winter

Lord of the Earth (Ingwaz)

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Our newest song is a farewell to Freyr (Ingwaz) until his resurrection in May.

As the embodiment of fair weather and the inhabited, fertile, cultivated spaces of man, Freyr is returned to his mound on Nov 1st as Winter descends on our area of the country. Freyr remains covered until May 1st, when he will be returned to his rightful position on the land as guardian and provider of abundance.

During the Winter, when walking past the altar and mound of Freyr, one is encouraged to drop coins through cracks in the mound. This guarantees that one remains blessed by the god during Winter and also ensures that when he is returned in May, there will be extra resources for the celebration.

Freyr represents the male aspects of the Earth, being revered as a god of fertility, abundance, and prosperity. His rune is Ingwaz, the primordial seed, which symbolically represents the gestative powers of the Earth itself. Freyr is the great overseer of farming and agriculture, creating peace and harmony in the lives of humans and the animals they work with.

The song includes a short prayer and list of offerings given to the god during celebrations. May it aid in your connection to Freyr and further your attainment of success.

Lyrics:

From the land, of golden sun
Bathed forever, in the light
God of days, without night
In Alfheim…

Milk and sugar
Seeds and wine
Herbs and fire
Flowers and pine
Coins and blood
Runes and water
Meat and eggs
Bones on the altar

Ingwaz, Lord of the Earth
Crops in the field, wood in the hearth
Carry the fire, to the tables
Of the gods…

Milk and sugar
Seeds and wine
Herbs and fire
Flowers and pine
Coins and blood
Runes and water
Meat and eggs
Bones on the altar

Frau Holle

hrukjanLeave a comment

Frau Holle is a sprit of the woodland, lakes and ponds. A “spinster” and figure of reward and punishment.

She visits our dwellings during the winter months, often during the Twelve-Nights of Yule.

If the chores at home are not completed or if simple tasks are neglected, she appears as an ugly, old, disheveled witch with a fiery tongue and burning gaze. She will bestow chaos on the homestead.

If she finds that the home is orderly, that all tasks have been done, she appears as an ethereal figure dressed in flowing white. Frau Holle will then hand out gifts from her kitchen and garden – nuts and apples, fruits of the earth and baked goods.

Frau Holle has gone by many names in Germanic Mythology, including Mother Earth, Perchta, Odin’s Wife, Berchta, Frigg and several more.

The rolling fog is said to be the smoke from Frau Holle’s hearth. When she bakes, the whole sky turns red. On stormy evenings, bolts of lightening are known as Hollenzopf, “Holle’s braids,” revealing her long white hair.

In winter, she shakes her bedcovers and down pillows, filling the air with feathers which causes it to snow.

-Ansuz Society