Norse Magic: History and Modern Applications

I find it interesting how some religions persist and have much influence of members of society to this day, while others were historically practiced and relevant but eventually faded away. The religion of the Nordic region was powerful and lasted until the area’s eventual conversion to Christianity in the 8th century. I was also surprised that Valhalla was not mentioned once in A History of Magic, Witchcraft, & the Occult, since this is a significant part of Nordic mythology; Valhalla is the Nordic form of heaven for bravehearted soldiers who died valiantly in battle, and Odin oversees the spirits’ eternal peace. I am always fascinated by polytheism, since the most dominant religions to this day are monotheistic. I also did not know that in Nordic mythology, there were two sets of gods who opposed one another constantly. It is so weird how this religion that was once so significant is now labeled as mythology, I suppose when enough people stop believing the religion loses all validity despite centuries of total belief and practice. Theoretically, a thousand years from now, a new religion could arise and wipe out Islam and Christianity. Would that future society call these discredited religions Middle Eastern mythology and European / American mythology, respectively? Personally, I do not think a new religion will rise to significant power given our societal advances and widespread information online. Because of this, it is weird to think that the Vikings just north of Europe really believed in giants, elves, dwarves, and an assortment of powerful god-like beings. I wonder what exactly drove the shift to monotheism, since the Nordic, Greek, and Egyptian cultures all believed in many gods for many years. On another note, I found the concept of “seidhr” and “argr” to be relevant to our analysis of witchcraft, specifically its sexist elements. Apparently, seidhr is the heart of Norse magic, and it was practiced mainly by women. However, if men practiced this form of magic, it was deemed to be effeminate and shameful. This parallels the premise witchcraft because it was believed that this form of magic was primarily practiced by women as well. However, there is a contradiction in the depiction of women in Nordic mythology, because while feminism was frowned upon across the culture, everyone believed that three female deities, Norns, ultimately determined every single human’s fate. In fact, these Norns were believed to be even more powerful that top notch gods such as Thor and Odin, because they were the ones who decided everything that transpired in the world. It was said that the Norns were present at the birth of every baby to weave their future as soon as their lives began. Although this religion has lost all validity, it is still referenced and appreciated in our society to this day. My first encounter with the concept / existence of these fate-weaving Norn figures was at a young age after watching the movie Hercules (1997). As we all know, there are three creatures known as “fates” that control the plot of the movie (for the most part). However, they were depicted as hideous beings in Hercules, in comparison to the image in our textbook, where the Norns are more resemblant of someone angelic, such as the virgin Mary (page 65). Also, Hercules is a Greek god, not Norse, so it’s interesting how two regions far apart would both share a similar idea of how fate is conjured across time. The most recent and prevalent incorporation of Nordic mythology into popular culture would definitely be the adaptation of the Marvel comics about Thor to the big screen via the MCU. These movies depict Thor as a literal superhero and incorporate many other elements of Nordic mythology such as Odin, Loki, Heimdall, Hel, and more. Therefore, although most people no longer believe in the validity / reality of Nordic mythology, just like witchcraft the culture is still appreciated and entertained to this day, and so it never truly dies.

The Fates in Hercules: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahRQ2Vrb-vQ

Thor trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJUDu40Z_RY

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