tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2841348142033509263.post8310651264456715783..comments2023-12-31T02:40:43.545-06:00Comments on The Norse Mythology Blog | norsemyth.org: The Clash with Christianity, Part OneDr. Karl E. H. Seigfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12175244816952769358noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2841348142033509263.post-38616937567073081972012-07-11T10:35:56.252-05:002012-07-11T10:35:56.252-05:00Dear Anonymous Person,
Thank you for your questio...Dear Anonymous Person,<br /><br />Thank you for your question about Norse conceptions of the afterlife.<br /><br />Asgard means "home of the Æsir" (the main tribe of gods). Although there is mention that Odin and Freya divide dead warriors and Thor collects dead peasants, there is no description of what becomes of the souls (except for those in Valhalla). What becomes of the souls in Freya's hall? In Thor's hall? The sources are silent. There is no indication that the dead are wandering happily through a Marvel Comics Asgard, hobnobbing with the gods and goddesses.<br /><br />Vahalla means "hall of the slain." It is only open to nobles who die in battle. They spend all day, every day, fighting and killing each other - only to be reborn and fight again. Not exactly the happy-happy-joy-joy of the Christian afterlife.<br /><br />Hell is a miserable place where lost souls wade through a freezing river filled with ice and/or weapons. A giantess and giant dog prevent escape, and the terrifying Hel herself lives is the hall called Damp, eats from the dish Hunger with the knife Famine, and sleeps in Sick-Bed with drapes called Shining-Harm. Again, no happy-soup for you!<br /><br />None of these three visions are "beautiful and clear." More importantly, there is absolutely no "certainty of eternal life." All souls will die at Ragnarok - the dead will really be dead. Finito. No one here gets out alive.<br /><br />To those living in ancient times - who were, obviously, much more knowledgeable about Norse religion than we are today - this grim outlook was understood as a given. The article you commented on contains a quote from the debate over conversion in King Edwin's Northumbrian court in the year 625.<br /><br />“Of what went before and of what is to follow,” [a court member] continued, “we are utterly ignorant. If therefore this new faith can give us some greater certainty, it justly deserves that we should follow it.”<br /><br />I think his words sum up why, for many, the magical happy eternal life promises of the New Way were so appealing. The Old Way taught that, eventually, dead is dead. The Christian missionaries promised that we would all be happy in heaven - regardless of social class or the presence or absence of a heroic warrior's death. That's a great marketing strategy!<br /><br />I hope this helps. I wish you well for your future study of Norse religion!Dr. Karl E. H. Seigfriedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12175244816952769358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2841348142033509263.post-38257861320431765172012-07-11T09:46:48.067-05:002012-07-11T09:46:48.067-05:00"The fact that Christianity promised the cert..."The fact that Christianity promised the certainty of eternal life for the righteous was enough for these men to abandon the faith of their forefathers, which gave no such beautiful and clear vision of the afterlife"<br /><br />If this is true, please do tell what Asgard, Hel, and Valhalla are?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2841348142033509263.post-42023725956669971442010-06-17T22:31:51.255-05:002010-06-17T22:31:51.255-05:00So the Vikings were Reavers? That's awesome.So the Vikings were Reavers? That's awesome.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17481206124044643101noreply@blogger.com