Valhalla I’m Coming!

Thought I would take the opportunity to address something I feel is a misconception of Heathenry…a misconception held not only by many non-Heathens, but some Heathens as well. The misconception I’m talking about is that being Heathen is all about fighting, battling and getting drunk…all in the names of our gods, of course…and that the ultimate goal of any Heathen should be to enter Valhalla.

This may have actually been true at the height of the Viking Age, specifically among nobles and warriors who were going out to the slaughter every year. Odin – who was originally equated to Mercury by the Romans – was transformed into a furious battle god, who demanded blood, death and mayhem to beef up his ranks of Einherjar. The Christian chroniclers of the age would certainly have agreed…anything that would demonize a Heathen god was to be put in writing, so that people for a thousand years and more would instantly believe the lies. The Christians who wrote a few hundred years after the Christianization would have been obliged to continue these lies, to demonstrate how bloodthirsty and uncivil the Heathens were until they accepted Jesus into their Heathen hearts. But it’s possible that Christians weren’t the only ones who manipulated the truth to their own favor…it is just as possible that Heathen chieftains, eager to increase their wealth and prestige and in need of young warriors to accomplish this, may have also ‘tweaked‘ a little here and there. After all, we can see plainly today the effects of manipulating a religion so as to glorify killing and death.

The problem is, with Heathenry, the lies have been well-preserved…they have become as much a synonym of Heathenry as the grunting Viking, sailing around the North Sea in a barrel-tub, wearing his horned helmet. Odin, at the high point of the Viking Age, was considered a god for the nobility and warrior classes – he was not considered a god for the common person. We have stories of Odin being unreliable, that he could not be trusted. Rather than assuming these things at face value, I think it more likely that these were reactions to the nobility and its use of religion to manipulate people and justify expansions and wars…that same nobility that would one day choose Christianity in favor of more land, power, and gold – and use the sword to force their own people to convert. Odin was previously a god concerned with commerce, communication and even healing…a sudden shift of personality, according to the nobility, of demanding blood and warfare for glory and honor might cause anyone to feel mistrustful.

But the less-warlike side of Heathenry is less sensational, it makes fewer headlines even among most of today’s chroniclers. That weapons and violence weren’t and aren’t allowed at holy steads is overlooked – especially by today’s media. That the gods were loathe to kill in Asgard is also overlooked. That the first killing that took place in Asgard, the thrice burning of Gullveig, led to the near destruction of Asgard by the Vanir seems easy to overlook. That Tyr, a battle god, would rather sacrifice his own hand than violate the sanctity of Asgard with killing is overlooked. That some of the most celebrated kings in legend were celebrated because their reigns were peaceful and prosperous is overlooked. Even going back farther, to the time when Nerthus was said to make her journey across the land; and that wherever she was, no violence could take place – this is also overlooked. Regarding drinking, the moderation in food and drink that is made very clear as advice from Odin is also often overlooked.

I’m not suggesting that Heathenry is a religion of pacifism – far from it. We are a people that believe in standing up for what is right and, if we must fight, then we give the fight all that we have. I don’t believe that Heathenry is a religion that encourages half-measures. However none of that means Heathenry is a religion that glorifies, promotes or encourages people to be violent. We do honor our fallen heroes – but we honor them because they are fallen heroes, not because they picked a fight or murdered whenever they could. This would be the same as saying that honoring George Washington and Paul Revere is tantamount to celebrating death and rebellion…it just doesn’t work that way.

Heathenry, both in its historic and in its modern form, is comprised of values that promote human welfare and development…Heathenry is a religion that encourages us at all times to be at our best, so that we can in turn help our communities be at their best. This is not a religion of drunken brawls and murder. The Valhalla-I’m-Coming perspective shows someone who has only understood our religion from a shallow point of view. Those who think otherwise still have much to learn about our ways.

This article was originally published on 27. July, 2006