#utangard

[north-of-annwn]

Innangard and Utangard are inventions of modern Folkish branches of Heathenry.

Dr. Crawford discusses. 

[mostly-history]

On a very mundane level, the area around a Norseman's stead or a village was innangard.  It might or might have a physical fence, but it had laws that had to be obeyed.  Close to such a place, it was generally safe to go about your business; armed men were available to enforce the law or to drive off wild beasts.  Further afield, beyond the physical and spiritual 'enclosure', the land was wilder and contained many dangers.  Outlaws, dwelling away from the settlements where the law was enforced, wild animals, and mundane threats such as cold from which there might be no shelter, posed a real danger to anyone venturing away from the innangard places.

Norse Myths: Viking Legends of Heroes and Gods

[mostly-history]

Jötunheim lay in the 'middle world' alongside Midgard, but is also noted as lying on the south bank of the river Iving, which separated it from Asgard.  It was a barren and cold land, and can be taken as a prime example of the concept of 'utangard', which can mean 'beyond the law' or 'outside the fence', i.e. beyond the world that is safe and sane by the standards of ordinary men.  Jötunheim is sometimes called Utgard, although this also refers to its capital, a city carved from ice. Although the Jötnar were in general hostile to the gods, there are sometimes peaceful or at least non-violent interactions between them: many of the gods married giantesses, and at times the gods journeyed into Jötunheim to seek treasures or wisdom.  A root of Yggdrasil reached into Jötunheim, and close to it lay Mimir's Well.  At one time, Mimir was the guardian of this well and could be found close by, suggesting that it was possible for a god to live in the land of the Jötnar.

Norse Myths: Viking Legends of Heroes and Gods

[mostly-history]

The concept of innangard and utangard ran right through the Norse mindset.  Crops sown where a farmer wanted them were innangard, as were herds that grazed where he put them.  A wild forest where dangers might lurk was utangard.  Yet utangard was not necessarily bad.  In the wilderness beyond civilization, power could be obtained.  Thus the gods in many of their tales seek wisdom in wild or dangerous places and, of course, the ultimate source of all life, the Ginnungagap, was as utangard as it was possible to be.

Norse Myths: Viking Legends of Heroes and Gods

[mostly-history]

Attitudes to laws and behaviour were influenced by these concepts.  For example, the taking of slaves was forbidden, as was harming women and children – but only within the Norse lands themselves.  Plunder, destruction, and the taking of slaves were commonplace when on a raiding expedition.  Thus the homelands were innangard, where the law applied, but different conduct was acceptable when in a place that was utangard.

Norse Myths: Viking Legends of Heroes and Gods

[rainprincess64]

(Supernatural) The Bad Place = Jotunheim

Hello, my name is Ellie. I'm a psychic whose methods of divination mainly involve a pendulum and printable ABC chart. The information I present in my posts that aren't readily available through physical means such as scholarly texts, books, etc. I obtain through divination in order to elaborate more on my personal observations, beliefs, experiences, etc. In this particular post, I am going to show the connection between the CW show's "The Bad Place" and Jotunheim in Norse Mythology and Cosmology.

Jotunheim in Norse Mythology and Religion

According to Norse Mythology and religious texts, Innangard, which in Old Norse means "within the enclosure", is described as "orderly, law abiding, and civilized". On the other hand, Jotunheim, which is also sometimes called Utangard meaning "beyond the closure", is described as being "chaotic, wild, and anarchic". In the Eddas (Norse manuscripts), the homes of giants are described as deep, dark forests and also caves in mountainous peaks where winter never seems to end. Overall, the homes of the giants are thought of as being inhospitable and grim.

Jotunheim Connections to Other Texts

In some other texts, Jotunheim has been unknowingly described. I do dare say this: the beings that the writers of the Bible and others have "spoken with" and "heard" are collectively called The Seers, as deities have been collectively calling themselves to me since I started getting into pendulum divination in 2021. Including in this list of beings are deities. In Norse mythology, the Vanir are a race of deities who are responsible for wealth, fertility, and commerce. Interestingly enough, the Vanir are also associated with their gifts of prophecy and magic. And no, they aren't into sacrifices as portrayed on Supernatural's 1x11 "Scarecrow".

In terms of The Bible, some verses mention specific stars, star clusters, and even constellations. Included in this list of cosmic bodies are Arcturus in Bootes, Pleiades in Taurus, and the constellation Orion. One verse that is in the book Job refers to God's ability to control the weather and discusses this in chapter 38 of the book Job, specifically Job 38:31 which in the King James Bible is written as "Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion?"

According to the website Bible Study Tools, the sweet influences of The Pleiades is a reference to the rise of the Pleiades as it coincides with the arrival of spring. The rise of Orion on the other hand is said to coincides with the arrival of winter which brings ice, snow and wind. Orion "binds" or bands together the Earth in the sense that plants do not grow in winter and people and animals are huddling more to stay warm. As Odin told me as I'm writing this today, "The writers of The Bible partially heard seers speaking about the Norse cosmic realms, and what the weather is like on each of them".

Genesis 6:4 in the King Jane Bible states: "There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown." In short, they are the offspring of giants or "sons of God" and humans.

In Supernatural, the Nephilim including Jack Kline are described as the children of angels and humans. Interestingly enough, the constellation Orion is known as The Hunter in Astronomy and in Greek mythology was portrayed as a giant huntsman. I also dare to mention certain conspiracy theories discuss a race of supposedly evil, giant beings (at least compared to humans) called The Reptilians that are said to originate from Orion and are here as the world's Elites ruling everything.

Jotunheim/Utangard As Applied in Viking Society

During the Viking Age, in Scandinavia and Iceland, Viking society actually lacked a central law enforcement system and it was up to citizens to determine when a law was broken by people. Instead of declaring people guilty, they would call them outlaws. The outlaws would then lose their rights and no longer be considered citizens. As a result, they were sent to live in forests and caves "beyond the boundary".

To put the Old Norse Concepts of Utangard or Jotunheim and Innangard in layman's terms, fences serve the purpose of not only keeping say pets or children within property lines but also to protect a given property from unwanted predators or people with malevolent intentions. Laws can also serve as an unseen boundary between law-abiding citizens and the lawless or outlaws.

Supernatural's "The Bad Place"

This place was first mentioned by the character named Kaia Nieves who is a dreamwalker. In Kaia's case, she physically dreamwalks to a place she calls "The Bad Place", where hostile, monstrous beings hunt and essentially everyone fends for themselves. Kaia is often questioned on where she gets her arm scars from, which her group therapist seems to assume she is cutting herself and is simply unwilling to talk about it.

The Bad Place in the show Supernatural is portrayed as a dark forested place where many monstrous creatures roam, including giant ones. The portrayal of many monstrous beings who behave in a chaotic, hostile manner including the giant matches the "deep, dark forests" part of description of the giants' home in Jotunheim. The Veil can be thought of as the fence between Innangard and Utangard.

In the 2011 Marvel movie "Thor" and in the comics, Jotunheim is described and portrayed as a cold, icy and snowy world with many mountains which matches the other description of the giants' homes in The Eddas regarding cold, mountainous peaks where winter never stops.

Purgatory = Earthly Utangard in the Viking Age

I'm choosing to also mention Purgatory as portrayed in Supernatural in this post because it seems based on how Utangard was seen in everyday life for the Vikings, this view or application of the concepts of Innangard and Utangard has some similarities to Purgatory versus the physical world in Supernatural. As mentioned earlier in this article, Viking society didn't have a central law enforcement. When people broke the law, they were no longer considered to be a civilian but instead an outlaw and sent to live in the forest or caves to fend for themselves. Outlaws were seen as chaotic, lawless, and anarchic.

In Catholicism, Purgatory is thought of as a place or a state where sinners suffer and are said to make amends and answer for their sins before leaving Purgatory and entering heaven.

In Supernatural, like in Viking society, Purgatory is portrayed as a big, dark forest where "monsters that look and once acted like civilized people live" as the Vikings viewed outlaws. In the sense of how the Vikings applied the concept of Utangard/Jotunheim, Purgatory in Supernatural fits this Viking view of Utangard as it applied to their every day life. The Veil can also be viewed as the boundary or fence between Purgatory and Midgard ("World of Man") or the physical world as we see it everyday (aka what we call Earth).

For Further Reading

https://norse-mythology.org/cosmology/the-nine-worlds/jotunheim/

https://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/index.htm

The Bad Place (Alternate Universe)

The Bad Place is the name given by Kaia Nieves to an alternate universe populated mainly by unknown creatures. It was destroyed by God when

https://norse-mythology.org/concepts/innangard-and-utangard/

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job%2038&version=KJV

https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-bible/job-38-31.html

https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Bible-Verses-About-Nephilim/

https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Vanir#Characteristics

Jotunheim

Jotunheim is one of the Nine Worlds and exists on the middle of the World Tree along with Midgard. It is home to the Giants of Jotunheim (am