Asatru

[Valhalla]

Now, I agree that Asatru is reconstructionist at some point in time. But, it is trying to follow the guildelines left by the Eddas and Sagas in Iceland around 1150-1400. Even though the people who do prays might not do it properly, I still don't feel it is a reconstruction like Wicca.

What do everyone think?

[Astreja]

I know that a lot of the "how should one act?" guidelines can be found in the elder Edda, particularly in the Hávamál.

The ceremonial stuff is a bit trickier. I tend just to go on gut feeling when doing a blót, rather than seeking out written guidelines.

Is there a "proper" way to do a ceremony? I don't know. I suspect that every village had its own traditions, and that these traditions diverged wildly from one end of Scandinavia to the other.

Inasomuch as we have the archeological digs at Uppsala in Sweden, and a fairly solid trail back to the Eddas and Sagas, Asatru doesn't fit comfortably into the neo-pagan group of religions. There is some reconstruction, though. We're guessing at a lot of traditions simply because we had to reinvent them.

It'll be interesting to see how we use any historical material that's found. Ideally it should reinforce our sense of connection without drowning us in minutiae. Do we really have to do things as they were done 1,000 years ago? I don't think so. What's important is our inner world, the things we feel as we follow the path.