The Heathen Viking Religion

The Heathen Vikings didn't worship in the same sense as Christians.
They respected their Gods and honored them. Perhaps they made sacrifice to give thanks or ask favor in times of danger. The Gods were more powerful then men. But they were not all-powerful, or all-knowing, or entirely good. Like men, they ate, fought, played jokes, were deceived on occasion, and eventually would die. They were themselves bound by their fates, and doomed to die at the end of the world. After which, they and the world, are to be reborn and the cycle continued.

While we do know something of the general beliefs, we know little of the details of practice. Most of what we know comes from an Icelandic Poet named Snorri Sturluson (1179-1241) who recorded many of the myths and histories of the time. However, he wrote two hundred years after Iceland became Christian, and says little about actual practice.

This has caused problems for those individuals and groups who wish to return to the old time Nordic religion. These folks, often called "Asatru", study as much as is known of the old religion, and then build from there to fill in the gaps. Some have deliberately added new elements to adapt to modern times. As a result, there are a lot of differences among them. These differences are compounded by the fact that there is no central authority or official dogma. This is as it was in Viking times as well.

For a brief, but really good description of current practice, read "The Religion of the North" by Diana Paxon. For more on Asatru as a nature religion, you might want to read "Hail Earth That Givest to All..." by the same author.

Here's some Asatru and related links.

• The Troth, an informative and well balanced page.
• The Irminsul Page, an excellent page with lots of cross links.
• Lew Stead's Raven Page
• �satr�arfelagi�, The Icelandic Asatru Page, Asatru is one of only two officially recognized religions in Iceland! Unfortunately, the page is mostly in Icelandic.
• The Germanic Heritage Page The German take, a good page.
• Use your browser! If you find anything really good, let me know.