#Rokkr

[screechingtrashpanda]

Hail to you Loki Revealer of Corruption, Speaker of Hard Truths May your presence drain the festering wound Remove the infection from flesh And grant it godly hue once again Sly One, Protector of Those Brave Enough to Speak Out May we speak with unfettered tongues And reveal the hard won truth We hold your torch in our hands

[notthesomefather]

This remains one of my favorite heathen memes x0x

[lokabrenna13]

Abstract painting on an novel page Loki. Really happy with how magical and dark these paintings are turning out.

Hail Loki! I love You always!

#lokabrenna #lokean #rokkr #rokkatru #loki #godspouse #abstractart #abstractpainting #abstractexpressionism #abstractexpressionist #divinelove #paganaltar #pagan #northerntradition #northerntraditionpagan

[alephskoteinos]

This feels like an important rant.

While I’m at it, another useful reminder: it isn’t disrespectful to worship both the Rökkr and the Æsir. The heathen community shouldn’t be divided into Loki-worshippers and non-Loki worshippers. This supposed rift between families of Gods, which some people create to feel like they worship the “right side” or whatever, isn’t even a thing in my experience. You don’t have to pick sides as if this were a war. Even if there was some sort of rivalry between the Rökkr and the Æsir, it wouldn’t be our business to tell who’s “wrong” and who’s “right”. It wouldn’t be our business to judge such a thing. I’ve heard so often stuff like “I want to work with Baldr but I already work with Loki, awkwardd”, same goes for Ódinn and the rest of the Æsir. It’s useless to say the myths don’t reflect reality if you take the altercations between Loki and the Æsir (like Baldr’s myth) at face value, and see them as historical fact. I’m not saying you should worship all these Gods, but that you can. Nobody will be mad, and especially not the Gods. I worship both the Rökkr and the Æsir and I haven’t been struck down by lightning yet. Neither Baldr nor Loki have ever expressed that They were mad about me worshipping the other. If you’re familiar with hellenic polytheism, pitting the Rökkr against the Æsir is like pitting the Titans against the Olympians, refraining yourself to worship one in favor of the other. So if you ever feel called towards any deity from norse tradition, please don’t hesitate to contact them or start working with them, regardless of the deities you might already worship.

[thesummonerandthehelgeneral]

Side note the the Book III revisit:

I'm been using the wiki to help me keep track what order the dialogue is supposed to go in, and while looking at it,I got reminded that it was during this book they introduced Rokkr Sieges. I remember there was some kind of conversation between Thorr and Loki there. Thank you, whoever manages the wiki for keeping track of this stuff.

I remembered bits of this conversation, but I totally forgot that Alfador was mentioned here. I think it might be the one of the earliest mentions of him in the game. Though what we've seen from Book IX so far, that line kind of hits a little differently now.

[monkey-madness-by-rokkr]

Red Son everybody!~ My Co-Author said "Yeah Bet" when I offered to make a hot Red Son with Vitiligo "You gave me fun features to add to the hot man"

Sketch is under the line if y'all wanna see

[sarcastic-salem]

I fucking pray this shit does not get passed. I mean, ACLU would be all over it if it did but still……Like seriously, I get SNAP benefits. I can’t afford to buy groceries without it. This is fucking eugenics at its finest. Jfc.

Fenrir, help us broke bitches out.

[groovy-lady]

Fellow Lokeans, I want to get a book about Loki, but am unsure which one to get! What do y’all think of these books and/or do y’all have any Loki related book recommendations?

*Pagan Portals - Loki: Trickster and Transformer by Dagulf Loptson

*Trickster Makes The World by Lewis Hyde

*Blood Unbound: A Loki Devotional by Bat Collazo

*Unbinding the Trickster: A Collection of Lokean Verse, Rokkr Chants, and Heathen Poetry by Gralok Loptsson

*Trickster, My Beloved: Poems for Laufey’s Son by Elizabeth Vongvisith

*Loki and Sigyn: Lessons on Chaos, Laughter & Loyalty from the Norse Gods by Lea Svendsen

[sarcastic-salem]

Loki is canonically bisexual and transgender in the mythology. He is able to change his gender at will, impregnate women, and give birth. He is also sometimes used as a metaphor for BIPOC people since there is such a heavy empathesis put on him and Angrboda being Jotnar. Many people also think Loki may have been in polyamorous a relationship. That’s because monogamy was very much not the norm in ancient times, and Nordic men were even allowed to take on consorts if they wanted.

Because of these things and because he refused to conform to the societal norms of the Aesir, Loki has earned the title the God of outcasts. Many Lokeans are BIPOC, queer, disabled nonconformists — these are all things that Nazis hate. While there has always been a Nazi problem in the Heathen community, it has gotten considerably worse since 2018 as the number of Lokeans has increased in the past 20 years since Dagulf Loptson first coined the term.

Nazis in the Heathen community often refer to themselves as Odinists — not Odin devotees — or Folkish(Volkish) Heathens. The Folkish movement started in Europe after WWII as Adolf Hitler misappropriated Norse mythology and iconography to use in Nazi occultism, and was brought to N. America in the 1970s by members of the British fascist party. Today, Folkish Heathenry appears very much to be a thinly veiled redressing of Christianity masquerading as Neo-Paganism. Odin is viewed as a Christ-like figure and Loki is viewed as Satanic, and empathesis is placed on “traditional” family values — racism, homo/transphobia, ableism, and a healthy dose of gun-toting machismo.

Today, the largest Folkish Heathen organization in N. America is The Asatru Folk Assembly with a total of 4 hofs throughout the US — the last, I believe, was constructed in Florida — which are open only to white attendees.

Because of this, its become a red flag that one who views Loki and his family as malevolent, evil, harbingers of doom may be an Odinist.

Gods of Death

Hel and Odin

It has been a while since I have posted something, but I have been doing a lot of reading and thinking, particularly about death. In this blog I want to look at Hel and Odin, who share some traits as gods who collect the dead, but who seem to be working in opposition to each other. Hel is an outsider just like her parent Loki. She is a jötunn (“giant, glutton, overeater”) born in Jotunheim, and a force of chaos and destruction, as opposed to the Aesir/Vanir, who mainly seem to be forces of creation and order. Odin, as god of war, however, does not shy away from causing a little chaos and destruction, but then, Odin is also of jötunn parentage.

Hel is described by Snorri as being half a corpse, monstrous like her siblings Fenrir, the giant wolf, and Jormungand, the giant serpent, but unlike them she takes a human form. The gods receive a prophecy (Prose Edda, Gylfaginning) concerning Loki’s monstrous offspring, and Odin has them brought from Jotunheim to Asgard. Jormungand is thrown into the sea, Hel is made ruler of the underworld, but Fenrir is fostered in Asgard. Why does Fenrir get this treatment? Perhaps simply because Odin likes wolves (he already has two pet wolves, Geri and Freki), or perhaps because he thinks the wolf will be an asset to him, as his dead warriors in Valhalla are. Hel is not given a place at Asgard, and she seems to be as much a prisoner of the underworld as she is its ruler, which to me suggests that the other gods see Hel as a danger to them. I think Hel embodies death or death of the gods. She is a harbinger of doom, and omen of Ragnarök. She is the daughter of Loki, after all, and Angrboda (“harm-bidder”, “bringer-of-sorrow”). What with Hel being half a corpse, she is a visible reminder of that which we will all one day become. The Norse gods are not immortal, and I think especially Odin is afraid of death and/or losing his mind, which would mean losing all the knowledge and experience he has gained (in Gylfaginning he says he is afraid of Huginn and Muninn not returning to him). On his wanderings, Odin queries spirits and jötunns about the afterlife and his own and his son’s demise. Is Odin trying to cheat death or to put it off as long as possible? He lets people who have died live on in his hall. These people make up his army that he will use to fight against the forces of death/chaos at Ragnarök. Hel could be a personification of death coming to stop Odin before he discovers the secret to not dying.

Before they are brought to Asgard, Hel and her brothers never harmed the gods, so by taking them from their home and banishing and chaining them, do they not have a hand in fulfilling the prophecy? If Hel is death, she cannot be killed, only temporarily ignored or warded off. Is this why the best thing Odin can do is to make her ruler of the underworld? She does not die and disappear there, but it seems she cannot leave either. She can still influence the other realms, though her influence only extends to taking in the shades of those who have died of old age and sickness.

What is this place Hel is made ruler of? The sources contradict each other. According to some, it is located under Niflheim (“Place of Mists”). In Baldur’s Dreams in the Poetic Edda, Hel is described as being located in Niflhel. In another tale it is said to be located under one of the roots of Yggdrasil, the world tree. In any case, Hel in Old Norse means ‘hidden’, so Helheim = Hidden Place. It seems fitting that there is no conclusive answer as to where it is, because it is not for us living people to know.

Niflheim is said to have existed before anything else did. It is a cold, dark and misty place, but it is not a void, it has material, it has rivers. The water running out of Niflheim turns to ice and fills up the Void (water = a source of life). It makes sense to me, therefore, that this is the sort of primordial place where people return to after they die to become material once again. When we think of someone dying, we picture them going somewhere else, but if, like me, you do not believe in any sort of afterlife, they are in fact not going anywhere. Still, they are no longer Here with us, we can’t see them or talk to them, and since Nowhere At All is kind of hard to imagine, we assume they must be Somewhere Else.

It seems to me that Folkvang, Freyja’s meadow where she receives half of those who have died in battle, and Valhalla are just temporary stops on the way to Somewhere Else (a.k.a. Hel, the Hidden Place). Valhalla in particular sounds like some terrible limbo, a Groundhog Day/Russian Doll kind of time loop, where the fallen warriors eat, drink, fight, die and rise again the next day to repeat the same process, until the inevitable end, Ragnarök, comes. Odin keeps his guests in a state of intoxicated forgetfulness.

Like Odin, Hel has an army of dead people, but unlike him she does not seem to have amassed it on purpose. She lends the dead people to her parent Loki, who captains this army at Ragnarök. Perhaps she wasn’t too happy about the fact that she and her brothers were kidnapped and then banished/locked up. Additionally, I think her function is to end everything so the cycle can begin again. Odin and the others need to make way for the next generation of gods.

If gods die, then, do they also go to Niflheim/Niflhel/Hel? It does appear to be the case. A feast is prepared in Hel for Baldur, and he goes there after he is killed by the mistletoe dart. He does not die in battle, but his death is an accident. Niflheim/Niflhel/Hel seems to be a place where ordinary people go, and where there is calm and rest. Snorri calls the being Hel cold, and uncaring about the fate of humankind, but that is just what a mortal person would say about death, isn’t it? Yes, death sometimes may seem cruel and unjust, but I suppose there is equality in death, and as Neil Gaiman wrote, we all get what everybody gets: a lifetime. Hel treats everybody the same, regardless of the life they have lived. They do not have to die honourably or prove themselves in battle to be granted entry to her realm. She also ends the suffering of those who are old and sick. As distressing as it may be to us, life cannot exist without death. There are different motives that can be attributed to Odin and his thirst for knowledge. It could be a fear of death, wanting to stop the prophecies about Ragnarök becoming true, or a desire to make the most of his time in the face of his inevitable demise, or a bit of both. A relatable guy. I want to end this blog with a quote from Sayings of the High One: “Cheerful and merry every man should be, until he comes to death."

[fehnix]

There is a lot of accessory pairs I like, here is one I think is particularly good :-)

I'm biased for anything Gullveig, I love her so much! Anything fits her, absolutely anything. I think I've got 5 brave Gullveigs and three base Gullveigs and all of them wear the cutest accessories I got!

Don't think I've ever actually seen this accessory, but maybe that's just cuz only one Rokkr event has happened since I signed up lol

[wall-maria-around-ba-sing-se]

[notthesomefather]

Prayer to Loki

[[ A prayer I wrote to Loki as I attempt to find purpose and joy ]]

Loki, turn my sorrow to laughter 'Til the hopes of younger days return.

Loki, change my woe to excitement As the pains of hurried nothings burn.

Loki, turn my grief to happiness. While the aches of missing pieces heal.

Loki, change my fear to blissful mirth Until I know joy: loving and real.

Hail the Smiler, Hail the Knot-Maker, Hail the Storyteller, Hail Loki!

[lokabrenna13]

The painting I began in Loki's art journal is complete. Here are a few detail shots, paint still wet. I might post more again after the paint dries.

Hail Loki! I love You always!

#lokabrenna #lokean #rokkr #rokkatru #loki #godspouse #abstractart #abstractpainting #abstractexpressionism #abstractexpressionist #divinelove #paganaltar #pagan #northerntradition #northerntraditionpagan

[drawingbun]

I missed Navarre Day on Twitter but I still drew him. I use my rokkr design from another drawing.

[hiding1ntheforest]

Dark Ages: Apocalypticism, Aeons and Chaos in Paganism

Something that has always fascinated me about the study of religion is the common themes among many of them, especially the various forms of polytheism. Of course, many forms of paganism share the same origin point but it’s nonetheless incredible that so many cultures, some of which have never even interacted, share the same perspectives and similar myths. One of these common themes is that of the cyclic nature of our existence. In paganism, we are constantly going through the process of creation and destruction on a loop. We emerge from a great primeval void, chaos, before transitioning to a period of development and sophistication. In some cases, the process of this cycle is much more distinct, such as the Satya Yuga to the final Kali Yuga in Hinduism. For others, the cycles are less clearly defined. Among the North, our reality was built from the generative substance of the Ginnungagap. Out of this chaos though before its return, the Gods bring order, truth, and beauty. This blog post will explore the significance of birth and rebirth or creation and destruction, the concept of cosmological chaos, as well as “end of the world” events in paganism.

Chaos

The creation of the world is an important aspect to any religion. Germanic paganism explains this from the beginning with the Ginnungagap, or the “yawning void.” This void is first introduced in Gylfaginning, where sparks from Muspellheim enter the void and are then dispersed throughout the many realms of existence. In the Voluspa, we learn that Woden and his brothers built the world from the material of the Ginnungagap. Among the Anglo-Saxons, the word “dwolma” refers to chaos and can be linguistically traced to the Old Saxon word “dwalm” which means confusion. This may illustrate the void possessing the matter which will construct all life. Additionally, some scholars believe that the term Ginnungagap has its origins in Old High German with more mystical connotations. This strongly parallels the perspective of the ancient Egyptians. Like our Germanic ancestors, the Egyptians believed that all life was created from cosmological chaos. Similar to Ginnungagap, this chaos was an empty void; nothingness with the ability to create. They also believed that it was watery, an idea tied to the primeval waters of Nun. Again, water as the prima materia is a widespread philosophy. Aristotle wrote that Thales argued for water being the progenitor of all things. Later, the alchemists claimed that mercury was the prima materia and also referred to it as sacred water. This may be compared to the mercurial force of Woden creating the world from nothingness. I won’t delve into this too much in this post, but it’s clear that ancient polytheists recognized that the potential for all life was conceived out of mystic primordial emptiness by the creator.

The End of the World

If you’re following this blog, then I’m sure you have heard of Ragnarok. Ragnarok, or “the twilight of the Gods”, is essentially the apocalypse of Norse paganism. It should be noted that Ragnarok is specifically attested among the Northern Germanic peoples. Despite this, the return to primordial chaos is certainly rooted in the Indo-European faith, so it is likely that all of the Germanic peoples had some idea of this. Etymologically, the word Ragnarok is very interesting. The first half of the word, “Ragna,” is in reference to the Gods. The second half may be derived from either “Rok” or “Rokkr.” The term “Rok” is striking because it means origin. This may suggest that return to primordial chaos and this will be further propounded by the myth itself. We get the word twilight in the phrase “twilight of the Gods” from “Rokkr.” The word “Ragnarokkr” is found in Lokasenna, though the term “aldarrok” is found in Vafthrudnismal, and this roughly translates to “end of an age.” This also indicates the recognition of metaphysical ages among the Norse. The tale of Ragnarok can be found in Voluspa. Roosters from all over crow and many jotnar begin to approach. The hound Garmr breaks loose. As a result, humanity begins to degrade. It is said that brothers go to war with one another, familial betrayal occurs, as well as lust and violence growing rampant. Ragnarok commences with Heimdall blowing the Gjallarhorn. The Gods then go to battle against the jotnar with the aid of different creatures. The battle results in many of the Gods being killed. Odin is swallowed by the great wolf Fenrir, though is later avenged when his son Vidarr stabs the beast in the heart. Thor slaughters Jormungandr but soon dies from the serpent’s venom. Finally, Freyr is killed by a jotunn called Surtr. The sun blackens and the heavens go up in flames. The Earth is then submerged beneath the sea. As a result of the battle, the Earth soon remerges from the sea and the surviving Gods congregate together. The Earth begins to revive as vegetation grows. We also learn that the brothers Hodr and Baldr will return along with Njord. Two humans, Lif and Lifthrasir will have survived Ragnarok and repopulate the Earth. Again, we can draw parallels between Ragnarok and the return of the primordial waters in Egypt. Chaos will return after the mighty serpent Apophis defeats the sun God Ra, swallowing up the Earth while the creator grows too old and weary to reinstate order. This serpent is associated with natural disasters as well as general disorder and we come across many myths in which the Gods must reckon with Apophis. Moreover, Ra must encounter Apophis every night during his journey to Duat, the underworld. Apophis is extremely similar to the serpent Jormungandr who plays an important part in Ragnarok and the myths as a whole. This serpent is also associated with the water and engulfs the Earth by biting its tail, much like Apophis who swallows it whole. The Gods, specifically Thunor, are frequently disturbed by this serpent. Most importantly, Ragnarok or any apocalyptic event in paganism does not depict the end of the world, but rather a return to the beginning. Woden created the Earth using the body of the jotunn Ymir, meanwhile many of the Gods die due to the jotnar. There is no end- only birth, death and rebirth.

The Yugas

One cannot discuss apocalypticism without talking about the Yugas, specifically Kali Yuga. It may seem that discussing Hinduism does not fit in with this article or this account’s theme as a whole but seeing that it is the Indo in Indo-European, as well as its comparison to metaphysical ages, I feel it’s still important to mention. The four Yugas all together span 4,320,000 years. Each Yuga is a multiple of the other, with the longest being Satya Yuga at 1.7 million years and the shortest being Kali Yuga at 432,000 years. There’s a lot of debate among Hindu thinkers on which Yuga we’re in now, but many believe that we are in the Kali Yuga. If I may interject my opinion, I believe they likely aren’t far off when you take a look at the world. Satya Yuga is often referred to as the Golden Age and overall the greatest time for human civilization. Truth, religiosity, morality, and beauty are at its peak. The first manifestation of Vishnu appears with Mastyadeva. Mastyadeva must battle the demon Hayagriva who attempts to steal the Vedas from Brahma. The Vedas are crucial because with the degradation of the Vedas follows the degradation of civilization. This decline begins to show during Treta Yuga. Truth and religiosity slowly begins to slip. Some humans grow physically weaker while some elevate to almost a godlike status due to enlightenment. Dwapar Yuga, also called the Bronze Age, shows an increase in materialism, violence and lust. The forces of good and evil are at a tie. The Vedas are divided into four. This is also when Krishna recites the Bhagavad Gita which is very important to the coming age. Kali Yuga is the Iron Age. It is the last age before the cycle repeats. The family unit deteriorates, humanity is divided and the Earth is polluted. Out of Kali Yuga, the next Satya Yuga emerges and the continual cycle repeats once more.

Conclusion

The cycle of life, death and rebirth are central to any form of paganism. Across the globe, many different cultures have their own conceptions and myths revolving around this cycle that share common themes and principles. Whether it be the Ginnungagap or primordial waters of Nun, all things come from a dark cosmic emptiness. Moreover, we all must return to that place of nothingness. Among the Norse, Ragnarok resets the universe while the world’s order slowly disintegrates due to an aging creator according to the Egyptians. Perhaps the most popular example of this life-death-rebirth loop is that of the Yugas among Hinduism. From East to West, we are chained to this mystical sequence.

[artepti]

Super honoured to have inspired you!! And that's some awesome art! :DD

Shards of a Frozen Soul

"Will you be my Warrior?" Promises made, but will they be kept?

Historian and Archeologist of the Journey to the West Initiative, Dongzhi Soushirou, finds her Footnote in history far closer to home than expected. When an Old Threat with New Faces threatens Megaopolis, how can good prevail without a hero? Amazing artwork done by Chompers over on Discord~

My greatest Thanks to @artepti for being a major inspiration for this fic!~ I feel kinda guilty I'm leaving it at only 3 chapters until Friday... Aiming for updating every Monday, and occasionally on Fridays~ Spoiler art under the Cut~ ;3

Chapter 8 and beyond~