Gullveig Herself remained with the Æsir, changing Her name to Heithr. It seems likely from the mythological evidence that She was in fact Freyja, since Freyja is thereafter found among the Æsir, yet She was not one of the hostages exchanged at the conclusion of hostilities. The catalytic action of Gullveig in initiating the conflict, and Her ability to Remanifest in ever more powerful form, are also characteristics of the Other, as the Initiate will discover when his own Other begins to manifest Her influence in his own life.
A word should be said about the differences between the two races of Gods: Æsir and Vanir. The former are Gods of the vertical axis, the spiritual dimension, linking Midgard with the worlds above and below. They are associated with consciousness, culture, life and death. The Vanir, however, are Gods of the natural order of things, the yearly agricultural cycle, animal husbandry and so forth, the means of survival and propagation in the natural world. Following their initial war, both groups of Deities feature in Northern mythology, representing life in all of its aspects, natural and supernatural.
Freyja's name is actually a title rather than a personal name; it means 'Lady', as that of Her twin brother Frey means 'Lord'. These two members of the Vanir are of enormous importance in old Northern religion and following the war they abode largely with the Æsir. Freyja in particular features heavily in the mythology and it will repay us to examine another of Her mythic tales now.
The Brisingamen was a necklace (or a belt or girdle) which was of exceptional beauty. It was being forged by four dwarfs and its virtue was such that it gave its possessor tremendous power over natural forces and wealth. Freyja desired this necklace and She obtained it through Her sexual favours, agreeing to sleep with each dwarf in turn as payment for the Brisingamen.
The powerful qualities of the Brisingamen were not lost upon Odin, who desired it for Himself. He persuaded Loki to steal the marvelous necklace, although it was returned to Freyja when She pledged to support Odin in His Work. In time, She taught Odin the use of that magic of which She was Mistress: seith, a technique quite different from His own galdor.
This myth reveals a lot about Freyja. One of Her primary attributes is Desire, illustrated here by Her own Desire for the Brisingamen and the Desire of the dwarfs for Her. This leads to an exchange, in which each obtains that which they wish for through a sexual process.
Sexual adventures are often linked with Freyja. Her relationship with Her twin brother Frey is incestuous in nature. She is accused of this by Loki in Lokasenna (Loki's Quarrel, or Accusation, a kind of jousting with words and insults), where He also claims that She has been promiscuous with the entire company:
'Be silent, Freyia, I know all about you;
you aren't lacking in blame:
of the Æsir and the elves, who are in here,
each one has been your lover.'
...
'Be silent, Freyia, you're a witch
and much imbued with malice,
you were astride your brother, all the laughing gods
surprised you,
and then, Freyia, you farted.'
-- Lokasenna 30, 32
As the curriculum of Work in this book unfolds, the reader will discover that Desire is a very powerful magical Key. It is also noteworthy that in Loki's accusation, Freyja was 'astride' her brother. This is significant, as Kenneth Grant argues in his Typhonian Trilogies that the most correct position in sexual magic is for the woman to be on top of the man, not vice versa.
Loki also denounces Freyja as a 'witch', a reference to the seith magic She practises. Seith, as opposed to galdor, is primarily associated with women, especially female seers. It is carried out in a state of trance and can involve sexual elements.
Half of the slain warriors who were assembled into the Gods' armies were gathered to Valhalla by Odin; the other half were brought to Freyja's hall at Folkvangr. When Freyja Herself manifests in Her warrior aspect, She takes the form of a great sow, a female wild boar, an animal of great ferocity. Her chariot is pulled by wildcats.
It is said in the mythology that Freyja was married to Odr. This may or may not be a name of Odin, but it is most definitely the name of the ecstatic, awakened consciousness which Odin represents. Freyja is said to seek the missing Odr across the Earth, leaving tears of gold in Her wake.
Thus we have in Freyja a Goddess of sex, war and magic. As such, She fulfils every function of the archetype of the Scarlet Woman as discussed in Apophis. I must add a cautionary note at this juncture, however. It is useful for us to use these comparisons for the insights they afford us into the Goddess and Her role in Draconian Magic. But when we are dealing with a specific tradition, it would be very wrong to say, 'Freyja is Babalon' or 'Freyja and the Scarlet Woman are the same thing'. This is quite untrue. There exists a resonance which allows us to sense an affinity between them, but Freyja is Her own Goddess and will quite rightly not respond to the names or titles of others. The Gods of our ancestors do not exist in a world of pick'n'mix, mix'n'match hotch-potchery. Approach Freyja as Freyja and as Freyja alone. Otherwise, if you're lucky you'll be ignored; if you're unlucky you'll get your nose bloodied. You cannot – ever – equate one Deity with another. They may be a culturally distinct manifestation of a very similar Idea, but the personality and the spirit will be quite distinct.
A Triplicity of Dragons
In Apophis, the Ancient Serpent was represented under a single figure, namely Apep or Leviathan. All facets of the Draconian Essence were discussed under the ægis of this single entity.
This encapsulation of Draconian attributes in one all-encompassing Form is a good thing and a necessary thing, representing the Draconian Essence awakening within the psyche of the magician. However, when we look at Northern lore we find a particularly rich history of dragonkind and these individual serpents can be used to invoke and embody specific aspects of Draconian consciousness. This allows us perhaps a little more precision in our Work and a boost to our Understanding.
There are many dragons in the myths and legends of Germanic countries. The student can profitably research a great many of them. The dragon in the final third of Beowulf is a good example. But there are three dragons in particular which are of great antiquity and whose attributes particularly inform our present Work. These are Fafnir, Jormungandr and Nidhogg.
Fafnir is the dragon slain by the great hero Sigurd. This story is recounted in the Fafnismal and in the Saga of the Volsungs. Unlike most of the sagas, that of the Volsungs is evidently a very old tale and its tone is mythic rather than historical.
Fafnir is the guardian of a great treasure of gold and the bearer of the Ægishjálmur, the Helm of Awe, after which this book is titled. Sigurd kills Fafnir and wins the gold and the Helm. He also tastes the dragon's blood and acquires its wisdom, exemplified by his newfound ability to understand the speech of birds. The sequence of transformations in this tale forms the central Initiatory process of this book and is the focus of chapter six.
The transformative process described in the tale of Sigurd and Fafnir extends throughout the book, however, including some of the practical techniques taught, such as the use of the Helm of Awe as a tool for operative magic. Most of these allusions and developments will be pointed out, but the Initiate is well advised to read the source texts several times in order to draw their atmosphere and mythic pattern within.
The second great mythic serpent is Jormungandr, often referred to as the Midgard Serpent. This enormous beast is a sea serpent, dwelling in the ocean depths. Jormungandr was originally a monstrous child of Loki and was cast into the sea by Odin. Once there, it grew to such a size that it encircled the entirety of Midgard with its body.
The symbolism of Jormungandr echoes that of the Ouroboros, the serpent forming a ring and taking its own tail in its mouth. The function of this great sea dragon is to establish the boundary of the world and to mark its limits. If Fafnir represents the Dragon Within and the initiatory journey of the magician, then Jormungandr represents the Dr
agon Without and the arena in which that journey takes place. The two are distinct and yet there is a link between them. This polarisation between the two dragons will be discussed more fully later in its proper place.
The great enemy of the Midgard Serpent is the God Thor, who nearly breaks the foundations of the world when He hooks the dragon on a fishing expedition and almost succeeds in reeling it in with His great strength. At Ragnarok, it is Thor who will slay Jormungandr with His hammer Mjolnir, though He Himself will perish from the Serpent's venom. When Jormungandr is slain, the bounds of the world will be broken and reality as we now know it will be swept away.
The third of our triplicity of mythic Northern dragons is Nidhogg, a winged dragon who is said to have its lair in the deepest parts of Hel's domain, feeding upon the dead and rending the very roots of Yggdrasil with its claws, spewing venom upon them. Nidhogg is a devourer, whose sole function is to consume. It is thus the dragon of time, which devours all. And yet, it is the dragon which may devour time itself and therein lies its initiatory key. It is reminiscent of the mythology of Apep recounted in Apophis, the serpent who swallows the Sun. As such, Nidhogg will be a force to be actively resisted by those beginning on their initiatory quest, but a force to be actively harnessed by those who are well advanced upon it.
The Mysteries of Nidhogg will be discussed more fully in their proper place.
CHAPTER TWO
DRAGON RUNES
The Language of the Gods
All magic, including Draconian Magic, is first and foremost concerned with communication. Every magical act is an act of communication. Magic is a communication with the Gods, with our own hidden complexes, with the world outside ourselves. This is not simply a matter of firing out messages, requests, prayers or petitions and hoping something comes of it. Any effective communication must be a two way process. It is question and answer, proposal and response, comment and reply; it is dialogue.
In order to effectively communicate, we must have a sophisticated language with which to convey our ideas. In the magical realm, ordinary words are useful, but are not sufficient. There are magicians who scorn the use of words altogether, but words are a symbol set just as valid as any other. As Anton LaVey pointed out, a well chosen set of emotionally charged words and phrases can fan the Magical Will and the empowering force of Desire to fever pitch.
Passion is not enough, however, precision is also required. It was Stephen Flowers, the Magus of Rûna, who pointed out that the correct application of passion and precision in due proportion will be the measure of a magician's success.
This precision is achieved by adopting a purely magical symbol set, preferably one based upon a solid tradition, which has been tried, tested and refined over the centuries. This will give us a concise and meaningful way of clearly specifying our aims in a language which is understood by the subconscious. Once we have settled upon such a symbolic language, we will be able to communicate our magical Will with clarity.
In Northern Europe, this precise magical encoding is achieved through the use of the runes. Each rune possesses four unique qualities: it has a shape; it has a sound; it has a number; it has an inherent meaning. The practice of rune magic is known as galdor, a word which has a meaning akin to 'croaking' and refers to the speaking of the runes. The runestaves may be used to define our Will in speech or in writing. Specific ways of using the runes for magical purposes are described in chapter four.
The runes were originally arranged in a sequence of twenty four staves, known as the Elder Futhark. This twenty four rune set is the most complete and traditional iteration of runelore and this is the rune sequence used throughout this book. It most fully embodies the original Vision of the early runemasters.
In the Viking Age, the runes were recodified into a simplified set of sixteen staves. In this reworking of the runes, some of the more complex staves were given simplified forms and some sound values were grouped together under a single stave. This should not be seen as a degradation of the original tradition; it was a thorough, Initiated reinterpretation and Remanifestation of the runes to meet the needs of a new age of expansion and exploration. The Younger Futhark, as it is known, has proven itself to be extremely effective in Workings of operative sorcery. These are the runes which were used on my own home, the Isle of Man, and they are the runes I usually use for operative magical Workings. Nevertheless, it is in the Elder Futhark that we find the most comprehensive expression of runic philosophy, so that is the rune series used in this book. The Elder rune row is certainly the one which Initiates should familiarise themselves with first; those who wish to then use the Younger Futhark will find it easy to adopt the Younger row having first Understood the Elder.
The Old English runes were basically the Elder Futhark with new staves added to the end of the row to allow for new sounds as they were added to the language, so its underlying lore is basically that of the Elder rune row.
Those desiring a more in-depth history of the development of runes are directed to Runelore and the other books of Edred Thorsson.
The runes of the Elder Futhark are tabulated below, along with their number and sound values and their primary meanings.
Number
Rune Name
Sound
Meaning
1
fehu
F
cattle, money
2
uruz
U
aurochs
3
thurisaz
Th
thurs, giant
4
ansuz
A
ancestral god
5
raidho
R
wagon, riding
6
kenaz
K
torch, sore
7
gebo
G
gift
8
wunjo
W
joy
9
hagalaz
H
hail
10
nauthiz
N
need
11
isa
I
ice
12
jera
Y
year
13
eihwaz
EI
yew
14
perthro
P
lot-cup
15
elhaz
-Z
elk
16
sowilo
S
sun
17
tiwaz
T
Tyr
18
berkano
B
birch
19
ehwaz
E
horse
20
mannaz
M
man
21
laguz
L
water
22
ingwaz
-NG
Ing
23
dagaz
D
day
24
othila
O
property
Knowing the names and shapes of the runes is one thing, but it is necessary to Work with them, carving and colouring them, singing them and shaping them, meditating upon them, in order to make them your own. These practices all form part of the curriculum of this book and will be presented in a logical and workable order.
The information given here will be sufficient for anyone to use the runes in Draconian Magic. However, those who desire to create a deep and authentic connection with the runes are referred to The Nine Doors of Midgard by Edred Thorsson, published by Runa-Raven Press. Edred's book details a three year course of study and practice which will ingrain the runes deeply in your soul. It is a demanding course, but the rewards are immeasurable. N
eedless to say, it will greatly enrich your experience with Ægishjálmur.
The process of making the runes your own will make you acutely aware that each rune has an existence both within and without. A rune expresses certain elements inside your own being, but it also embodies a quality that is found in the world outside of yourself. Once you have identified the essence of a rune within you and in the world you will become conscious that the two are linked; in a sense, they are one thing. A stream flows between them in both directions and thus the manipulation of the runes within your own mind can cause changes to occur in the outside world. In a similar way, the shifting of the runes in the outside world can cause new insights and understanding to manifest within your own being, through practices such as divination.
Ultimately, all runes, both within and without, are but aspects of a single Rune (the word 'rune' actually means 'mystery'). This is Rûna itself (or Herself, since Rûna is often referred to as a Lady), the Mystery that lies behind all mysteries, that which is always sought after but never quite found, the promise that lies just over the horizon. A lot more will be written about Rûna in this book and the subject will be discussed at length in the appropriate place. Rûna is the entire motivation for magic.
Dragon Runes
The core, traditional meanings of the runes can be found in the writings of Edred Thorsson, listed in the Reading List at the back of this book. The Initiate is encouraged to study these carefully in order to establish a fully rounded and authentic Understanding of each rune.
Aegishjalmur Page 2
