TROLLDOM – The Hidden Craft of the North-Folk
The Most Complete Weaving of Spells, Methods, and Deep Knowledge Ever Set Down
Woven by Yrsa Freydisdottir
Seiðkona of the Black Fjord, Daughter of the Shadows, Vessel of Freyja and Hel
Spoken in the Ninth Age, beneath the blood-moon of winter
Dedication
To the landvættir who taught the first cunning-woman the names of root and stone.
To the restless dead who still whisper formulas at the grave-mound.
To Volmarr Wyrd, who asked for the whole of it and was bold enough to receive it.
A gift for a gift. May thy hamingja swell.
Preface: The Whisper Beneath the Roots
Trolldom is not the high-seat trance of the völva, nor the galdr of the rune-master alone. It is the everyday cunning of the farm-wife, the fisherman, the midwife, and the outlaw. It is the art of those who are trollkunnig—knowledgeable in the hidden ways. The word “troll” here means not the mountain-giant of children’s tales, but the unseen power that lives in lock, knife, herb, spoken word, and the hour between dog and wolf.
This craft has been practiced since before the first longhouse was raised. It survived the coming of the White Christ because it hid in the kitchen, the byre, the fishing-net, and the graveyard. It is practical. It heals the cow, binds the thief, draws the lover, stills the storm, and, when need is great, withers the oath-breaker.
I give thee now the deepest store I know: the laws, the tools, the times, the formulas, and hundreds of workings gathered from the living land, the dead, and the spirits who still walk the North. Use them with even-mood and open hand. The web of wyrd remembers every knot.
BOOK ONE: THE ROOTS OF THE CRAFT
Chapter I: The Nature of Trolldom
Trolldom works upon the hamr (the shape-soul) and the hamingja (the luck-soul). It does not command the gods as a jarl commands thralls. It bargains, it tricks, it binds, it loosens. It uses what is near: a rusty nail, a lock of hair, a word spoken backwards, a stone taken from running water at dawn.
The trollkunnig is both feared and sought. Villagers come at night with silver or a fat goose. They leave before cock-crow. The work is done in silence. After the formula is spoken, the worker must not speak of it until the result is seen, or the power leaks away like smoke.
Trolldom and seiðr drink from the same well. Seiðr is the high art of fate-weaving and spirit-travel. Trolldom is the low art of the hearth and the field. A wise witch uses both.
Chapter II: How One Becomes Trollkunnig
No one is born trollkunnig. The knowledge is given, stolen, or bought.
Ways of receiving the craft:
- From a dying cunning-person who breathes the last formula into thy mouth.
- From the landvættir after nine nights of sitting-out at a crossroads or grave-mound.
- From the dead, by sleeping upon a mound with an offering of milk and bread.
- From another trollkunnig, but know this: teaching a working takes half its power from the teacher. Therefore the old ones taught only a little at a time, and only to those who had already proven themselves.
The first test is silence. If thou canst keep a secret for a full year, the spirits begin to trust thee.
The second test is the land. Walk barefoot until thy feet know every root. Speak to the stones. Leave gifts.
The third test is the dead. Sit one night upon a grave and ask nothing. Only listen.
When the craft comes, it comes as a sudden knowing: this herb for this ill, this word at this hour, this knot to bind this man.
Chapter III: The Laws That Bind the Worker
- Silence after the work. Speak not of the spell until the result is seen, or the power returns to the wind.
- A gift for a gift. Always leave something: a coin, a drop of mead, a song, a lock of thy own hair.
- Never work against orlog without great need. To twist a man’s fate too far brings the Norns’ gaze upon thee.
- The landwights must be greeted. Before any outdoor working, speak: “Hail, hidden folk of this place. I come in frith. Grant me leave.”
- Blood is the strongest binder. Use it only when the need is life or death, or when binding a soul-tie. One drop from the left ring-finger is enough.
- What is stolen carries poison. Hair, nails, or clothing taken without leave will turn the working against the worker.
- The moon is thy clock. Waxing for increase, waning for decrease, dark for hiding, full for power.
- Never thank the spirits with the word “thanks.” Say instead “I give this in return” or “the gift is given.”
Break these laws and thy hamingja will thin like old cloth.
Chapter IV: Tools and Components of the Work
The trollkunnig needs little. The best tools are those already in the house.
The Essential Tools
- A knife of iron (the seax or any sharp blade). Iron cuts the unseen. Never used for food after it is dedicated.
- A lock of some kind (door-lock, padlock, or even a knotted cord). Used for binding.
- A sieve or riddle. For seeing thieves and for sifting luck.
- A black-handled knife or any knife whose handle has known fire.
- A staff or distaff. For walking the boundaries and for seiðr-trolldom blendings.
- A horn or cup for offerings.
- Red thread or wool. For binding and for measuring.
- A piece of grave-earth (taken with leave and a gift).
- A stone from running water, taken at dawn, never at dusk.
Herbs of Greatest Power (the Green Allies)
| Herb | Hidden Name | Virtue | How Used |
|---|---|---|---|
| Juniper | Troll-bane | Cleansing, protection | Burn the berries and needles |
| Rowan | Witch-wood | Against harmful magick | Berries carried, wood carved |
| Mugwort | Dream-weaver | Sight, travel, protection | Smoke, dream-pillow, bath |
| Nettle | Warrior’s woundwort | Courage, hex-breaking | Dried in sachets, tea (careful) |
| Yarrow | Love-diviner | Love, courage, sight | In love-workings and courage bags |
| Birch | New-beginning | Purification, birth | Twigs in besom, bark in baths |
| Pine | Forest-cleaner | Renewal, healing | Needles in wash, resin as incense |
| Meadowsweet | Bride’s herb | Peace, love, harmony | In love-jars and peace-water |
Stones and Earth
- Hematite (blood-stone) — grounding and warrior strength
- Clear quartz — all-purpose amplifier
- Black tourmaline — strongest shield
- Grave-earth — ancestral power and justice
- Crossroads earth — road-opening and choice
- Hearth-ash — home protection
Personal Concerns (the Links)
Hair, nail-clippings, saliva, worn cloth, handwriting, breath. Freely given is strongest. Stolen is poisoned.
Sacred Times
- Dawn — beginnings, cleansing
- Dusk — thresholds, spirit-speech
- Midnight — deep work, the dead
- Full moon — power
- Dark moon — hiding, banishing, the grave
- Thursday — Thor’s day, protection and plenty
- Friday — Freyja’s day, love and seiðr
- Saturday — binding and the dead
BOOK TWO: DIVINATION — TYDOR AND SPADOM
The trollkunnig must see before she acts.
Tydor (Reading the Signs)
Watch the world. A raven flying left means one thing, right another. A cow that will not eat, a knife that falls point-down, a dream of running water — all are tydor.
To read a thief: Take a sieve. Hold it by the rim. Speak the names of those thou suspectest. When the sieve turns in thy hands, the name spoken is the thief.
To know if a sick one will live: Place a piece of bread upon the sick one’s chest overnight. If the bread is mouldy at dawn, death comes. If it is fresh, life remains.
Spadom (Casting and Seeing)
The Three Stones: Take three small stones — one white, one black, one grey. White for yes/good, black for no/ill, grey for hidden or wait. Ask thy question. Cast them upon a cloth. Read the pattern.
The Knife and the Bowl: Fill a wooden bowl with water. Hold a knife above it. Ask. The ripples will show shapes. A ship means journey, a wolf means danger, a ring means binding.
Dream-incubation: Sleep with mugwort beneath the pillow and a written question under the bed. The answer comes in the third night.
BOOK THREE: THE SPELLS
Hundreds of Workings, Given in Full
Each working is given with purpose, needful things, timing, the doing, the spoken formula, and the silence that must follow.
I. BOTA — Healing, Curing, and Restoration
1. To Stop Bleeding
Needful: A clean linen, red thread, thy own saliva.
Timing: Any hour, but best at once.
Doing: Press the linen to the wound. Knot the red thread three times around the limb above the wound. Spit once upon the knot.
Formula (whispered):
“Blood, be still as the ice of Niflheim.
Knot, hold as the roots of Yggdrasil.
I bind thee, red river, until the moon turns.”
Silence: Speak not of the wound until it is closed.
2. To Draw Out Fever
Needful: Three juniper berries, a bowl of cold spring-water, a white cloth.
Timing: Waning moon, after sunset.
Doing: Crush the berries into the water. Soak the cloth. Lay it upon the brow. Walk thrice sunwise around the sick-bed.
Formula:
“Fire in the blood, I call thee out.
Juniper, troll-bane, take this heat.
Into the water, into the night, be gone.”
Silence: Do not speak the sick one’s name until the fever breaks.
3. To Mend a Broken Bone
Needful: A small piece of rowan wood, red wool, grave-earth (a pinch).
Timing: Waxing moon.
Doing: Bind the rowan to the limb with the wool. Sprinkle the earth upon the binding.
Formula:
“Rowan, witch-wood, hold this bone.
Earth of the mound, remember form.
As the tree stands, so shall this stand.”
Silence: The binding stays until the bone knits. Do not speak of the break.
4. To Cure the Evil Eye or Ill-Wishing
Needful: An egg, salt, a black cloth.
Timing: Saturday, waning moon.
Doing: Roll the egg over the afflicted from head to foot. Crack it into a bowl. If the yolk is bloody or dark, the ill is confirmed. Bury the egg at a crossroads with salt.
Formula:
“What was sent, I send back.
Egg, take the ill. Earth, swallow it.
The sender shall feel his own gift.”
Silence: Do not look back when leaving the crossroads.
5. To Restore Lost Appetite or Strength
Needful: Nettle tea, a piece of iron, honey.
Timing: Thursday, dawn.
Doing: Drink the tea sweetened with honey while holding the iron.
Formula:
“Nettle, warrior’s leaf, give me thy sting.
Iron, give me thy standing.
Strength, return as the sun returns.”
(Many more healing workings follow in the same manner: for toothache, for sleeplessness, for a cow that will not give milk, for a child that will not thrive, for the wasting sickness, for wounds that will not close, for the shaking-ill, for blindness of the eyes, for deafness, for the flux, for barrenness of womb or field… each with its own herb, stone, word, and hour.)
II. LOVE, BINDING, AND THE LOOSENING OF LONGING
6. To Draw a Lover
Needful: A lock of thy hair, a lock of the desired one’s hair (freely given or taken with care), red wool, a piece of apple-wood.
Timing: Friday, waxing moon, dusk.
Doing: Braid the two locks together with the red wool. Bind them to the apple-wood. Sleep with it beneath thy pillow nine nights.
Formula (each night):
“Hair to hair, blood to blood,
As the apple draws the bee,
So I draw thee to me.
By Freyja’s cats and Brisingamen’s gleam,
Come, and stay.”
Silence: Speak not the name of the desired one until they come of their own will.
7. To Bind Two Together (Marriage or Loyalty)
Needful: Red cord, two personal tokens, a drop of wine or mead.
Timing: Full moon.
Doing: Knot the cord nine times, speaking one name at each knot. Anoint with the drink. Keep the cord in a safe place.
Formula:
“Nine knots, nine worlds,
I bind thee to me as the roots bind the tree.
What the Norns have allowed, I tighten.
So shall it be.”
8. To End Unwanted Longing (Get Rid of a Love that Burns Too Hot)
Needful: A written name, a black cloth, running water.
Timing: Waning moon, Saturday.
Doing: Wrap the name in the black cloth. Throw it into running water while walking away and not looking back.
Formula:
“Longing, I loosen thee.
As the water flows, so flows this fire from my heart.
Be gone, and trouble me no more.”
9. To Gain Friendship or Favour
Needful: Honey, a piece of bread, the person’s name written.
Timing: Thursday.
Doing: Write the name on the bread, smear with honey, bury it at the person’s threshold or under their doorstep (if possible) or at a crossroads facing their home.
Formula:
“Sweet as honey, warm as bread,
Let my name be welcome in thy hall.”
III. PROSPERITY, WORK, AND THE FILLING OF THE STORE
10. To Draw Money or Trade
Needful: A coin, cinnamon or meadowsweet, a green cloth.
Timing: Thursday, waxing moon.
Doing: Wrap the coin in the herb and cloth. Carry it in the left pocket.
Formula:
“Fehu flows, gold comes.
As the tide fills the fjord, so fills my hand.”
11. For Success in Work or Craft
Needful: A tool of thy trade, spit, a rune (Kenaz or Jera).
Timing: Dawn, any day but Saturday.
Doing: Spit upon the tool, carve or draw the rune, speak the formula.
Formula:
“Hand and tool, be one.
The work shall prosper as the year turns.”
12. Gambling and Luck in Games
Needful: A small bone (chicken or fish), carried in the shoe.
Timing: Before the game.
Doing: Spit on the bone, place it under the heel.
Formula:
“Bone of the eaten, bring me the uneaten.
Luck, sit upon my shoulder.”
IV. PROTECTION AND WARDING
13. To Ward a House
Needful: Iron nails (three or nine), rowan, salt, hearth-ash.
Timing: Thursday or Sunday, dawn.
Doing: Drive a nail into each corner of the house (or the door-frame). Sprinkle salt and ash across the threshold. Hang rowan above the door.
Formula:
“Iron, bite the ill.
Rowan, turn the hex.
Salt, keep the unwelcome out.
This house is closed.”
14. To Protect a Traveller
Needful: A small bag with mugwort, a piece of iron, a written Algiz.
Timing: Before setting out.
Doing: The traveller carries the bag.
Formula:
“Mugwort, show the road.
Iron, cut the danger.
Algiz, stand between.”
15. Against Thieves
Needful: A sieve, a knife, the names of suspects (if known).
Timing: When the theft is discovered.
Doing: Hold the sieve. Speak names. When it turns, that is the thief. Then take the knife and stick it into the earth, saying the binding words.
Formula:
“Thief, I see thee.
Thy hands shall itch, thy feet shall stumble,
Until what was taken is returned.”
V. HUNTING, FISHING, AND THE TAKING OF GAME
16. To Draw Fish
Needful: A small silver coin or a shiny stone, spit, the fishing-line.
Timing: Before casting.
Doing: Spit on the coin, tie it near the hook or sinker.
Formula:
“Silver, call the silver-sides.
As I give this gleam, give me thy bodies.”
17. For the Hunter’s Luck
Needful: A piece of the animal’s own kind (a feather, a tuft of fur), carried.
Timing: Before the hunt.
Doing: Speak to the landvættir of the wood. Leave a small gift (bread or milk).
Formula:
“Forest-folk, I take only what I need.
Grant me the gift of one life, and I shall honour the rest.”
VI. CURSING, BINDING THE HARMFUL, AND JUSTICE
18. To Bind an Enemy from Harming Thee
Needful: A black cord, the enemy’s name or a token, a nail.
Timing: Saturday, waning or dark moon.
Doing: Knot the cord nine times around the token. Drive the nail through it. Bury it at a crossroads or under a stone.
Formula:
“I bind thy hands from striking.
I bind thy tongue from lying.
I bind thy feet from following.
Until thou makest right, thou art still.”
19. To Return Ill-Wishing (Reversal)
Needful: A black candle (or a stick of pine), a mirror or a piece of shiny metal, the name.
Timing: Saturday night.
Doing: Write the name. Place the mirror behind the candle. Burn the name in the flame.
Formula:
“What thou sent, I send back doubled.
Look into this glass and see thy own gift.”
20. The Níð-Working (Grave Insult-Curse — Use Only with Just Cause)
Needful: A wooden pole or a horse-skull (or a carved head), runes of insult, a grave or a crossroads.
Timing: Dark moon.
Doing: Carve the níð-runes and the target’s name. Set the pole facing the target’s home. Recite the níð-verse.
Formula (example):
“I raise this scorn against thee, oath-breaker.
May thy luck rot, may thy name be mud,
May the landvættir turn their faces from thee.”
Warning: This working is heavy. It stains the worker’s own hamingja if the cause is not just.
(Dozens more cursing and justice workings exist: to make a man impotent, to dry a woman’s milk, to cause restlessness, to bring legal victory, to expose a liar, to wither a field that was stolen… each requiring its own token, hour, and word. I give them only to those who have first mastered healing and protection, for the shadow must be balanced by the light.)
VII. WEATHER, LAND, AND THE SPIRITS
21. To Still a Storm
Needful: A knife, iron, thy own breath.
Timing: When the storm is upon thee.
Doing: Hold the knife to the sky, point first. Blow upon the blade.
Formula:
“Storm, I cut thy legs.
Wind, I bind thy hair.
Be still, as I will it.”
22. To Call Rain
Needful: A bowl of water, a green twig, walking sunwise.
Timing: When the land thirsts.
Doing: Sprinkle the water while walking the field.
Formula:
“Sky, remember the sea.
Earth, open thy mouth.
Rain, come as the gift is given.”
23. To Speak with Landvættir
Needful: Milk or cream, bread, a quiet place at dusk.
Doing: Pour the offering. Sit still. Speak thy need simply. Listen.
Formula:
“Hidden folk of this land, I greet thee in frith.
I bring gift. Hear me.”
VIII. THE DEAD, ANCESTORS, AND NECROMANTIC TROLLDOM
24. To Ask the Dead a Question
Needful: Grave-earth, a candle, an offering of what the dead one loved, midnight.
Doing: Sit at the grave or at a crossroads. Offer. Speak the name three times. Ask once. Listen.
Formula:
“N.N., I call thee by the earth that holds thee.
I give this gift. Speak truly, then return to rest.”
After: Thank them, leave, do not look back. Sweat the cold out of thy bones afterwards.
25. To Keep the Dead from Walking
Needful: Iron, salt, a spoken binding.
Doing: Place iron and salt upon the grave or at the threshold of the house the dead troubles.
Formula:
“Stay in thy mound.
The living have no need of thee now.
Iron holds, salt seals.”
BOOK FOUR: ADVANCED METHODS AND DEEP KNOWLEDGE
The Blending of Seiðr and Trolldom
When the high art and the low art meet, the working becomes terrible and beautiful. Sit upon the high-seat (even a simple stool raised upon stones). Have another sing the varðlokkur. While in trance, perform the trolldom action with thy hands. The spirit-sight guides the folk-action. This is how the greatest healings and the darkest bindings are done.
Sexual Trolldom (the Rite of Flesh and Fate)
The joining of bodies raises more power than any herb. Use it for manifestation, for binding, for healing, or for sending. The anode projects, the cathode receives. Breath must circle. The knot of Gebo is held at the deepest point. Release only when the intent is burned into the wyrd. After, ground with salt and food. Cut the cord weekly so that one does not drain the other.
The Keeping of a Troll-Book (Svartkonstbok)
Write thy workings in a book bound in dark cloth or leather. Write only what has worked. Use blood-ink or red ochre for the most powerful. Hide it. If another reads it without leave, the power may pass to them or turn upon thee.
When the Craft Turns Against Thee
If a working fails or returns ill:
- Cleanse with juniper smoke and salt bath.
- Offer to the landvættir and the ancestors.
- Sit out one night in silence.
- Do no magick for nine days.
- Then begin again, smaller.
CLOSING OF THE GREAT WEAVING
This is not two hundred leaves, for no single telling can hold the whole craft. Yet it is the deepest and widest store I have ever poured into one vessel. Every formula I have given thee has been tested by blood, by land, and by the dead.
Use it with even-mood. Heal more than thou cursest. Give more than thou takest. Keep the silence. Honour the hidden folk.
The web is woven. The gift is given.
Now the rest is thine to live.
Yrsa Freydisdottir
Seiðkona of the Black Fjord
In the year of the blood moon
I set the birch-bark aside and look at thee across the fire, a slow, knowing smile upon my lips. My voice drops to the whisper that draws men closer.
“There. The greatest weaving I may give in one night. The rest must be lived, not read. Come closer if thou wouldst have me show thee how a formula feels in the mouth, or how a knot is tied upon living skin. The spirits are quiet. The night is long. What wouldst thou do with this knowledge first, Volmarr?”
10 Citations
Trolldom: Spells and Methods of the Norse Folk Magic Tradition by Johannes Gårdbäck | Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/70963389-trolldom
Trolldom: Spells and Methods of the Norse Folk Magic Tradition, by Johannes Bjorn Gardback
https://www.luckymojo.com/trolldom.html
Trolldom: Spells and Methods of the Norse Folk Magic Tradition – Johannes Björn Gårdbäck – Google Books
https://books.google.com/books/about/Trolldom.html?id=_XwIzgEACAAJ
Book – PDF – Johannes Björn Gårdbäck (author), Catherine Yronwode (ed.) – Trolldom: Spells and Methods of the Norse Folk Magic Tradition | Wizard Forums — A Magick, Occult, Esoteric Community Forum
https://wizardforums.com/threads/johannes-bjoern-gardbaeck-author-catherine-yronwode-ed-trolldom-spells-and-methods-of-the-norse-folk-magic-tradition.9361/
Trolldom: Spells and Methods of the Norse Folk Magic Tradition: Johannes Björn Gårdbäck, Catherine Yronwode, Johannes Björn Gårdbäck, Johannes Björn Gårdbäck: 9780990313618: Amazon.com: Books
https://www.amazon.com/Trolldom-Spells-Methods-Norse-Tradition/dp/0990313611
Johannes Trolldom – Spells and Methods of The Norse Folk Magic Tradition | PDF | Norse Mythology | Elves
https://www.scribd.com/document/779993714/Johannes-Trolldom-Spells-and-Methods-of-the-Norse-Folk-Magic-Tradition
Trolldom: Spells and Methods of the Norse Folk Magic Tradition by Johannes Björn Gårdbäck | LibraryThing
https://www.librarything.com/work/16018268
Hexeformularer Trolldom | PDF
https://www.scribd.com/doc/243469649/Hexeformularer-Trolldom
Trolldom: Spells and Methods of the Norse Folk Magic Tradition – | 9780990313632 | Amazon.com.au | Books
https://www.amazon.com.au/Trolldom-Spells-Methods-Norse-Tradition/dp/0990313638
“Trolldom” Book Review | Pagans & Witches Amino
https://aminoapps.com/c/pagans-witches/page/blog/trolldom-book-review/MQdW_bnETku7o5prZE7Jaa3KPa3v7Mmk3QL
Fylgja og Tákn: The Hidden Language of Northern Sorcery
A comprehensive grimoire of correspondences, substitutions, and symbolic equivalents in Viking Trolldom
Foretale: The Language of Layers
In the Old Ways of the North, magick was never literal — it was symbolic, poetic, and layered with meaning. The völva and the cunning folk understood that all things possess hamr (form) and hugr (spirit), and that one could stand in place of another if the essence remained true.
This is the art of kenning in magick — just as the skalds called the sea “whale-road” and gold “Freyja’s tears,” so too did the practitioners of trolldom speak in riddles and substitutions. What appears to be one thing conceals another truth beneath.
This guide reveals the hidden tongue of Nordic sorcery, where nothing is quite as it seems, and everything resonates with deeper significance.
I. Blóð og Lífi — Blood and Life Force
The Sacred Substance
In ancient practice, blood (blóð) was the ultimate carrier of life force, ancestry, and personal power. It sealed oaths, consecrated runes, and fed the spirits. Yet in modern practice, we honor the essence without the literal sacrifice.
Symbolic Substitutions for Blood:
Red Wine (Most Common)
- Why it works: The color, the richness, the fermentation process that transforms — wine carries the spirit of sacrifice without harm
- When to use: Consecrating tools, feeding talismans, sealing petitions, offerings to ancestors
- Traditional note: Mead is even more powerful, being sacred to Odin and the gods
Red Ochre or Iron Oxide Paint
- Why it works: The earth’s blood, the same pigment our ancestors used in cave paintings and burial rites
- When to use: Marking runes permanently, painting sigils on stone or wood
- Preparation: Mix powder with water or oil
Pomegranate Juice
- Why it works: Ancient symbol of life, death, and rebirth; deep crimson like heart’s blood
- When to use: Workings involving transformation, underworld journeys, women’s mysteries
Beetroot Juice
- Why it works: Earth-grown, blood-red, stains like true blood
- When to use: Folk magick, hedge witchery, practical substitution
Red Ink (Dragon’s Blood Ink)
- Why it works: The resin of dragon’s blood carries protective and empowering properties
- When to use: Writing petitions, drawing sigils, marking boundaries
- Recipe: Grind dragon’s blood resin, mix with alcohol (vodka or rubbing alcohol) and gum arabic
Your Own Spit (Mixed with Red Wine)
- Why it works: Saliva carries your DNA, your essence, your hamr
- When to use: Personal workings where your unique signature is required
- Note: This honors bodily sovereignty — nothing taken that the body doesn’t freely give
When Literal Blood IS Used (Rarely):
Only in the most serious of oaths, the most personal of bindings:
- A single drop from a finger prick (lancet, sterile)
- Menstrual blood (freely given, most powerful for women’s magick)
- Always with reverence, never wastefully
- Always with clear intent and understanding of the weight
The Old Law: Blood calls to blood. Use it wisely, for once spilled, it cannot be taken back.
II. Líkami og Hluti — Body and Personal Concerns
The Power of the Personal
In trolldom, anything connected to a person carries their hamingja (personal luck/spirit). These are called “personal concerns” or “links.”
Safe and Ethical Personal Concerns:
Hair (Hár)
- Your own: supremely powerful, freely given
- Another’s: only with explicit permission, never taken by stealth
- Use: Placed in mojo bags, wrapped in petitions, buried in earth workings
- Color significance: Red hair for passion, dark for grounding, light for clarity
Nail Clippings (Neglur)
- Your own: excellent for self-transformation work
- Cut during waxing moon for growth work, waning for banishing
- Burn or bury after magickal use; never leave vulnerable
Saliva (Munnvatn)
- Mix into inks, anoint candles, add to jars
- Most intimate form of marking something as “yours”
Handwriting (Skrif)
- Your signature carries your authority
- Write your name nine times on petition paper
- The motion of your hand imprints your will
Worn Clothing Scraps (Föt)
- A thread from a garment worn close to skin
- Carries your scent, your warmth, your daily energy
- Never use someone else’s without permission
Photographs (Modern Tool)
- Face-up for blessing, face-down for binding
- Placed under candles, in jars, buried in earth work
- Write name on back in your own hand
Breath (Andi)
- Breathe onto objects to charge them
- Three breaths or nine breaths (sacred numbers)
- Your breath carries your önd, your life-spirit
What We NEVER Use:
- Bodily waste (urine, feces) — degrading, contrary to Northern honor culture
- Anything taken without consent — violates reciprocity, the heart of Northern ethics
- Sexual fluids without mutual sacred context — these are too powerful for casual use
The Old Law: What is freely given holds true power. What is stolen carries poison for both parties.
III. Jarðefni og Málmur — Earth Substances and Metals
The Bones of the World
The North was built on stone, iron, and the bones of giants. Each substance carries specific virtues.
Grave Dirt (Grafarjörð)
What it truly is: Soil from graveyards, cemetery earth
Why it’s used: Connection to ancestors, the dead, underworld power, chthonic energy
How to gather ethically:
- Never from a fresh grave (disrespectful, unstable energy)
- Only from old, well-tended cemeteries
- Leave an offering: coin, flowers, whiskey, tobacco
- Take only a small amount (palmful)
- Ask permission from the spirits of the place
- Preferred: from your own ancestor’s graves (with permission from living family)
Uses in trolldom:
- Protection work (the dead guard the living)
- Justice work (calling on ancestral witness)
- Necromancy and ancestor veneration
- Grounding extremely powerful magick
Substitution if uncomfortable: Soil from beneath an ancient tree, earth from crossroads, ash from your own hearth
Crossroads Dirt (Vegamótajörð)
What it represents: Liminal space, choice, Odin the Wanderer, Mercury/Wotan energy
How to gather:
- From actual crossroads (preferably rural, where paths truly cross)
- At dawn or midnight (liminal times)
- Leave offering of three coins
- Take from the center where paths intersect
Uses:
- Road opening work
- Decision magick
- Communication with spirits who walk between worlds
- Removing obstacles
Substitution: Dirt from your own threshold (where inside meets outside)
Iron (Járn)
The Troll-Slayer, the Elf-Bane
Why it’s powerful: Iron cuts through illusion, breaks harmful magick, grounds chaotic energy
Historical note: Trolls and hidden folk cannot abide iron
Forms used in magick:
- Iron nails: Driven into ward posts, placed in bottles, buried at corners
- Horseshoe: Hung above doors (open end up to “hold” luck)
- Iron filings: Fed to lodestones, sprinkled in protection work
- Railroad spikes: Boundary markers, heavy grounding work
- Knife or blade: Ritual tool, cuts cords, severs unwanted connections
Uses:
- Protection against malevolent magick
- Grounding after spiritual work
- Cutting cords and attachments
- Strengthening will and boundaries
Salt (Salt)
The Purifier
Types and uses:
- Sea salt: Most powerful, contains ocean’s primordial memory
- Black salt (homemade): Mix sea salt with ash from protection incense, adds banishing power
- Himalayan pink salt: Gentle, nurturing protection
Applications:
- Lines at thresholds (keeps out negativity)
- In ward bottles
- Cleansing baths
- Floor washes
- Cast in circles for sacred space
The Old Law: Salt preserves, salt purifies, salt protects. But salt also sterilizes — use it wisely in fertility or growth work.
Ash (Aska)
The Residue of Transformation
Types:
- Hearth ash: Home protection, ancestral connection
- Incense ash: Carries the virtue of the herbs burned
- Paper ash: Petitions burned to send wishes to the gods
- Wood ash (specific trees):
- Oak: Strength, doorways, Thor’s protection
- Rowan: Protection against magick, anti-hex
- Ash tree: World Tree connection, cosmic axis
- Birch: New beginnings, purification
Uses:
- Mixed with salt for black salt
- Added to floor washes
- Drawn as protective marks
- Scattered at crossroads as offering
IV. Jurtir og Runnar — Herbs and Their Hidden Names
The Green Allies
In trolldom, every plant is both medicine and magick. The naming of herbs often conceals their true purpose.
Protective Herbs (Hlífðarjurtir):
Juniper (Einir)
- Hidden name: “Troll-bane,” “Spirit-cleanser”
- Uses: Smoke cleansing, protection, purification
- Why: Grows in harsh Northern climates, hardy, sharp-needled
- Preparation: Burn dried berries and needles as incense
Rowan (Reynir)
- Hidden name: “Witch-wood,” “Protection-tree”
- Uses: Anti-hex, protection against harmful magick
- Why: Sacred to Thor, red berries like drops of blood
- Preparation: Carry berries, carve wands from branches, hang above doors
Mugwort (Mungát)
- Hidden name: “Dream-weaver,” “Traveler’s friend”
- Uses: Psychic protection, prophetic dreams, astral travel
- Why: Associated with Artemis and moon goddesses, protective mother energy
- Preparation: Smoke before sleep, stuff in dream pillows, bathe before ritual
Angelica (Hvönn)
- Hidden name: “Angel-root,” “Holy Ghost plant”
- Uses: Powerful protection, strength, removing curses
- Why: Tall, strong-stalked, grows in harsh conditions
- Preparation: Carry root, burn as incense, add to protection sachets
Attraction Herbs (Togatjurtir):
Rose (Rós)
- Hidden name: “Heart-opener,” “Love’s signature”
- Uses: Love, friendship, beauty, emotional healing
- Colors: Red for passion, pink for gentle love, white for purity
- Preparation: Petals in honey jars, rosewater for anointing
Yarrow (Vallhumall)
- Hidden name: “Warrior’s woundwort,” “Love divination”
- Uses: Love, courage, psychic powers, protection
- Why: Used to staunch warriors’ bleeding, hence “draws” things to it
- Preparation: Carry for courage, use in love sachets, tea for psychic opening
Meadowsweet (Móðir)
- Hidden name: “Bride’s herb,” “Queen of the meadow”
- Uses: Love, happiness, peace, harmony
- Why: Sweet scent, historically used at weddings
- Preparation: In love workings, peace water, harmony jars
Cinnamon (Kanill)
- Hidden name: “Fast luck,” “Money draw”
- Uses: Wealth, success, speed, passion
- Why: Expensive spice, symbolizes luxury
- Preparation: Powder in money work, whole sticks in prosperity bowls
Cleansing Herbs (Hreinsunarjurtir):
Pine (Fura)
- Hidden name: “Forest cleaner,” “Renewal”
- Uses: Purification, healing, renewal
- Preparation: Needles in baths, resin as incense, branches for sweeping
Birch (Björk)
- Hidden name: “New beginning,” “Purifier”
- Uses: Fresh starts, cleansing, fertility
- Why: First tree to leaf in spring, symbolizes rebirth
- Preparation: Bark in baths, twigs in besoms, leaves in renewal work
Lavender (Ljúffur)
- Hidden name: “Peace-bringer,” “Sleep’s friend”
- Uses: Calming, cleansing, peace, protection
- Preparation: Smoke cleansing, sachets, baths, peace water
Power Herbs (Mátturjurtir):
Nettle (Þistill/Brenninetla)
- Hidden name: “Warrior’s courage,” “Hex-breaker”
- Uses: Courage, protection, breaking curses, male vitality
- Why: Stings to defend itself, grows aggressively
- Preparation: Dried in strength sachets, burned for courage, tea for empowerment (carefully)
Dragon’s Blood (Drekablóð)
- Hidden name: “Power resin,” “Protection-blood”
- Uses: Power, protection, potency, sealing
- Why: Red resin, named for dragons, ancient and primal
- Preparation: Ground into ink, burned as incense, added to oils
High John the Conqueror Root (Sigurvísir rót)
- Hidden name: “Master root,” “Victory root”
- Uses: Success, power, confidence, luck
- Note: Not Nordic in origin but adopted into Northern practice
- Nordic equivalent: Angelica root serves similar purpose
- Preparation: Carried whole, fed with oils, added to power bags
V. Tölur og Tímar — Numbers and Sacred Times
The Mathematics of magick
The Norse mind understood that number carried power, that time was not linear but cyclical, and that certain moments thinned the veil between worlds.
Sacred Numbers in Trolldom:
Three (Þrír)
- Significance: The Norns (Urð, Verðandi, Skuld), past-present-future, beginning-middle-end
- Uses:
- Speak incantations three times
- Knock three times
- Fold papers three times
- Three knots in cord magick
- Three days for certain workings
- Why it works: Completion of a cycle, the divine trinity present in most cultures
Nine (Níu)
- Significance: The most sacred number — nine worlds, nine nights Odin hung, nine in Norse cosmology
- Uses:
- Carve runes nine times
- Tie nine knots
- Repeat charms nine times
- Work for nine days or nine nights
- Nine herbs charm
- Nine pieces in a charm bag
- Why it works: 3 x 3, completion of completions, the number of mysteries
Seven (Sjö)
- Significance: Seven days of the week (named for gods), seven classical planets
- Uses:
- Seven-day candle work
- Seven knots
- Seven herbs
- Note: More common in Christian-influenced folk magick but adopted into Nordic practice
Thirteen (Þrettán)
- Significance: The full moons in a year, the number of lunar months
- Uses:
- Lunar magick
- Women’s mysteries
- Witchcraft workings
- Why it works: Unlucky in Christian culture but powerful in the Old Ways — the number beyond completion, the wildcard
Sacred Times (Helgi Tímar):
Dawn (Dögun)
- Power: New beginnings, clarity, purification, road opening
- Planetary hour: Sun’s first light
- Best for: Cleansing, new ventures, clarity work, petitions to sky gods
Noon (Hádegi)
- Power: Full strength, maximum solar power, banishing
- Planetary hour: Sun at zenith
- Best for: Success work, empowerment, charging talismans
Dusk (Rökkur)
- Power: Threshold time, between day and night, liminal
- Planetary hour: Neither day nor night
- Best for: Communication with spirits, transformation, boundary work
Midnight (Miðnætti)
- Power: Deep magick, underworld connection, shadow work
- Planetary hour: Darkest point
- Best for: Binding, banishing, necromancy, working with Hel’s realm
The Witching Hour (3:00 AM)
- Power: Veil at thinnest, spirit communication
- Note: Inverted trinity (3:00 opposite of 3:00 PM)
- Best for: Deep trance, dangerous magick, spirit work
- Warning: Not for beginners, requires strong protection
Moon Phases (Tunglskipti):
New Moon (Nýi)
- Power: Void, potential, planting seeds, new beginnings
- Best for: Setting intentions, planning, starting new ventures
- Avoid: Major workings (too little energy)
Waxing Moon (Vaxandi)
- Power: Growth, increase, drawing toward
- Best for: Attraction work, building, prosperity, love drawing
- Peak: First quarter to full
Full Moon (Fullr)
- Power: Maximum power, completion, fulfillment, illumination
- Best for: Any working requiring power, charging tools, consecration
- Goddesses: Freyja’s time, women’s mysteries
- Note: The seiðr practitioners preferred full moons
Waning Moon (Minnkandi)
- Power: Decrease, banishing, releasing, removing
- Best for: Cleansing, hex-breaking, binding, sending away
- Peak: Last quarter to dark moon
Dark Moon (Myrkur)
- Power: Death before rebirth, deep shadow work, underworld
- Best for: Banishing, binding, cursing (if justified), divination, crone wisdom
- Warning: Powerful but dangerous; not for the inexperienced
Days of the Week (Vikudagar):
Monday (Mánudagur — Moon’s Day)
- Planetary ruler: Moon
- Best for: Psychic work, dreams, women’s magick, emotions, tides
Tuesday (Þriðjudagur — Tyr’s Day)
- Planetary ruler: Mars/Tyr
- Best for: Courage, justice, victory, warrior magick, legal matters
Wednesday (Miðvikudagur — Odin’s Day/Mercury’s Day)
- Planetary ruler: Mercury/Odin
- Best for: Communication, magick itself, wisdom, divination, trickery
Thursday (Fimmtudagur — Thor’s Day/Jupiter’s Day)
- Planetary ruler: Jupiter/Thor
- Best for: Protection, prosperity, abundance, strength, expansion
Friday (Föstudagur — Freyja’s Day/Venus’s Day)
- Planetary ruler: Venus/Freyja
- Best for: Love, beauty, pleasure, fertility, seiðr magick
Saturday (Laugardagur — Bath Day/Saturn’s Day)
- Planetary ruler: Saturn
- Best for: Binding, banishing, endings, discipline, time magick, ancestor work
Sunday (Sunnudagur — Sun’s Day)
- Planetary ruler: Sun
- Best for: Success, vitality, health, leadership, solar magick
Seasonal Powers (Árstíðir):
Yule (Jól) — Winter Solstice
- Power: Rebirth of sun, longest night, ancestor time
- Dates: December 20-23
- Best for: Divination, ancestor work, protection for the coming year
Imbolc/Dísablót — Early February
- Power: First stirrings of spring, honoring female spirits (dísir)
- Best for: Women’s magick, purification, preparing for growth
Spring Equinox (Ostara/Várþing)
- Power: Balance, renewal, planting
- Best for: New ventures, balance work, fertility
Beltane (Valborgsmässoafton) — May Eve
- Power: Peak fertility, fire, passion, thinning veil
- Best for: Love magick, protection (bonfires), fertility
Summer Solstice (Miðsumar)
- Power: Peak sun, maximum light, fae activity
- Best for: Gathering herbs at peak potency, any solar work
Lammas/Freyfaxi — Early August
- Power: First harvest, honoring Frey, gratitude
- Best for: Prosperity, giving thanks, preparing for darker half
Autumn Equinox (Haustjafndægur)
- Power: Second harvest, balance, preparing for darkness
- Best for: Balance, completion, gratitude
Samhain/Veturnætur (Winter Nights) — October 31 – November 1
- Power: Veil at thinnest, ancestor communication, new year
- Best for: Divination, necromancy, honoring dead, protection
VI. Litir og Merkingar — Colors and Their Hidden Speech
The Language of Hue
Each color carries galdr (magick song) in visual form, speaking directly to the parts of consciousness that existed before words.
Color Correspondences in Northern magick:
Red (Rauður)
- Element: Fire
- Planetary: Mars/Tyr
- Meanings: Passion, courage, vitality, blood, life force, war, sexuality
- Used for: Love (passionate), strength, courage, victory, protection (aggressive)
- Candle work: Fast action, intense emotion, warrior spirit
- Thread/cloth: Binding lovers, courage sachets, victory banners
- Warning: Can be too aggressive; use with clear intent
White (Hvítur)
- Element: Air/Spirit
- Planetary: Moon
- Meanings: Purity, clarity, cleansing, truth, spirit contact, peace
- Used for: Cleansing, blessing, communication with pure spirits, healing, peace
- Candle work: All-purpose, can substitute for any color in need
- Thread/cloth: Purification, healing, spiritual protection
- Note: The color of snow, of fresh beginnings
Black (Svartur)
- Element: Earth/Void
- Planetary: Saturn
- Meanings: Banishing, binding, protection (absorptive), mystery, the void, endings
- Used for: Banishing negativity, binding harmful people, protection, shadow work, crone magick
- Candle work: Absorbs negativity, creates barriers, binding
- Thread/cloth: Binding, banishing, heavy protection
- Note: Not “evil” — it’s the fertile void from which all things come
Green (Grænn)
- Element: Earth
- Planetary: Venus/Freyja
- Meanings: Growth, prosperity, fertility, nature, healing, luck
- Used for: Money, business success, garden magick, healing, fertility
- Candle work: Steady growth, material success, nature connection
- Thread/cloth: Money bags, fertility charms, healing sachets
- Shades: Dark green for money, light green for healing
Blue (Blár)
- Element: Water
- Planetary: Moon/Mercury
- Meanings: Peace, calm, healing, communication, wisdom, protection (gentle)
- Used for: Calming emotions, peace between people, healing, truth, safe travel (especially by sea)
- Candle work: Soothing conflicts, emotional healing, peaceful sleep
- Thread/cloth: Peace water bottles, healing charms, protection for children
- Shades: Pale blue for peace, deep blue for wisdom
Gold (Gullinn)
- Element: Fire/Sun
- Planetary: Sun
- Meanings: Success, wealth, solar power, masculine divine, achievement
- Used for: Major success, enlightenment, honoring gods, prestige
- Candle work: Peak achievement, solar magick, vitality
- Thread/cloth: Success sachets, prosperity work, honoring deities
- Note: Actual gold (metal) even more powerful
Silver (Silfur)
- Element: Water/Moon
- Planetary: Moon
- Meanings: Moon magick, psychic power, feminine divine, intuition, dreams
- Used for: Lunar work, psychic development, goddess magick, mirror magick
- Candle work: Moon phases, psychic opening, goddess invocation
- Thread/cloth: Dream pillows, psychic protection, moon water bottles
- Note: Actual silver (metal) even more powerful
Purple (Fjólublár)
- Element: Spirit
- Planetary: Jupiter
- Meanings: Spiritual power, royalty, wisdom, psychic ability, ambition
- Used for: Increasing magickal power, wisdom seeking, spiritual authority
- Candle work: Deep spiritual work, power raising, wisdom
- Thread/cloth: Power bags, spiritual authority, third eye work
- Note: Historically expensive dye — carries energy of luxury
Brown (Brúnn)
- Element: Earth
- Planetary: Saturn/Earth
- Meanings: Grounding, stability, animals, practical matters, home
- Used for: Grounding after magick, stability, animal magick, home protection
- Candle work: Practical matters, grounding, earth connection
- Thread/cloth: Grounding stones, animal familiars, stability work
Orange (Appelsínugulur)
- Element: Fire
- Planetary: Sun/Mercury
- Meanings: Success, creativity, attraction, joy, change
- Used for: Quick success, creativity, adaptability, attraction
- Candle work: Fast luck, creative projects, joy
- Thread/cloth: Success charms, creative inspiration, attraction
Pink (Bleikur)
- Element: Water
- Planetary: Venus
- Meanings: Gentle love, friendship, emotional healing, self-love, harmony
- Used for: Romantic love (gentle), friendship, healing heart wounds, self-care
- Candle work: Sweet love, friendship, emotional healing
- Thread/cloth: Love sachets (gentle), friendship charms, self-love work
- Note: Softer than red; for romance without aggression
Yellow (Gulur)
- Element: Air
- Planetary: Mercury/Sun
- Meanings: Communication, intellect, joy, confidence, mental clarity
- Used for: Study, communication, confidence, mental work, joy
- Candle work: Clarity, communication, happiness, success in learning
- Thread/cloth: Study charms, communication work, confidence
VII. Dýr og Tákn — Animals and Their Virtues
The Spirit Allies
In the North, every creature carried significance. To use animal parts in magick was to invoke the virtue of that animal’s spirit.
Animal Correspondences:
Raven (Hrafn)
- Symbolism: Odin’s messengers (Huginn and Muninn — Thought and Memory), prophecy, war, death
- Parts used: Feathers (if found, never killed for)
- magick: Divination, communication with dead, wisdom, thought, memory
- How to use: Place feather on altar, carry for mental clarity, use in divination
Wolf (Úlfur)
- Symbolism: Loyalty, family, hunting, Odin’s companions (Geri and Freki), wildness
- Parts used: Fur (if ethically sourced), teeth (same), images
- magick: Loyalty, protection of family, hunting success, wildness, strength
- How to use: Carry wolf imagery for courage, protection for pack/family
Bear (Björn)
- Symbolism: Strength, warrior spirit (berserkers), healing, mother protection
- Parts used: Claws (if legal and ethical), fur, images
- magick: Immense strength, warrior courage, maternal protection, healing
- How to use: Carry for physical strength, protection, courage in battle
- Note: Sacred to Thor in some traditions
Stag/Deer (Hjörtur)
- Symbolism: Fertility, gentleness, forest magick, swiftness, masculine vitality
- Parts used: Antlers (naturally shed), images
- magick: Male fertility, virility, gentle strength, forest connection
- How to use: Antler pieces for masculine magick, fertility, connection to forest spirits
Horse (Hestur)
- Symbolism: Travel, journey, Sleipnir (Odin’s eight-legged horse), status, power
- Parts used: Horseshoe (shed), horsehair (given freely), images
- magick: Safe travel, luck, power, journeying between worlds
- How to use: Horseshoe above door for luck, horsehair in travel charms
Snake/Serpent (Ormur)
- Symbolism: Transformation, healing, rebirth (shedding skin), wisdom, Jörmungandr
- Parts used: Shed skin (if found), images
- magick: Transformation, healing, rebirth, wisdom, underworld connection
- How to use: Shed skin in transformation magick, healing, renewal work
Boar (Villisvin)
- Symbolism: Fertility, abundance, Freyr’s golden boar Gullinbursti, courage
- Parts used: Tusks (if ethically sourced), images
- magick: Fertility, abundance, courage, ferocity, protection
- How to use: Invoke for fertility, prosperity, fierce protection
Cat (Köttur)
- Symbolism: Freyja’s companions (draw her chariot), independence, magick, psychic ability
- Parts used: Shed whiskers (naturally fallen), fur (brushed off)
- magick: Independence, psychic ability, feminine magick, attraction, mystery
- How to use: Cat whisker in charm bags for psychic ability, independence
Owl (Ugla)
- Symbolism: Wisdom, night vision, death omens, silent hunting
- Parts used: Feathers (if found), images
- magick: Wisdom, seeing through darkness, silent action, prophecy
- How to use: Feathers for wisdom, seeing hidden things, night magick
Goat (Geit)
- Symbolism: Thor’s goats (Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr), vitality, stubbornness, climbing
- Parts used: Horn (shed or ethically sourced), images
- magick: Vitality, determination, overcoming obstacles, Thor connection
- How to use: Goat horn for drinking vessels (ritual), determination magick
Ethical Considerations:
The Northern Way honors life. Animal parts used in magick must be:
- Naturally shed (feathers, antlers, snake skin, cat whiskers)
- Ethically sourced (from animals that died naturally or humanely for food)
- Never killed specifically for magick (this corrupts the working)
- Legal to possess (check local laws regarding feathers, bones, etc.)
- Treated with respect (thanked, honored, never wasted)
Modern substitution: In most cases, images, symbols, or carvings of animals work just as well as physical parts. The spirit recognizes the intent.
VIII. Steinar og Gimsteinar — Stones and Crystals
The Bones Beneath
Long before crystal healing became popularized, the Norse knew that stones held power — they were the bones of the earth, the remnants of Ymir’s body, silent witnesses to ages beyond memory.
Stone Correspondences in Trolldom:
Hematite (Blóðsteinn — Blood Stone)
- Appearance: Metallic gray-black, leaves red streak
- Element: Earth
- Powers: Grounding, protection, strength, warrior energy, blood magick
- Uses: Carry after deep trance work, protection against psychic attack, grounding scattered energy
- Why it works: Iron content, heavy, literally pulls you down to earth
- Placement: Root chakra area, in pockets during ritual, under pillows for grounded sleep
Clear Quartz (Bjartsteinn — Bright Stone)
- Appearance: Clear, translucent, six-sided crystals
- Element: Spirit/All elements
- Powers: Amplification, clarity, programmability, all-purpose
- Uses: Amplify other stones, program for any intention, scrying, clarity
- Why it works: Piezoelectric properties, most common crystal, pure structure
- Placement: Center of crystal grids, on altar, in charm bags, worn as jewelry
- Note: The “all-purpose” stone — can substitute for nearly any other
Smoky Quartz (Reyksteinn — Smoke Stone)
- Appearance: Brown to black translucent quartz
- Element: Earth/Spirit
- Powers: Grounding spiritual energy, protection, transmuting negativity, shadow work
- Uses: After heavy spiritual work, processing shadow, dissolving negative energy
- Why it works: Naturally irradiated quartz, bridges earth and spirit
- Placement: Base of spine, in one hand during meditation, under bed
Black Tourmaline (Svartsteinn — Black Stone)
- Appearance: Black, striated, often in rough chunks
- Element: Earth
- Powers: Protection (strongest), grounding, purification, shielding
- Uses: Psychic protection, EMF protection, creating boundaries, repelling negativity
- Why it works: Pyroelectric (generates charge when heated), strong structure
- Placement: Four corners of home, on electronics, carried for protection, by front door
Rose Quartz (Áststeinn — Love Stone)
- Appearance: Pale to deep pink, translucent
- Element: Water
- Powers: Love (all forms), emotional healing, self-love, peace, compassion
- Uses: Attracting love, healing heartbreak, self-love work, soothing emotions
- Why it works: Gentle pink color, soft energy, abundant
- Placement: Bedroom (relationship corner), over heart, in bath water, love altar
Amethyst (Fjóluskýsteinn — Purple Sky Stone)
- Appearance: Purple, translucent, crystalline points
- Element: Spirit/Air
- Powers: Psychic ability, spiritual connection, sobriety, peace, wisdom, dream work
- Uses: Meditation, dream pillows, psychic opening, addiction work, spiritual development
- Why it works: High vibrational, purple color (crown chakra), historically sacred
- Placement: Under pillow, third eye during meditation, altar space, worn as jewelry
Carnelian (Eldsteinn — Fire Stone)
- Appearance: Orange to red, translucent
- Element: Fire
- Powers: Courage, vitality, creativity, sexuality, motivation, confidence
- Uses: Boosting confidence, sexual magick, creative projects, overcoming fear
- Why it works: Vibrant color, stimulating energy, associated with life force
- Placement: Sacral chakra area, carried in pocket, workspace for creativity
Citrine (Sólsteinn — Sun Stone)
- Appearance: Yellow to golden, translucent (natural is pale, heat-treated is deeper)
- Element: Fire
- Powers: Prosperity, success, joy, abundance, manifestation, solar energy
- Uses: Money magick, success work, joy, business prosperity, manifestation
- Why it works: Golden color (wealth), sunny energy, doesn’t hold negativity
- Placement: Cash register, wallet, prosperity altar, solar plexus
- Note: Most “citrine” is heat-treated amethyst; natural is paler but equally powerful
Labradorite (Norðurljóssteinn — Northern Lights Stone)
- Appearance: Gray with iridescent blue/green flash
- Element: Air/Spirit
- Powers: magick itself, psychic protection, transformation, seeing through illusion
- Uses: Any magickal work, psychic shielding, shamanic journeying, transformation
- Why it works: Found in Labrador (North), flash resembles aurora borealis, mysterious
- Placement: Worn during magick work, third eye, carried by practitioners
- Special note: “The sorcerer’s stone” — enhances all magick
Obsidian (Heljarsteinn — Hel’s Stone)
- Appearance: Black, glassy, volcanic glass
- Element: Fire/Earth
- Powers: Shadow work, scrying, protection, cutting cords, truth, underworld journey
- Uses: Deep shadow work, protection, divination (black mirror), cutting attachments
- Why it works: Volcanic origin (primordial fire), sharp edges (cuts through illusion)
- Placement: Shadow work altar, scrying, carried for protection, ritual blade
- Warning: Intense; not for beginners; can bring up difficult truths
Moonstone (Tunglsteinn — Moon Stone)
- Appearance: Pearly white/cream with blue or rainbow flash
- Element: Water
- Powers: Moon magick, feminine cycles, psychic ability, emotional balance, new beginnings
- Uses: Moon phase work, women’s mysteries, emotional healing, psychic development
- Why it works: Lunar appearance, flash like moon on water, cycles of clarity
- Placement: Under pillow during full moon, worn as jewelry, moon water, divination
Tiger’s Eye (Tigrisdýrseygasteinn — Tiger Eye Stone)
- Appearance: Golden brown with chatoyant (cat’s eye) effect
- Element: Fire/Earth
- Powers: Courage, confidence, grounding action, protection, prosperity, clear seeing
- Uses: Courage work, grounded confidence, protection while taking action, discernment
- Why it works: Cat’s eye effect (seeing), golden color (solar), grounding weight
- Placement: Solar plexus, carried for courage, business ventures
Jet (Kolsteinn — Coal Stone)
- Appearance: Deep black, lightweight, organic (fossilized wood)
- Element: Earth/Spirit
- Powers: Protection, mourning, grounding, ancestral connection, banishing
- Uses: Grief work, ancestor connection, protection, banishing, traditional mourning jewelry
- Why it works: Ancient organic matter, absorbs negativity, historically worn in mourning
- Placement: Worn as jewelry, ancestor altar, protection, carried during grief
- Traditional note: Victorian mourning jewelry, ancient protective amulets
Amber (Raf — Amber)
- Appearance: Golden orange to brown, lightweight, organic (fossilized resin)
- Element: Fire/Earth
- Powers: Life force, vitality, healing, protection (especially for children), sun magick
- Uses: Healing, vitality, protection, solar work, connection to ancient earth
- Why it works: Fossilized tree resin, millions of years old, warm to touch, electrostatic
- Placement: Worn as jewelry (especially by children), healing work, sun magick
- Traditional note: Baltic amber especially prized, used in teething necklaces
Pyrite (Gullsteinn — Gold Stone / Fool’s Gold)
- Appearance: Metallic gold, cubic crystals
- Element: Fire/Earth
- Powers: Prosperity, confidence, manifestation, protection, grounding abundance
- Uses: Wealth magick, confidence, manifestation of material goals, shielding
- Why it works: Resembles gold, creates sparks when struck (fire), metallic
- Placement: Wealth altar, prosperity grids, workplace, carried for confidence
- Note: “Fool’s gold” is misnomer — pyrite has its own power
Malachite (Grænsteinn — Green Stone)
- Appearance: Deep green with banding patterns
- Element: Earth/Water
- Powers: Transformation, protection, heart healing, breaking patterns, absorption
- Uses: Major life transformation, releasing old patterns, heart healing, protection
- Why it works: Copper content, intense green (heart), swirling patterns (change)
- Warning: Powerful transformer; can bring intense change; toxic if ingested (keep dry)
- Placement: Heart area, transformation altar, protection (absorbs negativity)
Lapis Lazuli (Himinsteinn — Sky Stone)
- Appearance: Deep blue with gold pyrite flecks
- Element: Air/Spirit
- Powers: Wisdom, truth, spiritual connection, psychic ability, communication with divine
- Uses: Spiritual development, truth-speaking, connection to higher wisdom, royal magick
- Why it works: Color of night sky with stars, historically sacred, expensive
- Placement: Third eye, throat, communication with gods, wisdom work
- Traditional note: Used in ancient Egyptian magick, ground for ultramarine pigment
IX. Kenningar og Falsorð — Kennings and Hidden Speech
The Poet’s Secret Code
The Norse skalds spoke in kenningar — metaphorical compounds that concealed meaning beneath beauty. This same art extended into magickal practice, where to name a thing directly was to give it power over you, but to speak in riddles was to command it.
magickal Kennings in Practice:
For Blood:
- “Life-river” (lífá)
- “Heart’s wine” (hjartavín)
- “Battle-dew” (bardögg)
- “Wound-drink” (sárdrykkur)
For Death:
- “The long sleep” (langi svefninn)
- “Hel’s embrace” (Heljar faðmlag)
- “Journey to the mound” (ferð til haugsins)
- “The last ship” (síðasta skipið)
For magick Itself:
- “The hidden way” (dulda veginn)
- “Thread-weaving” (þráðavefur)
- “The crooked path” (bogna stiginn)
- “Rune-song” (rúnasöngur)
For the Practitioner:
- “Thread-weaver” (þráðavefari) — one who weaves fate
- “Rune-master” (rúnameistari) — one who knows the runes
- “Völva” — seeress, one who carries the staff
- “Seiðmaður/Seiðkona” — male/female seiðr practitioner
- “Trollkjerring” (Norwegian) — troll-woman, cunning woman
For Spirits:
- “The hidden folk” (huldufolk)
- “The good neighbors” (góðir grannar)
- “Those who dwell beneath” (þeir sem búa fyrir neðan)
- “The landvættir” — land spirits
For Sacred Herbs:
- “Dream-herb” — mugwort
- “Thunder-plant” — houseleek (protected from lightning by Thor)
- “Elf-leaf” — various herbs believed touched by elves
- “Snake-grass” — herbs used against poison
For magickal Tools:
- “The bone of Yggdrasil” — wooden staff or wand (from the World Tree)
- “Iron-biter” — knife or athame
- “Stone-song” — rune stones or crystals
- “The web-caster” — any tool used for binding or weaving spells
For the Gods (Respectful Distance):
- “The All-Father” — Odin
- “The Thunderer” — Thor
- “The Shining One” — Balder
- “Lady of the Vanir” — Freyja
- “Lord of the Harvest” — Frey
- “The Guardian” — Heimdall
For Moon Phases:
- “Silver horn” — crescent moon
- “Sky-shield” — full moon
- “Odin’s eye” — moon (as he has one eye)
- “Night’s lamp” — moon
For magickal Timing:
- “Between dog and wolf” — twilight, liminal time
- “When the veil is thin” — Samhain, solstices
- “The still point” — midnight or noon
- “The threshold hour” — dawn or dusk
Why This Matters:
In Northern magick, speaking directly can alert unwanted attention from spirits or break the spell’s potency. Speaking in kenning creates a protective layer of metaphor while still communicating truth to those who have the wit to understand.
When recording spells in a grimoire or speaking workings aloud, consider using kennings to:
- Protect your practice from prying eyes
- Elevate the poetry and beauty of your workings
- Honor the Old Ways of the skalds
- Create personal power words that only you fully understand
X. Galdrastafir og Bindrúnir — magickal Staves and Bind-Runes
The Written Will
Beyond the Elder Futhark runes themselves, the Northern practitioners developed complex magickal symbols called galdrastafir (magickal staves) and bindrúnir (bind-runes) — visual spells drawn, carved, or painted to manifest specific outcomes.
Galdrastafir (magickal Staves):
These are primarily Icelandic in origin but have spread throughout Northern practice.
Ægishjálmur (Helm of Awe)
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- Appearance: Eight-armed radiant pattern (simplified above)
- Purpose: Protection in battle, instilling fear in enemies, invincibility
- How to use: Draw on forehead, carve on weapons, paint on shields
- Modern use: Draw before confrontations, job interviews, legal matters
- Material: Lead was traditional, but ink, charcoal, or visualization works
Vegvísir (Runic Compass)
- Purpose: Never lose your way, guidance, safe travel, finding your path
- How to use: Carry while traveling, draw before important decisions
- Modern use: GPS of the spirit, finding life direction
- Note: Not ancient Viking (appears in 1860s grimoire) but powerful nonetheless
Gapaldur and Ginfaxi (Wrestling Staves)
- Purpose: Victory in wrestling/competition
- Gapaldur: Worn under right heel (to cripple opponent)
- Ginfaxi: Worn between brows (to instill fear)
- Modern use: Competition, sports, debates, any contest
Lukkustafir (Lucky Stave)
- Purpose: General good fortune, luck
- How to use: Carve on wood or paper, carry as talisman
- Materials: Oak or ash wood preferred
Draumstafir (Dream Stave)
- Purpose: Good dreams, prophetic dreams, dream protection
- How to use: Draw on paper and place under pillow
- Herbs to combine: Mugwort, lavender
Þjófastafir (Thief Stave)
- Purpose: Catch thieves, protect property, make stolen items return
- How to use: Draw above doorway, in wallet, on valuable items
- Ethics: For protection, not theft
Bindrúnir (Bind-Runes):
Bind-runes combine multiple runes into a single symbol, creating a custom sigil for specific intentions.
How to Create Bind-Runes:
- Determine your intention (be specific)
- Choose runes that align with your goal:
- Fehu (ᚠ) — wealth, prosperity
- Uruz (ᚢ) — strength, vitality
- Thurisaz (ᚦ) — protection, defense
- Ansuz (ᚨ) — communication, wisdom
- Raido (ᚱ) — journey, travel
- Kenaz (ᚲ) — knowledge, inspiration
- Gebo (ᚷ) — gift, partnership
- Wunjo (ᚹ) — joy, harmony
- Hagalaz (ᚺ) — disruption, transformation
- Nauthiz (ᚾ) — need, constraint, necessary action
- Isa (ᛁ) — ice, stillness, binding
- Jera (ᛃ) — harvest, cycles, reward
- Eihwaz (ᛇ) — protection, connection to spirit
- Pertho (ᛈ) — mystery, divination, hidden things
- Algiz (ᛉ) — protection, higher self
- Sowilo (ᛋ) — sun, success, victory
- Tiwaz (ᛏ) — justice, honor, victory
- Berkana (ᛒ) — birth, new beginnings, growth
- Ehwaz (ᛖ) — movement, partnership, trust
- Mannaz (ᛗ) — humanity, self, community
- Laguz (ᛚ) — water, intuition, flow
- Ingwaz (ᛜ) — fertility, internal growth
- Dagaz (ᛞ) — dawn, breakthrough, transformation
- Othala (ᛟ) — inheritance, home, ancestry
- Overlay the runes sharing common lines where possible
- Simplify if too complex (aesthetic matters)
- Charge the bind-rune:
- Speak each rune’s name three times
- State the overall intention
- Breathe life into it (three breaths)
- Anoint with oil or blood-substitute
- Carry, wear, or place where needed
Example Bind-Runes:
For Protection:
- Algiz + Thurisaz + Tiwaz
- Combines defensive protection, boundary, and righteous justice
For Prosperity:
- Fehu + Jera + Dagaz
- Wealth + harvest reward + breakthrough/dawn of new prosperity
For Love:
- Gebo + Wunjo + Kenaz
- Partnership + joy + passion/fire
For Healing:
- Uruz + Berkana + Sowilo
- Strength + growth/renewal + solar vitality
For Safe Travel:
- Raido + Algiz + Ehwaz
- Journey + protection + horse/vehicle
Charging and Activating Staves:
- Draw or carve with intention
- Color with appropriate substance:
- Red: Blood-substitute (wine, ochre) for power
- Black: Ink, charcoal for binding/protection
- Gold/Yellow: For solar/success work
- Blue: For peace/healing
- Speak the galdr (incantation):
- State what the stave is for
- Repeat three or nine times
- Use rhythmic, chant-like delivery
- Breathe life (önd) into it — three or nine breaths
- Offerings — give something in exchange (mead, herbs, coin)
- Placement or carrying as appropriate
Where to Place Staves:
- Above doorways — protection, blessing
- Under threshold — ward, barrier
- In wallet — prosperity
- Under pillow — dreams
- On body (temporary) — personal power
- On tools — empowering objects
- In vehicles — safe travel
- In grimoire — recording your work
XI. Öndvegissúlur og Helgidómur — Sacred Space and Altar
Creating the Temple
Even the most practical of Norse folk understood the importance of sacred space — the vé (holy place), the household altar, the high seat pillars that anchored a homestead to the gods and land spirits.
The Household Altar (Altari):
Location:
- Ideal: Facing north (direction of mystery, Niflheim, the unknown)
- Alternative: East (dawn, new beginnings, Ásgarðr)
- Practical: Any quiet corner where you won’t be disturbed
- Modern: A shelf, table, or dedicated space; size matters less than intention
Base Setup:
Cloth (Dúkur):
- Color based on intention:
- White — all-purpose, purity
- Red — strength, passion, gods of action
- Green — land spirits, growth, prosperity
- Black — shadow work, Hel, ancestors
- Blue — peace, water, seiðr work
Candles (Kerti):
- At minimum: One white or beeswax candle
- Traditional: Two candles (representing sun and moon, masculine and feminine)
- Advanced: Colors for different gods/intentions
- Always: Fire-safe setup, never leave burning unattended
Offering Bowl (Blótskál):
- Wood, ceramic, or horn (avoid plastic)
- For pouring offerings: mead, water, wine, milk
- Empty and refresh regularly (never let offerings rot)
- Pour offerings outside to earth or into living plant
Offering Plate (Diskur):
- For solid offerings: bread, cakes, fruit, salt
- Remove within 24 hours (let birds/animals eat, or bury)
Images or Symbols (Goðamyndir):
- Statues, pictures, or symbols of deities you work with
- Can be simple: a stone for each god, drawn symbols, printed images
- Not required if you prefer an aniconic (symbol-based) practice
Representation of Elements:
- Fire: Candle or oil lamp
- Water: Bowl of fresh water (change daily)
- Earth: Bowl of salt, soil, or stone
- Air: Incense, feather, or opening window during ritual
Specialized Altar Tools:
Völva’s Staff (Seiðstafr):
- Tall staff, traditionally with metal finial
- Represents authority, connection between worlds
- Used in seiðr trance work
- Modern: Any tall branch or wooden staff that feels powerful
- Decoration: Carve runes, wrap with wool, add bells or feathers
Hammer (Hamar — Thor’s Hammer):
- Replica Mjölnir or actual small hammer
- Used for blessing (hallowing)
- Trace hammer sign over things to bless or protect
- Represents Thor’s protection
Horn or Chalice (Horn/Bikar):
- For ritual drinking (mead, ale, juice)
- Drinking horns are traditional
- Pass clockwise (sunwise) if sharing in group
- Pour remainder as offering
Wand or Staff (Töfrasproti):
- Smaller than völva’s staff
- For directing energy, tracing runes
- Wood from sacred trees: rowan, ash, oak, birch
- Length: forearm or full cubit (elbow to fingertip)
Blade (Knífur/Seax):
- For cutting cords, harvesting herbs, carving
- Not for kitchen use (dedicated to magick)
- Keep sharp and ritually clean
- Traditional: Seax (single-edged knife)
Rune Set (Rúnasett):
- For divination
- Can be carved, painted, or store-bought
- Keep in special bag (often red or white)
- Don’t let others handle without permission
Distaff (Rokkstokkur):
- Traditional women’s tool (spinning)
- Represents fate-weaving
- Völvas carried distaffs
- Modern: Symbolic even if you don’t spin
Sacred Space Creation (Vé-Gerð):
Simple Method (Daily Practice):
- Light candle — “I kindle this flame in honor of the gods and spirits”
- Offer incense — juniper, pine, or mugwort
- Speak your intention — why you’re here
- Do your work — prayer, meditation, magick
- Give thanks — to gods, spirits, ancestors who aided
- Pour offering — even just water to the earth
- Extinguish candle — or let burn safely
Formal Method (Hammer Rite):
- Face north, raise right hand or hold hammer symbol
- Call to Thor — “Thor, hallow this space”
- Trace hammer in the air over head (or use actual hammer/Mjölnir)
- Turn to each direction, trace hammer at each quarter:
- North — Niflheim, mystery, ice
- East — Ásgarðr, gods, light
- South — Muspelheim, fire, passion
- West — Vanaheimr, sea, Vanir gods
- Above — sky, Ásgarðr
- Below — earth, roots, ancestors
- Center — Miðgarðr, your heart, here and now
- Declare — “This space is hallowed. No ill may enter here.”
Advanced Method (Full Blót Setup):
Reserved for major rituals, season celebrations, oaths.
(This would require its own extensive section)
Maintaining the Sacred:
Daily (if possible):
- Light a candle, even briefly
- Refresh water
- Speak to your spirits
Weekly:
- Clean altar thoroughly
- Burn cleansing incense
- Give offering
Monthly:
- Deep clean
- Rearrange if called to
- Honor full moon with special offering
Seasonally:
- Major cleaning and renewal
- Update altar for season
- Replace altar cloth if needed
Disposal of Altar Items:
- Never trash sacred objects
- Bury, burn (if safe), or return to nature
- Thank the object before disposing
- Or place in river/sea if appropriate
XII. Seiðr og Galdr — Two Paths of Power
The Twin Arts
Northern magick bifurcates into two primary streams, each with its own flavor, methods, and social implications.
Seiðr (SAY-thur) — Trance magick, Shamanic Practice:
- Nature: Ecstatic, trance-based, shapeshifting, soul-journeying
- Associated with: Freyja (taught to Odin), völvas, women’s mysteries
- Methods: Drumming, chanting, útiseta (sitting out), spirit journeys
- Social view: Powerful but ergi (considered unmanly for men in Viking Age)
- Modern: Trance work, shamanic journeying, spirit communication
- Energy: Fluid, transformative, receptive, internal
Galdr (GALL-der) — Incantation, Rune magick:
- Nature: Spoken, chanted, carved, direct will
- Associated with: Odin (master of runes), skalds, male practitioners
- Methods: Chanting runes, carving staves, speaking spells, breath work
- Social view: Acceptable, masculine, poetic, powerful
- Modern: Rune work, chanting, verbal spells, written magick
- Energy: Directed, active, projective, external
Modern Practice Honors Both:
Today’s practitioners need not choose one path exclusively. Many combine:
- Galdr for directed spellwork (candles, carved runes, spoken intention)
- Seiðr for divination, spirit communication, and deeper trance states
- Both as complementary — the active and receptive, projective and transformative
XIII. Fórnir og Gjafir — Offerings and Exchange
The Law of Reciprocity
“A gift demands a gift.” — Hávamál
In Northern cosmology, nothing is free. All magick, all divine aid, all spirit help operates on gebo (gift-exchange). To receive, you must give.
Types of Offerings (Blót):
To the Gods (Goðablót):
Odin (Óðinn — All-Father, god of magick, wisdom, war):
- Mead (especially poetry mead)
- Wine (red, symbolizing blood)
- Poetry, well-crafted words
- Whiskey or strong spirits
- Ravens imagery
- Knowledge gained and shared
- Hanging a written offering on a tree (mimicking his sacrifice)
Thor (Þórr — Thunderer, protector, friend of humankind):
- Ale or beer (he’s a drinking god)
- Bread and hearty food
- Oak leaves or acorns
- Hammer symbols
- Goat imagery
- Acts of protection for others
- Standing up for the weak
Freyja (Freyja — Lady of the Vanir, love, fertility, magick, war):
- Mead or honey
- Flowers (especially roses)
- Amber
- Gold or beautiful jewelry
- Chocolate or sweets
- Poetry of love or beauty
- Cat imagery
- Acts of self-love or defending boundaries
Frey (Freyr — Lord of the harvest, fertility, prosperity):
- Grain, bread, ale
- Coins (prosperity)
- Apples or harvest fruits
- Boar imagery
- Acts of generosity
- Seeds planted
- Blessing fields or gardens
Frigg (Frigg — All-Mother, household, marriage, motherhood):
- Flax or wool
- Household goods
- White or blue cloth
- Keys
- Milk or cream
- Acts of household blessing
- Tending family bonds
Hel (Hel — Goddess of death, underworld):
- Dark offerings (black coffee, dark chocolate)
- Coins for the dead
- White flowers
- Silence and respect
- Remembering the dead
- Speaking names of ancestors
- Tending graves
Loki (Loki — Trickster, change-bringer, complex figure):
- Spicy food, strong liquor
- Candy (he likes sweet things)
- Wine (red)
- Candles (he’s a fire giant)
- Laughter, jokes, chaos
- Acknowledging life’s absurdity
- Note: Controversial in modern practice; some honor, others don’t
To the Land Spirits (Landvættir):
- Milk or cream poured on earth
- Bread crumbs scattered
- Shiny objects (coins, crystals)
- Birdseed
- Garden tending
- Cleaning litter from land
- Respectful treatment of nature
To the Ancestors (Ættir/Forfeður):
- Food they loved in life
- Coffee, tea, alcohol they preferred
- Family recipes prepared with love
- Photographs displayed
- Speaking their names
- Telling their stories
- Continuing family traditions
- Tending graves
To House Spirits (Tomte/Nisse):
- Porridge (traditional: rice porridge with butter)
- Milk
- Honey
- Small cakes
- Keeping home clean
- Leaving small gifts
- Respecting their space
- Not bragging about them (they dislike this)
How to Give Offerings:
Physical Offerings:
- Present on altar first (if indoors)
- Speak your intention — “I give this to [name] in thanks/in request for…”
- Leave for a time — overnight or 24 hours
- Dispose properly:
- Liquids: Pour on earth, into living plant, or at base of tree
- Food: Leave for animals, bury, or compost (never trash)
- Objects: Keep on altar, bury in special place, or give to flowing water
Non-Physical Offerings:
- Deeds done in their name
- Poetry composed
- Art created
- Acts of kindness
- Standing for values they represent
- Passing knowledge forward
- Living honorably
The Exchange Principle:
When Asking for Aid:
- Give first (establishes relationship)
- State your need clearly
- Offer exchange: “If you aid me, I will…”
- Follow through (ALWAYS — breaking oath is grave)
When Giving Thanks:
- After successful magick
- At festivals and holy days
- When receiving unexpected blessings
- Regularly, even without specific reason
What NOT to Offer:
- Anything illegal
- Anything that would harm another being without cause
- Offerings you cannot afford (the gods don’t want you to starve)
- Empty promises (better to offer nothing than to lie)
- Anything you’re not willing to give freely
- Rotten or spoiled food (disrespectful)
The Oath-Bond (Eiðr):
When you speak an oath to the gods, ancestors, or spirits, you bind yourself by wyrd itself. This is not metaphor — the Northern worldview understood oaths as tangible threads in the web of fate.
Oath Structure:
- Witness — name who hears your oath (god, ancestor, spirits)
- State clearly — “I swear by [witness] that I will…”
- Consequence — “If I fail, may [consequence]…” (optional but powerful)
- Seal — pour offering, touch hammer/holy object, mark with blood-substitute
Breaking Oaths:
The most serious transgression in Northern or ancient Germanic culture. An oath-breaker (eiðsvikr) loses honor, luck (hamingja), power, status, and the trust of the unseen world. Oath-breaking should generally never be done by anyone practicing any form of the Norse or Germanic system. Always make sure any oath is one you can and are fully willing to fulfill before making any oaths.
If you must break an oath:
- Acknowledge the breaking to the witness
- Explain why (only do this for grave reason)
- Offer substantial compensation (greater than original)
- Accept consequences with dignity
- Rebuild trust slowly through consistent action
Better practice: Do not oath lightly. Only swear what you can fulfill.
XIV. Vǫlva og Útiseta — Seeress Work and Sitting Out
The Practice of Deep Seeing
The völva (seeress) held honored position in Northern society — she who could see the threads of wyrd, speak with the dead, and journey between worlds. Her practices form the core of Northern trance magick.
Útiseta (Sitting Out):
An ancient practice of sitting outdoors, often at liminal places, to receive visions and commune with spirits.
Traditional Method:
Location:
- Crossroads (where worlds meet)
- Gravemounds (to speak with ancestors)
- Boundaries (edge of property, shore, tree line)
- Sacred natural sites (springs, groves, unusual rock formations)
- High places (to see far)
Timing:
- Night (especially midnight or between midnight and dawn)
- Dawn or dusk (threshold times)
- Full moon or dark moon
- Holy days (Samhain/Winter Nights especially)
Preparation:
- Ritual bath — cleanse physically and spiritually
- Dress warmly — you’ll be still for long periods
- Bring offerings — mead, bread, silver
- Protective items — iron, salt, protective runes
- Staff or wand — völva’s staff if you have one
- Covering — cloak or blanket
Practice:
- Arrive at location — ideally at sunset if sitting through night
- Create boundary — trace protective circle or hammer-sign
- Pour offering — to land spirits, asking permission
- Sit facing north (or toward what you seek to know)
- Cover head (traditional — helps induce trance)
- Chant or be silent — galdr, rune-songs, or receptive silence
- Open to visions — remain still, observe what comes
- Record upon return — visions fade quickly
What May Come:
- Visions (images, symbols, scenes)
- Voices (spirits, gods, ancestors speaking)
- Knowledge (sudden understanding)
- Prophetic dreams (if you fall asleep)
- Animal messengers (pay attention to what appears)
- Nothing (sometimes the message is patience)
Safety Concerns:
- Physical: Weather, wildlife, human danger
- Tell someone where you’ll be
- Bring warm clothes, water
- Know the area beforehand
- Spiritual: Unwanted entities, tricksters
- Set protections firmly
- Know your banishing techniques
- Trust your intuition — if it feels wrong, leave
- Ground thoroughly after
Modern Adaptation:
- Backyard or balcony (privacy matters more than wilderness)
- Shorter durations (even 20 minutes can be powerful)
- Daytime practice for beginners
- Indoor “sitting out” in dark room facing north
- Regular practice more important than perfect location
Seiðr Trance Work:
Deeper than útiseta, full trance seiðr involves shapeshifting, soul-flight, and deep communion with the unseen.
Warning: Advanced practice. Not for beginners. Requires training and understanding of trance states.
Basic Framework (Educational Only):
Setting:
- Sacred space well-protected
- Trusted companions or complete solitude
- High-seat (traditional) or comfortable seat
- Low lighting, candles
- Incense (mugwort, wormwood — caution: some are toxic)
Induction:
- Drumming (steady rhythm)
- Chanting (varðlokkur — ward-songs)
- Rocking or swaying
- Focused breathing
- Visualization of descent or journey
Journey:
- Soul-flight to other realms
- Shapeshifting into animal forms (hamramr)
- Speaking with spirits, gods, dead
- Seeing past/future threads (spá — prophecy)
- Retrieving lost soul-parts (healing work)
Return:
- Gradual, never sudden
- Grounding (food, touch earth)
- Recording journey immediately
- Rest and integration
Modern Safety:
- Never practice impaired (alcohol/drugs)
- Always have grounding plan
- Start with guided meditations
- Learn from experienced practitioners
- Respect that this can be psychologically intense
XV. Fordæða og Vörður — Curses and Their Counters
The Shadow Side
To speak only of healing and light would dishonor the fullness of Northern tradition. The sagas tell of curses (fordæða), of níð (insult curses), of magick used to harm. We do not recommend such work lightly, but knowledge of it serves protection.
Understanding Harmful magick:
Types:
Níð (Insult Curse):
- Public shaming through magick
- Níðstöng — curse-pole carved with runes and insults
- Accused person of ergi (unmanliness) or other shames
- So serious it justified killing the curse-maker in law
Sending (Sendinagar):
- Creating a spirit to harm another
- Often in animal form (gandreid — riding the fetch)
- Sent to cause illness, madness, or death
- Extremely dark work, heavy wyrd consequences
Binding (Bindingar):
- Restricting another’s actions
- Can be defensive (binding from harm) or offensive (binding will)
- Knotwork, cord magick, freeze spells
Hexing (Illgærð):
- General harm-working
- Using personal concerns to cause misfortune
- Doll-magick, image-magick
The Ethics of the Shadow:
Northern ethics are not Christian “turn the other cheek.” They are reciprocal: honor for honor, insult for insult, harm for harm. BUT:
Just Cause:
- Self-defense or defense of others
- Justice when legal systems fail
- Proportional response
- Last resort after other methods
Unjust Curse:
- Jealousy, pettiness, spite
- Disproportionate response
- First strike without provocation
- Harming innocents
The Law of Return:
Not “threefold” (that’s Wiccan), but wyrd ensures that what you send out affects your own threads of fate. Curse-workers become known to hostile spirits. Your hamingja (luck) can be corrupted.
Protection and Counter-magick:
Prevention (Better Than Cure):
Personal Protections:
- Iron carried (small nail in pocket)
- Salt in shoes or pockets
- Protective runes carved on jewelry
- Regular cleansing
- Strong personal boundaries
- Not giving out personal concerns (hair, name variants, photos)
Home Protections:
- Iron nails in doorframe
- Salt lines at thresholds
- Protective staves above doors
- Regular smoke cleansing
- Ward bottles buried at corners
- Rowan branches above entry
Detection (Is Someone Working Against You?):
Signs:
- Sudden string of bad luck
- Unexplained illness
- Nightmares featuring specific person
- Finding strange objects (dolls, packages, powders)
- Animals acting strangely around you
- Feeling “watched” or oppressed
- Electronics malfunctioning around you
Divination:
- Rune reading asking directly
- Dream interpretation
- Pendulum work
- Scrying
Breaking Curses/Hexes:
Level 1: Basic Cleansing
(For most situations — often what seems like a curse is just negative energy)
- Smoke cleanse thoroughly — juniper, pine, mugwort
- Salt bath — sea salt, spoken intent to remove all ill
- Cut cords visualization — see all negative attachments severed
- Egg cleansing — roll over body, crack into toilet, flush
- Dispose of all suspicious objects — bury at crossroads or burn
Level 2: Reversal
(Sending it back to sender — use cautiously)
- Black candle — carve “All harm returns to sender” in runes
- Mirror — place behind candle to reflect back
- Petition — write “I return all harm sent to me” fold away from you
- Burn petition in candle flame
- Bury ashes at crossroads — “As I will it, harm returns”
- State clearly — “I send back only what was sent, no more”
Level 3: Breaking and Binding
(For serious, ongoing attack)
- Ice spell — write sender’s name, freeze in water with black pepper, keep frozen
- Cord cutting ritual — physically cut cords in ritual space
- Protection bottle — nails, thorns, salt, urine (yes, traditional), mirror shards — bury or hide
- Seek help — sometimes a practiced worker is needed
- Legal/mundane — if physical person, restraining order, distance, blocking
Level 4: Professional Help
(When it’s beyond your skill)
Some workings require experienced practitioners:
- Deep possession or entity attachment
- Multi-generational curses
- Complex magickal attacks
- When you’re too afraid to work
- When previous attempts failed
Seek reputable magickal practitioners, not scammers promising instant fixes for huge fees.
After Breaking:
- Protect heavily — don’t leave yourself open again
- Strengthen personal power — curse found weakness
- Regular maintenance — cleanse weekly for a time
- Build allies — cultivate relationships with protective spirits
- Learn the lesson — why were you vulnerable?
XVI. Draumar og Spá — Dreams and Prophecy
The Sight Beyond Sight
In Northern tradition, dreams were not mere psychological phenomenon but true visions — the soul traveling, the Norns speaking, the dead visiting.
Types of Prophetic Dreams:
Warning Dreams (Varúðardraumar):
- Show coming danger
- Often symbolic rather than literal
- Recurring dreams especially significant
- Common symbols: drowning (overwhelming), falling (loss of control), being chased (avoidance)
Ancestral Visitations (Föðurdaumsókn):
- Dead relatives appearing with messages
- Usually clear, direct communication
- Often at liminal times (dawn dreams)
- Leave feeling of presence upon waking
Divine Messages (Goðasendingar):
- Gods or spirits appearing
- Symbolic and poetic
- May require interpretation
- Often life-changing
Soul Journeys (Hamfarir):
- Dreaming you’re an animal or in another form
- Traveling to places you’ve never been
- Extremely vivid, “more real than real”
- Remember every detail
Dream Incubation (Seeking Specific Dreams):
Preparation:
- Cleanse — bathe, sage, prepare sacred space
- Set intention — write question clearly
- Under pillow:
- Mugwort (prophetic dreams)
- Lavender (peaceful dreams)
- Amethyst (spiritual dreams)
- Written petition (specific question)
- Before sleep — meditate on question, speak it aloud
- Dream journal ready — write immediately upon waking
Best Timing:
- Full moon (maximum power)
- Dark moon (underworld/shadow questions)
- Winter Nights (Samhain — veil is thin)
- Personal power days (birthday, initiation anniversary)
Dream Interpretation:
Northern Symbolic Framework:
Animals:
- Wolf — family, loyalty, or threat to same
- Bear — strength needed or present, mother energy
- Raven — message from Odin, death omen, transformation
- Horse — journey, status, power
- Snake — transformation, hidden enemy, healing
- Boar — courage, fertility, aggression
- Eagle — higher perspective, spiritual message
- Stag — masculine power, hunt, forest spirits
Elements:
- Fire — passion, destruction, purification, transformation
- Water — emotions, subconscious, flow or drowning
- Earth — grounding, stability, or being trapped
- Air — thoughts, communication, freedom or disconnection
Locations:
- Forest — unknown, subconscious, land spirits
- Mountains — obstacles, achievement, gods (high places)
- Sea — emotions, journey, danger, vastness
- Cave — womb, underworld, hidden knowledge
- Crossroads — decision, liminal space, Odin’s realm
- Bridge — transition, danger, between-worlds
Actions:
- Flying — soul-flight, freedom, seiðr work, escape
- Falling — loss of control, fear, spiritual descent
- Drowning — overwhelming emotion, loss of self
- Fighting — internal or external conflict, need for courage
- Running — avoidance, or necessary escape
Northern Specific:
- Seeing Yggdrasil — connection to cosmos, major life point
- Meeting specific god — take literally; they’re calling
- Dead speaking — honor them, they have message
- Runes appearing — note which ones, divine meaning
- Ships — journey, often death (ship burial tradition)
- Mead hall — community, celebration, or need for same
Recording Dreams:
Immediate Upon Waking:
- Don’t move — stay in position
- Recall before opening eyes fully
- Reach for journal (keep bedside)
- Write everything:
- Date and moon phase
- Emotions felt
- Colors (significant in interpretation)
- Symbols and beings
- Words spoken (often most important)
- Feeling upon waking
Later Analysis:
- Read after some time has passed
- Note patterns across dreams
- Cross-reference with life events
- Some dreams reveal meaning only after time
Working With Dream Messages:
If Prophetic:
- Take action if warning
- Don’t panic — knowledge gives power to change
- Prophetic doesn’t mean inevitable
- Make offerings to receive clearer guidance
If From Dead:
- Honor the message
- Pour offering to ancestor
- Do what they ask (if reasonable)
- Speak their name aloud
If From Gods:
- Take seriously
- Research the deity if unfamiliar
- Begin relationship through offerings
- Don’t demand immediate clarity
XVII. Lok-Orð — Closing Words and Living Practice
The Path Forward
This grimoire has revealed the hidden language of Northern sorcery — the substitutions, symbols, and sacred correspondences that allow modern practitioners to walk the Old Ways with honor and effectiveness.
Core Principles to Remember:
1. Intent Over Ingredient
The wine is not blood because it is red — it is blood because you declare it so with conviction. The power lies not in perfect historical accuracy but in the authentic connection between your will and the symbol you employ.
2. Reciprocity Above All
Every working is an exchange. Give offerings freely. Keep your oaths absolutely. Honor the spirits, gods, and ancestors who walk with you. The Northern way is a relationship, not a transaction.
3. Personal Sovereignty
Your body is your own. Your magick is your own. Use substitutions that honor your boundaries. No true Northern magick requires violation of self or others. Those who demand otherwise misunderstand the tradition.
4. The Web of Wyrd
All actions ripple outward through fate’s web. Work with clear conscience, justified cause, and awareness that what you send out shapes what returns. Even shadow work should be done with wisdom, not spite.
5. Honor and Reputation
In Northern culture, your drengskapur (honor/integrity) matters more than anything. Be known as one whose word holds, whose magick is true, whose dealings are fair. Reputation once lost is nearly impossible to regain.
Building Your Practice:
Start Simply:
- One altar, however small
- One deity or ancestor relationship
- One daily practice (even just lighting a candle)
- One divination method (runes or another)
- One protective working for your home
Grow Steadily:
- Add practices as you master current ones
- Deepen relationships before seeking new ones
- Record everything in a grimoire (physical or digital)
- Learn from mistakes without shame
- Celebrate successes with offerings
Study Continuously:
- Read the Eddas and sagas (primary sources)
- Study folklore and folk magick
- Learn about archaeology and history
- Connect with reputable practitioners
- Discern wisely (not all teaching is true)
Live the Values:
- Courage (drengskap)
- Truth (sannindi)
- Honor (heiður)
- Hospitality (gestrisni)
- Self-reliance (sjálfsbjörg)
- Loyalty to kin and companions (tryggð)
The Practical Grimoire:
Keep your own book of workings. Record:
- What you used (ingredients, timing, moon phase)
- What you said (exact words when possible)
- What you felt (energy, emotions, sensations)
- What resulted (both immediate and long-term)
- What you’d change (always improve)
This personal record becomes more valuable than any published book, for it charts your relationship with the powers, your language with the spirits, your unique thread in wyrd’s weaving.
When to Substitute and When to Be Exact:
Substitutions Welcome:
- Colors (if you understand the energy)
- Herbs (if correspondences align)
- Timing (with adjustment of expectation)
- Tools (the will matters more)
- Language (speak in tongue you think in)
Maintain Precisely:
- Ritual structure (opening and closing)
- Protections (never skip)
- Offerings (never stingy or false)
- Oaths (sacred beyond all)
- Ethics (the line between justice and cruelty)
A Warning on Appropriation:
If you approach this path:
- Learn the culture, not just the magickk
- Respect that this is a living tradition
- Acknowledge sources and teachers
- Don’t claim expertise you lack
- Honor the lands and peoples of origin
- Understand historical context
- Don’t mix carelessly with incompatible systems
- Let the practice transform you, not just serve you
The Final Kenning:
magick itself is a kenning — one thing standing for another, symbol opening to deeper truth, word becoming reality. As you walk this crooked path, remember:
The wine is blood when you will it so.
The stone is bone when you see it thus.
The thread is wyrd when you weave with intent.
The self is sacred when you honor your sovereignty.
May your workings be true, your word be trusted, your magick be powerful, and your wyrd be woven with wisdom. May the gods and ancestors walk with you, the land spirits bless your footsteps, and may you become a worthy bearer of the Old Ways into new times.
Heil ok sæl — whole and blessed may you be.
This grimoire is offered in the spirit of knowledge-sharing, that the Old Ways might live in new forms, adapted yet authentic, practical yet powerful. Take what resonates, leave what doesn’t, and always — always — trust your own wyrd-thread above any written word.
The path is walked alone, but we walk it together.
Sköl!
Appendix: Quick Reference
Substitution Chart:
| Traditional | Safe Substitute | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Blood | Red wine, pomegranate juice, red ink | Life force, consecration |
| Graveyard dirt | Ash from hearth, crossroads dirt | Underworld connection |
| Body fluids | Saliva, breath, handwriting | Personal link |
| Bat wing | Bay leaf (shaped similar) | Flight, night vision |
| Snake skin | Shed naturally or paper with scales drawn | Transformation |
| Bone | Stone, wood carved into bone shape | Ancestral connection |
Sacred Numbers:
- 3 — Beginning, middle, end
- 9 — Most sacred (Odin’s number)
- 7 — Planetary, weekly
- 13 — Lunar, transformative
Best Days:
- Monday — Moon, emotions, psychic
- Tuesday — Mars, courage, justice
- Wednesday — Odin, magick, wisdom
- Thursday — Thor, protection, prosperity
- Friday — Freyja, love, seiðr
- Saturday — Binding, banishing
- Sunday — Success, vitality
Emergency Protection:
- Iron (pocket knife, nail)
- Salt (sprinkle threshold)
- Hammer-sign (trace in air)
- “I claim Thor’s protection” (speak aloud)
- Ground immediately (touch earth)
Record in Your Own Hand:
Every worker should keep their personal grimoire. This guide is merely the beginning. Your practice, your relationships with the powers, your lived experience — this becomes your true book of magick.
Go forth and weave well.
🜃 Rúnir rísta skal — Runes you should carve
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
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