Sunday, April 17, 2016

Thor


thor593019_26851268.jpgThor (Þórr, Donnar, Thuraz), of the Aesir: The macho God of Thunder and Weather, powerful protection, inspiration, magical power, and personal strength. He has a chapter in the book, 'Who are your Divine Friends?', in Lulu Publishing.  He is typically portrayed as red-headed and bearded and carrying Mjolnir, a magical hammer.  The hammer, which he threw with the aid of iron gloves, like a boomerang, always returned to his hand.  A depiction of Mjolnir became a favorite adornment for warriors during the age of the Vikings and is still seen today among adherents of some forms of Norse Paganism.

Most practitioners of Germanic Neopagan faiths wear Mjolnir pendants as a symbol of faith Worldwide.  Renditions of Mjolnir are designed, crafted and sold in jewelry, posters, decorations and more.  In May 2013, the 'Hammer of Thor' was added to the list of United States Department of Veterans Affairs emblems for headstones and markers.

One of the most beloved Gods of the Germanic people, he is often known as 'God of the Common Man'. Thor's hall in Asgard was Bilskirnir (lightning), which had 540 rooms.  He rides in a cart pulled by two goats, Tanngrisni (tooth-gnasher) and Tanngnost (tooth-cracker).  The sound of thunder was believed to be the rolling of his cart.

Although Thor is sometimes shown as being slow-witted in comparison with Odin or Loki, he is a practical God whose solutions to problems are usually swift and efficient.  Showing the common sense the other Gods sometimes lack.  In one Eddic poem, he outwits the clever dwarf Alviss by engaging him in a riddle contest until dawn turns the dwarf to stone.  

 

Correspondences:

Altar: upon cloth lay a bowl of rainwater, a cup of mead, and a Thor's hammer

Color: red, blue

Day: Thursday

Incense: dragon’s blood, juniper, pine

Offerings: mead libation

Plant: acorns, avens, oak, oak moss, thistle

Pronunciation: 'Thoar' (Thor)

Rulership: courage, defense, goats, oaks, strength, voyages, trust, war, water, weather

Runes: Ansuz, Ehwaz, Ingwaz, Raidho, Thurisaz

Stone: carnelian, iron, lodestone, red agate, steel

Symbol: hammer, thunder, storms, goat, air, oak

 

Rain Chant (Lord of Thunders)  


Chorus:
Hail Thor, Lord of Thunders,
master of the winds of the western world!
Hail Thor, hammer-wielder,
lord of lightning, lord of storms!

Bring the wind that bears the waters,
Master of the winds of the western world.
Call the cloud and all it utters,
Lord of lightning, lord of storms.

(Chorus)

Fetch the flock of cloud-sheep grazing...
Master of the winds of the western world.
Lift the lash of lightning blazing...
Lord of lightning, lord of storms.

(Chorus)

In your arms the waters gather...
Master of the winds of the western world.
Whip the waves to rage and lather...
Lord of lightning, lord of storms.

(Chorus)

Draw the drops of the sky together...
Master of the winds of the western world
Break the back of burning weather...
Lord of lightning, lord of storms.

(Chorus)

Join our joy of feast and singing...
Master of the winds of the western world.
Set the sky with laughter ringing...
Lord of lightning, lord of storms.

(Chorus)

~ Leslie Fish.

 

thurisaz09_645977.pngThor Chant 
(Round)     

Hey, ho, the way the winds blow,
through rain and lightning, thunder we go.
God of the hammer, joy and laughter,
Thor, Thor, Thor.

~ Lyrics Angela Turner-Carlson

 

Call To Thor

Time has ceased to have meaning for us,
we are golden children who could fly upon the wind,
falling back to earth to land upon the Earth's Bounteous Breast--
as you lay your head gently upon the earth
you can feel a beat, slow and steady, but definite,
it is the heart of the world,
this is the breast that Thor was born from,
somehow you understand him in a way never before considered
you see a gentleness to him,
yet the wildness of spirit,
the connection to the land, to the people of the land--
Man of the earth,
hair as black as the loamy earth,
with beard as red as the molten core
that rages at the heart of the world itself,
here stands our champion!
Hail Thor...! 

~ Ayla Wolffe

 

Northern Storm

We cower in fear
beneath sick and yellow skies.
Dark leaves bend in
unwholesome winds.
thorchng5g.png
Bloodwarm rain down
roof-thatch torrents.
Thor hammers lightning
upon anvil clouds.

~ Alan Hodgson

 

Prayer to Thor

Lord Thor, let thy servant ask
for aid to finish a worthy task.
Bid the storm, the hurricane still,
make it subject to thy will.

Lord Thor, here thy servant stands
holding out two willing hands;
I believe I have work to do
I would help all those who call to you.

Give me work, please ask me now
I will labor if you show me how.
There are others I could help;
I think not only of myself.

~ Patricia aka Adastra

 

thor539471_1015118.jpgThursday (Thorsdaeg) is named after him. And you can benefit from his friendship by donating time to a group protecting children from abuse, help someone move or do some other sort of heavy work for someone in need.  

Like other Germanic deities, veneration of Thor has revived in the modern period.  Swedish chemist Jöns Jacob Berzelius discovered a chemical element that he named after Thor - thorium.  In 1962, American comic book writer Stan Lee, created the Marvel Comics superhero Thor.  And in 2013, a team named a shrew after Thor due to the God's association with strength, Thor's hero shrew.

 
















 

 

 

 

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