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One of the frequent questions I get from budding Heathens, Asatruar and Norse pagans is "Where do I start?" After fielding two such letters in one day from a divination client and a prospective student (who already summons spirits in a Ceremonial framework but wanted to connect with the Norse Gods), I began compiling a page of resources on my website-- and this series of blog posts.

Within Vanatru, there is a lot of room for diversity of belief and practice - nature itself is diverse, and thus different ways of doing things are seen as natural and organic, as befits a living tradition.  As such, there is no Vanapope who will swoop down from on high proclaiming that you're "doing it wrong" if you don't do this or have that.  However, the very "do it yourself" approach amongst most Vanatruar can be confusing and even frustrating for newbies, who are full of questions about how to get started.

One of the things that I tend to recommend people do when they first start out, is set up an altar.  This is not mandatory or absolutely necessary - I know plenty of folks who get along just fine without altars.  In my own case, having an altar is helpful because it's a visible, tangible reminder of the Powers, is a way to express Their energy and presence - which can be a tool to better get to know Them and connect with Them - and is a place to leave offerings and perform rituals and magick.  And as such, I think that building an altar can be a valuable beginning step, a way to establish a connection to the Powers.  

A few weeks back I had a lovely chat with Goddess Spirituality leader Karen Tate on her radio show. We talked about Minoan Paganism in particular and the ancient Minoans in general. One issue that came up in the conversation was where, in the timeline of the ancient world, the Minoans fit. Many people seem to think they came after the Greeks and copied much of the Greek pantheon, but the truth is actually the other way around. All those ancient cultures are so far removed from us in time that it can be difficult to get a mental picture of how they all fit together. So I thought I’d tease out some of the details and help you picture the world of the ancient Minoans – not just Crete but all the cultures and civilizations that were alive and kicking at that time.

I apologize for going all History Teacher on you here, but I’m going to start with some dates, just for reference. I promise I won’t throw too many numbers at you. Though the island of Crete has been inhabited since prehistoric times, what we think of as Minoan civilization didn’t arise until around 3500 BCE; at that point the people had farms, towns and tombs but no big buildings. The heyday of the Minoans with the big temples, the fancy tech (enclosed sewers, flushing commodes, multi-story buildings) and the beautiful artwork ran for just a few centuries, from about 1900 to 1400 BCE. After that, the culture declined, the Mycenaean Greeks took over the political arena and the civilization that we think of as Minoan pretty much ceased to exist. You can thank a combination of natural disasters, encroaching Greeks and pure bad luck for their cultural demise.

Blessed Darkness....Soothe now my Burned Soul,
In the Cooling Blanket of Your Blackness,
Alleviate my Blistered Heart....

Twice a year, my Coven takes Dark Time. We do not meet or lead rituals. I do not email our broader community. These two time periods take place Yule-Imbolc and Lughnasadh-Mabon. We are a very public, hard-working group and these two breaks are indelibly helpful to our work. I still assign Craft homework during this period, and this period's assignment was to treat this time as more than a few more free Saturdays on our calendars. Each of us would need to surrender something in our lives and actively use the newly gained time to pursue individual rest.

While love is not a cure for all of the world's ills, I truly believe that many people do things out of desperation and hurt - so many of us carry secret pain, that could be relieved a little knowing we are loved and appreciated by somebody, somewhere. To hold a place in someone's heart, we know we are not so alone out there.  We matter to someone, who would be hurt if we were gone, if we were harmed or harmed ourselves, or harmed others because we acted from a place of loss and hurt and pain.

As with Passion, we live in a world where emotions are not OK, expressing emotions are not OK, everything has to be sterilized and diluted, or conform to some Hollywood ideal of what that should look like.  In a Vanic practice, we become more natural, more organic, as we connect with the Powers of the Land - love is messy, love is complicated, love can be painful, it can make us vulnerable.  And it is necessary.  It is necessary in part because it is so complicated and messy, like so much of the human experience.  Love makes us Real.

We are stardust, we are golden . . . Even though it’s ten days past the solstice, I’m still in a dreaming frame of mind.  An old friend appeared to me in a dream before I woke this morning.  She said, “I have a gift for you,” and placed in my hand a glowing blue scarab.  Delighted, I exclaimed, “Oh, a khepera!” Kheper (or Khepri or Khepera) is the Egyptian deity represented by the beetle which rolls its egg case from east to west, just like the sun.  I took this as a reminder from my very artistic friend that I should continue to create my life, keep on moving forward, keep my path on that of the dawn. 

The medium we all work with is the stuff of dreams – manu, primordial waters, or atum, original life force.  A pop song that my husband and I associate with our falling in love has a line that seems apropos, “I think I dreamed you into life.”  Seth (Jane Roberts, not the Egyptian Set) teaches us that everything must be dreamed of in the nonphysical inner world before we can bring it forth in this existence.  “Now, other planes and systems are as real and as unreal as your own.  They are all formed from inner vitality . . .” (The Early Sessions: Book 7 of The Seth Material by Jane Roberts, 1966-1967) Making my own life is a lot of responsibility, so I’ve spent the past decade or two trying to be more intentional, more conscious, of what I am creating.  

For each of the Vanic virtues, I have written something on how Vanic pagans can better incorporate these virtues into their daily lives, living Vanatru.  With the seventh and final virtue, Love, I suggest (not demand) that those who want to better cultivate a sense of love do this simple exercise:

Make a list of the people who you love.  Note that this does not have to be romantic/intimate love.  This can be family members, friends.  For each person, list at least five things that you love about them, reflect on these things.  Allow yourself to feel love, how it comes, even if it makes you cry (especially if it makes you cry).