LIBRARY
Varg Vikernes
Thulean Perspective
Do you know your Password?
Exoteric Paganism has always existed, because it has a real purpose. The idea that "Santa Claus is real" is important, and I will explain why…
In the distant past we were different. We were undomesticated, physically stronger, and more intelligent. We were, because life was more difficult for us back then. For hundreds of thousands of years, Mother Nature without any mercy weeded out everyone not strong enough, and everyone not smart enough.
And yes, we know this today, because we can tell from the remains of our distant forebears, that they had a more powerful skeleton and a bigger brain too. We can tell from our own bodies today, that our jaws were more powerful before: this is what the wisdom teeth tell us.
These smarter versions of ourselves had discovered that everything in Mother Nature moves in circles. On the Sky, you see the Sunrise in the morning, rise high on the sky during the day, and then set in the evening, and during the night she is gone. Dead. Likewise, the planet we live on has seasons, that come and go, in steady rhythm. Likewise, the Moon has phases and go from waxing, full, and waning to a Lunar eclipse.
And likewise, we are born, we live, we die, and we remain dead for some time, before we are born again…
They recognized these patterns, and based their world view and traditions on this.
However, the "being dead" phase is rather mysterious. The Sun is on the other side of the planet we live on, the Moon is hidden by the shadow of the Earth, and we? Where are we in death? And when we return, why have we no memories of where we were, and what we were before, in previous lives? We obviously return to life, and we are the same as we were before, but we have no clear recollections of our previous lives. We forget.
In the distant past we were different. We were undomesticated, physically stronger, and more intelligent. We were, because life was more difficult for us back then. For hundreds of thousands of years, Mother Nature without any mercy weeded out everyone not strong enough, and everyone not smart enough.
And yes, we know this today, because we can tell from the remains of our distant forebears, that they had a more powerful skeleton and a bigger brain too. We can tell from our own bodies today, that our jaws were more powerful before: this is what the wisdom teeth tell us.
These smarter versions of ourselves had discovered that everything in Mother Nature moves in circles. On the Sky, you see the Sunrise in the morning, rise high on the sky during the day, and then set in the evening, and during the night she is gone. Dead. Likewise, the planet we live on has seasons, that come and go, in steady rhythm. Likewise, the Moon has phases and go from waxing, full, and waning to a Lunar eclipse.
And likewise, we are born, we live, we die, and we remain dead for some time, before we are born again…
They recognized these patterns, and based their world view and traditions on this.
However, the "being dead" phase is rather mysterious. The Sun is on the other side of the planet we live on, the Moon is hidden by the shadow of the Earth, and we? Where are we in death? And when we return, why have we no memories of where we were, and what we were before, in previous lives? We obviously return to life, and we are the same as we were before, but we have no clear recollections of our previous lives. We forget.
***
Now, let us make a huge leap here, and move to modern medicine, and take a look at how they treat amnesia patients. We can agree, that people suffering from amnesia have forgotten who they were, what they were. Sometimes they even forget the languages they knew. Everything.
But how do they treat them?!
They present to them items that their loved ones knew that they cared much about, that they had strong emotional ties to. They present to them the people they knew and loved, and take them to places where they had strong experiences or strong emotional connections to. By doing so, they wake up their memories, and slowly but surely return them to… themselves. This makes them remember again. It removes the amnesia.
Funnily enough, this is also exactly what our forebears did, and it explains our Traditions perfectly. Our distant forebears placed the dead in burial mounds with the items they had strong emotional ties to. They buried them in locations that we today would call "sacred", near vast, magnificent trees, beautiful waterfalls, on hilltops with a fantastic view, and where the dead grew up, where they had married, where they had spent all the high festivals, where they had been educated, and so forth.
The items they buried them with were not meant to "go with them to the afterlife", to some fictional "Heaven". Our forebears were not the idiots our "scholars" and priests think they were, and present them as, in their books about pre-Christian customs. The items were there to help lift the amnesia that had been placed upon them by death. When they returned to life and entered the burial mounds to reclaim the items they had owned in previous lives, these items would – just like in the case of amnesia patients today – help them remember. The remains in the grave would too, and the location itself: a sacred place used by them for thousands of years.
Later on, they would use gold for such items to ensure that they would remain intact. Even after a thousand years, a gold amulet, a golden hair needle, or anything else golden in the burial mound, would remain the same.
But I trust you see the problem here, right?
How do you know that you have reincarnated as the person in that particular burial mound? How do you recognise yourself?
This is where we enter the topic of exoteric Paganism...
But how do they treat them?!
They present to them items that their loved ones knew that they cared much about, that they had strong emotional ties to. They present to them the people they knew and loved, and take them to places where they had strong experiences or strong emotional connections to. By doing so, they wake up their memories, and slowly but surely return them to… themselves. This makes them remember again. It removes the amnesia.
Funnily enough, this is also exactly what our forebears did, and it explains our Traditions perfectly. Our distant forebears placed the dead in burial mounds with the items they had strong emotional ties to. They buried them in locations that we today would call "sacred", near vast, magnificent trees, beautiful waterfalls, on hilltops with a fantastic view, and where the dead grew up, where they had married, where they had spent all the high festivals, where they had been educated, and so forth.
The items they buried them with were not meant to "go with them to the afterlife", to some fictional "Heaven". Our forebears were not the idiots our "scholars" and priests think they were, and present them as, in their books about pre-Christian customs. The items were there to help lift the amnesia that had been placed upon them by death. When they returned to life and entered the burial mounds to reclaim the items they had owned in previous lives, these items would – just like in the case of amnesia patients today – help them remember. The remains in the grave would too, and the location itself: a sacred place used by them for thousands of years.
Later on, they would use gold for such items to ensure that they would remain intact. Even after a thousand years, a gold amulet, a golden hair needle, or anything else golden in the burial mound, would remain the same.
But I trust you see the problem here, right?
How do you know that you have reincarnated as the person in that particular burial mound? How do you recognise yourself?
This is where we enter the topic of exoteric Paganism...
***
To make sure that no impostors would enter your burial mound and steal your sacred items, and claim to be you, they developed a system that we would define as being a "Tradition", or a "Religion", if you like. One person in each tribe would be given the task to ensure this. He would learn many secrets that nobody else would know, and he would keep these secrets, and when he grew too old, he would pass them on to his replacement. Some secrets would be remembered like this for thousands of years...
Now, I say "he" here, but yes, this "sorcerer" could be a woman just as well as a man. And this sorcerer was seen as "a midwife of the mind", one who could help "give birth to minds". So he dressed like a midwife: in white robes.
Before you died, you would give what we would call a "password" to the sorcerer, which he would memorise, and pass on to his replacement, who in turn would pass it on to his replacement, etc., for generations. So if you returned to life in 100 or 1.000 or even 10.000 years, the sorcerer would still be able to determine if you had actually returned. You would know the password, and be able to give it to him.
The password would in itself be remembered by you because the sorcerer presented the items to you that you needed to remember. If you did not remember the password when these items were presented to you then obviously you were not the right one.
And voila! Thus they were able to determine if and when you – the person in the grave – had actually returned to life. Thus they could deny access to all impostors, and ensure that only you would be allowed to collect the items that you had owned in previous lives.
Yes, therefore a "dwarf" will never tell you his true name… because it is a password, that would enable you to enter his lair and steal his gold...
Ah, yes, you understand now, the purpose of having an exoteric tradition? You understand now, the purpose of presenting to you all sorts of myths and stories, traditions and customs? Not only were they in themselves designed to help you remember (because you had seen and participated in the same in previous lives, and you had solved those riddles before), but they would ensure that no impostors would claim your spiritual heritage. And indeed, that is what this is: the items you owned in previous lives are of real spiritual value to you! They are what will help you become yourself again! Without them, you will not fully reincarnate. Only parts of you will.
The nature of this reincarnation can be discussed up and down, and I will suggest that it was not like what many think reincarnation is: it was not about directly waking up memories of what you had done before. I don’t think they remembered their previous lives, in the most direct meaning. "Oh, I remember the last time I was here, and I threw a rock into that river." No. It was about regaining your spirit, and becoming yourself. If I shall use RPG language, it was about regaining as much of the XP (experience points) from previous lives as possible, so that you could avoid having to start on Level 1 again in this life. It enabled you to start "playing" (living) from age 7 (when you went through this reincarnation ritual) on level 2 or 3, or maybe even 10 or 20.
The more you remembered, the more XP from previous lives you gained.
But what if you did not remember your password?
Now, I say "he" here, but yes, this "sorcerer" could be a woman just as well as a man. And this sorcerer was seen as "a midwife of the mind", one who could help "give birth to minds". So he dressed like a midwife: in white robes.
Before you died, you would give what we would call a "password" to the sorcerer, which he would memorise, and pass on to his replacement, who in turn would pass it on to his replacement, etc., for generations. So if you returned to life in 100 or 1.000 or even 10.000 years, the sorcerer would still be able to determine if you had actually returned. You would know the password, and be able to give it to him.
The password would in itself be remembered by you because the sorcerer presented the items to you that you needed to remember. If you did not remember the password when these items were presented to you then obviously you were not the right one.
And voila! Thus they were able to determine if and when you – the person in the grave – had actually returned to life. Thus they could deny access to all impostors, and ensure that only you would be allowed to collect the items that you had owned in previous lives.
Yes, therefore a "dwarf" will never tell you his true name… because it is a password, that would enable you to enter his lair and steal his gold...
Ah, yes, you understand now, the purpose of having an exoteric tradition? You understand now, the purpose of presenting to you all sorts of myths and stories, traditions and customs? Not only were they in themselves designed to help you remember (because you had seen and participated in the same in previous lives, and you had solved those riddles before), but they would ensure that no impostors would claim your spiritual heritage. And indeed, that is what this is: the items you owned in previous lives are of real spiritual value to you! They are what will help you become yourself again! Without them, you will not fully reincarnate. Only parts of you will.
The nature of this reincarnation can be discussed up and down, and I will suggest that it was not like what many think reincarnation is: it was not about directly waking up memories of what you had done before. I don’t think they remembered their previous lives, in the most direct meaning. "Oh, I remember the last time I was here, and I threw a rock into that river." No. It was about regaining your spirit, and becoming yourself. If I shall use RPG language, it was about regaining as much of the XP (experience points) from previous lives as possible, so that you could avoid having to start on Level 1 again in this life. It enabled you to start "playing" (living) from age 7 (when you went through this reincarnation ritual) on level 2 or 3, or maybe even 10 or 20.
The more you remembered, the more XP from previous lives you gained.
But what if you did not remember your password?
***
At one point our forebears adopted agriculture. This changed society, but it also changed our forebears. When before the weak and stupid had been weeded out, agriculture ensured not only that they could become more numerous, but also that all of a sudden you no longer needed to be all that strong and smart, to survive. The weak came under the protection of land owners, because they became useful as farm workers.
And yes, this is where terms such as "Lord" and "Lady" appears, and also where our forebears were divided into different social classes: the nobles would rule, the warriors would protect society form others, and the peasants would work.
Yeah, "Lord" literally means "Bread Warden", and "Lady" literally means "Baker of Bread". They controlled who ate, and who did not. And they fed all their workers…
And after thousands of years with this, our skeletons grew weaker, our jaws shrunk, and our brains too shrunk. And perhaps most importantly: what had been one race of men became a race made up of three different types of people: rulers (with intelligence), warriors (with strength), and peasants (with less of both). The smart would gravitate to the ruling class, the strong and brave to the warrior class, and the dumb to the peasant class.
With time, fewer and fewer were able to make sense of the religious riddles presented to them by the sorcerer. Fewer and fewer were able to remember their password… Riddles that had been designed to be solved by 7-year-olds, had become too hard to solve for most people, even in adulthood.
Indeed, reincarnation became a thing for the elite only. Only they were smart enough to solve the riddles presented to them, and to therefore remember, and with time only they were given a burial mound to begin with.
The distinction between exoteric and esoteric Paganism became more and more significant. In Classical Antiquity, a majority of our forebears were living in ignorance, were never allowed to "reincarnate", and basically were destined to believe in things that made no sense to them.
"Santa Claus" climbs down the chimney, delivers gifts to good children, and then flies off in a wagon pulled by reindeer, across the sky!?
Ódinn rides an eight-legged horse, he only drinks wine, has two wolves that he gives all the food, and sends out two ravens every day to collect information? He cuts off the head of Mímir and talks to it!?
Our entire mythology is full of completely illogical and impossible stories like that!
These stories make zero sense to low-brow commoners.
But was this the purpose? To ensure that no idiots would be allowed to reincarnate?
And yes, this is where terms such as "Lord" and "Lady" appears, and also where our forebears were divided into different social classes: the nobles would rule, the warriors would protect society form others, and the peasants would work.
Yeah, "Lord" literally means "Bread Warden", and "Lady" literally means "Baker of Bread". They controlled who ate, and who did not. And they fed all their workers…
And after thousands of years with this, our skeletons grew weaker, our jaws shrunk, and our brains too shrunk. And perhaps most importantly: what had been one race of men became a race made up of three different types of people: rulers (with intelligence), warriors (with strength), and peasants (with less of both). The smart would gravitate to the ruling class, the strong and brave to the warrior class, and the dumb to the peasant class.
With time, fewer and fewer were able to make sense of the religious riddles presented to them by the sorcerer. Fewer and fewer were able to remember their password… Riddles that had been designed to be solved by 7-year-olds, had become too hard to solve for most people, even in adulthood.
Indeed, reincarnation became a thing for the elite only. Only they were smart enough to solve the riddles presented to them, and to therefore remember, and with time only they were given a burial mound to begin with.
The distinction between exoteric and esoteric Paganism became more and more significant. In Classical Antiquity, a majority of our forebears were living in ignorance, were never allowed to "reincarnate", and basically were destined to believe in things that made no sense to them.
"Santa Claus" climbs down the chimney, delivers gifts to good children, and then flies off in a wagon pulled by reindeer, across the sky!?
Ódinn rides an eight-legged horse, he only drinks wine, has two wolves that he gives all the food, and sends out two ravens every day to collect information? He cuts off the head of Mímir and talks to it!?
Our entire mythology is full of completely illogical and impossible stories like that!
These stories make zero sense to low-brow commoners.
But was this the purpose? To ensure that no idiots would be allowed to reincarnate?
***
When asked about this, or when writing about this, our sorcerers (or druids, or whatever you like to call them) kept true to their purpose: to keep the solutions to the riddles and answers secret. So when our "scholars" today refer to sources talking about our ancient traditions, they only know the exoteric versions of everything. And as we can expect, they ridicule them, and present them as absolutely illogical, impossible, and frankly childish too.
"The Greeks frequently sacrificed a 100 oxens in the battle of Troy, bruh."
"No, they actually did not, but... as a commoner with too little intelligence to understand this, I am sure you will believe that."
"The Greeks frequently sacrificed a 100 oxens in the battle of Troy, bruh."
"No, they actually did not, but... as a commoner with too little intelligence to understand this, I am sure you will believe that."
***
Now, I am constantly called an "atheist" when I talk about this, and frankly, I don’t really care, because these are just the opinions of feeble-minded peasants, who spiritually speaking never even moved beyond the 7-year-old level, who still believe "Santa Claus is real, bruh", who never reincarnated, and who never will reincarnate either.
But I do understand that such NPCs have "a need for the impossible", to have ritualised worship of "Santa Claus", a need to believe in something fantastical, etc. Fine. So in principle, I am not negative to the exoteric Paganism that they embrace, even though they are adults and should have moved beyond that.
However, I also see the need for a return to greatness, for our own to become not only stronger again, but especially smarter. For more of us to be able to reincarnate, and by doing so become better. Wiser. And not least; Braver.
More Lucky…
But I do understand that such NPCs have "a need for the impossible", to have ritualised worship of "Santa Claus", a need to believe in something fantastical, etc. Fine. So in principle, I am not negative to the exoteric Paganism that they embrace, even though they are adults and should have moved beyond that.
However, I also see the need for a return to greatness, for our own to become not only stronger again, but especially smarter. For more of us to be able to reincarnate, and by doing so become better. Wiser. And not least; Braver.
More Lucky…
***
Luck. Yes. The Norse term for reincarnation is "Hamingja", meaning "Walking-in-Shapes", in the meaning "you move through time in different bodies". However, in Modern Icelandic the term means simply "luck". And this is not by chance…
Hamingja represents a person’s luck and fortune in life, ensured by a spiritual force linked to your character, actions, honor, and deeds. Our forebears saw it as a personified guardian spirit, protecting and guiding individuals. It influenced your fate, and ensured success in battle and leadership. Christian recorded it as being something that was "passed down through generations", but as you can understand after reading my text above, it is of course linked to you, and it remains in you via your own reincarnation. And only thus is it "passed down through generations".
Hamingja is your divine favor, the blessing you receive from the gods. It is what makes you successful in life.
Best wishes,
V.
The Druid presenting his sacred items to you, to see if you remember your password…
Hamingja represents a person’s luck and fortune in life, ensured by a spiritual force linked to your character, actions, honor, and deeds. Our forebears saw it as a personified guardian spirit, protecting and guiding individuals. It influenced your fate, and ensured success in battle and leadership. Christian recorded it as being something that was "passed down through generations", but as you can understand after reading my text above, it is of course linked to you, and it remains in you via your own reincarnation. And only thus is it "passed down through generations".
Hamingja is your divine favor, the blessing you receive from the gods. It is what makes you successful in life.
Best wishes,
V.
The Druid presenting his sacred items to you, to see if you remember your password…
Varg Vikernes
20.11.2024