Forwarded from Germanic Faith (Kyle Davis)
We have previously discussed the concept of the Helga—the hallowing of sacred ground during a blót. This traditional practice is carried out with fire, a primordial element associated with both creation and destruction. Fire is used here to purify the land.
The next step in the blót structure is the Heita and the Biðja—the invocation and the prayer. This is the moment when the god or goddess being honored is called upon, and a prayer is offered in alignment with the specific ritual being performed.
As we invoke the gods, we focus on recalling their past deeds—stories that describe their interactions with humans and how these shaped our world. A useful example of this kind of invocation is found in Hyndluljóð verses 2–4:
Old Norse -
English
2. Biðjum Herjafǫðr –
We pray to Herjafǫðr
í hugum sitja, –
sitting in thought,
hann geldr ok gefr –
he grants and gives
gull verðungu; –
gold to his retinue;
gaf hann Hermóði –
he gave Hermóðr
hjalm ok brynju, –
helm and byrnie,
en Sigmundi –
and Sigmundr
sverð at þiggja. –
a sword to take.
3. Gefr hann sigr sumum, –
He gives victory to some,
en sumum aura, –
he gives wealth to some,
mælsku mǫrgum –
good speech to many
ok mannvit firum; –
and good sense to men;
byri gefr hann brǫgnum, –
he gives fair wind to sailors,
en brag skaldum, –
and poetry to skalds,
gefr hann mannsemi –
he gave manliness
mǫrgum rekki. –
to many warriors.
4. Þórr mun hon blóta, –
To Thor she will blót,
þess mun hon biðja, –
This she will ask,
at hann æ við þik –
that he ever to you
einart láti; –
faithful should let (himself be);
þó er hánum ótítt –
though it is not his custom
við jötuns brúðir. –
with the Jötuns’ brides.
Every blót needs a central focus—something that gives reason and purpose to the offerings being made by those gathered. This purpose is established through the Heita and the Biðja.
The word Biðja is mentioned in several sources, but two of the more notable references come from Hávamál and Fjölsvinnsmál:
Old Norse – English
144. Veistu, hvé biðja skal? –
Do you know how to pray?
(Hávamál)
40.Bjargrúnar skaltu kunna, – Bjargrúnar shall you know,
ef þú bjarga vilt –
if you will help,
ok leysa kind frá konum: – and loose the child from the woman;
á lófum þær skal rista –
on the palms shall you rist;
ok of liðu spenna –
and clasped round her joints
ok biðja þá disir duga –
and pray to the Dísir for aid.
(Fjölsvinnsmál)
Using these passages we can then reconstruct this aspect of a rite, meant to invoke the gods and offer prayers in a traditional manner, one that brings purpose and meaning to our rituals.
The next step in the blót structure is the Heita and the Biðja—the invocation and the prayer. This is the moment when the god or goddess being honored is called upon, and a prayer is offered in alignment with the specific ritual being performed.
As we invoke the gods, we focus on recalling their past deeds—stories that describe their interactions with humans and how these shaped our world. A useful example of this kind of invocation is found in Hyndluljóð verses 2–4:
Old Norse -
English
2. Biðjum Herjafǫðr –
We pray to Herjafǫðr
í hugum sitja, –
sitting in thought,
hann geldr ok gefr –
he grants and gives
gull verðungu; –
gold to his retinue;
gaf hann Hermóði –
he gave Hermóðr
hjalm ok brynju, –
helm and byrnie,
en Sigmundi –
and Sigmundr
sverð at þiggja. –
a sword to take.
3. Gefr hann sigr sumum, –
He gives victory to some,
en sumum aura, –
he gives wealth to some,
mælsku mǫrgum –
good speech to many
ok mannvit firum; –
and good sense to men;
byri gefr hann brǫgnum, –
he gives fair wind to sailors,
en brag skaldum, –
and poetry to skalds,
gefr hann mannsemi –
he gave manliness
mǫrgum rekki. –
to many warriors.
4. Þórr mun hon blóta, –
To Thor she will blót,
þess mun hon biðja, –
This she will ask,
at hann æ við þik –
that he ever to you
einart láti; –
faithful should let (himself be);
þó er hánum ótítt –
though it is not his custom
við jötuns brúðir. –
with the Jötuns’ brides.
Every blót needs a central focus—something that gives reason and purpose to the offerings being made by those gathered. This purpose is established through the Heita and the Biðja.
The word Biðja is mentioned in several sources, but two of the more notable references come from Hávamál and Fjölsvinnsmál:
Old Norse – English
144. Veistu, hvé biðja skal? –
Do you know how to pray?
(Hávamál)
40.Bjargrúnar skaltu kunna, – Bjargrúnar shall you know,
ef þú bjarga vilt –
if you will help,
ok leysa kind frá konum: – and loose the child from the woman;
á lófum þær skal rista –
on the palms shall you rist;
ok of liðu spenna –
and clasped round her joints
ok biðja þá disir duga –
and pray to the Dísir for aid.
(Fjölsvinnsmál)
Using these passages we can then reconstruct this aspect of a rite, meant to invoke the gods and offer prayers in a traditional manner, one that brings purpose and meaning to our rituals.
Forwarded from History of Revolution
Lev Reichman and Boris Berman: Jewish officers involved in the "Polish operation" in Ukraine and Belarus
Lev Raikhman and Boris Berman were Soviet NKVD officers involved in the “Polish Operation” of 1937–1938, a mass campaign of repression under Stalin targeting ethnic Poles across the USSR, especially in Ukraine and Belarus. Both men held key roles in implementing NKVD Order No. 00485, which mandated the arrest, sentencing, and execution of individuals accused of espionage and sabotage on behalf of the Polish state.
Boris Davidovich Berman was appointed head of the NKVD in the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic in May 1937. He was directly responsible for conducting the Polish Operation in Belarus. Under his leadership, the NKVD carried out mass arrests, interrogations, and executions of thousands of ethnic Poles, often on fabricated charges. Torture during interrogations became widespread under his authority. Between 1937 and 1938, around 17,000 people were executed in Belarus under this campaign. Berman had previously gained prominence within the NKVD for his role in the interrogations of high-profile political figures during the Moscow Trials. He was later arrested in 1938 during the internal NKVD purges, accused of being a Polish spy, and executed in 1939.
Lev Grigoryevich Raikhman served in the NKVD of the Ukrainian SSR under Commissar Izrail Leplevskii. He was instrumental in drafting arrest protocols and organizing operations that targeted Polish communities in Ukraine. Raikhman later played a significant role in the Katyn massacre, where over 20,000 Polish military officers and intelligentsia were executed by the NKVD in 1940. He participated in efforts to attribute the crime to National Socialist Germany, including presenting fabricated forensic evidence and testimony to international bodies. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Raikhman survived the Stalinist era and continued to serve in Soviet institutions during and after World War II.
According to historian Bogdan Musiał: "It is estimated that Polish losses in the Ukrainian SSR were about 30%, while in the Belorussian SSR... the Polish minority was almost completely annihilated or deported."
Lev Raikhman and Boris Berman were Soviet NKVD officers involved in the “Polish Operation” of 1937–1938, a mass campaign of repression under Stalin targeting ethnic Poles across the USSR, especially in Ukraine and Belarus. Both men held key roles in implementing NKVD Order No. 00485, which mandated the arrest, sentencing, and execution of individuals accused of espionage and sabotage on behalf of the Polish state.
Boris Davidovich Berman was appointed head of the NKVD in the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic in May 1937. He was directly responsible for conducting the Polish Operation in Belarus. Under his leadership, the NKVD carried out mass arrests, interrogations, and executions of thousands of ethnic Poles, often on fabricated charges. Torture during interrogations became widespread under his authority. Between 1937 and 1938, around 17,000 people were executed in Belarus under this campaign. Berman had previously gained prominence within the NKVD for his role in the interrogations of high-profile political figures during the Moscow Trials. He was later arrested in 1938 during the internal NKVD purges, accused of being a Polish spy, and executed in 1939.
Lev Grigoryevich Raikhman served in the NKVD of the Ukrainian SSR under Commissar Izrail Leplevskii. He was instrumental in drafting arrest protocols and organizing operations that targeted Polish communities in Ukraine. Raikhman later played a significant role in the Katyn massacre, where over 20,000 Polish military officers and intelligentsia were executed by the NKVD in 1940. He participated in efforts to attribute the crime to National Socialist Germany, including presenting fabricated forensic evidence and testimony to international bodies. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Raikhman survived the Stalinist era and continued to serve in Soviet institutions during and after World War II.
According to historian Bogdan Musiał: "It is estimated that Polish losses in the Ukrainian SSR were about 30%, while in the Belorussian SSR... the Polish minority was almost completely annihilated or deported."
Forwarded from Folkish Worldview
Something interesting has been happening. Have you noticed?
When pagans (or others) argue a theory of history, or some metaphysical concept, or folkhood etc, Christians now say "well, we have this concept too", or "we can defend race and folkhood too". Do you see what's going on?
They're on the back foot. They feel left out. For the first time in thousands of years, Christians are having to argue their position, but not from the right against the left: they're arguing from the left against the right.
But they don't know how to do that. Christianity can't claim to be our tradition because we're not Christian anymore, Christianity has been replaced by modernity. And Christians can't argue that they're the defenders of authority and tradition because paganism has begun to argue that point, and convincingly.
Christianity has been the null hypothesis for centuries, but that's over. Now it's being outflanked from the right, but it's also not the leftmost point on the compass. Where can it stand?
This will only get worse.
@folkishworldview
When pagans (or others) argue a theory of history, or some metaphysical concept, or folkhood etc, Christians now say "well, we have this concept too", or "we can defend race and folkhood too". Do you see what's going on?
They're on the back foot. They feel left out. For the first time in thousands of years, Christians are having to argue their position, but not from the right against the left: they're arguing from the left against the right.
But they don't know how to do that. Christianity can't claim to be our tradition because we're not Christian anymore, Christianity has been replaced by modernity. And Christians can't argue that they're the defenders of authority and tradition because paganism has begun to argue that point, and convincingly.
Christianity has been the null hypothesis for centuries, but that's over. Now it's being outflanked from the right, but it's also not the leftmost point on the compass. Where can it stand?
This will only get worse.
@folkishworldview
Forwarded from Aryan Paganism, Traditions and Art (APTA)
Pagan fundamentalism (Paganism proper) means that your religion is the fundament (basis) of your worldview. It means being rooted in your ancestral faith. Example: Paganism is opposed to the theory of evolution because the myth state that humans were created.
Newcomers are slow to develop such traditionally fundamentalist, folkish view because most used to be atheists or atheistic christians.
The main issue for religion today is the concept of objective, universal (non-tribal) truth which philosophy-science promotes. That’s why philosophers were charged with impiety. Their fundament is not the lore of their people, but a bunch of supposedly higher truth. Later science popularized this approach which is why anti-folkish (rootless) pagans today use scientific data contradicting the lore as some counter to faith-rooted mythical literalism. All stems from the idealism-universalism.
Newcomers are slow to develop such traditionally fundamentalist, folkish view because most used to be atheists or atheistic christians.
The main issue for religion today is the concept of objective, universal (non-tribal) truth which philosophy-science promotes. That’s why philosophers were charged with impiety. Their fundament is not the lore of their people, but a bunch of supposedly higher truth. Later science popularized this approach which is why anti-folkish (rootless) pagans today use scientific data contradicting the lore as some counter to faith-rooted mythical literalism. All stems from the idealism-universalism.
Forwarded from The Anglo-Saxon Movement
This is something I have struggled with, to be honest. I was raised in a fundamentalist Christian household, but a number of things made me leave that when I was still quite young. Now, although Christianity and Anglo-Saxon Paganism are both deeply important to me, I still haven’t rebuilt that fundamentalism yet despite active trying.
The loss of fundamentalism or mythic faith in this way is like a broken or atrophied limb - it takes a lot of work and specific action to rebuild. I am trying though. It is one of the many reasons I created this channel
The loss of fundamentalism or mythic faith in this way is like a broken or atrophied limb - it takes a lot of work and specific action to rebuild. I am trying though. It is one of the many reasons I created this channel
Forwarded from USSR Loved Christ
• Sell all your possessions and give them to the poor (Matthew 19:21)
• Do not become wealthy like the bourgeois (Mark 10:25)
• Your enemy is the very family which you sprouted from (Matthew 10:36)
• Abolish all private property (Luke 18:22)
• From each according to his ability. . . to each according to his needs (Matthew 25:15; Acts 4:34-35)
• Race is a social construct designed to divide the Proletariat, we must unite as one working class! (Galatians 3:28, Col. 3:11)
• He who does not work neither shall he eat (2 Thessalonians 3:10, later adopted by Lenin)
@USSRLovedChrist
• Do not become wealthy like the bourgeois (Mark 10:25)
• Your enemy is the very family which you sprouted from (Matthew 10:36)
• Abolish all private property (Luke 18:22)
• From each according to his ability. . . to each according to his needs (Matthew 25:15; Acts 4:34-35)
• Race is a social construct designed to divide the Proletariat, we must unite as one working class! (Galatians 3:28, Col. 3:11)
• He who does not work neither shall he eat (2 Thessalonians 3:10, later adopted by Lenin)
@USSRLovedChrist
Forwarded from Folkish Kingdom
Summer Solstice is here, honor the Gods/Goddesses, spend time with your family and enjoy life and nature.
Forwarded from European Folk
Enthroned Zeus (Greek, c. 100 BC) - modeled after the Olympian Zeus by Pheidas (c. 430 BC)