Does Witchcraft have a place in Devout Polytheism?

I've been asked this and pondering it for a little while now and want to first say - I cannot answer this question for all polytheists, traditions, belief systems, religions, or witches. That is between you and your Gods. I can only answer this for myself.

For me, the answer is yes, witchcraft does have a place in my Northern Pagan Tradition polytheism, specifically within my place as an earthly handmaiden to Frigga. One of the best ways to explain it, I think, would be to share with you a piece of my practice with Frigga.

A woman I know only through friends was in the hospital. Her baby was born early and was in NICU. I felt strongly that I should pray for her, even though we had never met. I went to Frigga and I asked that she lay her hands on this mother and child, to heal the child or, of the threads of Wyrd say that the child must not be with us in Midgard for long, that She ease the child in a painless passing and give the mother strength and compassion.
Frigga said she would be there for the woman and child, but that I must do the work. Nothing comes for free.
She instructed me in the making of a cap for the child and in a poppet and carrier for the mother. The cap was easy but I had no idea what I was doing with the poppet. The carrier was crocheted out of white wool (I used white acrylic for the cap for fear the baby might have a wool allergy). It was a small pouch, about the side of my palm, with a long strap so that the mother could wear it or hang it near the bed. I gave instructions to my husband to carve a wooden poppet in the form Frigga showed me. I then took it and carved on the belly the rune Berkana and coated the poppet in chamomile and a blessing before putting it within the carrier. I sent the piece on its way and knew that Frigga would be there with them.

The creation of a magical poppet or items of protection and healing are prime examples of witchcraft.
For an example of manifestation or modern, new age, or energetic witchcraft:

I decided to get back to work on creating a business around 6 months after my son was born. I felt ready. I also felt a little scared because I wanted to be successful, to do good in the world, to live my purpose. I went to Frigga to ask for guidance and help. She told me to stop reading tarot at events - my largest source of income before I had my son. This was not what I had in mind when I asked for help. I asked what I should do if I couldn't read the tarot at events. She said for me to trust Her, do her work helping other spiritual mothers, and to focus on my writing. She would see me through it if I had faith and did what she told me to do.
I said my affirmations, wrote them down, envisioned myself as a successful spiritual adviser to other mothers. I did all the manifestation ju ju I could think of and I had faith in my Lady.
It worked. Not only do I now have the first draft of a book I know in my heart will not only sell but touch the hearts of other mothers in the world but I am also making money writing articles in areas that I feel passionate about, I have a new method of tarot reading that is more beneficial to clients than any event reading could be, and am even taking a class on returning divination to an act of sacred service with a teacher I have long admired. All that in 6 months and I'm only just starting.

To me, our Gods might guide us, comfort us, protect us, teach us, etc. However, we have to do the work and, for some of us, that work is witchcraft.

A Devotional for Frigga (call for submissions)

Frigga has asked for a devotional.

It makes sense. She is Queen of Asgard, wife of the All-Father Odin, Mistress of Fensalir and shares the throne of Hliðskjálf. She too bears a great gold necklace of lore and has a retinue of Goddess handmaidens who are all great and powerful in their own right. She is a Seeress and Goddess of Wyrd and Spinning. She is a hearth-keeper, a Goddess of domesticity, and business minded. She is a Goddess of Mothers - having had 2 sons and lost one. She is a Goddess of diplomacy and has chosen the winner of battles as well as stopped battles from being fought.
With all of this and more - Frigga is more than deserving of devotions...and yet...where is her devotional? I've looked for one. I've found so many to Odin, Her husband. His following is great. I've found devotionals to other Gods, including a few of Frigga's handmaidens, some of which have a following larger than the Queen Herself. While Her shrine is lovely, her prayers are many, and most Heathens acknowledge Her, I was saddened not to see Her books. Yet, I didn't think much of it until She told me it was what she wanted.
I cringed at the idea at first. It felt like a awefully big undertaking.
I did my research, I meditated and...I admit...I procrastinated with excuses - the holiday season is coming up, surely we should wait until after that. No.
When I went to Her in prayer for another recently, I asked if there was any work I could do to insure that this friend's need was met. Frigga was not pleased with me and sternly told me
"Do what YOU are SUPPOSED to be doing!"
I knew she meant the devotional. I slunk away and began my work on the Call for Submissions. '

Frigga Devotional CFS

Calling all who honor the Queen of Asgard. Seeking prayers, rituals, recipes, poetry, essays, tales of encounters, stories, and fiber craft tutorials created for or inspired by Frigga.
Submissions should be under 10,000 words and any photos should be visible in grey-scale. If submitting a fiber art tutorial, please include a picture of the finished product.  Previously published pieces are welcome so long as you have permissions and rights to them.

Please send submissions by April 1st, 2017 to my email address - ddfbryant (at) gmail.com with the name of the piece and your name (or pen name you want the piece published under) and the piece either in the body of the email or attached in .doc or .docx. After the book is published, I will contact you for your mailing info to send you a complimentary copy of the devotional.
Devotionals will be published through Asphodel Press.

I am thrilled to be working on this project for the beloved Queen is due for some attention I think.
Hail to the All-Mother!

Blessings,
December

Lesson in Frith-Keeping

I've recently had a problem bordering on a falling out with a friend due to my own misspoken words and thoughtlessness. I've asked forgiveness and the offering of healing between us has been made. We shall see where it goes. In the meantime, I am meditating on Frith and My Lady's hand in my life to teach me to be a frith-keeper and compassionate handmaiden.

Hail Frigga, Frith-Keeper,
You who welcome all to your hall, Fensalir,
Your hospitality and kindness turn foes to friends.
Weaver of Orlog, Spinner of Wyrd,
Keeper of Hearth and Home,
Keeper of the Keys,
You who sit in the high seat,
 Teach us to have compassion and open hearts,
To see beyond our prejudices
And our small-mindedness.
Lead us, Lady of the Hall,
To show all whom we meet respect and graciousness.
Beloved of Odin, may our words bind us
And our deeds strengthen us.
Hail Frigga, Queen of the Aesir.
(From the Northern Paganism Frith Ritual)

The Unseen Ordeal

The Unseen Ordeal - Another way Motherhood is like Shamanism

Sigyn and Loki

With ordeals like Odin’s, it’s nine days and then it’s over. It’s the plucking of an eye and then it’s over. I mean no disrespect, but Sigyn didn’t know when or even if Her ordeal would ever be over. Not to mention no mother ever gets over the ordeal of losing a child, something Odin also understood.  But there is no glamour: you do what’s right, and you do it again and again and again, and that’s very unpopular. There’s no glamour, no sweeping gestures, and no one to sing your praises. The heart is a terrible thing.
                                 -Fuensanta Arismendi, Who is Sigyn?

I love this so much. It can be said not only of Sigyn but also of Frigga who strove so hard to keep her son safe but to no end, Baldr's death still came to pass and she lost him.

Frigga and Baldr

As a mother of a miscarried child and a mother of a living son - I feel this pain in my heart as well and I mourn for the lost sons and I mourn for the mothers who carry their burdens without end. There is nothing glamorous about being a mother and carrying on with duty without fail. There is nothing shiny about seeing fate and having to accept it.

Susun Weed says mothers are invisible, a woman's work is invisible, so no great tales were told, no songs sung, of what is in a mother's heart, even when she is a Goddess.

My heart is broken for my Gods.

Womb and Tomb

Frigga sent me to Hela.
I wouldn't have thought that Frigga was on speaking terms with the Goddess of Death, Loki's cold daughter, the Lady of Helheim. After all, this is the same Goddess that would not release my Lady's Shining Son, Baldr.
But my Lady is wise and knows that Hela is far seeing and a teacher that will not allow any student to wiggle out of a lesson.

Robed skeleton from Roman Cataccombs

I went to Fensalir for guidance about my lessons in divination. As I approached Her throne at the top of the steps, I saw Frigga standing and in Her seat sat a skeleton in a white dress decked out in crystals. The skull was tilted back and the mouth open wide. Even though the skull was eyeless, it felt like the skull was watching me, waiting to see my reaction.
I was confused and tried not to look at it. The skeleton looked grotesque in its shimmering white dress. I tried to remove myself from its unending sight but it followed me. I could not leave its presence. Frigga watched as well as I squirmed and spoke to Her even as I was unable to look away from the skull.
I thought I would go to Vor, another great Seeress and handmaiden to our Lady. It seemed like the best path for an earthly handmaiden to Frigga who wanted to become a better diviner, but I am not wise like the Gods and Frigga has her own plans for me.

She sent me down a dark road.
Fires burned around me but they were low, dying embers of funeral pyres creating shadows that I dared not peer into too closely. I felt a presence there, buring these embers to guide my way - a presence that was too quiet for me to guess at until He showed Himself to me much later, but that is another vision, another tale.
This was not Helheim, I understood almost intuitively. I was on a boarder road that would bring me to one of Hela's gates. I followed the lit path and entered a cavern. An unseen presence held me back. Ahead I could see a low fire with a cauldron hanging over it. Two chairs were there with a table between them.
A man was seated to the left, golden haired and pointy-faced. He wore his hair in a long bob and had a black and red cape. He seemed angry. He was bargaining with whoever sat in the other chair. Finally, not getting anywhere, he stormed off. He came towards me, not seeing me in his fury, and passed by on to a different road.
The presence that held me back released me. I moved forward slowly. I guessed at what would be in that chair and I wasn't in a hurry to face it.
The skeleton from before waited for me, now in black with only half Her face showing. I didn't sit across from Hela but I also didn't fidget or squirm any longer. I had always known I'd end up here.

I have known about my own mortality almost my whole life. It has been said that childhood ends the moment you know you will die. I'm not sure what caused me to understand that one day I will die at the age of six, but I remember distinctly lying in bed feeling the weight of that knowledge on my chest.
I developed thanatophobia, fear of death, early on and I never spoke to anyone in my life about it until I met my husband. I might not have told him but I was sitting up in bed, feeling an anxiety attack creep over me, and he, jolted by my eradic breathing and trembling, needed to know what was wrong.
I read once that fear of death is a lot like randomly remembering you are being chased by a lion. It is terrifying, comes on at random times, and there is no cure for it according to psychologists. Fear of death can't be handled like other phobias. No doctor is going to suggest you confront this fear because you could die in that confrontation. There is no avoiding it because we all will indeed face death one day.
I struggled with this fear nearly 2 decades. Then, I was pregnant.

It was my second pregnancy and I was confronted with mortality in the way that all mothers are. I'd had a miscarriage and I knew too well I could lose this baby as well. I also knew that maternal mortality rate in the US was higher than it should be. I could die having my baby.
I planned my pregnancy and birth down to the very music I would be listening to as I labored in water at the local birthing center. My fear of death was triggered as I passed my due date, had no signs of impending birth despite my continuous contractions, and my midwives said I needed to go to the hospital.
In short, I needed a cesarean. I could vividly picture every article I'd read the whole pregnancy that told stories of women who died, lost their babies, lost their uterus, and other tales of terror. I knew I was going to die and I was shaking so hard I had to grit my teeth to keep them from chattering.

image by Laurie Lipton

My family and the nurses all did their best to calm me. I could barely hear them. My world was cold and all I could hear was a strange white noise coming from within me. I turned inward as they prepped me for operation and I spoke into the void that I felt closing around me even in the bright lights over the operating table. "Anything. Take anything. Just let my baby live. Take me. Take it all. Just let him live. Let him live. Live."
My son was born on October 9th at 1:15pm. He was beautiful and real and alive. "Real and alive," I kept thinking over and over as I wept at the very sight of him. The doctors worked on me while my husband held our son to my breast to have his first meal. My anesthesiologist mentioned my blood pressure dropping and I was taken to post-op.
I was alone and I felt the void still there. As I tried to feel my feet and ignore the beeping all around me, I thought about death. For the first time in my whole life, I wasn't afraid anymore. I smiled and wondered, knowing otherwise, if it was the drugs.

I stood before Hela in her skeletal form and understood that I was always going to come here just as I was always going to be a mother. I understood why we were in a catacomb, a tomb deep in the earth with a hearth fire burning. I understood in a way all mothers understand, deep down, primally.
I listened as Hela told me I was sent to her because my journey on the path of divination demands that I see both into the future and into the past. The past is where the dead rule, where Hela has knowledge. The future is a spiraling of wyrd that ends in death, Hela's hand. I can see this now because I have been there, seeing the future held before me in the presence of a crying newborn, torn from my body and covered in my blood.
There isn't much difference between birth and death. Giving life and midwifing death often come with the same hand. They are one, the womb and the tomb.

30 Days of Frigga Day 17 Queen of Asgard

How does this deity relate to other gods and other pantheons?

Frigga is the Beloved Queen of Asgard

30 Days of Frigga Day 16 Culture

How do you think this deity represents the values of their pantheon and cultural origins?

A large part of Frigga's work is her role as Goddess of spinning and fiber arts. This is a huge role to a people of a northern land where the winters are cold and harsh and people need warm clothes to survive. Raising wool and flax to make these clothes meant that the crops and animals needed to be well tended AND that the women needed to be skilled and blessed by this Goddess to create clothes to keep them all alive and well.

30 Days of Frigga Day 15 Her Craft

Any mundane practices that are associated with this deity?

Gebo crochet rune cloth

Spinning and Fiber Arts:
Crochet
Knitting
Nalebinding
Weaving
Felting
Sewing
Spinning on drop spindle as well as spinning wheel
Fiber production from raising fiber crops or animals to harvesting, cleaning, and preparation

30 Days of Frigga Day 14 Worship

Has worship of this deity changed in modern times?

Actually I have no way of knowing. We don't have a lot of lore on the worship of Frigga so I cannot compare.

30 Days of Frigga Day 13 Modern Problems

What modern cultural issues are closest to this deity’s heart?

Galina Krasskova put forward a really good question of - Do the deities care about modern cultural issues? Should they? Is it really any of their problem the mess we create for ourselves down here?
Thats a good question for another time.

Mothers and children in need (of care, protection, food, medical aid, etc) in general.
I'm a particular fan of making crochet caps for premies in NICU as, I've read, many devotees of Frigga do.

30 Days of Frigga Day 10 Offerings

Offerings – historical and UPG

I am not certain that I know of any lore that is associated as an offering to Frigga. If you wanted to draw on the lore for ideas however, offering ideas could include a golden necklace/girdle inspired by the gold she stole from Odin to have made into a piece by the dwarves; tears shed in honor of her grief for Baldr and as a promise to weep for him to return; fiber than can be spun such as flax or nettle fibers or wool; a vow of silence regarding divination work...
The following offering suggestions are mostly based on UPG:

Scarlet Flax flowers in altar flower box between 3 birch trees

Flax is a sacred plant to Frigga in her aspect as a Goddess of Spinning. Forms of flax that might be considered for offerings are items made from linen (flax fabric), flax flowers grown in a place designated to Frigga or put on her altar, and flax seeds (alone or in food).

Birch is Frigga's tree. Birch bark can be made into jewelry, leaves and bark can be used as medicinal tea or in cleansing incense, and birch sap or water can be used as a libation. Any of these items or sacred pieces carved from birch wood can be used as offering. Consider a birch offering bowl, cup, or plate for Frigga.
I have commissioned my husband to turn one of the cut trees from our land into a statue of Frigga for me to carve and decorate for her altar (images to come).

I often bake and try and give Frigga the prettiest piece of my work. Slices of gingerbread dusted with snowy confectioner sugar, barley and flax seed pancakes topped with birch syrup, warm yeast roll with real butter, etc.

Fiber items - any fiber arts piece created for the Goddess can be an offering. On my altar I have a small skein of white wool dedicated to her that I will spin (once my skills at the spindle are a little better) and turn into something for the Lady. I am also making a devotional shawl dedicated to Frigga with crocheted squares each depicting a symbol or story that is part of her lore and teachings (more on that to come).

Art as offering

Offerings of course do not have to be "things." Actions or charitable donations given in Frigga's name can also be a form of offering.
Charities honoring mothers and their children are great places to give money, gifts, or time to in her honor.
Helping out women in the community who have lost a child would be very appropriate.
Knitting or crocheting caps and blankets for babies in NICU is a common act of offering among fiber artist devotees.
Learning to spin, weave, or any other fiber work can be done to honor Frigga as this is an act that she presides over. Taking this a step further and participating or starting a spinning group, guild, etc could also be done in Her name.
Writing devotional pieces such as songs, prayers, poems, stories, etc as well as creating art pieces for her is a fantastic act of devotion.

I am sure there are other ideas out there.

What sort of offerings do you give your Gods?

30 Days of Frigga Day 9 Common Mistakes

Common Mistakes Regarding Frigga

1. Frigga is the mother of Thor and Loki

No. No no no no no. Just no.
This misconception is based on the comic and movies Thor and is a mistake that never ceases to irritate me.
As you can read in Day 5's genealogical layout, Frigga's children are Baldr and Hodr (some say that Hermond and Bragi might be there sons too). Thor is her husband's son with Jord. Loki is the son of Frost Giants.
The most irritating part of this is relating Loki to Frigga as her son while he is actually the one who plotted the death of her favorite son Baldr - who wouldn't be offended by that? It would be similar to saying Judas was the son of Mary.

2. Frigga and Freya are the same Goddess

This misconception arises from modern Heathens and scholars studying ancient language and the lore.
The words Frigga and Freya not only sound similar but have similar meanings of Love, Lady-ship, and Beauty. Both are also wives of Odinn (Odr is believed to be an epithet of Woden) and both are seers, work with pregnancy, and are daughters of Earth goddesses according to lore.
There the commonality stops.
When I asked Frigga about her and Freya she said "that elfin creature?"

30 Days of Frigga Day 8 Aspects

Variations on this deity (aspects, regional forms, etc.)

While some might suggest that Frigga and Freya are the same goddess, I don't agree but that is a discussion for another time. 

I do think, however, that Frau Holle/Hulda is another aspect of Queen Frigga. 

Much as the Holly Kind or Father Christmas is another form of Odin, Frau Holle is the wintry, elderly form of Frigga.

Holle, like Frigga, is a hearth Goddess who watches over women, children, and domestic arts such as spinning. Also like Frigga, Holle is kind to those who are diligent and take care while being stern and punishing those that are lazy, negligent, etc.

My association of Frigga with Holle was strengthened when I did a meditation that led to a visitation with Frigga that I talk about on this blog Here.

Resources
Holda's Shrine

30 Days of Frigga Day 7 Epithets

Names & Epithets

Frigga's name means "beloved", and it is cognate to several Indo-European words, variously meaning "to marry", "to love", "wife", and "beloved lady".

To read some of her better known names and epithets, please read my post:
35 Adorations to Frigga

30 Days of Frigga: Day 6

Day 6: Other Related Deities and Entities Associated with this Deity
Yesterday we discussed deities that were directly related to by blood or marriage to Frigga. Today I write about deities that are associated with Frigga through friendship or service.

Frigga has 12 (or 13 depending on source) Handmaidens

Handmaidens could also be called Ladies in Waiting or simply Companions to Frigga.
I believe Lofn's Bard explains it best:
"A Lady-in-Waiting is not a maid or servant, rather a companion and confidante, chosen by the princess or queen from the upper nobility (such as a duchess) or from close childhood friends (usually a sister or cousin). They go where the Queen goes, having freedom of visit to the Queen’s bedchamber, help in choosing clothing for events, receive and answer messages on behalf of their mistress, keep her informed of events and gossip, supervise servants, and discreetly relay messages. They are typically proficient in etiquette, languages, dance, music making, horse riding, painting, embroidery and other queenly pastimes. In Britain, the highest titles they bear are Lady of the Bedchamber and Mistress of the Robes."
So these goddesses should not be considered servants of Frigga but merely lower ranking goddesses that she has in her court as companions.

In my personal experience at Fensalir, I have come across her Handmaidens (note, I spell this capitalized when referring to the Goddess Handmaidens but do not do so when I refer to earthly handmaidens like myself) and usually see them about their work. When I have spoken to them it is at Frigga's bidding - she has made it clear to me that she wishes me to become very well acquainted with each of them and venerate them as I do her.

These Handmaidens usually number 12 and are associated with the zodiac and hours of the day. I have also seen them number 13 and associated with the 13 moons of the year though most refer to 12. That being said I believe that there are more than 13 but understand the desire to number 12 for association and correspondences purposes. Those named in her retinue include:

• Fulla (Frigga's right hand woman and often referred to as a "sister" or as a lover and I believe her to be the latter)
• Gna (the messenger of the gods who I often witness in a hurry with boyish short hair, often wearing reds browns and blacks in almost industrial or militant look and carrying a messenger bag)
• Eir (The healer of the gods)
• Gefion (Goddess of hardworking, independent women)
• Hlin (the protector and source of refuge)
• Hulda (this is not a traditionally named Handmaiden and could be a reference to Frau Holle who I see as a mask of Frigga)
• Lofn (Protectress of forbidden love)
• Saga (the historian and story teller)
• Sjofin (companion of children and young maidens)
• Snotra (Lady of hospitality and learning, a listener)
• Syn (gate keeper, goddess of the doorway and boundaries)
• Var ("Vower" Oath-keeper)
• Vor (the seer)

Resources:

Northern Pagan Tradition Handmaidens Shrine
Lofn's Bard is a great blog that has stories inspired by what lore we have of the handmaidens as well as the author's personal experiences.

30 Days of Frigga Day 5 Genealogy

Members of the family – genealogical connections

The following is what I was able to figure up from the Lore

Frigga is the daughter of Fjorgynn which, according to some, is an epithet for the goddess Jord who, like Nerthus, is considered an Earth Goddess. (If Jord is her mother, then she is also half sister to Odin's son Thor.)
Wife of Odin who she had 2 sons with - Baldr and Hodr.
Baldr married Nanna and bore no children before they died.
Some lore mentions Fulla as Frigga's sister, however, from my own experiences *UPG warning* Fulla is Frigga's companion and lover.

30 Days of Frigga Day 4 Favorite Myths

A favorite myth or myths of this deity

I believe my favorite stories of Frigga are those that show her relationship with Odin as they often portray her as a partner equal to him especially when it comes to wits and sneakiness.

Frigga and the Long-beards

When the warring tribes - the Lombards and the Vandals - were fighting over new land, Odin favored the Vandals and Frigga favored the Lombards. From the beginning this sounds like a game of chess with the wits of the gods evenly matched on the battlefield.
Frigga tried to persuade Odin to her side and he, thinking he was being clever and could avoid fighting with his wife and still grant victory to his favorite tribe, declared that he would use all his powers to grant the victory to the first tribe that he saw upon awakening, and slept secure in the knowledge that his bed was facing the Vandals and he was sure to see them first.
While he slept, however, Frigga concocted a plan to outwit her husband. She gathered up the women of the Lombards and carefully combed their hair over their faces to give them the illusion of being men with beards, and placed them outside Odin's window; when he awoke and saw them, he mistook them for their men and was forced to cede the victory to the Lombards after all.

I suppose I enjoy this myth because it reminds me of my own relationship with my husband and how much I enjoy turning the tables on him when he thinks he's being so clever.

Resources
Marriage Prayer for Frigg

Devotional Art: Frigga by Jenn McCarty

A devotional piece for Frigga by my friend Jennifer McCarty that I commissioned. Wanted to share as I love devotional art and wish I was more artistic. I crochet and am working on a devotional shawl for Frigga but love having this to hang and look at during prayers and meditations as well as traditional paintings of Frigga herself.

30 Days of Frigga Day 3 Symbols

drop spindle made by Damon
Photo by me

Symbols related to Frigga

Lore Related Symbols

Spindle
Spinning Wheel
Distaff
Queen's Crown
Birch Tree
the rune Berkana is said to be Her rune

UPG Symbols

Any fiber arts tools such as crochet hooks or knitting needles
Blue flax flowers

30 Days of Frigga Day 2 Becoming a Handmaiden

How did you become first aware of this deity?

2014 I began the journey to get healthier in both my physical body but also my energy body. I also connected with the spiritually minded women in my community. I also began to see and dream of a divine female entity who emitted the vibrations of loving mother, dutiful wife, and diplomatic queen as well as connecting to land spirits at the end of that year when we moved to the marshlands of Meadow Lakes.

Visitations from the female deity continued but it wasn't until the beginning of this year (2016) that I learned that it was Frigga, Norse Goddess, Queen of the Aesir, and Wife of Odin/Mother of Balder. I have never had much connection with the northern traditions or pantheons so it wasn't until I was researching an author I liked that I clicked on link and link and link until seeing the image and name Frigga. That was her!
The recognition and acknowledgement opened a door - more like busted it wide open.

I share this story as well as my entering into motherhood Here