“Odin’s defining feature is not that he seeks knowledge, but that he seeks it without expecting deliverance.”
His seeking of knowledge is so that his line survives ragnerok and is reborn in Life and Lover of Life. He sacrifices for that to sacrifice again in it.
“Ascension” has been mis-characterized as separation from our world, for an exceedingly long time, as translations and agendas often twist a meaning to fit into their world view.
I also suggest Frigga as well. She knows, and sits in silence. She had to have known Baldrs fate, she had to have known her oaths were not going to change the threads. Her far seeing, and her silence are highly honorable qualities.
I think you are correct that Odin gets mischaracterized by esoterics, but you are incorrect that the impulse towards ascension is an innovation. Every Greek mystery was concerned, in some capacity, with ascension, and these mysteries were just local tribal cults that grew in influence. The impulse was already present during the composition of the Rig Veda, which is the oldest surviving Indo-European corpus. It was present in the Bronze Age near east, and I’m not talking about Atenism but instead of mainline Egyptian state religion.
Tolkien wrote pretty extensively about this, calling it Northern Courage, and he struggled to come to terms with its implications re western Christianity.
I could see a case for conflating Odin with the often times uncaring bronze-age hill god Yahweh and also the conflating Baldr (who leads the hosts out of Hel) with Jesus who by Lutheran confession "...descended into Hell and on the third day rose from the dead...", but where the causuality would be I do not know.
“Odin’s defining feature is not that he seeks knowledge, but that he seeks it without expecting deliverance.”
His seeking of knowledge is so that his line survives ragnerok and is reborn in Life and Lover of Life. He sacrifices for that to sacrifice again in it.
Wonderful article!
“Ascension” has been mis-characterized as separation from our world, for an exceedingly long time, as translations and agendas often twist a meaning to fit into their world view.
I also suggest Frigga as well. She knows, and sits in silence. She had to have known Baldrs fate, she had to have known her oaths were not going to change the threads. Her far seeing, and her silence are highly honorable qualities.
I think you are correct that Odin gets mischaracterized by esoterics, but you are incorrect that the impulse towards ascension is an innovation. Every Greek mystery was concerned, in some capacity, with ascension, and these mysteries were just local tribal cults that grew in influence. The impulse was already present during the composition of the Rig Veda, which is the oldest surviving Indo-European corpus. It was present in the Bronze Age near east, and I’m not talking about Atenism but instead of mainline Egyptian state religion.
Tolkien wrote pretty extensively about this, calling it Northern Courage, and he struggled to come to terms with its implications re western Christianity.
Appropriation and bastardization— blasphemy too.
I could see a case for conflating Odin with the often times uncaring bronze-age hill god Yahweh and also the conflating Baldr (who leads the hosts out of Hel) with Jesus who by Lutheran confession "...descended into Hell and on the third day rose from the dead...", but where the causuality would be I do not know.
Yahweh (at least as he originally existed) was a youthful warrior storm god, he is closer to Thor if anything.
He is the GOTHIC god.