In simplest terms, seidr typically involves an altered state or trance that is used to commune with the wights. Seidr is a magical practice which is slowly being revived by some Heathens in general. Pathwalking and journeying (projection methods in general) seem to be of importance to this practice, as it is seen as one of the most direct ways to communicate with the wights involved. It would seem that a good portion of those who consider themselves Rokkatruars are associated with Northern Tradition Shamanism (mainly due to overlapping ideology, I believe). There are many magical workings which can be incorporated into this practice. Of course, altars and offerings are still commonly set up for the respective deities and used for invocations, ritual purposes, etc. Though it is incredibly individualized, some Rokkatruars tend to pull their practice from bits of other branches of Heathenry (such as the blots and sumbels described in Asatru). Much of Rokkatru depends on UPG (unverified personal gnosis) and your own personal interpretation of lore, deities, wights, etc. What ties Rokkatru together is simply the honoring of the Rokkr. You, as the individual, craft your own path. You do not have set holidays or magical practices. You do not have to honor specific deities while shunning others. There are no standard ways of worship or practice. I often like to say, "if you gather ten heathens in a room- you will have ten different ways of practicing heathenry". There is truly no "good vs evil" concept when it comes to the Gods and the Jotnar. Heck, Jotnar blood is found throughout most of the main Aesir themselves. Many Jotnar are married to the Aesir or interact with them in some form or another. The "The relationship between god/esses and etin-kind is often rather ambiguous: often the gods come as guests into etin-halls, sometimes even with apparently friendly intentions" (OurTroth). Like us, they have the potential to be good, bad and anywhere inbetween on the spectrum. However, Jotnar as a type of wight are very diverse. Some view the Jotnar as being "enemies of the Gods", as it is true that some have ill intent towards the Aesir and fight with them at Ragnarok. This is the manner in which the Jotunn act, and it is not surprising that we see this as evil" (OurTroth). We humans are only one species on this planet and in the end we are both expendable and irrelevant to nature. The storm destroys the crops, but it also brings cleansing and renewal. "We must also remember that fact that (although) we see their actions as bad, they are not inherently evil. Many texts will try to depict Heathenry as being "black and white", where the Aesir Gods are "good" and the Rokkr Gods/Jotnar are "bad". To be a rokkatruar is to try and understand the nature of the Rokkr and the Jotnar. The Jotnar tend to be grouped together based on what element they are associated with: ice-thurses, fire-etins, sea giants, sky-etins, mountain-jotnar, and so on. There are many different "types" of Jotnar that can be worked with. Some of the main Gods are Loki, Angrboda, Hel, Fenrir, Sigyn, Jormungandr, Surtr, Narvi/Vali, Mordgud, Mengloth, Nidhoggr, etc. Which deities and spirits are involved?Ī variety of deities and wights (spirits) are worked with in Rokkatru. Sometimes there is little preserved information about particular deities and wights, so it is up to the individual within the practice to collect as much information as they can and explore the matter themselves. However, UPG (unverified personal gnosis) plays a huge role in this reconstructed faith, and especially in more diverse branches of Heathenry like Rokkatru. They also incorporate an understanding of modern research, linguistic analysis and anthropological study in order to truly try and reconstruct their practice. Heathens in general draw their sources from the direct lore (The Eddas, Sagas, and any surviving historical texts). Many of the being lumped into the Rokkr category are primordial concepts and elemental wights, such as fire, ice, earth, death, etc. It is a term that describes a branch of Norse paganism (Heathenry) focusing on the jotnar (the Giant spirits/wights) and the more chaotic deities from the Norse pantheon in general. Rokkatru (a term meaning "true to the Rokkr") is a term coined by Abby Helasdottir and later used by Raven Kaldera in some of his workings and within the group known as Northern Paganism.
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