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Author Topic: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!  (Read 5199 times)

Son of the Norse

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...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« on: November 09, 2016, 11:01:52 pm »
Hello fellow Heathens,

I am a first time poster (long time listener, first time caller) and I am posting here because I am not too keen on posting on a random introduction post because I am not really interested in receiving welcoming reply's from non-heathens/non-Asatru posters.  I really want to focus my attentions and postings to this forum.  Hopefully I am not breaking any rules with posting my first post here; if so, you have my apologies.
 
Regarding my subject line; "...I am not so sure about Valhalla".  Please allow me a give a little background information prior to posing my question to the rest of you.

Introduction and Early life: I was born in the Midwest to non-churchgoing parents.  My dad had been raised a seventh-day adventist and my mom had been raised a farmer's daughter (have no clue if they had a religious preference). At an early age of 5 or 6 I remember visiting my father's sister and we attended church with them.  I remember going to the Sunday school session before the main church session and learning about "Jesus dying for our sins, etc, etc.  Even at that early age I knew it was a bunch of bologna (in my opinion).  I remember in my youth I used to wonder; "Why do people believe in god or jesus....or even practice religion".  I didn't give it much thought most of the time, but those early thoughts fueled my later research into many religions throughout the world and their beliefs and customs..... that was not until I was at least 18 and already in the military (more on that later).

Early life and Norse Mythology:  My first experience/introduction into Norse mythology (as it was for many American kids in the 70's) was the comic book hero "The Mighty Thor".  At first, at a young age of 12 or so I believed Thor, Odin, Loki, Sif, etc were all characters made up by Stan Lee and the Marvel staff. It would be in my later teens that I discovered the truth about these God's origins.

Early thoughts about Death:  For a long time I felt apart from my friends at school because they believed when you died you would go to heaven, purgatory, be re-incarnated, etc.  I was the only one that believed that when you died; you just died.  I started studying different religions at about my 17th year and started to realize that many things (though much different) was in common with many religions...they all believed that "Death wasn't the end".  I felt all alone in my beliefs and longed to believe in any thing to be "normal"...or at least I felt that way at the time.

"1000 ways to die in the Midwest": I used to think of how I would like to die someday.  Of course I had no urge to die early and hoped to live a full life before my time was done. Many of my friends when asked this question would answer;
"I want to die in my sleep"
"I want to die Ba&^ing my girlfriend"
"I want to die when I reach 100 years old"
...and those type of answers.
I always replied that I had dreams of dying in battle; to be giving it all I have before my last moment so that way when I fell I would take many enemies with me.
It was a weird thought for many teenagers at that time, and even I thought myself weird for thinking it.  I have no idea where that thought came from since we didn't watch any TV shows that were violent in nature and I never read any violent type novels at that time either.
The other weird thought I had in the early 90's was when my spouse asked me; "Where would you want to be buried when you die"?  At first I said; "Who cares?! I will be dead! LOL".  But after thinking on it for a moment I replied; "You know; I think I want to be cremated...Just set on fire until I am just ashes and my "soul" if I have one will go off to where ever it is destined to go.  Both of these ideas just "came to me" (as weird as that sounds).  You might say it was in my DNA....speaking of DNA....

My DNA results:  I had my first DNA test many years ago in the military (it was a blood smear DNA test), so they could confirm my remains in battle if I was ever "blown to bits" I supposed.  They did not tell you your ancestry though with the test.  I never really cared about my ancestors at the time; I knew I was happy, healthy, and loved my kids.  That was enough for me.  For some reason though about a decade ago (probably due to my aging) I became interested in my family tree/ancestors/etc.  I looked into many different DNA testing agencies (they were not as popular as they are today) and I had my first DNA test done (first time with a mouth swab at a doctors office). I had always believed I was Scottish or Irish primarily because one of my aunts on my father's side had told me our original name had been "Red", changed to "Reed" because of our ancestors "ruddy complexion or red hair".  I do not have red hair (sandy blond), and my dad had brown hair, but his beard (when ever he would grow it) would be red.  So basically I never questioned it.  When I received my first DNA results I was shocked!  I was 100% European (no 10% Cherokee princess like many Americans love to claim).  I was many small % parts Irish, Scottish, and Eastern European.  But far and away the highest percentage (about 40%) was Scandinavian!  I was shocked like I said.  No one in my family have ever said anything about that.

Well I am a skeptic by nature and even though surprised I took it with a grain of salt.  It wasn't until the last few years that I decided to test the validity of the 1st DNA test.  I had 4 more tests done from all the most popular sites; including one that researched your male ancestor primarily.  Each result was the same (around 40%) except for the one that did primarily the fathers ancestry...that was 84%.  Again being a skeptic I went to a friends house while on vacation in Florida (I live in the Pacific NW).  I used his computer, his age, his name, everything relating to him...except it was my spit LOL.  The results came back the same as mine!!  I was finally a believer in DNA tests.


Conclusions and Question:  Well to make a long story longer, I finally believed my ancestors were the "North Men" of days past and I longed to connect to them somehow.  I have since given over my beliefs to following Odin, Thor, Tyr, Frigga, etc.  I also have always lived my life by the beliefs that my Honor, discipline, truth, courage, self reliance, perseverance were of utmost importance; it was just a coincidence that these coincided with some of the supposed Viking values.  My only trouble is though that I still (being a religious skeptic) have trouble believing in Valhalla.

Have any of you had this road block to your beliefs?  Do any of you follow the paths of our Norse ancestors but not believe in Valhalla?

Please...any input on your journey into Asatru/Norse religion/heathenry would be greatly appreciated.  

Will you someday sup in the halls of Valhalla?  If so why?  If not why?

Thank you in advance for your reply's! :):)
~Son of the Norse

Merlick

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #1 on: November 11, 2016, 03:31:35 pm »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;198968
Have any of you had this road block to your beliefs?  Do any of you follow the paths of our Norse ancestors but not believe in Valhalla?

Please...any input on your journey into Asatru/Norse religion/heathenry would be greatly appreciated.  

Will you someday sup in the halls of Valhalla?  If so why?  If not why?

Thank you in advance for your reply's! :):)


The path to where I am now was not a straight one and it took many detours and dead ends until I got where I am now. Having grown up in a christian environment I've often felt as if something was wrong for not believing in God, Jesus and the Bible and people just thought I was weird for believing in things like spirits or loving to sit at the open window and watch the lightning draw glowing lines over dark clouds while the thunder is loud enough to wake the dead.

I'm not a real asatru, since I'm not so much into reconstructing the faith of old, rather someone who honors the gods in a modern way. As such, my beliefs are influenced by many different religions, spiritual teachings, science and even fictional writings.

I do believe in Valhalla, but I don't suppose I'll end up there. It is said that Odin chooses half of the fallen warriors for Valhalla while Freja chooses the other half for Folkwang. They will make up the army that will fight alongside the gods when Ragnarok comes and I don't suppose they'll need someone like me with no fighting experience at all.

Instead I'll probably either go to Hel (or rather Helheim) or I'll be reborn. No idea what would be better, to be reunited with family and friends in a place without pain, suffering and other hardships or being able to make a new start. Whatever the case, hopefully I won't be able to see the outcome in at least the next fifty years.

At least these two options are better than bashing your head in on a daily basis until the end of time.

Son of the Norse

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #2 on: November 11, 2016, 03:40:29 pm »
Quote from: Merlick;199006
The path to where I am now was not a straight one and it took many detours and dead ends until I got where I am now. Having grown up in a christian environment I've often felt as if something was wrong for not believing in God, Jesus and the Bible and people just thought I was weird for believing in things like spirits or loving to sit at the open window and watch the lightning draw glowing lines over dark clouds while the thunder is loud enough to wake the dead.

I'm not a real asatru, since I'm not so much into reconstructing the faith of old, rather someone who honors the gods in a modern way. As such, my beliefs are influenced by many different religions, spiritual teachings, science and even fictional writings.

I do believe in Valhalla, but I don't suppose I'll end up there. It is said that Odin chooses half of the fallen warriors for Valhalla while Freja chooses the other half for Folkwang. They will make up the army that will fight alongside the gods when Ragnarok comes and I don't suppose they'll need someone like me with no fighting experience at all.

Instead I'll probably either go to Hel (or rather Helheim) or I'll be reborn. No idea what would be better, to be reunited with family and friends in a place without pain, suffering and other hardships or being able to make a new start. Whatever the case, hopefully I won't be able to see the outcome in at least the next fifty years.

At least these two options are better than bashing your head in on a daily basis until the end of time.


Well said! :)

Thank you for your well thought out reply; I enjoyed reading about your path...
~Son of the Norse

Megatherium

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #3 on: November 11, 2016, 04:32:30 pm »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;198968
Hello fellow Heathens,


Have any of you had this road block to your beliefs?  Do any of you follow the paths of our Norse ancestors but not believe in Valhalla?

Please...any input on your journey into Asatru/Norse religion/heathenry would be greatly appreciated.  

Will you someday sup in the halls of Valhalla?  If so why?  If not why?

Thank you in advance for your reply's! :):)


First of all, welcome to TC!

In regards to your question about Valhalla, there is quite a bit to unpack. One has to be careful, given the relative lack of source material, about assigning a strong level of certainty to our knowledge about historical Heathen cultures.

With that being said, it may well be that Valhalla was not really that important of a part of historical Heathen cultures. Many scholars and modern Heathens have argued that the most commonly understood destination for the dead was...exactly where they were buried.

This is not to say that there was no concept of an afterlife, but rather that the dead were buried close to the living and often thought to continue to have an influence on their communities.

The idea of Valhalla may have developed more in the late Viking age when large numbers of men would have died away from home and the family grave. Valhalla was perhaps seen as something of a "consolation prize" - for those that were unable to be buried close to their ancestors and homes, the battlefield was their literal afterlife destination, and their fellow warriors their companions in death.

From how you have described your beliefs, a level of skepticism about an otherworldly destination after death is not necessarily inconsistent, and in fact may be more consistent with the way historical Heathen cultures viewed their afterlife.

Here are a couple of good links on the subject (and both web sites also do an excellent job of explaining complex issues about historical Heathen religions in straightforward language).

https://www.realheathenry.com/the-valhalla-myth/

http://norse-mythology.org/concepts/death-and-the-afterlife/


One of, if not the most, widely respected academic works about Heathen views of the afterlife is Hilda Ellis Davidson's "Road to Hel". Luckily, it is widely available on the internet as a pdf, including right here:

http://www.germanicmythology.com/scholarship/road_to_hel.pdf

Good luck in the future, I hope that Heathenry can be a positive aspect of your life.
My views are one that speaks to freedom.
-George W. Bush

Son of the Norse

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #4 on: November 11, 2016, 08:40:29 pm »
Quote from: Megatherium;199009
First of all, welcome to TC!

In regards to your question about Valhalla, there is quite a bit to unpack. One has to be careful, given the relative lack of source material, about assigning a strong level of certainty to our knowledge about historical Heathen cultures.

With that being said, it may well be that Valhalla was not really that important of a part of historical Heathen cultures. Many scholars and modern Heathens have argued that the most commonly understood destination for the dead was...exactly where they were buried.

This is not to say that there was no concept of an afterlife, but rather that the dead were buried close to the living and often thought to continue to have an influence on their communities.

The idea of Valhalla may have developed more in the late Viking age when large numbers of men would have died away from home and the family grave. Valhalla was perhaps seen as something of a "consolation prize" - for those that were unable to be buried close to their ancestors and homes, the battlefield was their literal afterlife destination, and their fellow warriors their companions in death.

From how you have described your beliefs, a level of skepticism about an otherworldly destination after death is not necessarily inconsistent, and in fact may be more consistent with the way historical Heathen cultures viewed their afterlife.

Here are a couple of good links on the subject (and both web sites also do an excellent job of explaining complex issues about historical Heathen religions in straightforward language).

https://www.realheathenry.com/the-valhalla-myth/

http://norse-mythology.org/concepts/death-and-the-afterlife/


One of, if not the most, widely respected academic works about Heathen views of the afterlife is Hilda Ellis Davidson's "Road to Hel". Luckily, it is widely available on the internet as a pdf, including right here:

http://www.germanicmythology.com/scholarship/road_to_hel.pdf

Good luck in the future, I hope that Heathenry can be a positive aspect of your life.

 
First of all; thank you so much Megatherium for the great links!  I will devour them first thing in the morning (as tonight I am deep in my cups), so I can understand and absorb them better.

Regarding your statement above (bolded/underlined).  I have heard of Viking artifacts found in a grave.... So that brings up a new question.  Were "Viking Funerals" where they set them on fire a myth?  Please enlighten me if you (or anyone) knows, I am anxious to learn! :) :)
~Son of the Norse

Megatherium

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #5 on: November 11, 2016, 10:08:14 pm »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;199017
First of all; thank you so much Megatherium for the great links!  I will devour them first thing in the morning (as tonight I am deep in my cups), so I can understand and absorb them better.

Regarding your statement above (bolded/underlined).  I have heard of Viking artifacts found in a grave.... So that brings up a new question.  Were "Viking Funerals" where they set them on fire a myth?  Please enlighten me if you (or anyone) knows, I am anxious to learn! :) :)

 
Well it wasn't necessarily a myth. Ibn Fadlan, an Arab envoy from the Abbasid Caliph to some groups in Northern Eurasia (including the "Viking" Rus, who may have been mixed with native Slavic-speaking groups by the time he wrote), did record in fairly specific detail a funeral which involved the burning of a ship which contained the deceased among...other things. (I don't want to spoil it for you ;))

Generally, ideas related to death and the afterlife, as well as methods of burial had some fairly significant variation within the Germanic-speaking cultures of the first millennium. This can be a bit hard to handle if your looking for a single "Germanic" religion, but a basic recognition of the importance of ancestors and their continued connection with the living is generally a good place to start, both in understanding historical Heathen cultures and in building a modern tradition.

Fadlan's writings are contained in the following book along with other Arab records of Northern Eurasia, though the book is primarily focused on Turkic-speaking groups.

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/187609/ibn-fadlan-and-the-land-of-darkness/

Enjoy your cups!
My views are one that speaks to freedom.
-George W. Bush

Son of the Norse

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #6 on: November 12, 2016, 12:24:22 pm »
Quote from: Megatherium;199019
Well it wasn't necessarily a myth. Ibn Fadlan, an Arab envoy from the Abbasid Caliph to some groups in Northern Eurasia (including the "Viking" Rus, who may have been mixed with native Slavic-speaking groups by the time he wrote), did record in fairly specific detail a funeral which involved the burning of a ship which contained the deceased among...other things. (I don't want to spoil it for you ;))

Generally, ideas related to death and the afterlife, as well as methods of burial had some fairly significant variation within the Germanic-speaking cultures of the first millennium. This can be a bit hard to handle if your looking for a single "Germanic" religion, but a basic recognition of the importance of ancestors and their continued connection with the living is generally a good place to start, both in understanding historical Heathen cultures and in building a modern tradition.

Fadlan's writings are contained in the following book along with other Arab records of Northern Eurasia, though the book is primarily focused on Turkic-speaking groups.

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/187609/ibn-fadlan-and-the-land-of-darkness/

Enjoy your cups!


Thank you again for the information and links.

All the articles and items were very helpful, not to mention extremely interesting!

I actually am expecting the Prose Edda in the mail today.  :)

After I finish that book I look forward to buying the Viking Spirit and also Ibn Fadlan and the land of darkness!

Thank you for all your help.

I look forward to hearing other's belief in the afterlife as well...:D:
~Son of the Norse

Megatherium

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #7 on: November 12, 2016, 08:17:11 pm »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;199028
Thank you again for the information and links.

All the articles and items were very helpful, not to mention extremely interesting!

I actually am expecting the Prose Edda in the mail today.  :)

After I finish that book I look forward to buying the Viking Spirit and also Ibn Fadlan and the land of darkness!

Thank you for all your help.

I look forward to hearing other's belief in the afterlife as well...:D:


Glad to be of some service. Best of luck to you.
My views are one that speaks to freedom.
-George W. Bush

Son of the Norse

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #8 on: November 16, 2016, 11:10:58 pm »
Quote from: Megatherium;199036
Glad to be of some service. Best of luck to you.

I am really enjoying the Prose Edda.  Lots of insight into what I am seeking.

Not very fond of the Prologue that Snorri wrote.  It has the taint of his Christian conversion that I am not a fan of.

Will give a full report after I am done reading it. :)
« Last Edit: November 16, 2016, 11:12:09 pm by Son of the Norse »
~Son of the Norse

Son of the Norse

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #9 on: November 21, 2016, 04:53:50 pm »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;199141
I am really enjoying the Prose Edda.  


Have been swamped in life and work and have not had the time to read as much as I normally do; but will say today I read; "Thor encounters Skrymir in the forest" and "Thor reaches the stronghold of Utgarda-Loki" from the Gylfaginning (Prose Edda) and it was wonderful!

I am enjoying this journey into the Norse beliefs more and more the further I travel down the path... :)
~Son of the Norse

Megatherium

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #10 on: November 21, 2016, 10:04:46 pm »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;199141
I am really enjoying the Prose Edda.  Lots of insight into what I am seeking.

Not very fond of the Prologue that Snorri wrote.  It has the taint of his Christian conversion that I am not a fan of.

Will give a full report after I am done reading it. :)

 
As far as I know, Snorri was writing for the purpose of educating new generations of Icelandic poets in the traditional forms. Because so many of the references in Icelandic poetry were tied to the old religion, he had to provide a fairly elaborate explanation of those stories. However, since he was also writing a couple of hundred years after the conversion, there was probably some strong social pressure to reaffirm his standing as a Christian in what was a very Christian environment. The reinterpretation of "pagan" deities as powerful humans/magicians was a fairly common explanation of the roots of pagan deities among medieval Christians.

Because of all of the above, you have to take anything you read in the eddas with a grain of salt. They can be a useful way to learn about Icelandic/Scandinavian religion, but you should be wary of either interpreting such stories as either completely unaltered Heathen tradition (Christianity's social dominance affected the culture in which they were written down), or as ideas of literal historical truth in the same sense that some Christians see Biblical stories.

All that being said, enjoy away because they are a great collection of tales nonetheless.
My views are one that speaks to freedom.
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hraefngar

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #11 on: January 04, 2017, 09:24:28 pm »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;198968
 Do any of you follow the paths of our Norse ancestors but not believe in Valhalla?

I am a Heathen (and an Odinsman).  I believe in Valhalla.

I just don't believe it is likely I will ever get there.  I am not employed in a capacity where I would die in battle.  

Quite frankly, if someone isn't employed in active duty military, or law enforcement, or working security in a dangerous area, the chances of them dying in battle are slim.  All this emphasis on Valhalla in modern Heathenry is completely overblown.

As others have pointed out, there are various afterlife destinations.

More importantly, I think, is living a life of honor and meaning.  If that is done, the afterlife is but an afterthought.  One's reputation lives after one's life, as the Havamal states. :)
« Last Edit: January 05, 2017, 02:00:52 am by Morag »

Son of the Norse

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #12 on: January 04, 2017, 10:56:52 pm »
Quote from: hraefngar;200979

More importantly, I think, is living a life of honor and meaning.  If that is done, the afterlife is but an afterthought.  One's reputation lives after one's life, as the Havamal states. :)


This right here.... I live by this motto and totally agree! :)
~Son of the Norse

Dam

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #13 on: January 05, 2017, 05:14:23 am »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;198968

Have any of you had this road block to your beliefs?  Do any of you follow the paths of our Norse ancestors but not believe in Valhalla?

Please...any input on your journey into Asatru/Norse religion/heathenry would be greatly appreciated.  

Will you someday sup in the halls of Valhalla?  If so why?  If not why?

Thank you in advance for your reply's! :):)

 
I am a heathen. When I die I will be worm food. My corpse will be put in the ground and all sorts of detrivores will consume me. The grave will be the last place I go. I do not believe in an afterlife. I follow heathen practices and morals because I believe they are a way to be a good and honourable person (because sometimes I need to be reminded how to do that).

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Re: ...I am not so sure about Valhalla!
« Reply #14 on: January 05, 2017, 03:20:38 pm »
Quote from: Son of the Norse;198968
Hello fellow Heathens,

I am a first time poster (long time listener, first time caller) and I am posting here because I am not too keen on posting on a random introduction post because I am not really interested in receiving welcoming reply's from non-heathens/non-Asatru posters.  I really want to focus my attentions and postings to this forum.  Hopefully I am not breaking any rules with posting my first post here; if so, you have my apologies.
 
Regarding my subject line; "...I am not so sure about Valhalla".  Please allow me a give a little background information prior to posing my question to the rest of you.

Introduction and Early life: I was born in the Midwest to non-churchgoing parents.  My dad had been raised a seventh-day adventist and my mom had been raised a farmer's daughter (have no clue if they had a religious preference). At an early age of 5 or 6 I remember visiting my father's sister and we attended church with them.  I remember going to the Sunday school session before the main church session and learning about "Jesus dying for our sins, etc, etc.  Even at that early age I knew it was a bunch of bologna (in my opinion).  I remember in my youth I used to wonder; "Why do people believe in god or jesus....or even practice religion".  I didn't give it much thought most of the time, but those early thoughts fueled my later research into many religions throughout the world and their beliefs and customs..... that was not until I was at least 18 and already in the military (more on that later).

Early life and Norse Mythology:  My first experience/introduction into Norse mythology (as it was for many American kids in the 70's) was the comic book hero "The Mighty Thor".  At first, at a young age of 12 or so I believed Thor, Odin, Loki, Sif, etc were all characters made up by Stan Lee and the Marvel staff. It would be in my later teens that I discovered the truth about these God's origins.

Early thoughts about Death:  For a long time I felt apart from my friends at school because they believed when you died you would go to heaven, purgatory, be re-incarnated, etc.  I was the only one that believed that when you died; you just died.  I started studying different religions at about my 17th year and started to realize that many things (though much different) was in common with many religions...they all believed that "Death wasn't the end".  I felt all alone in my beliefs and longed to believe in any thing to be "normal"...or at least I felt that way at the time.

"1000 ways to die in the Midwest": I used to think of how I would like to die someday.  Of course I had no urge to die early and hoped to live a full life before my time was done. Many of my friends when asked this question would answer;
"I want to die in my sleep"
"I want to die Ba&^ing my girlfriend"
"I want to die when I reach 100 years old"
...and those type of answers.
I always replied that I had dreams of dying in battle; to be giving it all I have before my last moment so that way when I fell I would take many enemies with me.
It was a weird thought for many teenagers at that time, and even I thought myself weird for thinking it.  I have no idea where that thought came from since we didn't watch any TV shows that were violent in nature and I never read any violent type novels at that time either.
The other weird thought I had in the early 90's was when my spouse asked me; "Where would you want to be buried when you die"?  At first I said; "Who cares?! I will be dead! LOL".  But after thinking on it for a moment I replied; "You know; I think I want to be cremated...Just set on fire until I am just ashes and my "soul" if I have one will go off to where ever it is destined to go.  Both of these ideas just "came to me" (as weird as that sounds).  You might say it was in my DNA....speaking of DNA....

My DNA results:  I had my first DNA test many years ago in the military (it was a blood smear DNA test), so they could confirm my remains in battle if I was ever "blown to bits" I supposed.  They did not tell you your ancestry though with the test.  I never really cared about my ancestors at the time; I knew I was happy, healthy, and loved my kids.  That was enough for me.  For some reason though about a decade ago (probably due to my aging) I became interested in my family tree/ancestors/etc.  I looked into many different DNA testing agencies (they were not as popular as they are today) and I had my first DNA test done (first time with a mouth swab at a doctors office). I had always believed I was Scottish or Irish primarily because one of my aunts on my father's side had told me our original name had been "Red", changed to "Reed" because of our ancestors "ruddy complexion or red hair".  I do not have red hair (sandy blond), and my dad had brown hair, but his beard (when ever he would grow it) would be red.  So basically I never questioned it.  When I received my first DNA results I was shocked!  I was 100% European (no 10% Cherokee princess like many Americans love to claim).  I was many small % parts Irish, Scottish, and Eastern European.  But far and away the highest percentage (about 40%) was Scandinavian!  I was shocked like I said.  No one in my family have ever said anything about that.

Well I am a skeptic by nature and even though surprised I took it with a grain of salt.  It wasn't until the last few years that I decided to test the validity of the 1st DNA test.  I had 4 more tests done from all the most popular sites; including one that researched your male ancestor primarily.  Each result was the same (around 40%) except for the one that did primarily the fathers ancestry...that was 84%.  Again being a skeptic I went to a friends house while on vacation in Florida (I live in the Pacific NW).  I used his computer, his age, his name, everything relating to him...except it was my spit LOL.  The results came back the same as mine!!  I was finally a believer in DNA tests.


Conclusions and Question:  Well to make a long story longer, I finally believed my ancestors were the "North Men" of days past and I longed to connect to them somehow.  I have since given over my beliefs to following Odin, Thor, Tyr, Frigga, etc.  I also have always lived my life by the beliefs that my Honor, discipline, truth, courage, self reliance, perseverance were of utmost importance; it was just a coincidence that these coincided with some of the supposed Viking values.  My only trouble is though that I still (being a religious skeptic) have trouble believing in Valhalla.

Have any of you had this road block to your beliefs?  Do any of you follow the paths of our Norse ancestors but not believe in Valhalla?

Please...any input on your journey into Asatru/Norse religion/heathenry would be greatly appreciated.  

Will you someday sup in the halls of Valhalla?  If so why?  If not why?

Thank you in advance for your reply's! :):)

 
Hello,

The gods don't mind what your DNA is, or ancestry. If you feel their calling, that is all that matters.
Valhalla is for only selected war dead. I don't fancy it myself, I just want peace and quiet.
There are many domains in the afterlife.

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