AsatruThe Natural Religion of The European People What is Asatru ?Asatru is the natural and native religion of the Northern European people and their descendants. Those Europeans in Europe, Canada, the United States and Australia have the right to claim the ways of their people and forefathers.Long efore Christianity made its way to Europe from the !iddle East and religious ideas from southern desert lands converted our people, "often unwillingly and with deceit of their true message# Asatru was the spiritual path of our people.$t is one of the European pre%Christian heathen religions that once again is eing reclaimed y the sons and daughters of Europe, at home and aroad. Asatru is a religion of family values and &inship, it is deeply connected to nature, and teaches our fol& to lead an honorale life. $t is a religion of self sufficiency and strength, one that respects life and strong will. $t is a spiritual path which places great importance on our elders and ancestors. Asatru has greatly affected our culture and many of the customs and aspects of our culture today are remnants of our original ways. What we believeThe GodsAsatru recogni'es many different (ods that are deeply connected with the forces of Nature and also with the asic forces which rule over our society. $n Asatru, the (ods are oth our fathers and mothers as well as our rothers and sisters. Asatru teaches to uild a relationship with the (ods rather than to grovel in fear of them. )ur ancestors &new of many (ods, and elow are listed some of the most important. TheVanirThe (ods are divided into two tries. The Aesir and the *anir. The *anir (ods are the (ods of the Earth and Nature.Frey % The Lord of Nature , wild animals, the forest and all that grows. Twin +rother of ,reya.Freya % Lady of Nature , patron of strong women, (oddess of womanhood. Twin Sister of ,rey.Ullr % (od of winter, archery and hunting. Travels on snowshoes. The (od of the Northern Lights and evergreen forests. Skadi % (oddess of ice, s&iing and hunting. ,aithful to her followers and rings -ustice to those harmed. Njord % (od of the sea, calms storms and saves those on the ocean. ,ather of ,rey and ,reyaErda % The Earth, and (oddess of nature. The AesirThe Aesir (ods are the (ods of )rder and .ustice, miltary necessity and Agriculture. Odin % The All ,ather. Loving creator of humanity, he gifted man with a spirit and a fiery will. !aster shaman and wi'ard and the lord of attle. )din is the teacher of man, in all things hidden. Frigg % /ife of )din, All !other, protector of children, marriage and fidelity. ,rigg unites husands and wives after death who wish to remain together forever in the afterlife. Baldur % Son of )din and ,rigg. (od of light and holiness, the slain (od who is resurrected. Thor % (od of agriculture and farmers, of the wor&ing man laouring in the fields and forges. 0rotector of our fol& and the warder of Earth. The (od of thunder and lightning and the slayer of demons and giants. 1e wields a mighty hammer and his chariot is pulled y two goats. 1e is &now as Thor the red.Tyr % (od of the s&y, -ustice and truth. Tyr is the (od who deals -udgment and settles disputes. The &eeper of order in society. Heimdall % The watchman of the (ods. 1eimdall guards the gate and ridge into the (ods heaven. 1e came to Earth long ago and taught man how to organi'e society. A teacher and a father, he is said to have sired three sons of human mothers and their lood is taught in legend to run through our veins. FolkismAsatru is an ethnic, or fol&ish religion. /hat this means is that there is a strong emphasis placed on ones lood and ancestral heritage. This also means that Asatru is not for everyone, -ust as the ways of the Native American $ndian, or the .apanese ethnic religion of Shinto are not for everyone, ut for those who come from that lood line. )ur holy oo&s, the 1avamal and the Eddas, along with the many European Sagas teach us that we are created from our (ods, and we are thus in the image of the (ods and their 2in. This elief is widely held y all fol&ish religions of the world, Shinto for e3ample teaches that the .apanese race was descended from the Sun (oddess.$t is the same in Asatru, as the Northern European fol& are said to e descended from )din, chief of the (ods. Therefore we elieve our genetics to e very important and continuing the family line and honoring our ancestors plays a significant role in Asatru. Nature Worship and Shamanism$n the past efore Christianity was implemented in Europe, the white man shared much in common with the Native American $ndian and other indigenous tries.Nature was revered and alance with the Earth, who was seen as a living entity was very important. Nature spirits lived in woods, roc&s and enchanted groves. The universe was seen as the nourishing/orld Tree. /isemen and women practiced the shamanic art &nown as Seid "Seid%ith# which relied heavily on ones connection with nature and the (oddess ,reya. A Womans Place$n Asatru the women of our fol& are e4uals in all ways. Spiritually, politically and domestically the women of pre%Christian Europe en-oyed more freedoms than they did under Christianity. $n Asatru women are not arred from the important roles in society or taught they are a wea&er se3, rather they are encouraged to use the great strength inside them. $n times past a /omen had many rights and privileges, something that is now -ust starting to come ac&, a natural and su%conscious return to our heathen ways. $n Asatru women are our Sisters and !others, our /ives and 5aughters they can e spiritual leaders and have much wisdom. /omen carry the ne3t generation of our fol& and are treated to reflect this paramount tas&.Our Holidays!any of us in the /est grew up with favorite 1olidays such as Easter and Christmas. ,or many Europeans, even though their connection to Christianity has waned, their fondness of these times and memories of family remain important. $n fact most of our current holidays are derived heavily from our old 1eathen celerations.The word 1oliday itself is derived from the word 1oly, which is in turn derived from the word 1olly, a sacred northern tree in Asatru.Ostara known as Easter 6 The word Easter is derived from the old English word )stara, a great goddess of spring time and nature. The crucification of .esus has little to do with much of the symolism of Easter, eing eggs, ay animals and the rait. $n truth these things are the symols used y our ancestors to celerate the new life and fertility of spring. Winternights known as Christmas 6 Eggnog, the yule log, mistletoe, 1olly and !istletoe, decorated evergreen trees, as well as a magical man who lives in an icy forest riding a chariot pulled y mighty reindeer again have little to do with the irth of .esus, or anything remotely !iddle Eastern. All of these things are deep spiritual symols to our religion.There are many other 1olidays and other rich, cultural traditions handed down to us from our ancestors, and as your &nowledge of Asatru grows you will reali'e -ust how much of this ancient religion you are already practicing. The Afterlife,or our ancestors in Europe, life did not end when the ody died, ut everyone had an enduring soul. The destination of the soul was important to our fol& and was determined y ones strengths, connections and actions in this world. There is no oo& of rules in Asatru which dictates all offenses which can cause ones entrance into the realms of the afterlife. Entrance in to the realm of the (ods comes from an inflamedspiritandfollowing the nine noble virtues, eing Courage, Truth, 1onour, ,idelity, 5iscipline, 1ospitality, $ndustriousness, Self%reliance and 0erseverance.Why Asatru ?)ur European genetics were forged in Northern lands of )a& and 0ine forests and icy winters. )ur religion and culture reflects the Northern lifestyle. /e elieve that the people of Europe should follow their ways and are perhaps not suited to the desert religions from the !iddle East. $n this age of continued seculari'ation, cold technology and increasing ureaucracy, the soul has a great yearning for a spiritual connection. !any of our fol&, however, have found that the foreign religions imposed on us do not fulfill their moral or spiritual longing. Simply put, if you are of European ac&ground then there is a spiritual path inside of you, followed for thousands of years y our ancestors. /hen our fol& ta&e that path, our people will ecome whole and spiritual once more. ,or more information visit the following siteswww.odinsvol&.cawww.runestone.org