From: João S. Lopes Filho
Message: 10665
Date: 2001-10-27
----- Original Message -----
From: William P. Reaves <beowulf@...>
To: <cybalist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, October 26, 2001 1:34 AM
Subject: [tied] Nerthus of Germania (was: Odin the Immigrant?)
> Hej Torsten,
>
>
>
> In regard to the identification of the Germanic goddess Nerthus, I think
its
> important that we begin with the earliest documents that have relevance to
> this issue:
>
>
>
> Tacitus Germania 40 (A. R. Birley translation):
>
>
>
> " By contrast, the Langobardi are distinguished by being few in number.
> Surrounded by many mighty peoples they have protected themselves not by
> submissiveness but by battle and boldness. Next to them come the Reudigni,
> Aviones, Anglii, Varini, Eudoses, Suarines, and Huitones, protected by
> rivers and forests. There is nothing especially noteworthy about these
> states individually, but they are distinguished by a common worship of
> Nerthus, that is, Mother Earth, and believe that she intervenes in human
> affairs and rides through their peoples. There is a sacred grove on an
> island in the Ocean, in which there is a consecrated chariot, draped with
a
> cloth, which the priest alone may touch. He perceives the presence of the
> goddess in the innermost shrine and with great reverence escorts her in
her
> chariot, which is drawn by female cattle. There are days of rejoicing then
> and the countryside celebrates the festival, wherever she deigns to visit
> and to accept hospitality. No one goes to war, no one takes up arms, all
> objects of iron are locked away, then and only then do they experience
peace
> and quiet, only then do they prize them, until the goddess has had her
fill
> of human society and the priest brings her back to her temple. Afterwards
> the chariot, the cloth, and, if one may believe it, the deity herself are
> washed in a hidden lake. The slaves who perform this office are
immediately
> afterwards swallowed up in the same lake. Hence arises dread of the
> mysterious, and piety, which keeps them ignorant of what only those about
to
> perish may see."
>
>
>
> This should be compared to an equally famous passage in Paulus Diaconus'
> History of the Lombards (translated by William D. Faulke):
>
>
>
> "At this point, the men of old tell a silly story that the Wandals
coming
> to Godan besought him for victory over the Winnili and that he answered
> that he would give the victory to those whom he saw first at sunrise; that
> then Gambara went to Frea wife of Godan and asked for victory for the
> Winnili, and that Frea gave her counsel that the w omen of the Winnili
> should take down their hair and arrange it upon the face like a beard, and
> that in the early morning they should be present with their husbands and
in
> like manner station themselves to be seen by Godan from the quarter in
which
> he had been wont to look through his window toward the east. And so it was
> done. And when Godan saw them at sunrise he said: " Who are these
> long-beards? " And then Frea induced him to give the victory to those to
> whom he had given the name. And thus Godan gave the victory to the
Winnili.
> These things are worthy of laughter and a held of no account. For victory
is
> due, not to the power of men, but it is rather furnished from heaven."
>
>
>
> This version of the story is drawn from an earlier history, written
> anonymously thereby pushing the date back about half a century.
>
>
>
> In Tacitius' description of Nerthus, it is important to note that the
> Longobardi and their closest neighbors share the worship of "Nerthus, that
> is Mother Earth". About 600 years later, Paulus Diaconus, the Christian
> historian of the now powerful Longobardian tribe speaks of "a silly story"
> told by "men of old" which harks back to a time when the Longobardians
were
> not called Longobards but had a different name. They were then known as
the
> Winnili, but because of the intervention on their behalf by Godan-Wotan's
> (Odin's) wife, Frea (Frigg), the tribe won the victory over their foes and
> took on a new name. Like Tacitus who says that the Germanic tribes held
> Mercury as the godhead, Paulus identifies "Godan" with the Roman Mercury.
>
>
>
> The fact that the story was regarded well enough to have survived into
> Christian times even though it is clearly pagan in origin, suggests that
it
> was a deeply engrained tribal myth, viewed as history among the
Longobardian
> people, even after their conversion to a new religion. In this light we
> should note that like Nerthus, Frea too was thought to "intervene in
human
> affairs".
>
>
>
> This is our first clue as to the identity of the mysterious Nerthus, as
well
> as an indication of the continuity of the Germanic religion through time.
> Gotan and Frea survive in recognizable form into the Eddic lore some 500
> years later, as Odin and Frigg.
>
>
>
> Following Snorri Sturluson, author of the Prose Edda, we have been taught
> that the Earth goddess (Jord) and Frigg are two distinct personalities.
Our
> only source from this belief originates in Snorri's work, and has become
> uncontested "fact" through long years of conditioning. But since a close
> examination of both Eddic and Skaldic material reveal that Frigg was
likely
> seen the "Earth Mother" among the Germanic tribes through the historical
> period, perhaps it's time for us to think "out of the box", a bit. I can
> think of several examples off of the top of my head that dispel the
current
> wisdom.
>
> The first example of course is that Thor's mother Jord, is also called
> Fjörgyn (such as in Harbardsljod). In Lokasenna 23, Frigg's father is
called
> by a masculine version of that name: Fjörgynn. Here we have an immediate
> connection between these "two" goddesses.
>
> Note too that in Voluspa 53, Frigg is clearly called by an alternate name:
> Hlin. [That verse bears close examination]. Obviously "both" goddesses
were
> known by alternate names, thus nothing hinders us from searching for
further
> epithets.
>
> With this said, I must point out an interesting fact in regard to Snorri's
> knowledge of these alternate names, and his use of them. When Snorri
> enumberates the asynjes in Gylfaginning, in a single continuous passage,
he
> says:
>
> "Frigg is the first; she possesses the right lordly dwelling which is
called
> Fensaler. The second is Saga, who dwells in Sokvabek, and this is a large
> dwelling. The third is Eir, who is the best leech. ...etc"
>
> "...The twelfth is Hlin, who guards those men whom Frigg wants to protect
> from any danger. "
>
> "... Jord, the mother of Thor, and Rind, Vale's mother, are numbered among
> the goddesses."
>
> Although the Voluspa poet clearly uses Hlin as an alternate designation
for
> the goddess Frigg, a technique common in Eddic and skaldic poetry, and
> Snorri clearly knew Voluspa, as he quotes and paraphrases it throughout
his
> work, Snorri portrays Frigg, Hlin, and Jord as seperate personalities. One
> must ask if this is the way the ancient Germanic tribes really saw it? An
> examination of Eddic poetry suggests otherwise.
>
> And while we are on this passage, note the name of Frigg's hall. It is
> Fensalir, "the halls of the fen or marsh". One might ask what the
> significance of the sky-god's wife having "marsh-halls" is, unless of
course
> she were viewed as the Earth mother? Isn't this itself consistant with the
> pattern of heiro gamos in other IE mythologies?
>
> Perhaps we can discuss this further. If so I can bring other Eddic and
> skaldic examples to bear.
>
>
> Wassail, William
>
> "I think that many confuse 'applicability' with 'allegory';
> but the one resides in the freedom of the reader, and the
> other in the purposed domination of the author."
>
> J.R.R. Tolkien
>
>
>
>
>
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