Reykjavík Grapevine - 27.06.2003, Blaðsíða 10

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- the reykjavík grapevine -10 june 27th - july 10th, 2003 - the reykjavík grapevine - 11june 27th - july 10th, 2003
These days, it seems, no one
outside of North America and
the Middle East takes religion
seriously. So perhaps it was in-
evitable that these areas would
come into conflict. Icelanders
rarely go to church outside of
weddings and funerals. For the
last three decades, however,
there has been something of a
revival in the worship of the Old
Norse gods. Iceland became
Christian in the year 1000, and
it wasn’t until 1973 that the old
gods were once again granted
official recognition. At the time,
it was the only country where
such recognition was granted,
but Norway has since followed
suit. The religion today num-
bers some 700 members in this
country.
The order has become intertwined
with the Viking festival, held in Haf-
nafjörður every year at solstice,
where worshippers and other Viking
aficionados gather together from all
over the world. Among the attrac-
tions is a virtual fight between Chris-
tian and heathen Vikings. Sparks
fly as blades clash, shields are
battered and men are bruised, and
the Christians are soundly beaten.
At six o clock the pagans march, in
full Viking regalia of course, towards
the stone gate by the harbour and
raise their flags, coincidentally at
the seat of the first Lutheran church
in Iceland. Having witnessed this,
Grapevine then goes on a boat trip
on the Viking boat Íslendingur, which
once sailed from Iceland to North
America on a four month trip. The
boat owner, Gunnar Marel Eggert-
son, a 33rd generation descendant
of Leifur Eíríkson, then intended
to sail up the Mississippi and was
to be sponsored for this by Swed-
ish phone company Telia. Then
September 11th hit, the company
backed down, and Gunnar had no
choice but to sail back to Iceland
Towards the end of the day, the
Allsherjargoði, the head of the wor-
shippers, consecrates the festival
by lighting their symbol. After this
the announcer, having done his
impression of Viking Elvis, says
those two words every Viking loves
to hear, “Free beer,” and every true
Viking then drinks himself into a
stupor. Grapevine, of course, want-
ing to do its job thoroughly, has no
choice but to participate. And they
are generous with the beer, some-
thing the Church of Iceland might
want to have a look at in order to
get church attendance up.
The festival accommodates all
sorts, from Englishmen primarily
interested in the fighting styles, to
more peaceful Swedes more inter-
ested in the storytelling aspect, to
American true believers. A short,
stocky man from Alaska tells me
that he used to feel bad about his
obesity, until he met Odin on a
bridge, and since then has learned
to feel better about himself. He
later challenges Grapevine, who, it
must be said, is somewhat annoying
when drunk, to a duel. Grapevine
declines the offer. Instead, it has a
chat with Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, the
Allsherjargoði.
“Is that it?” I ask, of having seen the
symbol set on fire?
“No,” he says, now the Blót is just
beginning. Eating and drinking are
a part of the ceremony.” Grapevine
considers rethinking its religious
beliefs, before continuing.
“Is this how they were performed
back in the day?”
“It varied, people sang and recited
poetry, and toasted the Gods into
the night. Sometimes participants
were showered in animal blood, but
I decided to leave that part out, at
least for now.”
“Why is solstice celebrated?”
“We see time as a circular phenom-
enon, not linear from beginning to
end. Hence we celebrate the short-
est day and the longest, along with
the spring and autumnal days when
night and day are equally long. So
we are celebrating the circle of life,
and everything that lives. In every
end there is also a new beginning.”
“So how long have you been a
heathen?”
“Since I was 12 or 13, although of-
ficially only since I was 16, when I
could legally change my religion.”
“What is it that you find in this re-
ligion that attracts you to it, rather
than others?”
“We’re celebrating life, and we’re not
asking anyone else to shoulder our
responsibility. Help is to be found
within ourselves, and we also en-
courage each other to do the right
thing.”
“Unlike Christianity?”
“I feel it is stated clearer here, rather
than talking around things. But we
are not in competition with other
faiths. We have very simple rules to
life. People are free to join us if they
want, but we’re not missionaries.”
“Do you have a favourite God?”
“There are different Gods for differ-
ent occasions. But mostly I would
say it´s Odin, the God of chiefs and
poets.”
“Do you expect to go to Valhalla
when this is over?
“I expect to go somewhere good.
There are good places for all of
us.”
“And what do you have to do to go
there.”
“I’m sure that as with everything,
you have to know the right people.”
It seems that the Allsherjargoði
manages to retain a sense of hu-
mour about his faith, and perhaps
it would be a better, or at least a
more peaceful world if all believers
did so.
Stories about the Nordic Gods
For those who want to learn more
about Nordic mythology, but find
the Edda´s a bit intimidating to start
with, a good place to begin might
be the CD Stories about the Nordic
Gods, by Swedish storyteller Jerker
Fahlström. It tells the story of how
the seas became salt and how Thor
got his hammer, among others, and
also has some violin and mouth harp
music. It is available in both Swed-
ish and English in Fjörukráin, Hafnar-
fjörður and in the leatherstore Kos in
Reykjavík, Laugavegur 39.
THE RETURN OF THE PAGANS
F E A T U R E A R T I C L E
The announcer, having done his
impression of Viking Elvis, speaks those
two words every true Viking loves to
hear: “Free beer.”
When asked how to get to Valhalla, the
head of the pagans says that, as with
everything, you have to know the right
people.
In Norse mythology, it was usually the women who learnt to use spells, as this was
considered unmanly. But perhaps this is just plain old soup in the making.
Íslendingur, the Viking ship that once sailed to North America, and is currently
being built a home at a museum in Keflavík.
Photos by Aldís
In Douglas Adams´ novel “The Long Dark
Teatime of the Soul,” Odin dwells in an old
folks home, inspecting the sheets on his bed
rather than hordes of warriors, since no one
believes in him any more. But it seems the old
man might be coming out of retirement, for the
old Norse religion seems to be going through
something of a revival.