#ask fynn

[north-of-annwn]

Hey, so I have a question about Odin. I think, because of popular media and some parts of tumblr, I’m hesitant to reach out despite working with other members of the pantheon. Almost, like, scared? Like, he is painted as very rough and such and as someone who is just starting in any religion at all it’s very intimidating. I was just wondering if u have any advice because I know this “meanness” is not true. It also makes me hesitant with Loki being a trickster? Not sure. Sorry, it’s hard to word.

Hey Nonny

I totally understand what you’re asking. There’s a lot of conceptions of Odin as this very severe figure and the poster-deity for toxic masculinity. Tbh, I think this is because the group that has controlled the narrative around this god has been the quintessence of toxic masculinity themselves (Volkisch and pro-fascist Heathens). 

Odin is a very complex figure though and locking him in a room with a label “war god” is just way oversimplified and does him a disservice. Odin’s known for so many things besides just being a war god and chief of the Aesir. 

Canonically, he wrestles with insecurity and paranoia, as well as his own ego. He’s a musician, and is known as the “father of magical songs.” He’s the one who chose to give humans “breath” or “spirit.” He’s the Allfather, Old Greybeard, the wise grandfather figure. The god who inspired, Gandalf, Dumbledore, and modern-day Santa Clause can’t be entirely harsh and cruel... so where are they getting this?

Odin is tricky, I won’t lie to you. He’s the god of many faces and many aspects. He definitely isn’t 100% on the straight-and-narrow with how he views morals, but that’s just not who he is. He’s still a trickster, just like his blood-brother Loki is a trickster, although they fulfill that role in ways that are different from each other. I’ve personally never experienced Loki or Odin being abusive or cruel. Just like every deity, there are practitioners who just don’t get along with them, but I don’t think that should define their character for everyone. 

Personally, I’d suggest taking a look at Catherine Heath’s article regarding our need to heal our relationship with Odin. Another good idea may be to look into some papers on Academia.org that talk about Odin as a member of the LGBTQ community. 

I’ll never tell someone they need to work with a deity they’re having uncomfortable experiences with... but if your apprehension is entirely from the general tone around Odin and external influence, that emotional baggage is someone else’s- not yours. 

Feel free to ask more questions on this

💙 Fynn

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[north-of-annwn]

Do you have any negative emotions or hatred towards Christianity? I live in the bible belt and I can't escape it. What is the best way to deal with it?

Oof I’m sorry nonny. That’s difficult. I used to live in the Southeast and I was out of the woods/broom cupboard so I totally know how it can be. 

As a recovering evangelical, I have a lot of trauma from Christianity that I’m constantly unpacking. Interestingly enough though, when I initially left, it wasn’t due to a bad experience. I had been planning on going to seminary and everything when I had a crisis that led me to examine my worldviews more closely. It wasn’t until years after leaving Christianity that I started to learn more about healthy relationships, narcissistic abuse recovery, and identify healthy vs unhealthy dynamics in religious communities. That was when I began to realize the inherent toxicity present in Biblical Christianity and there’s really no other way for me to look at it anymore.

Separate from my feelings about the religion itself, I don’t harbor hatred or negative feelings towards Christians because I absolutely remember being in their position. When you are that inundated with messaging that only reaffirms your religious identity it is almost impossible for anyone to get through to them. How the religion teaches its followers to respond to outsiders and outside views is similar to how cults successfully keep people from waking up. And while It’s extremely frustrating it’s not their fault. 

As for the best way to deal with living alongside a Christian majority? I lived in secret and I lived authentically... I honestly prefer the latter even in a Christian region. I also felt like I was in a better position to challenge a lot of misconceptions and harmful stereotypes about paganism and witchcraft. When “witches” are the faceless opposition it’s easy for fantasy and propaganda to get out of hand. When Nancy at work is a witch and hasn’t tried to steal your firstborn... people may doubt their ridiculous stigmas more. I always tried to be open about myself, respectfully answer questions even when I felt they were ignorant, and generally try to draw parallels between their worldview and my practice. You can’t always do this; mental health comes first, and you’re not required to explain or have endless patience with people who are being antagonistic. I find it helps a lot when explaining to use more religious laymen's terms rather than craft-centric lingo.

Always open to more questions on this

💙 Fynn

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[north-of-annwn]

Considering the situation, my Askbox is always open for questions about things you heard/saw on Witchtok.

[north-of-annwn]

So I was playing God of War the other day (fantastic game btw) and it got me thinking about Odin, Freya, and the Völva. Do the völva get their magic through the gods, or from primordial force like fate/wyrd? Cos whenever I try magic I'm asking for Odin or freya's help.

Hey Nonny, 

It’s an interesting question to be sure. I’m not sure if it’s specifically answered in the Eddas or Norse cultural worldview succinctly, but I’m going to take a wack at it myself…

From an animistic perspective, I consider magic to be inherent in all things. I don’t think we needed to be given magic as it’s fundamentally a part of our essence. However, if we were to examine this from a Norse view, it was Odinn and his brothers that gave humans reason, form, and breath/spirit. If you require a spirit to do magic, then it could follow that Odin is responsible for this. 

I do, however, believe that the wisdom of how to do certain kinds of magic are a lineage that comes initially from the Norns to the Vanir and then to Odin and humanity via Freyja.

Asking for Odin and Freyja’s help in learning magic is absolutely canonical. They are the two deities invested in teaching and preserving magical wisdom for humanity to use through the runes and through seidr. 

Thanks for the thought-provoking conversation. I love this kind of stuff.💙 FynnBlog || Venmo || Ko-Fi

[north-of-annwn]

I had my first godphone experience, I guess you could call it?? And surprisingly it was with Odin! I say surprisingly because so far he’s felt like one of the hardest for me to reach. He kept calling me “little one,” which was kinda sweet lol. so I guess my question to you is have you noticed little tics your gods have when they speak or maybe interact with you?? Like even if they have a favorite card or rune they like to show you lol

Hey nonny! 

I’m so glad! Honestly, learning to start trusting my intuition and listening to deities and spirits when they were communicating with me directly was one of the absolute best things I’ve gained from this practice. Some people on Tumblr call it a god phone, but tbh I just call it your clairsenses, intuition, and discernment. Everyone can learn to “hear” their spirits and deities. 

Let’s see, special things about my deities and how they interact with me? 

My fylgja calls me “little one” as well so that’s funny! 😅 

Odin identifies himself with X’s and Anzus. And those X’s aren’t kisses. He keeps joking with me about oaths, knowing I’ve told him no (it’s all in fun).

 A few spirits and deities call me “bright hair” in Glossalalia as a kind of nickname. 

I have some anamchairde (plural of anam cara) who are identified with their own tarot cards and runes. The same people are identified with THEIR rune or card almost every time. 

Odin always gets my attention with ravens. I live in an area of the country where we have them, but I know Odin’s specifically trying to get my attention on something magically related when I’m hiking, walking, traveling around and I keep hearing raven croaks the same distance away no matter how far I’m going until I’m finally like “yes, I hear you. Okay. Now what?”

I know Hel’s around usually by the general feeling change in the room and sometimes she smells of rotting flowers - almost like jasmine but off and too sweet. 

There’s probably a lot more. I’m pretty sensitive to energy and each spirit/deity has their own energetic signature and unique ticks. 

Thanks nonny, I haven’t gotten this question before and it was a lot of fun to answer!

💙 Fynnley My Ask box is open and anon is on for a few hours.

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[north-of-annwn]

I’ve been confused?? New gods came busting down my door, one in particular was Njord and I’m like ...hello? Because he’s a sea god and I have never been attracted to water or live near it and I talked to him a small amount and I just get “I’m here! You can’t know why yet, but I’m here and sticking around.” And I’m just like ok buddy, have fun. And it has been strange... also I dyed my hair dark blue today for Odin!! Because he shifts his appearance, figured I’d take a page out of his book lol

I’m so sorry I didn’t get to this last night, Nonny! I was all “let’s do anon for a few hours” and then I passed out. 😅

I’ve had that happen with some gods that I just didn’t think I had much in common with. It can definitely be disorienting at first. Usually, I end up finding out later why they were hanging around and it hits me like a ton of bricks LOL. Like “oooooh why didn’t I see that before?” I’m sure some of my gods, who get to see nonlinear time, think I’m extremely dense (in the most loving way). 

Could you potentially ask Njord what he’s doin hanging around? If your direct communication intuition is still being developed, divination questions can be super helpful. “What kind of relationship are you looking for?”, “What do you think you can help me with?”, “What kind of expectations do you have/What do you want from me in return?” kind of questions. 

(Also, you’ll always get my support for hair color! I’m a sucker for colors!)

💙 Fynn

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[north-of-annwn]

Love your blog but I'm shy. You're amazing! 💜

AAAAH thank you! 

My shyness is so weird. Like, I’m very outgoing, I’m hyper, I’ve got ADHD, and I am the definition of a drama kid in HS. But as soon as I admire someone, their content, or develop any kind of crush I am mush. I am not able to form words or thoughts. 😅

I’m awkward and a dork too, I promise. But I understand if you only wanna use anon 

💙 Fynn Website || Venmo || Ko-Fi || Ask

[north-of-annwn]

I've prepared me-made healing encouraging bindrunes and cleansing spells, curse breakers and planted a ton of them around my house secretly. I hope it helps to keep the danger away from that which I love.

Sounds good! Remember to recharge them with energy sources other than your own! 

💙Fynn