meditation Archives — The Rational Heathen

Using the Magic in Nature and the Seasons

August 21, 2018 The Rational Heathen Comments 0 Comment

Oh my god! I said the “M” word! Does that mean I’m going to talk about…GULP…Magic? Well, yes, and no. I want to talk about changes in the seasons and how you can recognize them long before most people do. Which means maybe not magic, but more observation and perhaps a bit of empathy.

Let me explain.

Recognizing the Rhythms of Your Land

Regardless of whether you live in the country or the city, in the Northern or Southern Hemisphere, or in the Americas or “across the pond,” the land you live in has its own rhythm, its own wights (and I use that term loosely), and its own timing. Back when I lived further south in the Rocky Mountains, it took me forever to recognize this–mainly because I wasn’t a Heathen then and I had other concerns which took up a good deal of my attention. Back when I was younger, the weather, the climate, and the land were simply distractions from day-to-day living. Now, I realize that day-to-day living is a distraction from the weather, climate, and the land.

Look, you don’t need to become a tree hugger or run around naked in the forest to connect with nature. (However, if that’s what you do to get your rocks off, that’s none of my business.) It involves changing your viewpoint and paying more attention to the natural occurrences that surround you (even in the city.) Changing your viewpoint isn’t that hard, but it does require mindfulness. This is why I often recommend mindfulness training to those who are getting started in Heathenry.

Mindfulness as Magic

If there’s a form of magic I do believe in, it has to do with mindfulness. Seriously, it’s something everyone can do and it will help discipline your mind enough to deal with the stress of modern life. I recommend a book called Mindfulness for Fidgety Skeptics if you’ve never done this before. I get a small stipend from Amazon if you buy it through the link. You support this website if you use the link, so I would appreciate it if you use it. Even if I didn’t get some money through this, I’d still recommend the book.

What You’ll Discover Paying Attention to the Land

Being mindful and paying attention to the land opens a whole new world of experiences you never knew existed. You start noticing not only the cooler temperatures of autumn setting in, but also the increase or decrease in humidity that follows the change. Maybe you start seeing stratus clouds and high cirrus replace the fluffy cumulus. Maybe you see a shift in the bird population, the increase or decrease of certain insects, or even the shift in the quality of light you get. Instead of noticing the latest fall fashions creeping into people’s wardrobes, you notice how the squirrels are moving from tree to tree to gather food. You may see different species of birds. If you live in a place with deer, you may see a shift in their foraging.

At night, you may see a change in the constellations–if the light pollution isn’t too bad. If you live in wildfire country like I do, you can actually see if there are new wildfire starts nearby just by the color of the moon, often before the news picks it up.

How This Makes You a Better Heathen

At this point, you may be wondering how this makes you a better Heathen. Let’s think about this a bit: our gods and the landvaettir are nature entities. Even Odin, who is our creator god, deals with natural forces. (How much more natural is the creation of life?) So, we’re looking at gods who reside over nature. By paying attention to things not human made, we gain a deeper understanding in the world around us. You become a better Heathen, and you even open yourself up to the wights and gods. It may or may not be a type of magic, but I know it works.

How to Communicate with the Gods

That’s one thing about being a Heathen a lot of Heathens miss. You see, you can get close to the gods without all the mumbo-jumbo. In fact, I suspect it’s the best way to get in touch with the gods. You don’t get a conversation with the gods from mumbling prayers or sacrificing goats usually. You get that from opening yourself to them and seeing who pops up. That requires paying attention to them and listening to what they have to say.

If you’re not receptive to the gods unless Thor takes a hammer to you and smacks you silly, you’re unlikely to hear them. That does happen to the most dense of us and it is quite unpleasant. Trust me when I say you will really get shaken out of your reality when the gods do that. It will make you question your overall sanity, unless you’re already bat-shit crazy. Now, it’s a lot easier to deal with because I’m more in tuned with them, but for a while it was fucking nuts.

I hope I’ve given you some things to think about. Let me know what you think.

Gods Don’t Knock–Making Room for the Heathen Gods

February 13, 2018 Tyra Ulfdottir Comments 0 Comment

My life is stupid busy. It’s not something I’m particularly proud of, nor is it something I wear like a badge of honor. Which is why it befuddles me why a god–much less several–would pop into my extremely busy life. It’s not like I actually opened up a door, even though Tyr says that I did.

(Am I really arguing with a god?)

Information Addiction

Okay, back to something less esoteric (and I swear all this has a Heathen point, so bear with me). The truth is that someone like me is a real information addict. Which is why when I start writing anything, I get distracted–oooh, shiny!–and I start researching stuff that leads me to not working but instead hoarding information, and occasionally disseminating it. Take this piece. I had no fucking clue what to write about (a constant issue with me) and so I went to some of my favorite sites for inspiration. Only, there wasn’t inspiration but shit that is just distraction. Here’s a sample of my browser’s history:

5+ Ways Not to Take Things Personally
Web Hosting Hub Review: The Good, Bad & My Experience
Brainjunk and the Killing of the Internet Mind
10 Steps to Conquering Information Overload
Popular–Wordpress Plugins
Between Two Worlds: My Journey With Hekate
Cognitive Ability and Vulnerability to Fake News
Lift Weights, Eat More Protein, Especially if You’re Over 40
The Most Interesting Science News Articles of the Week

Chances are your browser tabs are loaded in the same way. You’re constantly reading shit other people (including the Rational Heathen) have put out there and have about the attention span of a gnat–oooh,shiny!*

Why We’re Internet Addicted

Humans are, by nature, dopamine addicts. Dopamine is the feel-good chemical in your brain that makes you feel happy, gives you that sudden rush during orgasm, and causes you to get high if you take drugs that interfere with the natural chemistry of your brain. (Some drugs cause the brain to produce more dopamine; some drugs inhibit the recycling or reuptake mechanisms. Some really powerful drugs do both, but they’ve got their own risks, like death.) Dopamine causes us to chase after those adrenaline highs (because dopamine is also a precursor to epinephrine and norepinephrine) and it causes us to become thrill seekers. It’s what causes us to hit the feeder bar, as it were, to get that really good feeling again and again.

Internet addiction, by nature, does similar damage to the brain as cocaine. When we learn something new, guess what? We get a shot of dopamine. So, when we’re bombarded with things we read, learn about, feel, etc., we get hits. But we’re often getting those hits on a fast and furious basis and not in a natural sense. So, we get artificial highs from hits off our phone, our computer, and our tablet. But it’s work, right? (Yeah, I have a million justifications why I have to be playing Castle Siege, too.)

The problem is that even bright people tend to use their time for dopamine chasing and not things that actively enrich their lives. I mean, how many times do you check your Facebook posts, your chat rooms, your email, and your text messages a day? How many times do you have to look at your phone? This is not life. It is not living. It is certainly not living as a Heathen.

I’m not saying if our ancestors had these tools that they wouldn’t have fallen into the same trap. On the contrary, they did use psychoactive substances, most likely alcohol and mushrooms. Those who had contact with the Middle East probably had access to opium poppies. Did these substances allow the ancestors to see the gods? Maybe. Maybe not. I’ve known Heathens who swear they have met the gods after getting drunk or smoking weed. Having never experienced that, I don’t know if it was the weed or alcohol, or whether it was the lack of inhibition that enabled them to connect to the gods.

The Gods Don’t Knock

Thanks to Magickal Graphics

Occasionally I get inspirations from the gods when I’m on the computer, but it’s rare. More often, however, I’ve heard the gods when I’m not linked into the dopamine feeder bar called a computer. It’s because when I’m on computers and smartphones, I’m too tied up chasing that next hit. It’s when I’m away from computers and other distractions that I can finally listen. And that is when they often talk to me. Quietly, and in their own way.

I’m not saying that happens every time. Sometimes I just get silence and nothing else. But the gods don’t knock and ask to speak to you. You must be ready to hear them. You can’t hear them if you’re always getting hits from the dopamine feeder bar. Eventually, you just kind of numb out to everything.

But What About Drugs?

At this point, you’re probably asking “what about drugs or mind-altering substances?” As much as I’m against illegal drugs (for various reasons, having had first hand experiences with addicts and the damage they leave behind), I’m not going to lie to you and say that you won’t be able to have a conversation with your chosen deity. Our ancestors used mushrooms and alcohol, (certainly to channel their inner berserker), and quite possibly to commune with the gods. However, I think the cost of using them to elicit possible contact may be greater than you’ve anticipated. For one thing, the types of drugs used back then are nowhere near the potency of today’s illegal drugs. Even marijuana (which I don’t think the ancestors used) was less potent than it is today. Meth and heroin, for example, are much stronger than what was available in the Viking Era. Then, there is always the “bad trip” and the always nasty side effects of mushrooms such as the toxic Amanita muscaria or fly agaric, purported to be the mushrooms the berserkers used.

There is a Better Way

I’ve been doing a lot more research on meditation, since it is my chosen path to the gods. Although it is touted as an Eastern discipline, I suspect that our ancestors may have used it to focus on the gods as well. It is a wa

y to train your mind that just about anyone can do. It has the benefit of being able to reduce anxiety, lower blood pressure, and give you greater control over your mind and body without feeling like you’re into self-flagellation. If anything, it’s actually quite relaxing.

If you’re looking for a book on the subject, I highly recommend Dan Harris’s Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics: A 10% Happier How-to Book. I picked it up because I loved the title, but it is a good place to learn how to do it. Also, if you do buy it from the link, I get a small amount of compensation which will help support this blog.

Other Ways to Connect with the Gods

Obviously there are many ways to connect with the gods besides meditation, drugs, and unplugging. One is to go to the places that they are and just listen. I’m talking going to a natural place and just sitting quietly awhile. Do you hear Thor’s voice as a spring storm comes up? Do you feel Skadi’s touch when the wind whips through the trees as snow falls? Do you feel Tyr’s presence as you look into a starry night’s sky? Does Sunna embrace you on a clear day? There are many places to feel the gods and their powers. I suspect that if you don’t hear a god, you might connect with a landvaettir, which might be just as rewarding. My point is that our gods seldom look to contact us, unless we open ourselves for that contact. That’s why I recommend keeping yourself open and aware. You just might connect with a god or goddess. Maybe not the one you intended to connect with, but one that you need to hear from.

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*Actually our attention span is less than nine seconds, which is less than a goldfish’s attention span.

Choosing a God or Goddess from the Northern Pantheons

July 17, 2017 Tyra Ulfdottir Comments 14 comments

If you’re new to Heathenry (or even if you aren’t), maybe you’re wondering which gods and/or goddesses are your main go-to deities, or (dare I say it?) patron deities. I’ve been reading some blogs about this and I figured, as the Rational Heathen, I’d weigh in on the subject. As usual, your mileage may vary (YMMV) and any advice I give may not fit your circumstance.

But I Already Have a God/Goddess!

If you’re a newly arrived Heathen, chances are you’ve chosen one of the more media-prominent gods/goddesses such as Odin, Thor, Loki, or Freyja. That’s all well and good, but they aren’t the only ones out there, and they may not fit you. Also, they’re not a “I’m substituting Odin for the Christian god”-type of gods. Odin isn’t the only creator-god, nor is he entirely benevolent. All the gods have their dark sides, just like human beings. But they also have their good sides, which can be wondrous and amazing when you are on the receiving end.

If you’re a Heathen with some years in Heathenry, you may have found a god/goddess that you like, but maybe are looking for more than one go-to god, or maybe you just don’t feel the fit is right. After all, there’s a reason why we’re polytheistic, and not monotheistic, right? All of these are good reasons to explore the pantheon and see if there is another god or goddess whom we can add to our altars.

My Own Experience

Long time readers will know that I didn’t choose becoming a Heathen. Rather, I got pulled in by Tyr and Thor. While Tyr is my main god, I have several gods and goddesses I show respect to including Thor, Freyr, Freyja, Skadi, Odin, Zisa, and, oddly enough, Loki. But they didn’t just show up all at once and talk to me. No. As a matter of fact, some, like Skadi, were very cool to me (pun intended). Skadi and I did have a bit of an introductory period. I had known her years before I became a Heathen, but it is my experience that she doesn’t always come knocking on your door the way other gods and goddesses may do. Freyr did not approach me, either. I simply opened myself to him. So, I do have some experience choosing new gods and goddesses.

How Should I Discover a New God/Goddess?

Unless your experience is similar to mine, you’ll probably be charting your own course, so to speak. Finding a new god/goddess may be difficult if you don’t have a god grab you by the scruff of the neck and shout, “You’re Mine!” (This can be a really disconcerting time in your life, if this does happen.) If you’re looking for a deity, you should first do your homework and find out what you can about each god. Learn what you can from the myths and Eddas. Does any one appeal to you in some fashion?

The downside to research is that we don’t know as much about certain gods and goddesses within our pantheon. Yes, we know quite a bit about the main players, but there’s a lot of guess-and-by-golly when it comes to less-known gods. Also note that there are some gods who cross over ethnic groups and have different names, but are essentially the same god. Thor comes to mind. He’s Thorr in Norse culture, Thunor in Anglo-Saxon culture, and Donar in German culture. But he’s also Perun in Slavic culture, Perkunas in Baltic culture, and Perendi in Albanian culture. If you’re culturally close to those who worshiped the northern gods, you may want to see if there are gods within your ancestors’ cultures that fit, or seem to resonate with you.

Mediation is immensely helpful in this search. You may hear one or more god or goddess as you practice mindfulness meditation. In this case, feel free to explore the communication. You don’t have to choose the god who shows up, but chances are there’s a reason they choose to talk with you while you were receptive. Be cautious, too, during mediation. You’re receptive to more than just the gods. Avoid those that give you bad feelings or harmful requests. Believe it or not, there are spirits that do take delight on waylaying people.

You’ll have to choose by what feels right. This isn’t a particularly rational suggestion, but religion is seldom rational in nature. In the end, you must trust you gut-feelings and maybe you’ll get rewarded for your efforts with a UPG or maybe even some communication.

Avoid Popular and Simple Explanations for Deities

I hate to be the party-pooper on this, but the gods aren’t the Marvel heroes. If you’ve been drawn to Heathenism because of the Marvel tropes, that’s okay, but don’t expect Thor, Loki, and Odin to be much like the comic characters. These are gods who have many dimensions to their personalities, and although we have limited writings about them–many of them colored by Christianity–enough of us have had UPGs to the point where we’ve seen other aspects of the gods.

For example, Freyja isn’t just the goddess of war and sex, (although she is that, too). She has a very complex role as a goddess. She takes half the fallen before Odin, thus probably taking the best warriors. She is a strong goddess who fights, but is still very feminine. She is the goddess of the Seidr, and may be linked to Frigga as the wife of Odin. She is certainly the most powerful of the goddesses. Your dealings with her may bring certain insights into her personality that you would never find in popular culture.

What About Other Pantheons?

Should you mix and match gods and goddesses from other unrelated pantheons? What if Freyja and Bast appeal to you? What if you worship Jupiter, Heimdall, and Wu Xi? What if you have altars to Christ and Odin?

Seriously?

Some Heathens will call you out on this as being Wiccan and not Heathen. They may even give you the sarcastic name of “Wiccatru” for your efforts. Even I am a little taken aback by the mixes. (It’s really not the same as mixing some Eurasian religions with our Norse gods because they’re alike in a lot of ways.) I’m somewhat hesitant to say “yes, you can,” because I don’t have a warm feeling about mixing very different religions. That being said, if you truly feel the calling between two different gods from two different pantheons, who in the Hel am I to tell you what you should do?

However, some religions by their very nature aren’t up to the task of “Mix-N-Match” gods. Our gods couldn’t care any less who or what you worship, but the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim god isn’t keen on other gods in the playbook. Something about “Thou shall not have other gods before me…” springs to mind here. While I don’t believe in that god, I do believe that the followers would have something to say about it. And seeing as the words are in their holy text to not worship any other gods, it seems disingenuous to worship a Judaeo-Christian god and a Norse god. But again, that’s your business.

I hope I’ve given you some ideas about the gods and how to start your journey into finding a god or goddess you have a special connection with.

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Mindfulness Magic: Seeing the World as a Heathen

June 6, 2017 Tyra Ulfdottir Comments 0 Comment

One of the things that seems to bind most of us Heathens together is the love of the natural world, in some way. (No doubt I’ll get an argument from someone who says that they don’t give a shit about nature.) However, I’d wager that some number of Heathens don’t have a close–dare I say intimate?– relationship with the natural world. (For those with minds in the gutter, I know where you went–forget it.)

I know, I know. You’re busy making a living. You live where you do because your family lives there. Or maybe you do get out in nature once in a while when you have time for a vacation. But, you live in a city, or the suburbs, where your world is surrounded by asphalt, concrete, steel, and glass. The closest to nature you get to every day is maybe the city park, or your neighbor’s manicured lawn.

I’m Not Discounting Your Efforts

Maybe you have a special tree in your yard; maybe you put an altar out there. Maybe you planted a garden. Maybe you hunt and fish. Maybe you took my advice and have unplugged for a portion of the day. Maybe you’ve made friends with the wights who live nearby. All these things are good. And yet, I’m not sure it’s enough. I’ll explain.

Your Ancestors Didn’t Evolve in Urbanized Settings

Our hominid ancestors were around some 6 million years before us. Homo sapiens, our current species, is about 200,000 years old. Civilization, as we know it, went back some 6000 years. That’s roughly 194,000 years when our species didn’t live in huge cities. Our ancestors were hunter-gatherers or lived in small villages. Agriculture started somewhere around 12,000 years ago with hunter-gatherers trying their hand at planting crops.

I bring this up because I want to show you how unnatural our current lifestyle is. We evolved being on the move and with nature, not sitting in a cubicle in an office building. Technically, even the agrarian lifestyle is unnatural to us, but less so. At least that lifestyle still had people close to nature.

It’s Not Natural

I grew up in a suburban setting. I hated every moment of it. I hated having neighbors around my home. When I was older and decided I no longer wanted to play suburbanite, I moved to the mountains. I’d like to say I had peace, but I had some evil neighbors. One died in a crack house on Christmas Eve from an overdose of heroin. Another actually broke into my home and stole stuff. (Got to love that.) Oddly, I wasn’t even in a bad neighborhood. Eventually I arrived where I live currently, where I have people at an arm’s length most of the time.

My work has had me travel to big cities like New York and Chicago. One of the biggest issues I had with those places is the noise. Sure, the denizens there are use to it, but not really. I could see it in their behavior that even if they didn’t consciously register the constant cacophony, their bodies did. Yes, they are stressed just by living there, and they don’t even know it.

Mindfulness

It sounds weird and new-agey, but some of not being part of the natural order comes from a complete lack of mindfulness. Most of the time we sit at our computers and type. Get in the car and drive someplace. Walk to work or school with our noses buried in our smartphones. Very seldom do we actually spend time and just observe what is going on around us. When we do, we’re often making judgements or thinking about other things, instead of just observing. When you strip away the so-called “monkey-mind,”–that is, the mind that is busy thinking about a thousand different things– and focus on one thing, you can actually start touching the true nature of the world.

Try it sometime. When you’re outside, sit down and look around you. Empty your thoughts. Focus on something natural: a tree, a leaf, a blade of grass… Let your body relax and breathe slowly. At this point, you enter into a form of mediation. You let your thoughts exist but do not dwell on them. Remember, you are focused on the natural world.

When you are in this state, you will begin to become part of the natural order of things. The world will never look the same as it had before–you’ll see beyond the concrete, metal, and glass to something that is more alive and more vibrant. You’ll feel the world as a Heathen; seeing it for the first time as something beyond words.

Communicating with a Higher World

If you do this enough, at some point in your meditation you may experience supernatural beings because you’re receptive to them. It’s how I sometimes experience the gods. You may speak to wights, gods, or other denizens–all without psychotropic substances. And sometimes you’ll feel them even when you’re no longer mediating. It takes almost nothing to recover that sense of mindfulness once you get good at it.

I call this piece “mindfulness magic,” but in truth, I don’t believe in magic. I do, however, believe that the mind is a powerful thing and we can recover what we lost in the past 6000 years, I do hope you’ll let me know if you try it and where it leads for you. You may just touch more than that blade of grass.