by Harvald Odinson Jones, 1519-CG

One of man kinds greatest fears, if not the greatest, is that of death. For it is the final mystery that man in all of his infinite wisdom just can’t seem to figure out. We can’t predict when it will come or if once it does, if that is it and then no more. Do the lights go out and we are no more, or is there a next level, a higher plane of existence, another realm where we will meet up with all of our passed ancestor’s and loved ones?

For most spiritual faiths one isn’t quite sure what happens after that fateful day and that is why they are faith’s, because that is all that they have. For those of us who have and do walk the Northern Road, at some point in time we no longer have faith that the Gods are there. The reason for this is, because we start to see them working in our lives and then we know. We come to understand that Odin is the greatest seeker of knowledge and isn’t a blood thirsty war God, but the highest general in a war to defend the Gods and folk. We come to understand that Lady Freya isn’t just a sex craved nympho, but that she represents everything that is beautiful both inside and out when concerning our women. We come to understand that Thor is not a mindless oaf whose bent on total destruction, but is our greatest defender of the Gods and folk. So how have all of these misunderstandings come about where the Gods and the other aspects of our path are concerned? Well, the main cause for this is that most of our lore was written by Christian scribes. In order to make their faith look more appealing to the masses and the "greatest truth" being revealed, they had to belittle, demean and just plain smut up the path that was there before it that the folk were following. And it is the same when it comes to the topics of death and the afterlife. When it comes to this topic, most of what we know comes from Snorri Sturluson, whom I believe had good intentions but was still influenced by his Christian beliefs or from fear of retaliation from the church. From a little before Snorri’s time, our folk’s view of Hel had changed, because of these influences, Hel was/is one of three realms that our folk would go to when they died. Odin would get those who would die after having served and followed Him, Ran would get those whom had drown and Hella would get those who had died of old age and/or of sickness. So, what does happen when Skuld (she who should become) the Norn of the future, finally cuts the ribbon that represents our life? If you happen to go to Hel, as most will, it is believed that the first thing that happens after your crossing into that realm, is that you are fitted with “Hel-shoes”. These “Hel-shoes” are for your journey to Hella’s hall and how good these shoes are made will be determined by your Hamingja. For those who don’t know, Hamingja is the “good” or “bad” energy that you have built up, it is pretty much what most know as Karma.

There are three other things that one may have questions about:

1. Will we get to see family and friends that have already passed? If they went to this realm (died the same way as you) and if they have not been reincarnated into another life, then yes. It is believed that we stay in Hel for a period of time once there, and then are reincarnated and the period of time that we have to stay in Hel is also dependent upon our Hamingja, which will also determine how our next life goes for us. With reincarnation, some believe that once you arrive and enter Hella’s hall that is where you will stay until Ragnarok. Other’s believe that we are reincarnated over and over again until the “doom of the Gods” comes about. This is the belief that is referred to a lot in our lore.

2. Are the depictions of Hel true, that it is a cold, wet and foggy type of place? This is a depiction of Hel that was made up by Christian scribes. There is a part of Hel called Niflhel that is like that, but that part is reserved for oath breakers and people who have murdered our folk. Our ancestors believed what Hel was like, was that it’s much like Midgard (Earth) is. The reason why it was considered an unpleasant place to be in was because it was a realm of stasis. When one reached Hel, that person stopped aging, growing, learning and advancing in any and every type of way. Because of that, it was thought of an unpleasant place to be. And

3. What about our ancestors and loved ones who never got the opportunity to even hear about our path? Luckily for us the path that we know as Odinism and the connection that we have with our Gods isn’t a contractual one. Unlike those paths where the “key to heaven” is faith and submission, our key to the Gods is our blood. We are connected to our Gods, because they are a part of us. They are our ancestors and we are their descendants. So our connection is stronger than most would think, for how could someone separate themselves from their Gods when those Gods are in their DNA. We learn all of this when we read the “Lay of Rig”, and how Heimdal (a personification of Odin) comes to Midgard and sleeps between the three couples who represent the three classes of people.

Anyway, we are talking about something that is good to meditate on, but not to stress on over and over, for Havamal stanza 23 says:

The foolish man lies awake all night
and worries about things;
he’s tired out when the morning comes
and everything’s just as bad as it was.

Death is something which is inevitable, we should live life to it’s fullest, doing what is right and fearing nothing. When that fateful day comes, may we all greet it with a smile upon our faces, knowing that we are finally going home to be with our family and friends. HAIL ODIN!

Silent and thoughtful a princes son should be and bold in fighting; cheery and merry every man should be until he waits for death.
-Odin, in Havamal, stanza 15

Note: The views and opinions of this article were based upon the mythical lore of our spiritual path. This is not the only way to look at the topics of this article, for there are many ways to view death and the afterlife as it pertains to our path.