religious practice now being, all of them in the end stand for the same thing, and all share stories and pantheon standings, and that there is more behind all of them than most people understand. That being said, I will say that everything was on point in your explanations except for the Invocation/Patron thing, because in Christianity the Patron Saints each stood for a certain protection or to help, like you were saying about Odin and Freya (apologies for my English spelling of them) being invoked upon for a purpose or a moment, that is the same for the Patron Saints in Christianity. When you're lost or have lost something, when you're traveling and ask for safe passage and travels, that's the purpose of the Patrons, so while Christians moving to a Pagan practice will still tend to invoke in their old ways, in the end both are for a purpose, and any of them who say "This deity is my Patron because I'm like this" or "I was born at this time, so this deity is my Patron", they are mixing the practice of Astrologies/Horoscopes with the actual religion, because most Christians do not do that. Hope my explanation is taken with love and respective, loved the video, definitely gonna subscribe and watch a few more!
@@trenthobson2756 Christianity is supposed to be liberating, but what we call Christianity today is a result of a consolidation of power by the Roman Catholic Church. The first thing the "Church" of Rome did was what Rome always did while conquering the world, assimilate, excommunicate, and annihilate. They were very good at it, to the point that there are no major sects of Christianity that do not believe very closely to what the Roman Church believes. Once upon a time there were major sects of Christianity that believed in transmigration, the Divine Feminine, and the use of psychoactive agents for spiritual awakening. These things are not good for an emperor and I think it's no coincidence that Paul, a citizen of Rome is the main character of the canonized scripture while Origin was excommunicated and forgotten.
@@wpridgen4853 I, as a Christian myself, agree that Rome was one of the biggest problems with the church. Christians are supposed to be the church of Jesus Christ, not the church of Rome.
I don’t understand how universalists can look at this tradition and really say it’s a faith for all of humanity. I understand that a free man can worship as he pleases, but he shouldn’t expect to be accepted by everyone. Norse paganism is clearly deeply tied to Nordic heritage and ancestry. By following a tradition you don’t have any ancestry from, you just harm yourself spiritually because you will never feel completely part of the faith. I’m not saying you have to be a pure Nordic, Germanics went to every corner of Europe, but the Germanic traditions are called “Germanic” for a reason. These are the ethnic beliefs of the Germanic peoples. If you don’t have heritage from these groups in any meaningful capacity (i.e. most non-European descendant people), you aren’t following it for a naturalistic religion in line with your ancestors, you are following it for aesthetics and because it is “cool”. It reminds me of westerners who say they are Hindu. Hindu Vedic religions are deeply tied to Indian culture and traditions that are lost on westerners, because they don’t live in India.
@@monkeymoment6478 You telling the gods who they can and can't call? Don't think so. Norse paganism wasn't written down so these "traditions" you're referring to are just modern reconstructions and mostly just guesses based on Christian writings. Wouldn't be so "purity" minded about the religion if I were you.
I live in the northern part of norway. I spend most of most of my time in nature, and evry now and then I feel the presence of the gods and spirits. I just say hi, and thank them for being there - simple as that :) I like your videos and your knowledge :)
I’ve had a crap weekend with work, and just seeing someone sitting with a drink being happy makes me happy.
it will get better ... maybe
Then I declare Skal to you. I had a major fight with family yesterday, my Christian grandmother despite knowing my faith let me crash with her for the night, and now I am enjoying a good drink while thinking about my faith as a Norse pagan
cooel
@@alendonvaldor5808are you a dancer also?
@@jamesdolph437do you eat shnnippens?
I'm not 2 minutes into this video but I wanted to say as a Christian I appreciate the mutual respect. I catch some grief a lot for not taking a bigger stance against Paganism or Islam. But as Jesus showed us you can't be spiteful to someone and expect them to want to join you. With so much fighting in the world, I'm glad to see some peace amongst the spiritual.
Sadly you are rare. Thank you for that though
@@alendonvaldor5808 I’ve met more decent Christians in my life than manipulative hateful ones. Perhaps you’ve only been exposed to the latter...
I like that he has respect for reigions other than his own. I am Christian, though I'm looking into Paganism (I'm looking into my ancient Cetic past). I have a deep respect for both paths and have for nearly 30 years. We all have a path that is best for us.
I was raised a Christian and what I've noticed is that most Christians are actually very rude (mainly older Christians). They're often homophobic, trandphobic, maybe even racist which is against what the Bible says. I believe that as long as you treat people with kindness and respect, believe what you want.
Norse Paganism, at least for me, is big on respect. My wife is Christian so if we both didn’t respect each others views we as a whole just wouldn’t work.
Its so difficult to explain this to christian-raised people who haven’t done research in to anything else. My wife asks me if I pray, and I tell her not exactly. I believe in destiny, and I live my life by trusting that what happens is the gods will and that it all will lead me to where my soul was meant to be to accomplish the task it was set forth to do. Here and there I will speak with the gods and ask for favor or guidance, but thats the extent of my “prayer”.
🙋♀️❤️👏🏻👏🏻
Reads pretty Christian.
@@noregrveidr8178 In theory, christianity is just like paganism in that aspect. However, modern christians don’t understand the concept of destiny as their religion teaches. They dont even seem to consider it. Also, their idea of prayer is a regular thanksgiving and worship of their god, whereas what I do is more of pleading for an outcome. If anything, it reads pagan and christians behave more like pagans than actual christians as the religion is taught.
@@andrewgood7586 "what happens is the gods will" Nah mate that's just straight up Christianity.
You can pretty word it as much as you want but it reads more like "I bugger the deities everyday because that's what they do in Christianity" Even when we know that the deities were only called on special occasions, not for random bs.
Pagans prayed daily, likely multiple times a day, they gave true devotion in the forms of mass sacrifices of various kinds of offerings. Prayer is very pagan, this is a known recorded thing by pagans of every culture in history.
As a kid, standing on the pitching mound, I would habitually invoke the Gods Of Baseball. It seemed to help, mostly. Purposeful makes sense.
Some professional athletes have the most funny and weird amulets.
Charlie Brown?
Out of curiosity, who did you invoke? Really old baseball legends, or more modern stars that inspired you to play baseball?
@@bezoticallyyours83I took it to mean neither; they invoked non-specific "Gods of Baseball" whom or whatever they may have been.
@@onlyashes89 I was playing along with the original poster's joke.
I’ll be honest I’ve struggled A LOT trying to unlearn the Christian way of things. I catch myself repeating old behaviors & beliefs. It’s a rough battle when I want to wipe it clean so badly. Seeing videos like this definitely help me maneuver through it
Wh? Christ is truth
@@philymcnilly you missed the point of this video dude.
@@philymcnilly Then why are you here? Trying to adopt pagan habits?
@@philymcnillyhe may be your truth but not necessarily THE truth. We leave you to be a slave to your religion dont bash our freedom to live in our belief system.
@@TacticoolVIKINGBeardHe is THE truth THE way and THE life. Truth is objective by nature. Should look into the historical accounts of the death and resurrection of Jesus if you struggle to except things from the Bible or have past hurt from the church. God bless
One more thing that the christians bring with them is preaching, you’re a better believer if you try to shove your religion on others and justify your beliefs through others.
Great video, all the best from Sweden!
Greatly appreciate you continuing to do these videos my friend 😊
Tackar för den här videon, för jag behövde veta vissa saker, så tackar för kunskapen.
We're all pagan by instinct! Greetings from the Hamingja Foundation
Skål! 🍻
Nice podcast my dude!
@@nook969 Glad it is of value for you!
The reason I subscribed to you a while ago was because you really do make it make sense. People seem to talk in vague circles about all of this, and you know how to get to the core of a concept and make it digestible. Its much appreciated!
6:30 Humming bird sighting in the background! Cool beans man.
Excellent video! I'm a Serb and we have a thing called "Slava" (literally just us, no other Slavs have it). It's a day when we celebrate our family patron, a tradition that descends directly from paganism. My family's patron is St. Nicholas who is more or less a replacement for the Slavic god Veles (a god very similar to Loki) and a protector of sailors and travelers.
I thought Slava was veneration of an Orthodox Christian Saint
St Nikola is the protector of sailors and travelers, he was a real man from greece. Veleš, Perun, Radogost and the rest of them are dead. My name is Nikola, was born on the day of st Nikola and baptized in the church of stNikola. Bog te blagoslovio rode moj, napustili smo drevne bogove davnih dana. Naši kraljevi su svakog idola zapalili da razbije poveznicu i kletvu njihovu. Slava Kristu i našem rodu brate, budi blagoslovljen.
Veles is still recognized and known by many Slavs & that recognition is growing, along with the Slavic pantheon, in Rodnovary for instance. I've met some in that community. I have seen Slava translated as glory. Slava written as Слава has cropped up in the last couple of years in a different context as I'm sure you've seen. Nice to hear the word & concept of it gets to have a peaceful celebratory usage too!
My understanding of Nicholas comes from the Netherlands Nikolaas, Sinterklaas, different guy, patron of those same things and also unmarried girls. I grew up among many Dutch in New York state and we all, whatever our heritage, put out wooden shoes Dec 5th with a carrot & hay for his horse & found chocolate coins & spice cookies there in the morning. Among us girls it was in recognition that we have the right to choose, not be sold off / forcibly married off to whoever our father ordered us to marry. 😂 He used to put coins in stockings or shoes left by a hearth to dry for ancient girls to pay their own dowry so they too could choose, & it eventually changed how life goes for us. The one that's the bishop from Myra, did too, it is said. So I don't know if that interests you, but that's how he's recognized over here.
@@WildWoodsGirl65 that is very awesome. I didbt know he was a protector of unmarried girls. Here is the same thing with the boots and stokings. The real st Nikola was a great man. Punched a heretic right in his mouth when he was say some ungodly things about Jesus. Slava is glory or celebration in my language. The real meaning of the word may be lost. It was a tribal name of the Sclaveni and there was another great tribe called the Antes. Ante is the most croatian name you can find. And Slaven as well. But the difference is slava has a lot of meanings Ante does not.
@@skin4700 The spirit of generosity too. ... & He's also the patron of thieves, lol, especially those who have stopped it. And here we are on a video about Vikings... There's a joke in there somewhere I'm too sleepy right now to find. 😂 Thanks for telling me what you did. 🦌🌲🥀
This is a Brilliant Episode and vital to the understanding, communication and integrity of today’s International Peace Negotiations and Conflict Resolution. It will take a True Scholar, like Yourself to find the the right coarse of action on a Global scale. You may believe this is a rant , however I believe it’s vital for the survival of humanity. Thank You for Your Time and Incredible Work. Love and Respect from Texas
Course *
@@harry554 forgive Me, I speak many languages and often misspell My 2nd.:)
@@harry554 So very noble of you to correct that spelling mistake, you are doing necessary work my dude
First of all I adore the random hummingbirds in the background 🙏🏼 Second I think you're absolutely right as to why your channel is growing. I'm very inquisitive myself, and understanding to me is one of the most important things in life. I will say that I did hold a grudge against Christianity as a whole when I was younger, but after finding my path it became clear that it was unnecessary. There's too much in life to experience and too little time, let the self righteous burn themselves down.
Thank you for this video it was something I personally needed ! I’m a Latino who’s been following the Norse spirituality for three years. My experience has been relatively good so far, growing up I lived in atheist household and looking back I think it was good that I did. I was able to see things from a different perspective and opened myself not just on relationships with people but in life and what’s really important, however even though I’m in the process of learning and figuring things out I can’t help but feel day by day a little closer to this pantheon. And again thank you for the informational video !
I'm just intrigued and curious now, how did you start following our ancestors beliefs? (I'm Swedish btw) 😊 I'm really interested in learning about ppl and a latino practicing asatro, your my first! 😁 You be true 2 what ur feeling ❤ /Swedish gal :)
@@ananannanas I’ve always been a fan of the classic poems like Beowulf, Epic of Gilgamesh, and Grendel as a kid in school they would always make us read these types of stories so it would always be a plus for me however during it all I found my passion at a early age and I’m great full for that. Once I heard that the stories were just based off of other older ones I became interested and started learning and finding the real sources to the point where I came across the Norse pantheon. Even before I found the pantheon I’ve always had the same views, thoughts, ideas, and beliefs of spirituality and nature to it. And i guess you can say from there the rest would be history I’ve been a devotie ever since. I may not have ancestors who are connected to it though it wouldn’t change the fact that I could still respect and appreciate the other spiritual side of it in my own way honoring and respecting everything that life has to offer.
@@Ravenoustu9 thank for your clear n nice answer. I really love learning how ppl think n work n so on. Especially when it comes 2 topics that I like. :)
So may I ask; Do you practice it so u celebrate with midvinterblot/midwinter sacrifice instead of x-mas n so on? And do you really believe that Oden, Tor, Loke, fenrisulven and so on really exist?
@@Ravenoustu9
If you are Latino, depending on your ancestry you probably do have ancestors who were Germanic pagans, as well as greco-roman and even Celtic pagans although it would be pretty far back. Iberia has been home to many peoples. Celts, Romans, Germans, etc. I also assume you have some native ancestry, they have some pretty rich traditions you could look into and incorporate/syncretize with Germanic paganism or whatever you choose to follow, as this is what people in the ancient world did.
@@monkeymoment6478 I actually have family in Girona Spain where the old Aragon kingdom ruled before plus being so close to the border on the northeastern side of Iberia where the Bell Beaker invasion took part. I’m almost sure there’s history their connected to my ancestors dating back to those times. I was actually able to trace my family down to the Aragon era, and I’m almost certain I could go back even further which is what I’m in the process in doing at the moment.
Absolutely. When I'm feeling stressed I ask Thor to remind me that I'm strong and it helps to destress
Remember that you have more strenght that you think. Never say die.
I love how he slowly fades in the darkness :D
Hey Brother! I've been watching your stuff for about a year or so now and your knowledge / content has really pushed me to look deeper into life. I've always had a connection with nature, but didn't know exactly how to dive deeper until I started researching and diving deeper into paganism (especially the Norse studies). I just want to thank you and say, Keep up the great work. I understand exactly why the Ancient Norse culture had their seasonal rituals. Living in Alaska, the summer months (grow season) is SUPER short and the winter months are VERY long. Life living off the land would be extremely difficult without a strong community working together and without nature to provide what is needed. Again, keep up the awesome content.. and enjoy your time in the sunny California state.
I’ve said for a long time to those who ask, being a Norse pagan isn’t a religion it’s a way of life
Exactly
Techniacally the same could be said for any religion though.
You follow a set of codes, laws, or morale principles, because it pleases your God(s).
Religion is a way of life for everyone who beliefs...regardless of their particular religion.
A religion is a way of life
I heard some where that the norse didn't have word for belief or faith it just was
@@theimperialnord38 Religion is simply finding the right way to live in a particular worldview. If you believe in germs, hand-washing is a logical thing to do. If you believe in a river goddess, you take care of the river. If you believe in gods, it makes sense to talk to them ritually.
The hummingbird when you started talking about “you gotta have faith “ 6:31
So refreshing! I've had this conversation SO many times! But, usually get angry responses! Let the haters hate! I'll continue my way!
This was in 2022, and here I am in 2024 just discovering you. I'm glad that TH-cam recommended this! It made a lot of sense. New subscriber here!
As a Christian, I fully agree with everthing you have said and thank you for an informative video. I told several Pagan friends that aspects of what they are practising has more to do with the Kabbalah than any native practices of the British Isles. Similarly, the teachings of the man commonly called "Christ" is often tarred with the dogma of the Church - the two are not the same thing.
with all due respect, sir, Free Masons aren't Christians. everyone knows when you get to the 31st degree you find out that you serve and worship Lucifer. Not trying to be contentious, just truthful.
@@jayharry2237 How do you know?
@@scientiautverum because there is plenty of evidence out there for anyone willing to learn the truth. Your secret society isn't that secret. There are masonic lodges in every town, and it's naive to think that everyone will be hush-hush about it when you've got millions of members.
@@jayharry2237 I can only speak for England, Wales and Scotland but we have never been a secret society partly because of that very reason - do you not see how you are undermining your own argument?
Also, the rite to which you originally refer (probably the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite but there are others with 33+ degrees) is just one of many and which, in England and Wales at least, is open only to those who profess the Trinitarian Christian faith.
As you have given an answer based solely on hearsay, may I again ask, how do you know?
@@scientiautverum I'm not doing your research for you buddy. It's out there for all to see. Let me who you you swear your alligence to when you hit that 31st degree, I'll be here to say "I told you so".
This was interesting to watch. I'm on the Hellenic side of things. I like that you mentioned Arizona and rain rituals, I live in Arizona and rain is a big part of my spirituality and my craft.
Christians should respect our religion or way of life most of them dont, but youre so right, if they cant be an example of respect, you can
Christian dont represent their own religion. They allowed gay marriage under there roofs going against what the bible say about homosexuality. Their gods is freedom and wanting no consequences from nature.
Most modern day christians are milk toast worldly people. Dont expect respect from someone who cant respect their own texts or ways of life.
I agree with you, and I'm a Christian. I have respect and interest in our ancestors religion.
no one HAS to respect anyone's religion. you can't force respect.
Many are disrespectful because they are stuck with scripture that tells them they are the only right ones. And some of this was written way after the events took place. I love Jesus, but don't consider myself Christian.
Well, Christian warriors turned this religion into a dead one.
I like your reasonable take on these topics and really appreciate these videos.
Your video topics are always on point and never repetitive 👍
👏👏👏👏
Tack för en fantastisk sammanfattning!
A am a Christian, and you are spot on about everything. Blow my mind. The Bible is so clear about this, the Church is just to afraid to teach this. It's to "scary, and weird".
Your channel is such a gift. I love hearing about what you have to say and would love to hear more opinions coming from your perspective
Well said. Loki sadly is very popular with people now because of marvel or maybe as you said getting railed by a mountain sized horse speaks to them.
Thank you for sharing ancient knowledge and wisdom, it's much needed these days
While I can appreciate things about Christianity now as an adult, it never really stuck for me. I've always been more Pagan. In many ways I also feel like an American techno-nomad searching for roots. I feel the need for a tradition, yet I feel pulled in too many different directions. Norse paganism fascinates me but I don't know whether it would fit.
Though I do find that Hermeticism resonates with me a great deal. Its history runs parallel to that of monotheism (passed down in secret to avoid persecution), but its ideas are compatible with many other traditions, including Pagan ones.
Always seek what you resonate with friend. Odds are, our afterlife is made by our brains based on our beliefs in life.
I feel the same way .
I'm about the same, but went with the Greek because I'm just a big Helleno-phile who loves the myths and philosophers' takes on the myths (both old and new, Greek and non-Greek, spiritual and secular), but I don't really like calling myself a Hellenist... still it does seem to scratch that spiritual itch for me in a way that other paths just haven't. :)
The thing that really watered the roots I'd already uncovered for me was taoism and Buddhism. They see things in a way closer to how we do. They see the cycles. The Buddhists I find qualms with however. They do not love the cycles... They live to escape them. Fools... I guess I do get it, but it's not for me. However they taught me a lot about looking within tofind my gods instead of within the world.
technomad
Cute little hummingbird at 6:30 😊
Great video as always
Thanks for this. I'm a lifelong agnostic who grew up in a lax Christian household, and I've been casually exploring and steadily drifting into paganism this year. I've never been comfortable with terms like "worship" or "working with", and though I have some level of belief in the reality of the deities, online I still generally feel like I fit in more with the nontheistic-pagan groups than the polytheistic ones. Mostly I try to fit small levels of ritual into everyday life as best fits my personality and location in modern times, to increase my focus and intentionality in cultivating a sense of sacred in the mundane, for which I started to include deities (and for that I like to use terms like celebrate, honor, and invoke). I focus on the Greek pantheon personally but just use the title "eclectic pagan" because 1) I'm not Greek, 2) I'm still a 'baby' in the very slow process of reading all the things, and 3) I dislike labels in general / just like the process of exploring in and of itself, and still take inspiration and influence from other traditions too.
I love that you said basically to just follow your path. I was seeing a friend while traveling, we were at a bar. I'm a vet and wear til Valhalla perfect shirts, they do good stuff. Anyways, a couple guys, very tipsy, asked about the shirt. Then it turned into what's Valhalla, do you believe that, etc. It was annoying but whatever. Everything ended when I said, what if everyone is right? Christians, pagans, Muslims, Hindu, etc, each path is right for that person. So in the end of our time in this world, we are all right. If it brings you peace, makes you a better you, I'm so for people following what works for them. I've walked a few in my life. Now I'm feeling drawn to the belief system of my ancestors. Thank you for sharing with us.
I always found the notion of having a "patron" God as somewhat unbalanced and fragmented from a greater whole. I had to chuckle at the Loki and horse reference, as you are bound to trigger some furries. I agree that deep down, everyone is pagan. I was a monotheist years ago who always struggled with trying to find a rationalization for the nonsense that was presented to me as spiritual truth. I was always a pagan, I unbeknownst at the time, was always practicing minor rituals, feeling the animist connection to nature and true spirituality, and as I sought answers to some of my more perplexing experiences not answered adequately by monotheism nor the dead views of scientific nihilism; I found the right explanations, feelings, and completeness from the old ways of my ancestors. In essence, I quit resisting what I already was, I liberated myself from the cultural and religious shackles pushed on me from the world, and relaxed into simply being.
I’d also agree that matrons/ patrons are kinda weird, that being said it does make sense that modern pagans spend some more time on gods that further there specific dreams/ desires, or who’s presence in life has more to do with their day to day life/ occupation, as an example I tend to usually only pray to agricultural deities because I’m a botany major. My friend only prays to Astaria, titan goddess of shooting stars because she wants to be an astrologer. (Astrologer…..-Astaria. It’s literally in the name.) if that’s the only goal she truly cares about, then it makes sense that’s all she’ll invoke. But I’m sure one annyoying gripe we can all get behind is people only working with the big gods, the ancient world was filled with thousands of gods and you’re just picking between the 20 ones you can remember🙄? Drives me insane.
@@channelforcommentingstuff4960 that is a great way to put it. Thank you.
That's really the nature of the human species, transporting their culture, hierarchies and traditions to religion. In some Catholic countries, where societies are very matriarchal, the cult of Mary, mother of Christ, surpasses the one of Jesus and even God.
@@HeathenDance that's true, and much of the early veneration of Mary was rooted in the Egyptian cults of Isis and Osiris.
@@torstenscott7571 You are an educated and intelligent man.
Great job again. People hate when someone makes the painfully obvious painfully clear. Stay strong.
2:40 in "The Saga of Hrafnkel Frey's Godi" from the sagas of Icelanders, its mentioned a few times that Hrafnkels "favorite god" is Frey, and that he makes many sacrifices to Frey, which is how he got the title of "Frey's Godi." Would this be more of one of those patron god type things or just a spiritual worship?
Henotheistic invocation, as he explains in the video.
at 6:30 you mention how Faith was brought in and I noticed behind you a little humming bird came in to view on your right hand side really quickly to check out your garden. Hail Woden!
Catholicism is much more pagan than many Christians would care to admit. For example, the saints are figures with particular influences whose help can be invoked when specifically required. St. Christopher is the patron saint of finding lost things. You can invoke his help to find your car keys, or have a little figure of him on your dashboard for when your Sat Nav stops working. Is this is any different from invoking Loki’s help to trick an enemy into falling into a trap? Or from the numerous Roman hearth gods, or the way many Hindus venerate different manifestations of Vishnu for different reasons and purposes? To me at least these seem to be distinctions without a real difference - practices based on deep seated human needs that have simply been overlaid with different theologies/belief systems.
That is an interesting way of looking at invocation throughout religions, but quick correction Saint Anthony is the patron of lost items. Saint Christopher is the patron of traveling.
As a Christian I agree catholicism is pagan. I'm Puerto Rican and I grew up in Puerto Rico 🇵🇷 and had friends who practiced santeria and they were Catholics. They mixed in a lot of Catholicism with their pagan practices. I found it interesting.
@@sally9352 I'm Catholic and I think sometimes it's hard to distinguish real Catholicism from folk Catholicism. Or basically, big T "Tradition" vs little T "tradition". The only time when it's required to invoke someone for a cause, is when you are trying to get someone canonized as a saint, because they need two miracles attributed to them before they are declared a saint. Other than that, the use of patron saints is not required and it's usage varies. My family is from the Caribbean and I notice that we don't have a lot of the little T "traditions" that Catholics from other cultures have and vice versa, especially regarding saints. We don't have things like Santeria and Voudoun and those aren't from Catholicism but from Yoruba tradtions. In places where the slaves became Catholic but weren't Yoruba you don't see it.
Since discovering Norse paganism, I've had a hard time understanding how I was supposed to "worship" so many gods. A friend of mine would always say I should pray habitually or try to allow them to come to me, but it always felt "too Christian" when I thought about it. A lot of my spiritual and magical working recently has helped disconnect from the Abrahamic worldview and focus on what paganism means to me. All that being said, this video has perfectly described what I've observed in other pagans and in myself, and has helped me even further understand my belief; fantastic work!
As someone still navigating religious trauma after having been born into a Christian family and being in that faith almost my entire life (mostly by force), and newly realizing my Pagan beliefs, I really appreciate this video. So much of what I've been doing for the past year of beginning to work through it has felt "wrong," in a sense, and now I'm beginning to understand why. Thank you so much for this! I will definitely be considering these things as I continue to grow. :)
You should look into the scriptures/teachings of sanatana Dharma they help you understand and make sense of pagan beliefs
I am in a similar boat. I am grateful that my Christian family are surprisingly accepting of my beliefs. Even my normally extremist Christian grandmother.
Lmao, "religious trauma"
@@huguesdepayens807that made me laugh too. His gramma hit him in the face with a Bible everyday his entire childhood 😂😂😂😂
Yay!!! Great 👍 we want MORE DRUNK RANTS I love these good job thor
I'll respect a Christian if they also show respect. They call me a LARPer, and all bets are off, I'll call them something far worse. They try to reconvert me, I'll know I can't trust them. If they truly "love thy neighbor", they wouldn't care what their neighbors choose to worship, love, and live, so long as they contribute to the community for the betterment.
Could it be because you present or conduct yourself like a larper?
Representing a long forgotten fashion or practice or demeanor, does not depict one being a LARPer. Get a head on, man. Just because Marvel took some Gods and made money off them, which is just capitalistic blasphemy right there and are people that should be shoved in a porter potty and set on fire, doesn't mean people wearing some chainmail are fucking Role-playing Thor. We wear Mjolnir as a sign of strength, integrity, and health of the heart; the actual practice.. Not because a half witted steroid driven celebrity portrays him in a physical relevant modern standpoint to look like an absolute goof, conforming to the society you're a part of's standards. If anything, people performing plays of "the crucifixion of Jesus" whom never existed, are more of larpers than those meditating to Tyr. Just saying.
@@morphedtyphoon The Hellenic gods have been monetize for decades and you dont see dudes walking around wearing Greek or Roman robes on their day to day lives. If you're wearing chainmail you are definitely larping
@@morphedtyphoon that was well said, and the last sentence was something I had never considered, thank you.
I'm Christian and I don't know of any Christians that belive people who practice paganism are lapers. We do believe that what you practice is real. I have spoken to atheist that believe people who practice Norse paganism are larpers because most atheist are naturalist.
Nice video thanks 🎉
Personally I don't like how so many people take what they want from each cultures then recreate it in their own version and then demean everybody that don't believe in what they created. Or how people that just joined a certain group now they're experts and give others misinformation.
I've been saying these same things since the 90s. Historian and philosopher, though I never put the latter on myself, everyone keeps reminding me of that, I've been teaching about the natural origins of religion as a way to bring logic and understanding to things humans at the time had no other framework to understand, and this evolved as humanity evolved, and is still evolving today. That's gotten me one of two receptions, either kicked out of a group because they don't like what I say, or thanked and embraces because my words are founded in logic, and help the people I've taught understand why our spirituality is rooted in the beliefs and understanding it is. I'm just glad that someone with a bigger platform than the small classes I've taught is on the same wavelength, which is why I appreciate your work.
All the Christians I know are great people, I just don't jive with the beliefs that were shoved down my throat. As an apostate I agree with all of these, it's been easy for me to transition to paganism/heathenry because of how I grew up especially around my father who loved nature, he was a hunter and fisherman. But I literally just threw everything in the trash and started from scratch. I kept seeing certain stuff such as patron god, having faith, Ask and Embla...all too reminiscent of Christianity.
Wasn't the concept of patron saints descended from tutelary dieties from Greco-Roman paganism? I don't know if it was a Greco-Roman specific thing or if it was a general Indo-European tradition, but it definitely is more pagan in its roots than Jewish.
@@connorperrett9559 The gods don't give a shit about us. The Norns care more, just sayin. people wasting their time with this patron god shit, cringy too. Ancestors and wights are more important than "the gods".
Definitely one of my favorite videos from you that’s far! Thank you for making it so simple I’ve known I was in Animas my whole life but just never knew the name until recent years.
I love that the grass roots of our values comes from paganism , then is dispersed by our family’s religious belief system. I grew up catholic and loved this religion as a child but as an adult paganism resonates with me as I find it so relatable and as you mention logical. Thank you for your insights. I love your vids. I’m not sure if you’ve done this yet but I’d love to see you compare paganism holidays v Christian/muslin/Jewish holidays we see today. Where are these holidays derived from?
Beautiful vid. Loving the 3rd part most. Thank you.
Hugs from Hungary.
The Egyptologist Jan Assmann wrote The Price of Monotheism, which takes on the violence and intolerance inherent in monotheistic religion.
Our pagan ancestors were also violent and intolerant. See Scythians killing their own for worshipping Roman Gods. It's a common thing to all religions, but only monotheism is responsible for a system of mass conversion ideology.
It's not like our ancient pagan ancestors were a bunch of peaceful hippies having a kumbaya to commune with Mother Nature, and got steamrolled out of nowhere. They were just as violent and mean, and did plenty of their own steamrolling.
@@bezoticallyyours83 it was not over forced conversion, though, or imperialism. That's the difference. There are levels to invasion. Norwegians at least raided & went on about their business, for instance! 😂 Finns mostly stayed in Suomi & minded their biz. But when Christians invaded or went to war they applied religion itself as a justification, a motive, a scapegoat.
Conflict ought at least to be honest ffs. Vikings weren't pretending the other place was heathen lol just, those monks have loot, let's go! That is somehow more honest than pretending God Said I Can Kill You bc You're Not Just Like Me while spouting "thou shalt not kill." I mean, at least own your real motive, man. And let people keep their own beliefs. Ya don't actually have to wipe out identity in order to swipe land, goods, or whatever.
@@WildWoodsGirl65 So you're a history denier. How pathetic,shameful and embarrassing.
@@bezoticallyyours83 Yeah lol, I don't think so. You think Vikings were forcing people to convert & christianity wasn't? What are you on about there? 😂 I prefer my trolls Scandinavian & mythological or at least able to comprehend comments. And out of my face. See ya. 🤙🙄😂
You hit the nail on the head. I love hearing these perspectives.
Thank you for all your videos! Enjoy your drink! 🎉
most Christians I will respect my great grandmother was very Christian and took me to church and she respected my change she passed away a few years back and I hope she gets to meet her God and in my case I'm in the military for almost 4 years now and I hope to go to volhol I'm still learning paganism and these videos helped and vids from Freyja norling help as well.
This was a beautiful video, thank you!
I've never believed in Christianity, not as a child and while my parents had me baptized it was more from family pressure than faith.
Heck, I was even confirmed with 14 but let's be honest here: who can *confirm* his believe in a religion at *14* ?
I'm no longer member of any organized religion and I would describe myself probably best as a "syncretic pagan" - I feel a connection with the ideas of what we know of the old Gods, there isn't all that much left of continental Germanic religion though of course and as a descendant of Prussians (A Crusading order gone state, I get the Irony 😅) I sometimes feel that what little we have left of the Slavic Gods also resonates with me.
And while I'm not averse to Christian believers (contrasting to vast majority here in Germany that just happens to "be" Christian but couldn't care less), heck my best friend since childhood is a LDS, the central ideas don't resonate with me.
I've had a NDE over a decade ago now, I was on the edge and I had the chance to glance into the white shining abyss but I never encountered the father God and I never had the cliche Near Death Experience patterns but I came out of it with the firm conviction that nothing in this world or any other is simple enough to be boiled down to one God.
Best regards
Raoul G. Kunz
You explained this beautifully. Thank you!
👍Well informative vlog, Thank You! TACK SA MYCKET!
Living down in Bible belt country, the first years here, everyone wanted to know what church you belong to. Everyone wants to pray and bless you.
I gave up stating none of above, as I am pegan. A shaman. In their response,, too much christianity saving religion , pushed down my throat.
I quickly changed my tone ( acting a bit crazy in the head,) and said I am not from here, but you know "Alien, from other worlds". That got them shut up, and moving away from me quickly. No more offers of blessings & prayers. 🇳🇴 🇸🇪 🇺🇸
Country folk ask. They got nothing else to talk about. Living in the big cities of the south, no one asks cause they're not interested.
These are topics you don't really hear about in plain terms often. I had to navigate so much misinformation about paganism early in life, but I never just accepted something as "the right way" simply because some person on a forum said so. That's what I've always found so beautiful about paganism - the freedom (and encouragement) to ask questions and explore and never stop learning and seeking logical answers about the world and everything in it.
Really enjoying the videos!
Given what Catholicism has done to Ireland I despise Christianity for its views, the damage it has done is irreversible and unforgivable.
dont look back, you are not going that way...
i agree paganism is the future my dude i love it
Catholicism isn't Christianity. Jesus never taught the tenets of the CC.
Catholicism is a fake religion. It’s the Roman propaganda about the Roman Jewish war, written from the Roman Perspective.
Saul of Tarsus is the dude who threw James the Just (real name Jacob Zedek, or Jacob the Teacher of Righteousness) from the top of Temple Mount. Nobody who doesn’t have a reputation for lying has to constantly reassure everyone he writes to “I swear I’m not lying!”
The Dead Sea Scrolls written by the Qumran community that produced John the Baptist and James the Just and Judah Thaddeus refers to Saul as “the teacher of wickedness.”
Arian Christianity is at least as old, considering Constantine the Great was baptized by Eusebius who was an Arian Bishop. Wulfilla the Arian Bishop who invented the Gothic written language (he was likely the one who converted Alaric the King of the Visigoths) based the alphabet on Greek as he was from Cappadocia, but he included several Futhark letters in it, specifically I know the symbol for the number 900 in Gothic is the Futhark letter T.
Arian Christianity in the time of Theodoric the Great featured a lot of the same ancestor Veneration practices that previous Gothic Pagans practiced, but it also featured elements from the Hellenic traditions that also featured prominently in Roman Catholicism. Theodoric was friendly with a LOT of Pagans, and it wasn’t until Roman Catholicism genocided the Arian Church that Roman Catholicism then genocided everyone else.
Theodoric is mentioned by name on Rok Runestone in Ostergotland Sweden dated to the year 800.
Oh, and everyone here should look up “Scythian Horse” there’s an image with a very distinctive hooked headdress on a horse that should come up. Compare that to the Straw Yule Goats and tell me if they strike anyone else as being a bit on the identical side.
I want to make this clear; Jesus isn’t the problem with Catholicism; Saul of Tarsus is.
Jesus has more in common with Arminius than he does Saul of Tarsus. They both lead a resistance and wanted the Romans out of their homelands.
What has Catholicism done to Ireland? Can you please elaborate?
You make a lot of sense!! Thank you for your knowledge.
Thank you for sharing this. I’ve been deconstructing from Christianity and I’ve been trying not to bring Christian beliefs into my new practice!
As a follower of Islam, I find this video to contain a wealth of wisdom. I wholeheartedly support the notion that individuals should be free to choose their faith based on their personal preference, without any form of coercion. Read: "Whoever accepts guidance does so for his own good; whoever strays does so at his own peril. No soul will bear another’s burden, nor do We punish until We have sent a messenger. Quran
Yo, check out that humming bird in the background though.
Great video brother! Its a way of life, lets not call it a religion as I feel that word has certain connotations lol🤟
Christian here, but always interested in learning about other faiths. It is very important and often hard not to apply the lense of ones own faith, but really appreciate your detailed explanation of norse pagan beliefs. I have much respect for any man or woman who has a firm set of beliefs, those who don't are hard to trust.
Patron gods in paganism predates Christianity. Look at the Roman cults for example…adherents venerated one particular god or goddess with the understanding that the others within the pantheon also existed. The term is henotheism. And in Norse specifically there’s archaeological evidence that Thor had his own followers. Nothing wrong with having a patron so long as 1.) as Mike mentioned it’s for a specific reason (occupation related, for example…a farmer may find it advantageous to venerate Freyr, a sailor may choose Njordr, etc), and 2.) never worship any deity, veneration is the proper action…big difference.
Absolutely enjoy all your clips. It is educational, so very much. Thank you. And it MAKES SENSE.
Oera Linda Book is a must read on this topic. Chronicles from Pre-Celtic Europe. Extremely important book!
Oera Linda is highly likely fake.
Agree totaly, its all viking. The church tried to erase it, but thanks to the dutch guy who kept it in secret in his family, this important piece of history is preseved for humanity. When we live our lifes the way the Oera Linda tells us to, a lot of problems of modern times would be solved in a just way!
Why would it be important? It's a fake story, researchers were suspicious about the modern Frisian language that was used in some parts, that alone should make you question this shit enough.
I did the research... Not a fake story ahaha. It is different pieces of writing from different time periods and you can see the language change over time. It's not a story but it's a collection of stories.
True historical document.
@@noregrveidr8178 Researchers also made almost everyone believe in a fake plague. Who are those researchers and what is their agenda?
10k thanks! Just plain practical!!, straight forward.
2:20 - Henotheistic worship of one particular deity while remaining observant and respectful of the rest of the pantheon is a lot more common than you describe here. Smiths and craftsmen would often have habits of worship that pointed more towards Thor than the other gods. Guards and Judges more towards Tyr. Leaders and Seers more towards Odin. There were also the archeologically proven Bear and Wolf cults of Germanic Europe that brought a more totemic approach to their rituals. While there was no monotheistic reverence for one god or another and a complete shunning of the rest, an individual alignment towards a particular god is very Indo-European, and to suggest it isn't - or that it wasn't common - is...a testament to a lack of education on this particular fine point, to put it as nicely as possible. I get that while on this path, everything we do is a learning experience, but I fear that in your efforts to make things so simple even the completely uninitiated can understand them, you've accidentally gone too far and made some things just plain incorrect.
Exactly and Eloquently stated. Unlike myself,
Or people have had small pantheon of gods and godesses that was pray and made other ceremonial rituals daily or more often than others that was more state gods. This gods and godesses was worshiped more rarly in bigger festivities than to your personal or local pantheon ones like every year on special place.
2:56 "Even in the Norse world we have some evidence that a specific god was venerated by a specific people _for a purpose."_
He then goes on to explain exactly how Monotheistic worship differs from Henotheistic invocation. You're welcome.
Oh, and maybe next time try not to nitpick before suggesting a lack of education on someone else's part, especially if it's you who clearly misunderstood something.
@@theendofoo Nice try, stupid dick. I was very careful in my wording and what I said was that he made it so simple that it teeters on there knife's edge of being incorrect. He does a wonderful job explaining everything else every other time, but Norse Paganism for Christians isn't something you can just Explain Like I'm 5.
@@theendofoo Christianity is a Semitic religion, whereas Norse Paganism is a European one. Just like with the language, the fundamentals of understanding things are very different between the two. That's why Christians have such a hard time understanding these concepts like not every god is almighty and invincible, having very human characteristics instead of having a God that acts more like a puppeteer.
Thanks for not being hostile toward Christians. I would still consider myself to be one, but totally agree with your points about how people tend to believe irrational things based on blind faith, without doing research into the actual history. If the Bible is supposed to be a rational and ethical critique of Greco-Roman and Levantine paganism (which is what I was taught as a Protestant), then it's still important to know what those pagan beliefs actually were. Otherwise, the critique can't be properly understood. This channel is helping me deconstruct. 🙂
I often invoke the god of traffic lights.
Love the channel, brother! Of any Pagan i have followed, you are the most rational and knowledgeable. I'm pretty sure we are of like mind. Keep up the fantastic work, much appreciated!
I wouldn't have issues with someone exploring our old ways if they did so respectfully. But i see more disrespect than respect. There is so much anti-white vitrial these day, combine that with wokeness and well, we all know what happens. I see woke phd's trying to say we were multi-cultural and trans and lgbt and so and so on. Seen recently a video about the travels of Ibn Al Fadlan and the comments were atrocious. People who have no relation to us claiming true vikings were arabs and africans and it was WE who stole THIER culture. And it got worse. Funny thing is, they are the tame ones. The actual White woke Pagans are so much worse. Look, i don't care what a persons color is or who they screw.......JUST BE F**KING RESPECTFUL TO MY ANCESTRAL TRADITION.....PLEASE !?!?!
I don't think it's much to ask for, but in this day and age it seems to be. We are all "nazis" if we believe our ancestral religious rights belong to us on any level. Lmao. You can't make this crap up. lol.
Its all Frissia, even Mhmd the prophd was a red haired man with a pale skin, so i think they flipped the tale to their advantage. Oera Linda book explains how 3000 years before chrst the last survivers of the great flodd set land in Frisia, today’s Friesland in the Netherlands. The last of the inhabitants of Atland, destroyed by the flodds.
And ofc there is the "ANTI WHITTTEEEEE" American here, telling that he's so norse.
Þere is no respect, if you don't show þe world þat you're worþwhile to be respected.
Only whining about ain't going to cut.
Wiþ þat being said: I remotely know your feelings, but þe frame "nædsi" is apparently directed at us wiþ þe intent to destroy us, so a rant won't do it.
@@Beleidigen-ist-Pflicht why is the German boy using Icelandic alphabet? Forgot to switch your keyboard language?
@@noregrveidr8178 ever heard about þorn, or þe history of english writing for þat matter?
Loove your channel!🤩 I can learn a lot from you! Always hunting for more knowlege🤓😊
I agree with many things you said, especially the last part, about all pagan religions basically being "the same"(/very similar) and having a focus on the gods and rituals, that are most important to their lands. I was in Japan twice and over there I gave thanks and "prayers" to the spirits and Gods of the Japanese lands, in Shinto-Shrines, I wanted to get to know them, befriend them. They were 'there', they were present and you could feel it. And why would the European Gods and Spirits bother to listen to me so many miles away :D. It just made more sense to me that way.
BUT one thing I strongly disagree with is something you say in the beginning: That many people "practice and believe in the Norse Religion in a very incorrect historical way", because they "grew up in very Christian backgrounds" and are just "switching out the Christian gods for the Norse ones". (0:56)
As you claim yourself to be a historian, you should be aware, that ALL of us are practicing and believing in the Norse Religion in a very incorrect historical way. The reason being simply, because none of us (NON of us: No historians, no scholars, no priests, not your favourite aunt, greatgrandmother or anyone else who might be claiming to "know the truth") has the capability to know, how our ancestors from 1000 years ago actually practiced or believed. None of us where there and christianity dominated Europe ever since. The Germanic (or Celtic, Slavic...) people of the times, in which they actually practiced pagan religions, left basically no written sources for us. Most of what we know, are things either the Romans or Christian Scholars (and yes, there were Christian Scholars, who took an interest in preserving the ancient ways for later generations, just look at the ones in Germany, who secretly wrote down pagan spells (most popular the Merseburger Zaubersprüche and Pro Nessia) in the 9th and 10th century or Snorri Sturluson, Adam of Bremen... ) so basically everything we claim to know about north/germanic religion is (and has) always been influenced and interpreted by either Christians or Romans.
Therefor it shouldn't be anyones goal to "bring back the old ways" - you can try, but that's simply not possible, the old ways are lost to us in that way. Every one of your actions will always be shaped and influenced by the culture you grew up in. In the case when your ancestors are from (somewhere in north or central/west Europe) that will be the Greek and Roman and also very much the Christian Ways, mixed with some remainders of our pagan ancestors.) All we can try to do, is learn as much as possible from the little information we have left and make it work in a wholesome way.. By wholesome I mean something, most pagans will be very angry with and don't want to hear: Your ancestors were most likely some kind of Christians (or were part of another monotheistic Religion, depending, where you are from) - and Paganism is also about respecting and honouring your ancestors. You can't just pretend the last 1000 years of ancestors are irrelevant to you, your lineage, your personal or the history of the lands you live in. Your people were probably monotheistic for the last few centuries. Maybe they prayed to some saints, some angels or other deities, in a pagan manner, but they most likely practiced some kind of monotheistic religious rituals and believed there was only one God.
I struggled with this for little while, when I was younger. (I consider myself part pagan since the age of 12, because that's when I just decided, that there is not enough worship of nature in the Christian believe I was raised in XD). And my parents where always very accepting, as they were not extremely religious. But they always taught me (and admonished me to have) respect for the believe of my direct lineage, for my closed relatives and ancestors. Not everything about the Christian (/monothestic) ways is bad. You can make it both work. Actually you have to be a rebel in one thing: Just don't believe in the notion, that the monotheistic God will send you to hell, if you dare to pray or worship other deities, spirits etc.. As long as you do your best to be a good human being, to tolerate, spread awareness, respecting nature, animals, your family, your ancestors, yourself and the way of others - you are already doing more than most people on this planet are capable of.
And 'Neopaganism' maybe should be something for our generation, for our century, not just an imitation of old ways.😄 Some here already wrote, they pray to the Gods of traffic lights or something similar. Which makes perfect sense. It's an issue in our time, so you focus your rituals in that way :D
Well said. I added the Christian God to my pantheon as the God of mercy and forgiveness. Syncretism is key.
Completely agree. There's no possible way we can practice the "old ways" as they had done it so long ago. Not just because of lack of record keeping or what was recorded was destroyed by, for example, Romans. But also because the Gods adjust with the times (therefore we adjust as well). Like with the birth of Horus, he signified a new aeon of all life, which means we will never have the Osiris or Isis aeon ever again. We can try to emulate certain parts of those aeons, but it's impossible to fully copy it.
So in my view, if you understand the Norse Gods to the best of your ability and what information is available to you and you believe in their reality, but you have a Christian lean applied, then you're still Norse pagan.
My god is nature 💚🌾... loved the kolibri in the background from 06:31 to 06:39 ;-)
The "monotheistic" religions aren't actually monotheistic, when you dig into them. Christianity for example, you've got the the trinity, then Satan and all of the angels, which could be looked at as lesser deities. Some Christians I've said this to were kinda shocked. Others just ignored it and denied it.
And those are the Christians who do not understand there own religion. One who understands it would actually agree with you.
As a Christian I can say that Christianity is monotheistic and yes Satan and the fallen angels are deities but anything can be a Deity it depends on what you want to worship, they are "gods" but not God. They have power because God gave them power, they are his creation and God is the creator. What Christians are saying is that you are worshipping creation not the Creator.
Christianity is a big umbrella. Not all sects recognize the trinity, etc. What you’re describing would be closest to Catholicism, which is indeed a Christian / pagan hybrid. I grew up Catholic so it was a fairly easy transition to paganism, as many of the core concepts are similar; unlike friends who grew up charismatic Christian and had a more difficult time.
@@VanirTraditionalist are there sects that do not recognize angels, demons, or Satan?
@@VanirTraditionalist it also fits with the methodist, LDS and several others. Regardless of how many each act recognizes, though, they all believe in the trinity, but it's sometimes referred to as the God head. Either way, still polytheism, but with the label of monotheism. I grew up going to a methodist church, then catholic, Baptist, non denomination and LDS, so I always heard the top 3 being talked about. It never felt right or made sense to me though.
I love how logical this view is. Keep it up 😁
The thing I hate the most about modern Norse paganism is the Twitter brain politics.
It took me forever to find people that didnt talk about facism, racism, and transphobia all day every day.
The "my religion is political" and "no frith for facists" crowds are always the most angry, toxic, and aweful human benings.
I have come across some really good sources in TH-cam but also surprisingly, in Pinterest, without any of the drama nonsense & arguing & sheer fiction that persists in places like Twitter & TikTok. It has a search engine to find any topic & like here things can be saved either publicly or privately. If it exists, someone has probably saved it there & it tends to be reliable sources, from all over the world. Search engines keep giving me local results or asking if I want local results, & assume I can't click to translate. (Ad algorithms are in play). Pinterest lets me easily find source material from where something actually is or is from & how to do just about anything for that matter. I had not expected it to show me so much on cultures and paganism, but it has far more than searching browser, & shows me things I did not yet know to look up, that are related to other things I saved there, which is helpful. I scroll past the rest much faster too. It's not something that seems to be common knowledge, the pagan info in there, so maybe someone seeking an easier way to look will see this, & be helped. But I ve seen none of what bothered you there & more mature communication, so I thought it might interest you to know. I've seen no judgement or wild assumptions or dictating beliefs, at all, just sharing of valid info.
The one time I heard that quote was me being banned from a game store for shit I said on another Website that had nothing to do with them that the tard went out of his way to find lmao.
A hummingbird makes an appearance top left of the screen at around 6:30 on the timer.
I never converted. I left the church when I was in my teens. I even rejected a baptism while I was still in church because I knew that I didn't want to be in their flock. Too much never made sense to me so I went searching on my own. I read many mythologies and I studied wicca at first for a while. It was a good place to start but I hit a brick wall so I delved deeper into the specific pantheons. Norse resonated with me more than any other. That's when I knew I found my path. I work with Egyptian, Greek and Celtic too but I mainly work with the Norse Gods.
Great one again, thank you from Holland
15:00
The answer to the question if asian or black people or whatever can follow the Norse pagan path is a resounding yes!
The term "Norse" does not refer to the origin of 'human race' within this religion, but to the origin of this specific pagan faith.
I love your lessons. It made me think on how some people never consider how practical many practices were, how someone tries to make 'one size fit all', when it simply CANNOT, by virtue of space, place & timing (winter climates versus tropical) etc. Sometimes people need to accept more & open their eyes & ears to reality of those situations instead of trying to make something fit that doesn't-'glass slippers'. Thank you for all your research! You would enjoy many of the groups out here in Montana!
It's funny how much some people will go on about "faith" and about their deity(ies) having "a plan" for them, but then they get hit by a car or get cancer. Was it because they didn't have "enough faith" or pray hard enough? No, man, it's because it was His/Their "will" (He/They work(s) in "mysterious ways", remember). Ok, so if everything is subject to the deity(ies)'s "will", it don't matter how much faith or praying you do, right? That's when you see the cognitive dissonance take hold behind their eyes and they get angry and end the conversation with something like "Well, everybody has the right to their own beliefs", which in this context translates as "I really don't have any idea what I believe." Faith in one hand, shit in the other, see which one fills up first.
I mean, a lot of religions teach that good and evil are perceptions we have on things, and that nature includes things that we would characterize as both. So you could technically believe in some higher plan or whatever will still obviously not appreciate it when things go badly for you.
I'm Christian and for us faith means trust. I have faith/trust in God because everything he says he will do in my life he's done. If I got cancer or died tomorrow it doesn't take away my faith/trust in him and it doesn't take away that everyone has the right to their own belief.
Why should anybody believe they are exempt from having to die someday, seeing that everybody does? Maybe we pray to be safe and to live a bit longer, ourselves and our loved ones.
I love this video, it showed up in my feed, so it's the first time I've ever seen you. I am not Pagan, and though I was raised Christian. I no longer practice any religion. Growing up in Christianity I was a bit of a black sheep, always questioning the teachings, the reasons, the meanings, and most of them I had to find answers for myself, even becoming a teacher in it for a short while. I traveled around a few countries doing "Missions", and while I found joy in the faces of the people we helped, I felt like part of it was a lie and only to try and bring more people into the religion than to just be good people, and I started to back away from the church. I dove deeply into Greek, Roman, Norse, Celt, Hindu, Islam, Egyptian, Buddhist teachings and histories to try and find answers and understand where the teachings came from, and in the end I found most of my current non-religious practice now being, all of them in the end stand for the same thing, and all share stories and pantheon standings, and that there is more behind all of them than most people understand.
That being said, I will say that everything was on point in your explanations except for the Invocation/Patron thing, because in Christianity the Patron Saints each stood for a certain protection or to help, like you were saying about Odin and Freya (apologies for my English spelling of them) being invoked upon for a purpose or a moment, that is the same for the Patron Saints in Christianity. When you're lost or have lost something, when you're traveling and ask for safe passage and travels, that's the purpose of the Patrons, so while Christians moving to a Pagan practice will still tend to invoke in their old ways, in the end both are for a purpose, and any of them who say "This deity is my Patron because I'm like this" or "I was born at this time, so this deity is my Patron", they are mixing the practice of Astrologies/Horoscopes with the actual religion, because most Christians do not do that.
Hope my explanation is taken with love and respective, loved the video, definitely gonna subscribe and watch a few more!
My kid got cancer- it’s gods plan
My kid died from cancer- he’s with god
My kid survived cancer-god answered my prayers
It isn't God's plan, though. Mankind is causing the cancer!
Beautifully put❤
I used to be a Christian and I always felt trapped, always felt uncomfortable and being lied to. Following my pagan path has been amazing
Christianity is supposed to be liberating. I hope you one day will come to see the truth. Good on you, brother.
Satan took control of you...
@@trenthobson2756 Christianity is supposed to be liberating, but what we call Christianity today is a result of a consolidation of power by the Roman Catholic Church.
The first thing the "Church" of Rome did was what Rome always did while conquering the world, assimilate, excommunicate, and annihilate.
They were very good at it, to the point that there are no major sects of Christianity that do not believe very closely to what the Roman Church believes.
Once upon a time there were major sects of Christianity that believed in transmigration, the Divine Feminine, and the use of psychoactive agents for spiritual awakening.
These things are not good for an emperor and I think it's no coincidence that Paul, a citizen of Rome is the main character of the canonized scripture while Origin was excommunicated and forgotten.
@@wpridgen4853 I, as a Christian myself, agree that Rome was one of the biggest problems with the church. Christians are supposed to be the church of Jesus Christ, not the church of Rome.
@@trenthobson2756 the problem is figuring out where one ends and the other begins .
I like your way of thinking! Its fair logical and open minded. Thanks a lot
Q: Why do you think Norae Paganism is an ethnic religion?
A: because it's called NORSE paganism! 😂
I don’t understand how universalists can look at this tradition and really say it’s a faith for all of humanity. I understand that a free man can worship as he pleases, but he shouldn’t expect to be accepted by everyone. Norse paganism is clearly deeply tied to Nordic heritage and ancestry. By following a tradition you don’t have any ancestry from, you just harm yourself spiritually because you will never feel completely part of the faith. I’m not saying you have to be a pure Nordic, Germanics went to every corner of Europe, but the Germanic traditions are called “Germanic” for a reason. These are the ethnic beliefs of the Germanic peoples. If you don’t have heritage from these groups in any meaningful capacity (i.e. most non-European descendant people), you aren’t following it for a naturalistic religion in line with your ancestors, you are following it for aesthetics and because it is “cool”. It reminds me of westerners who say they are Hindu. Hindu Vedic religions are deeply tied to Indian culture and traditions that are lost on westerners, because they don’t live in India.
@@monkeymoment6478 You telling the gods who they can and can't call? Don't think so. Norse paganism wasn't written down so these "traditions" you're referring to are just modern reconstructions and mostly just guesses based on Christian writings. Wouldn't be so "purity" minded about the religion if I were you.
🙏 thanks again for your brilliant words!
Tusen takk! Great video ! :)
Well said brother, you constructed and explained it well and I agree wholly. Skal!
BRAVO!
Excellent all out explanation!
Once again you knocked it out of the park!
This is amazing. Thank you
I live in the northern part of norway. I spend most of most of my time in nature, and evry now and then I feel the presence of the gods and spirits. I just say hi, and thank them for being there - simple as that :) I like your videos and your knowledge :)