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Random Heathen Ramblings: S4, EP38 - An Introduction To Winter Nights · Random Heathen Ramblings

0:01
Hello everyone and welcome to the Random Heathen Ramblings
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podcast. Where we discuss all sorts of
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things, Germanic, Heathenry related.
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My name is Jesse. I'm your host.
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Let's get into it. Well, hail, hail, hail, hail,
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hail and hello everybody. Thank you for coming back here
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down through the list and see. What?
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Ioffer It's all laid out plainly there.
2:01
So yeah, check it all out and see what.
2:03
Fits you. So today's episode is going to
2:09
be on kind of the historical background?
2:13
Of of what we as as Germanic, Heathens, Norse, pagans,
2:18
etcetera, etcetera, referred to as winter nights.
2:22
And there's a few different names that it's known by, but
2:25
you know Vetter Neter. Vetter Neter is one of them.
2:28
And I wanted. To talk about it this week, I
2:31
know a lot of different heathen content creators out out there
2:36
in the in the Internets are recently starting to share
2:40
information about things pertaining to this time of year.
2:45
Winter nights, of course, being one of them.
2:47
If you're into any other sort of Celtic or Wiccan, even Pagan
2:54
practices, I'm sure you'll have been seeing a lot of posts and
2:57
videos and and clips and things about Sowen, which is another
3:02
one that's right around the corner.
3:04
Alfreblot is probably another one that if you're of the
3:07
Germanic heathen persuasion, you will have seen.
3:10
No doubt information circulate around that if you're following
3:13
any of those types of content creators.
3:15
So I do just want to take time this week and share with you
3:19
some information that maybe you already know.
3:22
But especially for those who maybe are hearing about this for
3:25
the first time, there's some, you know, new knowledge that
3:30
that we can. Share with you all so winter
3:35
nights is is at the time that this.
3:38
Podcast is released for all of you folks on on the audio
3:42
platforms and for my patrons on Patreon.
3:45
We are two nights away from the start of winter nights, the
3:50
Germanic winter nights as reckoned in pre Christian times,
3:57
and it's a it's a three night long or three day long
4:01
celebration. It's.
4:02
It's mentioned in. Several sources of it being
4:06
three nights, like many of the other, you know, Pagan
4:11
celebrations of the Germanic peoples, and we're going to
4:14
touch on some of those. Sources here today on this
4:17
episode. So you guys have some source
4:20
material that you can go back and?
4:23
You know, research yourselves. But I'll be sharing some things
4:27
here on the screen and and you know, for those of you that are
4:30
watching, you'll have some visual things that you can glean
4:35
from and stuff as well. But for all of you, those that
4:37
are listening, I will be sharing some links in the show notes of
4:43
the names of the sagas that I'm referring to or the poems that
4:45
I'm going to be mentioning, as well as any hyperlinked material
4:51
that I can. Direct you to check out of your
4:54
own accord and at your at your leisure.
4:57
OK, so like I mentioned it is a three night long celebration or
5:04
three days long celebration and it starts on this year on the
5:11
Oust Monitor moon. So we are in the month of House
5:14
Monitor and the Harvest Moon. The full moon of House Monitor
5:19
is this year, October 28th, so for me and my tribe we will have
5:26
a night of ritual and feasting with our nearest and dearest our
5:32
tribe members and some folks who are not sworn or.
5:36
Oath to Khmerli folk, but that are nonetheless very, very close
5:40
friends. To our tribe.
5:43
And so we've invited some folks like that to our celebration
5:47
this year, and our tribe's custom is to follow.
5:52
A sort of, I guess you could say, very similar to the Swedish
5:59
model of of of winter nights. At least to the degree that we
6:03
know of in one. Particular source.
6:06
I'm going to be getting to all that stuff, specifically around
6:11
when the Swedes would. Celebrate their alpha bloat, So
6:15
we're going to be getting into that.
6:17
But it is a, a day or or a time of the year, you know, a night
6:25
and it is a. Considered a holy tide, we're
6:29
welcoming in, even though this time of year in the South, where
6:33
I live in Tennessee, you know, we're still getting temperatures
6:37
during the day in the 70s, even the 80s, You know, it's not
6:41
getting exceptionally cold at night.
6:43
You know, maybe down in the, you know, 50s and 40s overnight some
6:48
of these nights here recently, but by by the Germanic people's
6:53
reckoning, right? This celebration, this holy tide
6:57
was the turning of the summer toward winter, OK?
7:03
So what we look at this time of year being?
7:08
Is the oncoming of course longer nights, shorter days, right
7:16
daylight is going to become less frequent and or you know, we're
7:20
going to have a look at longer nights, shorter days, but also a
7:25
time of year to reflect inward and.
7:28
Prepare for those dark days and when we think about coming
7:32
inward and when we think about focusing on our inner.
7:35
Yards. Our hearts, our homes.
7:38
You can't. Help, but to put focus on your
7:42
family and ancestors and that sort of thing.
7:45
So while ancestor veneration and you know all of that, is a
7:52
integral part of many heathen. Practices.
7:54
It is especially vibrant this time of year when we remember
8:00
and honor our departed dead, you know.
8:04
So if you're a a Germanic Pagan and you're thinking of observing
8:10
something around this time of year for your ancestors, you're
8:12
right in line with. A lot of other folks.
8:16
So I'm going to be sharing some stuff here again to kind of
8:22
educate, clarify on some things that we know of from historical
8:28
sources. OK.
8:30
The first one being that you know the.
8:35
All right, sorry, I'm going to just read some of these notes
8:39
here. The the dating of Norse slash
8:43
Germanic heathen holidays. They were on full moons, OK, not
8:49
on equinoxes, not on solstices. When the Germanic peoples.
8:56
Would celebrate their holy tides.
8:58
Was not done on the. Solstices was not done on
9:02
equinoxes, it was done on full moons.
9:04
They reckoned time using a Luna solar calendar.
9:09
Doctor Andreas Nordberg. I'll be linking some stuff of
9:12
his very critical reading. If you're trying to reinvent or
9:17
reconstruct a bit when you want to hold your celebrations, if
9:23
you are a, you know, practicing Germanic heathen and you want to
9:27
kind of follow the more historical route of things
9:29
rather than following this very modern.
9:32
Very popular Wiccan Wheel of the Year model, right?
9:36
But Doctor Andreas Nordberg is a is a leading authority on when
9:41
Germanic people were reckoning their time and when they would
9:44
hold their holy. Tide specifically, so check the
9:47
the show notes or if you're watching this, you know down in
9:50
the the comments description area for links to his work.
9:54
It is in Swedish, So what you'll have to do is unless you read
9:59
and understand. Swedish you'll have to use like
10:04
a translator. Google Translate.
10:05
Whatever works fairly well for stuff like this and.
10:09
But it's free. It's a free PDF that you'll be
10:12
able to get. So for a little work in getting
10:15
it translated to your native language, it's worth it, you
10:19
know? So it's important to remember
10:23
that, right, we are talking about holy tides being observed
10:29
on full moons. So that's one important thing to
10:35
take away, the other one to take away.
10:39
Is that the historical Germanic heathen?
10:44
Holy tides. There were three of them.
10:48
Three major bloats per year. That's as they reckon, time.
10:56
So those three major. Holy tides, those 3 bloats.
11:02
There were three bloats held at those.
11:03
Holy Tides were held for three nights in duration, those three
11:08
being Winter Nights, Yul and Cigarbloat.
11:14
So your winter night celebration is the the start of winter and I
11:21
believe. There are.
11:24
It is suggested that for specifically for the Swedes in
11:29
Scandinavia, when winter nights came about, it was considered
11:34
their new. Year that the When the new year
11:38
started and then midwinter was yul and summer Victory bloat.
11:46
Summer bloat was Singer bloat. So you had.
11:49
A bloat to celebrate for, for good blessings and good tidings
11:52
for the winter months. You had a bloat in the middle of
11:56
that and then you had a bloat at the beginning of summer.
11:59
To celebrate victory and welcoming in the the time of
12:04
year when you could do all the things that.
12:06
Kept you alive, right? You could start raising your
12:10
cattle and and bringing your your crops, you know, planting
12:13
your crops and and doing all of those things.
12:16
That you had to do to to survive that time in the North.
12:24
So you know, once again, I'm in the South, I'm in the South of
12:27
of the United States, I'm in a Southern state.
12:30
And you know, for when, when I think of, you know, celebrating
12:34
winter nights, you know it would be great to have, you know,
12:38
cold. Weather and you know snow maybe
12:42
on the ground or at least frost and and all of those types of
12:45
things that make you think of coming of of winter.
12:49
But as it stands this year, we're still going to be doing
12:54
our bloat, our ceremony, our ritual for for winter nights and
13:00
it's going to be warm. It's going to feel like a an
13:02
Indian summer day. So you know the way the world is
13:09
and the way the world is and the way the weather goes.
13:11
I mean, we we take what we can get, right?
13:16
My tribe's tradition is to. Hold our holy ties and to keep.
13:21
Our holy days as close to the the the full moon that that.
13:25
Holy Day would have landed on in historic times.
13:29
So luckily this year you know the 28th of October lands on a
13:34
on a day where all of us can gather without worrying about,
13:38
you know, work obligations or any other conflicts, you know?
13:44
So that's pretty cool all. Right.
13:48
So there's a couple of things just really briefly that if you
13:50
hadn't known, now you do and I do just want to kind of cover.
13:54
Some sources that talk about what we know of at least winter
13:59
nights having three nights because these next.
14:02
Couple of sources talk about something happening on the third
14:07
winter night. OK, the first one being the
14:11
Yeom's Vikings saga. It references the third winter
14:15
night with a quote. I'll read it in full.
14:19
The what you see and in what you hear or release what you see on
14:23
screen is is going to be partial.
14:25
But I'm going to be linking Again.
14:26
More information down in their description show notes for you.
14:30
But in the Yeom's Vikings saga, we hear a quote and it says I.
14:34
Swear that before the 3rd winter night is past.
14:39
I shall Dr. Aderlaud, King of England from his Kingdom, or
14:44
kill him otherwise, and so gain possession of his domain.
14:49
Now it's your turn Siegwaldi and let.
14:52
Your vow be as far reaching as mine, he said.
14:56
That so it should be. Your Majesty, I swear he said
14:59
that before the 3rd winter night.
15:01
Has passed, I shall ravage Norway with as many men as I can
15:05
assemble, and Dr. Earl Hawkin out of the land, or kill him, or
15:09
else my lifeless body will remain in Norway.
15:15
So there's one mentioned that winter nights is third three.
15:19
Days. So we hear the the speaker
15:21
saying that on the third winter night traditionally I believe we
15:26
we've come to understand that. The bloat day or bloat night
15:30
when bloat was. Held bloat was done on the on
15:33
the first night of the three nights of the celebration, so on
15:36
the first night of the full moon cycle, So that first night when
15:40
it's a full moon, that's when bloat was done.
15:44
And then the celebrations carried on for three days in
15:48
total. All right, so there's one source
15:51
material, piece of material from a source.
15:54
That gives you that clue. The next one is going to be from
15:57
the. Valalotes Saga and I'm just
16:02
going to read the the English portion, but I'll also put in
16:05
the Old Norse version as well. But this is good munder saying
16:09
well. I see that you pretend to have
16:11
played well. And yet I have the courage to
16:13
say that Red will be seen in the score for the third winter
16:18
night. So there you go, another mention
16:22
of something happening on night. Three of winter nights.
16:27
OK. So there's your some clues, some
16:31
source material that again gives you, you know, historical
16:38
backing on there being three nights in total.
16:43
All right, So the next thing I'm going.
16:45
To go over is some very some things very.
16:47
Specific. To the Swedes and as I mentioned
16:53
before, you know Norse slash Germanic Heathens.
16:58
Holy tides were three days long, three nights long and the three
17:02
major. Holy tides we have as as
17:04
examples of it being as such. So one interesting thing to
17:09
note. Is that the Swedes specifically
17:12
had three major. Holidays that were publicly held
17:17
at Uppsala Old Upsala. Now there is a poem that I'm
17:24
going to be sharing. It's a skaldic poem, and if I'm
17:29
mispronouncing it for any of you.
17:30
Scholars out there, I apologize, but there's best of my
17:32
pronunciation is. It's called Ouster Foravisir.
17:36
This is a skaldic poem that clearly states that the Swedish
17:40
celebration. That was called alphabloat was a
17:44
family only ritual that was done at the homestead and no non
17:51
family members were invited. So you know, if you were not
17:56
part of the family, if you were not part of that SIB, if you
17:58
were not part of that clan, etcetera.
18:01
Or at least a very, very close friend.
18:04
You were excluded from it. And I'm going to be reading a
18:09
blurb from that, from that poem here in just a minute to kind of
18:15
help back up what I'm saying. All right, the.
18:23
So there's. Let me see.
18:24
There's that one. The next, the next.
18:29
Let's see here. What am I going to be looking
18:31
at? OK.
18:32
Yeah, so this next one is going to be from a saga called Viga
18:41
Gloom's Saga. And this is specific to
18:43
Icelandic traditions. And it says that at the start of
18:48
winter a symbol was prepared and a disabled in which observance
18:54
all. Were expected to take part, but
18:58
Gloom sat in his place and did not attend it.
19:03
So what's interesting to note? About this is that passage that
19:08
mentions the at the start of winter, right?
19:13
So winter nights was the start of winter.
19:16
There was a sumble. That was prepared, sumble being
19:19
a a sort of drinking ritual. But that there was a de sablot
19:28
done at the same time. So what's interesting is that,
19:33
at least in Iceland. There was a de sablot
19:37
accompanying winter nights different from the.
19:41
Swedes who held an alpha bloat at the onset of winter, at the
19:46
beginning of winter for their winter nights.
19:49
Now I know there's some confusion with some heathens as
19:53
to when to celebrate these things, right?
19:55
People think that. Well, I I.
19:57
I need to celebrate alpha bloat in the fall, you know or or or
20:01
at the at winter nights and then I.
20:04
Celebrate DESA bloat. In the spring or summer.
20:09
But then there's others that are like, well, no, you do.
20:10
You can celebrate desa bloat at the onset of winter too, so
20:14
notice that disablot. At least for the Icelanders, was
20:20
done during their winter nights celebration during the oncoming
20:24
of winter. It kind of aligns with when in a
20:27
bit of a way with how the Saxons or how.
20:32
Bead. I guess the Venerable Bead
20:34
documents how these the Anglo-Saxon heathens celebrated
20:39
certain things where they had a mother's night.
20:43
Celebration, and of course, desabloat means a bloat to the D
20:48
seer. You know the D seer being the
20:51
female ancestors of the family alphabloat meaning elf, but also
20:58
the the male ancestors. So interesting right?
21:03
There were. There were definitely things
21:05
pertaining to familial reverence of ancestors, whether it was.
21:12
You know, feminine ancestors or masculine ancestors, what have
21:16
you. Things varied a little bit
21:18
different in in certain regions, as we can see, but clearly
21:22
winter nights was a time where varying traditions were held to
21:29
celebrate. The ancestors.
21:34
So in keeping that in mind, you know what whatever you want to
21:38
do. Around this time of year is
21:41
really going to be what do you, how do you?
21:43
What? How?
21:44
How? Specific do you want to get in
21:45
What model of here are you looking at?
21:48
Any more Swedish model? Maybe you're Swedish yourself,
21:50
maybe that your ancestry has Swedish ties.
21:55
Maybe you're leaning more into the Icelandic model and so you
21:59
would do like a decent load or have.
22:01
Like a Mother's Night sort of celebration.
22:05
And there's. You know, you could do either or
22:09
it's. Clearly not right or wrong in
22:11
that context. It's just how it was done based
22:15
on on where it was done, right? So that covers that part.
22:21
Let's see here. Is it this one?
22:27
What am I looking for? And just get some of my notes
22:35
pulled up here. I'm on one screen and it's a
22:37
little, Oh yeah. So this one here, right?
22:43
This. This again confirms that it was
22:46
on the full moon of the house monitor, so the the harvest.
22:49
Moon and then Anglo-Saxon Winterfeath, right, for the
22:56
Angles. For the English heathens, there
23:00
was bloat and and and ensemble. It's still winter nights, right?
23:09
Depending on whether you're Anglo-Saxon or or Saxon Heathen
23:13
or or whether you're. You know, Scandinavian, heathen,
23:17
different name, pronunciation, whatever for it.
23:20
But it's. It all means the same thing and
23:22
it's on the Harvest Moon when it's done.
23:26
So I've had, I've had. I've made comments on some other
23:33
people's posts. Like a month or two ago where
23:36
they were calling their harvest celebration at like the end of
23:41
August or beginning of September or whenever it was how they were
23:44
calling it winter nights, you know and I with nothing but the
23:49
the you know intention of educating just shared that basic
23:53
information. A lot of what I'm sharing here
23:55
right now, I learned, you know that that that I had no place
23:59
doing that. Go figure that you know people
24:03
can take things said online, you know, under different contexts
24:06
and it and it made it. You know what I had said made it
24:10
was it was perceived to be. Kind of condescending was my
24:14
intent. Didn't mean for that to be that
24:16
way. But it was a lesson learned to
24:19
just let people do what they want to do.
24:22
I'll use my platform to speak as openly and as freely as I want,
24:25
and I will say what I want on my platforms, but I'm not going to
24:27
go on other people's stuff and and.
24:29
And say things that they don't elicit.
24:32
Sorry, solicit from me, I get those two words confused a lot
24:36
and I don't know why it obviously mean different things.
24:41
So, OK, so going back to it for the Swedes, when we talk about
24:49
the winter nights thing, right, we we we talked earlier about
24:53
how the Swedes had their three major holy tides that were
24:58
publicly held at. Ipsala in Old Ipsala, Sweden.
25:03
So all three, including winter nights, was a public affair.
25:06
Their alpha bloat. Was a private thing, so you had
25:11
the publicly accessible. Celebration of winter nights
25:15
that all could come to and all would come to.
25:16
And then you had their alpha bloat that was kept separate.
25:20
Now similarly in Norway and Icelandic winter nights, it was
25:24
done at the homestead. With family and close friends
25:29
only, we kind of my tribe and I say we, you know, this is kind
25:38
of the the, the model that we follow, right?
25:42
We. We.
25:42
Hold our winter nights, but we close it off to just the tribe.
25:46
Or the close friends to the tribe that we want to invite.
25:48
It's an invite only sort of thing.
25:49
Whereas I mean, right now our tribe is really relatively.
25:52
Small, so only the only invites that you know.
25:56
The only events that we have are.
25:58
You know invite only but as in and when and as the tribe grows
26:03
and we want to host things bigger or or publicly, we might
26:08
consider doing stuff like that. But we're always going to have
26:11
our close, you know, invite only tribe, only affairs and things
26:18
that we do all right. And maybe that's what you guys
26:22
decide to do too, as you. Educate and as you grow and as
26:25
you. Find kind of where you want your
26:28
traditions to to land in is. Maybe it's something similar to
26:31
that, you know? Or maybe you want to host a big
26:33
thing and you want to invite everybody that can attend to
26:38
come and you want. To make it a more.
26:39
Public gathering A more public affair, clearly.
26:42
It's it's documented that some people some some regions did
26:47
that you know so you're not you're not like if you if you
26:50
want to be technical like you're not historically wrong about it.
26:54
There's some things to keep in mind, right?
26:58
All right, now let's see here there was.
27:03
One thing that I was going to pull up here and let me find
27:08
that real quick. Sorry I had to I.
27:11
Had to pull. Up some some other information.
27:13
That I thought I had readily available, but here we go.
27:15
So the first first thing I'm going to show you, I do remember
27:18
that we talked earlier about the.
27:20
The scalding poem the What Was It?
27:27
The astrophorophysseur Scalded. Poem.
27:30
I'm going to come to that, but I do want to just mention briefly
27:33
the the the England Asaga. I believe it's Chapter 8 here,
27:41
yeah? From the year 1225 S in that
27:44
chapter of the England Asaga, this is specific to the.
27:47
Swedes now lists 3. Great Bloats of the year.
27:50
And it says there that Odin established the same law in his
27:53
land that had been enforced. And Ossolan on winter day, first
27:58
day of winter there should be bloats.
28:01
For a good year and in the middle of winter for a good
28:05
crop. And the third bloat should be,
28:07
on summer day, a Victory bloat so those of Swedish heritage
28:12
would celebrate. Their winter nights as a bloat
28:16
for a good year. And again, that kind of makes
28:20
sense because it implies that therefore the Swedes saw the.
28:23
Winter nights. As their the start of their new
28:26
year, another Saga of Saint, The Saga of Saint Olaf mentions that
28:32
as long as Heathendom lasted, he was won't to hold three blood
28:36
offerings by him at the King, one on winter nights, the 2nd at
28:41
midwinter and the 3rd at the start of summer.
28:43
But when he became a Christian, he kept up in the same way with
28:47
the feasts. In the autumn he had a great
28:49
feast of friends. Then in winter a Yule feast when
28:52
he bade many men come to him again.
28:55
Third he had at Pasca. When he had also a great crowd
29:02
of. Guests and again, that's
29:05
referring to the, that's summertime celebration.
29:09
OK, next, Let's see here. The next one I think we're going
29:15
to look at. Yes.
29:18
So the next one we're going to look at is the one of my
29:21
favorite passages, the geese Lasaga sur sonar.
29:27
So. Is that the one I'm talking
29:31
about? Yeah, yeah, in the.
29:32
Yeah, all right. So this is also.
29:35
England, Asaga. But we've got Let's see.
29:40
Here, yeah, so we made clear that there were three major
29:43
blokes held at the Uppsala, Old Uppsala and Sweden.
29:46
But the Norwegian winter nights is done to the homestead, not at
29:50
Swedish Uppsala. Note that the word vetronutum
29:55
was used in Norway per the Gisla Saga Sursonar saga of Gisla the
30:01
Outlaw. And this saga clearly makes a
30:05
statement that a house bloat is or house bloat.
30:10
Is another name for winter nights, so Gisla Saga Sursonar
30:16
Chapter 6 says. That, and now the summer slips
30:19
away. And the first.
30:20
Winter night was nigh. At hand, Gisley made a stumble
30:25
and bade his friends to it. He wished to have a.
30:27
Gathering, and so to welcome it both the winter and his friends.
30:32
But he had left. Off all heathen bloats.
30:35
Since he had been in Viborg with Secord, he bade to the feast.
30:42
Both the Thoracles and his cousins the sons.
30:45
Of Byatmar so that the day that the guests were looked for.
30:49
Gisley made ready his house, and I particularly love the passage
30:56
because. Again, it shows that the family
30:59
and close friends were invited to the holy day bloat.
31:02
And symble that he that he held. And by the way, what I'm showing
31:07
you guys and what I'm sharing here, I'm reading it verbatim a
31:10
lot of times, but I'm I'm reading this from alsidu.com,
31:13
it's going to be a link. In the description and showing
31:16
it's for you guys to read yourselves.
31:18
So when I say I particularly love this site while I yes, I.
31:21
Do. I'm not.
31:22
I'm not saying that I wrote any of this.
31:23
This is all the work of Robert Sass altitude dot.
31:26
Com. So full credit goes to him but
31:29
again we we we kind of follow that familial only connection
31:34
model of of. Of our winter nights.
31:40
And we, you know, we don't, particularly, we don't, we don't
31:43
call it house bloat. You know, but it has been called
31:46
that obviously. So if you.
31:47
Were to call anything house bloat by by the, by the.
31:52
Authentic historical terminology.
31:55
Then you would do so to describe.
32:00
Your winter nights bloat, right? Your your winter nights
32:03
celebration. Because again, it's on the.
32:06
Full moon of the house monitor. SO house monitor, harvest, moon
32:11
harvest bloat, House bloat. That's when it was done.
32:15
That's how it was referred to as.
32:19
So there's your historical. Backing for that.
32:25
All right. So the next thing that I'm going
32:28
to cover with you guys. Or one of the last things that
32:31
we're gonna cover is what we mentioned earlier about Swedish
32:35
Alphablot. And how you might see that name
32:42
come up? This time of year and how it
32:45
might also get misunderstood or misconstrued that it was a major
32:49
holy tie that all. Heathens should be practicing A
32:51
bloat or or or an or do an offering or something like that
32:56
or. This time of the year and that
32:59
like you know alpha bloat is is somehow like the heathen
33:01
Halloween or some crazy thing like that, right?
33:03
No. So anyway, here's here's what
33:06
we're going to talk about with regards to that so alpha bloat.
33:12
It was done by families in the homestead, Swedish specifically,
33:18
and it was excluding non family members in historical sources.
33:23
There was only one mention of alpha bloat in A Swedish or as a
33:27
Swedish holiday. OK, so the scalded poem
33:31
Alstrophorovicir. Mentions that in early winter of
33:36
the year 1018 there was a Norwegian Christian poet.
33:42
Named Sigvater so he travelled to.
33:45
Sweden and claims that he was refused hospitality due to the
33:51
Swedish. Alphabet taking place every home
33:55
that he went to. Looking for shelter, he was
34:01
turned. Away and and told to leave.
34:04
So Oustrophorovici makes clear that the Swedish alphabet was.
34:09
Done by individual heathen families.
34:12
Not a big public affair, so. In that poem, verses one through
34:16
6 after an arduous journey. Siegwater.
34:20
And his companions arrived at a homestead called Hoff.
34:24
They expected to be received as per the laws of hospitality.
34:27
But the door remains shut. Siegwater had to stick.
34:31
His nose down into a narrow opening in a front door to
34:34
present himself but the people. Of the household declined.
34:38
By saying that the place was holy, Sigvatar retorted that the
34:42
trolls. Could should take them and
34:44
continue to the next homestead. At the following farm he met a
34:48
lady who told him to go away and said don't go further inside.
34:53
Unlucky man we are afraid of. Odin's wrath We are heathens.
34:57
Then she chased him away as if he were a wolf.
35:00
And said that they quote are. Having the alpha bloat at the
35:06
homestead. So again, I'm going to be
35:12
linking all of that down in the description or show notes for
35:14
you guys to. Read more.
35:15
Of if, if you want. But I love that example of
35:20
clearly it would. There were.
35:22
There were times you. Know because.
35:25
One of the big challenges I think a lot of us have.
35:27
When we when we talk about. Knowing how things were done
35:30
right in in ancient times, right?
35:33
We're all. We're always saying, well, we
35:35
don't have any source material. There's nothing really that says
35:37
how things were done here. We clearly have.
35:40
A scalded poem written by Wallow.
35:42
He was a Christian. He's he's documenting his whole
35:44
experience of what happened. You know the laws of hospitality
35:47
say. That I should be let in, Yeah.
35:49
Well, when they're doing their family gathering and when
35:52
they're having their, their holy night, that is very, very off,
35:59
off, off. Off, you know, no access,
36:03
you're. You're you're not welcome here.
36:06
The hospitality laws are are. Obsolete at this point.
36:09
Where we are, we are. Observing our holy night.
36:12
We are doing what we're doing as a family and I don't care who
36:15
you are, you're not part of it. Go away.
36:18
That is very specific and very clear.
36:20
That shows that. While we don't have many
36:24
examples of that in surviving texts, here's one of them.
36:28
So if you if we. Hear about one person doing
36:30
this, and clearly not just one person, but if we have.
36:34
Someone documenting this down, one person documenting this
36:36
down, that every home they went to in that area was behaving
36:39
this way. Then it we can we can safely
36:42
assume that this was not just something isolated to one or two
36:45
families. This was a custom.
36:47
This was a way that people. Believed.
36:50
And and did their thing or at least one of their things you
36:54
know so if we want to keep things private if.
36:57
We want to keep things off limits if we want to keep people
37:01
excluded. From our practices, I know that
37:03
that word gets some people's feathers in a in a in a tussle.
37:08
You know, talking about heathenry being exclusion,
37:11
exclusionary right or exclusive right.
37:14
Well, we want to be inclusive. We want to, we don't want to be
37:16
exclusive. We want to be inclusive.
37:18
You know, well, clearly here's. A.
37:21
An example of when. There.
37:23
Were times and it was appropriate to be excluded.
37:27
You know. For those reasons.
37:29
For those specific reason reasons, right, these were.
37:32
Families that were heathen and here comes this stranger who at
37:36
any. Other point in time might have
37:38
received hospitality right at. Least been given, you know.
37:41
Dry clothes. A warm place to sleep.
37:43
Food in their belly, whatever. But under these circumstances,
37:48
under these very specific circumstances, he was excluded.
37:51
And he was told to go away. And you know, tough luck,
37:54
Charlie, but. You're you're on your own
37:57
because we are holding our alphabloat.
37:59
And this is for us, and we're not going to break that
38:03
tradition. We're not going.
38:04
To stop what we're doing, just to give you.
38:07
You know a warm place. To lay your head and some food
38:12
you know which is crazy. And if you think about it like
38:15
this was Sweden in the beginning of winter, it's probably
38:19
bitterly cold. Maybe snow on the ground?
38:22
Already you know if you look at pictures of.
38:26
Sweden this time. Of year you know you you'll
38:29
you'll see. Snow on the ground.
38:32
You know, so there's no, there's no there's.
38:35
No doubt in my mind. That you know.
38:36
This was a time of year where if you.
38:38
Had to find shelter then. Your life depended on it.
38:43
You know, and here we have again example of somebody who was
38:47
denied hospitality because they're they were.
38:51
They were invading. The, the, the, the sanctity, the
38:55
sovereignty. Of these families, homes and.
38:58
We're. Not going to, we're not.
38:59
Going to Bent on that, we're not.
39:00
Going to budget on that so, well, I don't.
39:05
Think that this should be something that we definitively
39:09
say, you know? You know here?
39:12
Well, here's reasons why we have to be, you know, exclude people
39:15
from our practices. What?
39:18
I think it needs to. Be what I think.
39:21
It needs to be in a testament to.
39:23
Right, is that. There are.
39:25
Definitely times when if we. Have an event if we want to do
39:31
something and we want to keep it exclusive to certain.
39:33
People, then we are 100% in line.
39:36
With some of these old ways, practices right?
39:39
Just because. You have you know.
39:43
You know, 50 different. Friends or or or acquaintances
39:47
on your social media friends list.
39:51
You know that all. Wear mule nears or that.
39:53
All you know. Are heathen you know that.
39:57
Doesn't mean that you owe. Them any sort of invitation?
40:01
Or whatever to an. Event that you want to hold.
40:06
Protect your inner above all. Right.
40:09
Protect your inner guard. Protect your inner yard.
40:12
Protect your the roof tree of your of your House, of your
40:15
hearth. You know that is where.
40:18
Your true obligations lie. And so that's kind of the model.
40:22
That that my tribe has adopted is that.
40:24
We know we keep things closed off and protected from the.
40:28
Outer we had, we had. One time, and this is this is
40:32
before the tribe ever was. Formed.
40:37
There was one time that I had a a big Yule.
40:40
Celebration. I had like 30 some odd people at
40:42
my house, some of whom I've never met before, most of whom
40:47
I'd only met online. You know, I invited all these
40:51
people. Over to my house, and you know,
40:57
my wife and I, we live in a small.
40:59
Small, small place, you know And there was there was.
41:03
Way too many people here. And you know, I had things.
41:08
Stolen from me. There was a lot of.
41:13
Misbehaving, Going on. You know, partly on myself, but
41:16
a lot of other. People too.
41:17
I mean, it was it was a terrible.
41:20
I guess people had fun, you know, And it was, you know, you
41:23
know, looking back on it like we.
41:25
Nobody got severely hurt but the.
41:28
Lesson that was learned is this isn't something, first of all,
41:31
that you just. Open up to anybody and everybody
41:34
without realizing the the potential for things to go
41:38
wrong. And I didn't safeguard my in and
41:42
guard very well that that first year.
41:46
You know, it was a lesson learned, and it was a lesson
41:49
learned kind of the hard way. To you know, don't.
41:54
Don't think that just because you've.
41:56
Got a bunch of heathen friends that now you owe.
41:59
Them or anybody else this. Invitation to an event or
42:05
something that you're holding. You know if you, if you have the
42:10
means and you. Have the the resources to do it
42:16
well. Do it safely.
42:17
Keep your, keep your inner. Protected and guarded?
42:21
Well, then? Sure, rock on with it, but keep
42:27
keep. Keep in mind that.
42:30
You are absolutely within your. Right.
42:33
And if anything you you are obligated to your.
42:36
To your nearest and dearest to be exclusive.
42:39
And and exclude. Certain ones from certain
42:42
things, it's totally fine. So there you guys go.
42:47
There's kind of an introduction to the.
42:49
Heathen winter nights The historical Heathen winter
42:51
nights. There's going to be again some
42:53
information linked down below for you to to research
42:57
yourselves or or to look up yourselves.
42:59
And again I want to give due credit to Robert Sass else to do
43:03
dot. Com for the information, some of
43:06
the screenshots of things from his website there that we're.
43:09
Up on screen. For you guys that are.
43:10
Watching and for again, everybody listening if you want
43:14
to. Read more yourself.
43:16
Things will be linked down in the show notes.
43:18
And you guys can check it all out there yourselves.
43:21
At your convenience, At your leisure, maybe.
43:24
During winter nights. Yourselves, maybe you guys have.
43:26
Something going on this weekend here in just a couple of days,
43:29
you know, like I said, by the time you're watching and
43:31
listening to this. It will be.
43:35
You know, for my patrons and for those on the audio platforms,
43:38
will be two nights away from winter nights and you look up at
43:42
the sky. And you see that?
43:43
That moon she's she's getting. Brighter and brighter as we
43:47
approach. So yeah, I do hope that you guys
43:52
found this information you know, useful and and and beneficial
43:56
and I hope that it helps you. Guys in in your pursuit of?
44:03
You know, trying to do things. If you're interested in doing
44:07
things as authentically as possible or as historically
44:11
accurate as possible. I would just say, you know, like
44:13
don't, don't get. And I'm not trying to tell you
44:17
how to do your thing or or whatever, but be be be.
44:21
Watchful right? Be on your guard about getting
44:22
too root bound into certain things like realize that there
44:26
was purpose. Behind the way these people did
44:29
these. Things All of the stuff that I'm
44:30
reading, all the source materials.
44:33
You know there was purpose, why it was done a certain way, and
44:36
if the purpose behind what you're doing doesn't align with
44:39
the purpose that it was done in in that way, shift a bit, right?
44:47
Figure out why that is. And make it purpose driven.
44:52
Make what you're doing to be purpose that that there's
44:58
purpose. Behind it, you know.
45:01
So whether you decide. To not celebrate winter nights
45:04
at all, or whether you decide that your.
45:07
Winter nights is going to be a closed.
45:09
Off family only only thing. Kind of like how the alpha bloat
45:13
was. Held right and and that's the
45:15
other thing too, is I don't want to get the two confused right.
45:18
Alpha bloat is not another name for winter nights.
45:21
House to bloat. Is a name another name for
45:24
winter nights? Alpha bloat.
45:25
Was something that was done at the beginning of winter by the
45:28
Swedes so. You know whether it you know it
45:31
lined up the same time, you know right exactly around the same
45:36
time as as their public. Winter nights.
45:39
I would tend to think probably not it, you know it almost makes
45:42
me think and and there's again there's no, I don't think
45:44
there's anything in the sources here that can definitively say
45:47
this. But it almost makes me think
45:48
like since it was a three night long celebration that you
45:51
probably had one night that was for the public assembly, the big
45:55
to do right, where everybody came and it was a public
45:57
gathering at Old Loop Salah the temple in Salah, Sweden.
46:00
And then you had two more nights and on one of those nights you
46:03
probably have the family sorts of things going on.
46:06
That's what I think of. When I read that.
46:09
Can't say that it's definitively mentioned there, but something
46:12
to to ponder on, right? But so anyways, whether you want
46:15
to do it. With.
46:17
You know, with an alpha bloat celebration, or whether you want
46:20
to do a decent bloat like the Icelanders did, or or or
46:25
whatever you know. I hope that the.
46:29
Information shared here today helps you know you will what you
46:35
want to pursue. And that what you do and what
46:39
you pursue is with purpose and so at about wraps it.
46:46
Up for me this week. I'm going to be looking forward
46:49
on getting ready for the Flirty Folk Winter Nights celebration
46:53
this year with our friends and families and and we're going to
46:58
be having a symbol, you know, where we remember our ancestors.
47:05
We're going to invite our ancestors into our celebration
47:07
this year, so it's going to be really, really, really.
47:11
I think wholesome time we're all involved will, will, will be
47:17
get. Exposed to some really good
47:19
things and that's my hope and that's my goal, so if you are.
47:25
Observing winter nights? Please down in the comments if
47:27
you're watching this or if you're listening to this and you
47:29
want to write into the podcast and then share your thoughts of
47:32
what you're. Doing.
47:33
Or winter nights. Or how you're celebrating.
47:36
I'd be eager to to hear what you have to say.
47:40
There's going to be a poll or or Q&A here on the Spotify
47:44
platform, so if you're listening to this on Spotify, feel free to
47:47
chime in with your thoughts. But if you're going to write in,
47:50
you can do so. Midgardenmusingstn@gmail.com You
47:53
can. Call Into the Pod podcast.
47:54
Hotline and leave your thoughts there on a voicemail.
47:57
That phone number is 615-671-9832.
48:04
And yeah, so I I do hope that if you are.
48:06
Observing winter nights this year that you have a blessed one
48:10
that your. Heart fires burn bright that
48:12
your ancestors smile upon you. So until we see each other
48:16
again, may gods continue to notice you and may your
48:20
ancestors smile upon you. See you in the next one, guys.
48:23
Thanks for your support.