Since I noticed that a certain secular holiday was approaching this Friday, I decided I would write a short poem related to it. My poem, of course, has some of that Northern flavor that my readers have come to expect. It is four stanzas of ljóðaháttr. Its title is “A Short Valentine’s Day Poem.” A word of warning: there is word of vulgar language after the cut at the end of the poem.
Is it love lurking
or just lusty thoughts
in this frigid February?
From Roman roots
is the ritual day
of venturesome valentines.
Today I present an audio recording of another eddic tale that I’ve set in verse. This time, it is Building Asgard’s Wall, which was posted as text last March. In this spoken version, the words are different in a few places from what I posted, and the original post has not been edited.
Some may have wondered if there is a particular way in which the poetic calls to the gods should be recited. Of course, anyone trying these in their rituals is free to develop their own style. I prefer a style with a strong rhythm and forceful recitation. For those curious as to how I envision them, I present today an audio recording of five of my calls.
The audio contains calls to Odin, Tyr, Thor, Freyja, and Freyr. All have been featured in previous posts as text: here for Odin and Freyja, here for Thor, and here for Tyr and Freyr. Yes, I chose these particular calls because I was in a Dumezilian trifunctional mood. 🙂
Today I present the tale of the building of Asgard’s wall in a lore poem of eleven stanzas of fornyrðislag with completely anglicized spelling. It is based on the story as found in the Gylfaginning of Snorri Sturluson’s Edda. It tells how Asgard got a defensive wall and of the origin of the eight-legged horse Sleipnir. The opening stanza in my poem includes a feature that is found in many skaldic poems — a reference to poetry through one of the many kennings for it. The poem’s title is simply “Building Asgard’s Wall.”
Silence I seek
for saying my tale
of the master mason
who meant to build
for the garth of gods
the greatest of walls;
with Ygg’s ale now
I utter my words.
Midgard was made
and mighty Valhalla;
for proof against
the passage of etins
the Aesir sought
a solid defense;
a builder offered
the best of walls.
Today I present four more short sumbel toasts, one each to Thor, Tyr, Heimdall, and Freyja. Each toast is two stanzas of ljóðaháttr. The spellings have all been fully anglicized.
A Toast to Thor
Hail Thor,
thunder’s wielder,
Asgard’s chosen champion;
that bane of etins,
and best of warriors
is father to Modi and Magni.
He slew Hrungnir
and hammered Thrym
with peerless might and main.
For warding well
this world of Midgard,
Hail to thunderous Thor!
In an Asatru blót, blessing, or faining, it is usual to include calls to the gods, goddesses, or other wights being honored. I’ve written quite a number of these as two-stanza calls in ljóðaháttr. Where possible, the calls will make use of the available lore on their subject. Today I’m presenting calls to Óðinn, Freyja, Bragi, the Dwarves, and the Landvættir.
The Skaldic Eagle 