30 Days of Devotion: Day 3

Symbols and icons of this deity.


 Symbols and icons, huh?  I suppose the most forefront symbol would be the Valknut, or Knot of the Slain:

The meaning of the symbol has been debated but many modern day followers have said that this is a symbol of Odin, they wear it to show their dedication to Odin and the gods of the Norse. Some claim that you shouldn't tattoo this on your body because those who do will die a warrior's death.  People think it represents the Nine Worlds, the tree Yggdrasil.  Personally, I don't know.  It's an interesting symbol none the less.


Another symbol is obviously in the form of a Raven.  There is little doubt as to why this is one of Odin's symbols.  This pairs with Sleipnir and the spear, Gungnir.  All items or creatures that are at Odin's side.

For me the last symbol is that of an eye or, perhaps, the lack of said eye.  Over the winter holidays Grendal and I made ornaments.  He made one and held it up asking, "Do you know what this is?"  I took one look at it and recognized the shape.  "Odin's eye?"  All I got was a smile of confirmation.  There was no detail to the eye; it was just the basic shape of one, without the pupil or the iris.  We placed it on the altar as a reminder of the sacrifice Odin had made to gain knowledge.

Out of all my searching I couldn't find other symbols/icons that people said belonged to Odin or ones that jumped out at me saying as much.  People have pointed at certain runes as belonging to Odin but that could just be a modern take on it.  While Odin brought us the rune and they can be a symbol of his all together, I'm not sure about one particular rune being his and his alone.

That Didn't Take Long

It's been a bit since my last post. I suppose it was bound to happen with the holidays and what not. Grendal and I have had this week off as a mini vacation. Spending most of the time at home, going out to eat, and what not. I really needed this time to recoup and not feel like I wanted to run someone through at work. Harsh, I know, but after a year and half without any sort of time off except the two days a week they gave me, I think I deserved this. Getting short with co-workers and generally feeling unappreciated really wears a person down. While I should be feeling the itch to get back to work, I'm not. I gotta, though; I need money to put food on the table. :I

Holidays were nice. My younger sister was in Hawai'i with her boyfriend and my mother's side of the family, so it was a shame she wasn't here. Time with my family was actually really nice. Felt like I had some time to bond with parents, which doesn't seem to happen much. We spent the time with Grendal's family, which, in it's own way, was nice as well. We managed to stand being around the nieces for a while and it was nice to chat with his brother. All in all, Christmas was pretty nice this time around.

In another two weeks Grendal starts his last semester at a local college. He only has one class left and then he's done with just a basic degree. Once that's done, though, he plans to apply at Canadian Pacific, doing what my brother-in-law does. While it sucks that he'll be gone often, he says the pay will be worth it. Grendal, being the math whiz that he is, figures we should be able to save up for a house within a year's time. Well, at least the property. There is a house on the neighboring property that he wants to tear down and then have a house built to his design. Somewhat like a Tumbleweed Home but with alterations so someone his height can feel comfortable. While it's not in the county where we can have chickens and goats like we dream, it's better than nothing! I'll be able to have an altar outside, which is what I promised would happen once we got a house for ourselves.

That seems it for now. Hopefully I'll be able to get in another update before this week is out!

-Djarfskald

I Thought it Was Supposed to Be Cold

I love the changing of the seasons, even the change to summer.....until it gets too hot and I feel like I'm going to melt. The autumn and winter seasons, though, are the times that I seem to thrive. I love to bundle up and the snow always lifts my moods. This autumn, though, has been a warm one. Seriously. It's 44f outside right now and I am walking around in slippers and a tanktop under a spring jacket. Not to mention that tomorrow is supposed to top out in the 50s and I believe Monday is going to be a warm 60 degrees.   :I  Suppose I shouldn't be too grumpy. It's not yet winter and the averages around here are only in their 20s for late December and January. This little miss, though, wants some good snow this year.

The tree is already up in the house, with presents for nieces and what not beneath it. Sadly there are only lights hanging up right now. Grendal will be petitioned to get the box of ornaments down so they can be hung up. I might try and snag some of my favorites from my parents' place to hang up, but who knows how that will go. Either way I think I'm going to break down and make my own ornaments this year. Salt dough or clay. I found some recipes for such and I know of places I can buy some inexpensive cookie cutters. I'll see if I can make some runes or possibly find something to represent the Norse deities. Have it up in a fashion so it's not totally in your face to those who might be uncomfortable with it. Grendal's immediate family shouldn't have a problem, but his older brother has a lady friend who is joining us this year for the holidays. I'm not sure of her religious affiliation and how she views others. Last thing I want is her to treat me like I have the plague and see that her young daughter stays away from me. :\

I finally managed to hang up my makeshift Odin figure over my altar. I had been meaning to do something in regards to the Allfather. I have two raven figures that I bought from work during Halloween last year and have them set up nicely. Once the Christmas decorations went up this year I started to snoop around their Santa figures for something that felt right. They didn't have any of the tall Santa type figures. You know what kind I'm talking about! More Father Christmas than jolly Santa. As odd as it sounds when I refer to this Santa as tall Santa I think of the difference between the 'chubby' Buddha and the 'thin' Buddha.  Bless my mother and the things she told me as a child.

Anywho, I found that the store had ornaments of Santa which were pretty much his head only with various colors to pick. Each color had different little bits on the hat Santa wore. I settled on one that wore a white hat with gold embroidery because it caught my eye and seemed just right. After getting it home I snagged some white paint and painted over one of the eyes and it was finished! He now hangs on the wall, situated between the ravens when you look at my altar head on. :)

Hopefully this coming Monday I will have those ornaments made and ready to go, possibly with pictures. :P  Who knows.