Citizendia
Your Ad Here

Seid or seiðr is an Old Norse term for a type of sorcery or witchcraft which was practiced by the pre-Christian Norse. Old Norse is the North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age Witchcraft, in various historical anthropological religious and mythological contexts is the use of certain kinds of Supernatural or magical powers Germanic paganism refers to the religious beliefs of the Germanic peoples preceding Christianization. Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who speak one of the North Germanic languages as their native language

Sometimes anglicized as "seidhr", "seidh", "seidr", "seithr" or "seith", the term is also used to refer to modern Neopagan reconstructions or emulations of the practice. Germanic Neopaganism, Heathenism or Heathenry is the modern revival of historical Germanic paganism. Polytheistic reconstructionism, or simply Reconstructionism, is an approach to Neopaganism first emerging in the late 1960s to early 1970s and gatherig momentum

Contents

Terminology and etymology

Further information: witch (etymology)

Seid involved the incantation of spells (galðrar; sing. The Etymology of the word Witch traces back to the Old English language with the German and Indo-European languages as possible older Magic, sometimes known as sorcery, is a Conceptual system that asserts human ability to control the natural world (including events objects people and Galdr (plural galdrar) is one Old Norse word for " spell, Incantation " and which was usually performed in combination with certain In linguistics grammatical number is a Grammatical category of nouns pronouns and adjective and verb agreement that expresses count distinctions (such as "one" galðr). Practitioners of seid were predominantly women (völva, or seiðkona, lit. A Völva (also Vala, Spákona) is a priestess in Norse paganism, and a recurring motif in Norse mythology. "seid woman"), although there were male practitioners (seiðmaðr, lit. "seid master") as well.

Old English terms cognate with seiðr are siden and sidsa, both of which are attested only in contexts which suggest that they were used by elves (ælfe); these seem likely to have meant something similar to seiðr (Hall 2004, pp. 117-30). Among the Old English words for practitioners of magic are wicca (m. ) or wicce (f. ), the etymons of Modern English witch. Etymology is the study of the History of Words &mdash when they entered a language from what source and how their form and meaning have changed over time Witchcraft, in various historical anthropological religious and mythological contexts is the use of certain kinds of Supernatural or magical powers

Old Norse literature

In the Viking Age, seid had connotations of ergi ("unmanliness" or "effeminacy") for men, as its manipulative aspects ran counter to the male ideal of forthright, open behaviour. Viking Age is the term denoting the years from about 700 to 1066 in European history. Ergi (noun and argr (adjective are two Old Norse terms of Insult, denoting Effeminacy or other unmanly behavior Freyja and perhaps some of the other goddesses of Norse mythology were seid practitioners, as was Odin, a fact for which he is taunted by Loki in the Lokasenna. Freyja (sometimes anglicized as Freya) is a major goddess in Norse Paganism, a subset of Germanic Paganism. Norse mythology comprises the indigenous pre-Christian religion, beliefs and Legends of the Scandinavian peoples including those who settled on Iceland Odin (ˈoʊdɪn from Old Norse Óðinn) is considered the chief god in Norse paganism. In Cryptography, LOKI89 and LOKI91 are Block ciphers designed as possible replacements for the Data Encryption Standard (DES Lokasenna ( Loki's flyting, Loki's wrangling, Loki's quarrel) is one of the mythological poems of the Poetic Edda.

Sagas

As described by Snorri Sturluson in his Ynglinga saga (sec. 7), seid includes both divination and manipulative magic. Snorri Sturluson (1178 – September 23, 1241) was an Icelandic historian poet and politician The Ynglinga saga was originally written in Old Norse by the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson about 1225. It seems likely that the type of divination practiced by seid was generally distinct, by dint of an altogether more metaphysical nature, from the day-to-day auguries performed by the seers (menn framsýnir, menn forspáir).

In The Saga of Eric the Red, the seiðkona or völva in Greenland wore a blue cloak and a headpiece of black lamb trimmed with white cat skin; she carried the symbolic distaff (seiðstafr), which was often buried with her; and would sit on a high platform. Greenland (Kalaallit Nunaat meaning "Land of the Greenlanders" Grønland is a self-governing Danish Province located between the A cloak is a type of loose Garment that is worn over indoor Clothing and serves the same purpose as an Overcoat &mdashit protects the wearer from the cold As a Noun, a distaff (also called a rock) is a Tool used in spinning. In Örvar-Odd's Saga, however, the cloak is black, yet the seiðkona also carries the distaff (which allegedly has the power of causing forgetfulness in one who is tapped three times on the cheek by it). Orvar-Odd (ie arrow-odd) was a legendary hero of whom an anonymous Icelander wrote in the latter part of the 13th century.

Mythology

The goddess Freyja is identified in Ynglinga saga as an adept of the mysteries of seid, and it is said that it was she who taught it to Odin: 'Dóttir Njarðar var Freyja. Freyja (sometimes anglicized as Freya) is a major goddess in Norse Paganism, a subset of Germanic Paganism. Hon var blótgyðja. Hon kenndi fyrst með Ásum seið, sem Vönum var títt' ('Njörðr’s daughter was Freyja. She presided over the sacrifice. It was she who first acquainted the Æsir with seiðr, which was customary among the Vanir'). In Old Norse, áss (or ǫ́ss ás, plural æsir, feminine ásynja, feminine plural ásynjur) is the term denoting one of the principal Vanir is the name of one of the two groups of gods in Norse mythology, the other and more well known being the Æsir.

In Lokasenna Loki accuses Odin of practicing seid, condemning it as an unmanly art. Lokasenna ( Loki's flyting, Loki's wrangling, Loki's quarrel) is one of the mythological poems of the Poetic Edda. In Cryptography, LOKI89 and LOKI91 are Block ciphers designed as possible replacements for the Data Encryption Standard (DES A justification for this may be found in the Ynglinga saga where Snorri opines that following the practice of seid, the practitioner was rendered weak and helpless. The Ynglinga saga was originally written in Old Norse by the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson about 1225.

One possible example of seid in Norse mythology is the prophetic vision given to Odin in the Völuspá by the völva, vala, or seeress after whom the poem is named. Odin (ˈoʊdɪn from Old Norse Óðinn) is considered the chief god in Norse paganism. Völuspá ( Prophecy of the Völva) is the first and best known poem of the Poetic Edda. Her vision is not connected explicitly with seiðr, however: the word occurs in the poem in relation to a character called Heiðr (who is traditionally associated with Freyja but may be identical with the völva: see McKinnell 2001). The interrelationship between the völva in this account and the Norns, the fates of Norse lore, are strong and striking. A Völva (also Vala, Spákona) is a priestess in Norse paganism, and a recurring motif in Norse mythology. The Norns ( Old Norse: norn, plural nornir) are a kind of Dísir, numerous female beings who rule the fates of the various races of Norse

Another noted mythological practitioner of seiðr was the witch Groa, who attempted to assist Thor, and who is summoned from beyond the grave in the Svipdagsmál. In Norse mythology, Gróa ( Old Norse "growing" is a Völva and practitioner of seiðr, the wife of Aurvandil the Bold Thor ( Old Norse: Þórr) is the red-haired and bearded God of Thunder in Germanic paganism and its subset Norse paganism Svipdagsmál or The Lay of Svipdagr is an Old Norse poem a part of the Poetic Edda, comprised of two poems

Origins

Shamanism is a tradition which has been maintained widely throughout the world and it is probably of prehistoric origin. Since the publication of Jakob Grimm's socio-linguistical Deutsches Wörterbuch (p. Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm ( Hanau, January 4, 1785 &ndash September 20, 1863 in Berlin) German Philologist The Deutsches Wörterbuch (called DWB or "der Grimm" is one of the most important etymological dictionaries of the German language 638) in 1835, scholarship draws a Balto-Finnic link to seid, citing the depiction of its practitioners as such in the sagas and elsewhere, and link seid to the practices of the noajdde, the patrilineal shamans of the Sami people. A Noaidi, Noaide or Noaydde was a Shaman of the Sami people in the Nordic countries representing an indigenous nature Religion. Patrilineality (aka agnatic kinship) is a system in which one belongs to one's father's lineage it generally involves the Inheritance of property names or titles The Sami people are the Indigenous people of northern Europe inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of northern Sweden, Norway However, Indo-European origins are also possible (for references see Hall 2004, 121-22). Note that the word seita (Finnish) or sieidde (Sami) is a human-shaped body formed by a tree, or a large and strangely shaped stone or rock and does not involve "magic" or "sorcery"; there is a good case, however, that these words do derive ultimately from seiðr (Parpola 2004). Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside Sami or Saami is a general name for a group of Finnic languages spoken by the Sami people in parts of northern Finland, Norway

Contemporary reconstruction

Diana Paxson and her group, Hrafnar, have attempted reconstructions of seid from available historical material, particularly the oracular form. Diana L Paxson (born 1943) is a novelist and author of nonfiction primarily in the fields of Paganism and Heathenism. Jan Fries traces seid as an inspiration for his "seething" shamanic technique, though he is less concerned with precise historical reconstruction. Jan Fries is a German occultist freestyle shaman. He is a musician artist magician and author of several books See further Blain 2002, which discusses different ways in which seidr is being re-constituted today, in Scandinavia, the UK and the US.

Within British Heathenry, seidr according to Blain (2002) is becoming an intrinsic part of spiritual practice. This is not necessarily 'reconstruction', but may relate more to associations of people, land, and spirits.

It has been suggested that during seances the seiðkona would enter a state of trance in which her soul was supposed to "become discorporeal", "take the likeness of an animal", "travel through space", and so on. An altered state of consciousness, (ASC also named altered state of mind is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking Beta wave state This state of trance may have been achieved through any of several methods: entheogens, sleep deprivation, sensory deprivation, for instance. An entheogen, in the strictest sense is a Psychoactive substance used in a religious or shamanic (or entheogenic) context Sleep deprivation is a general lack of the necessary amount of Sleep. Sensory deprivation is the deliberate reduction or removal of stimuli from one or more of the senses To galdra, that is, the chanting of galdrar was also involved in creating the state of trance. Chant (from Old French chanter) is the Rhythmic speaking or Singing of Words or Sounds often primarily on one or two

References

See also

Jan Fries is a German occultist freestyle shaman. He is a musician artist magician and author of several books Ergi (noun and argr (adjective are two Old Norse terms of Insult, denoting Effeminacy or other unmanly behavior Níð ( Old Norse) ( Anglo-Saxon nith, Old High German (OHG nid(d, modern German form Neid Orvar-Odd (ie arrow-odd) was a legendary hero of whom an anonymous Icelander wrote in the latter part of the 13th century. Völuspá ( Prophecy of the Völva) is the first and best known poem of the Poetic Edda. Lokasenna ( Loki's flyting, Loki's wrangling, Loki's quarrel) is one of the mythological poems of the Poetic Edda. The Ynglinga saga was originally written in Old Norse by the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson about 1225. is Ásatrú ( Icelandic for " Æsir faith" auːsatruː in Old Norse; Norwegian Åsatru, Swedish Paganism (from Latin paganus, meaning "country dweller rustic" is a word used to refer to various religions and religious beliefs from across the world Norse paganism is a term used to describe the religious traditions which were common amongst the Germanic tribes living in Nordic countries prior to and
© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
 Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic