Válamál
Here are proclamations All-Father may have whispered into the ears of surviving kings as the world wailed (vála) for Baldr:
This world has seen a lot of chaos, and it's probably not over yet. There will be generations who will know little but mayhem and dearth, and who will forget the great potential for planetary blossomings. Things can go bad, and you might have to protect yourself. It could get pretty hairy. Do what you gotta do, but never get pulled down in the mayhem or find yourself aligned with the forces that want to tear down the world, because there is still good in the world. Cherish it. Help it. Spread it if you can. Protect it against the mayhem, and if it's possible, put the mayhem in check. Many are not going to remember the good, will lose all good judgement, will give themselves over to cruelty or hopelessness. Try to keep a level mind, and exercise common sense. Don't lose your heart. You might get scared from time to time. You might need to bunker down somewhere where it is safe. You might get drawn into melee to protect that which is valuable to you. But don't lose your heart in the process.
That's going to be hard at times, because the forces that long to tear down the world will goad you into battle again and again, and you must choose wisely where you shall engage, and where you shall not. Do not be drawn foolishly into battles that waste your strength and erode your resources. Know that in battles, even righteous ones, hearts often go astray, and in the trauma, greed and unwholesome revenge beyond proportion often insinuate themselves within. You will have to be very careful with the trauma the forces of mayhem create, and hold your strength with heart in a world where not only has the best been forgotten and passed over as impossible, but even the good which still pulsates here and there within the world shall be denied and despaired.
It will not feel like it, but a restoration will come in time. For many ages, dark and foul deeds will be working out their own unwyrd, with faltering tripping out like ripples upon a murky pond. You will wonder where the divine is. It will be difficult to see. In these times especially you must be sure to come together in wholesome places to recommune iwth all that is good, so your folk will remember. For the Foulness makes forget. But we have not forgotten, and never shall we. Long beyond your lifetime, a restoration will come, and in this time of misfortune, your deeds are not without worth. Every success in keeping some good alive, every struggle waged to keep love true, every stand made to preserve some of the original good that has come on down through the long line of ancestors will prove worthy. For even in the midst of winters there may be some small islands of thaw, and there green may grow. Cherish these islands.
Something great is being prepared. Let that remain a mystery for now, but allow yourself to draw full strength from it. Your good deeds lead up to that time, seen or no. Keep the good in the world. The foul will run its course in time, and then there shall be an unveiling of hope as the world has never seen. For now, cherish what hope remains. Keep it locked tight in your heart coffers, and share it out only to those who shall not abuse it. For while hope remains, the darkness is not so dark. But there will be trials that test your soul. Know this, and be cheered by the prospect of meeting the challenge well. It will, at times, be the best you can do. Yet that best is very good indeed!
Hew to right, your rights are precious gifts. Much will go wrong ; do not allow that to erode right. Let even the grim keep the good cherished tight within them, for cynicism that undoes all right will do no good ; do not let that flourish in your midst. Bring cheer to men when you can. Over the long course of time, the stains of unwyrd shall wash themselves out in the tide, but be certain you do not add to that poison stream. Let it wash out, and keep yourself safe, huddling and holding together in the cold and the dark, keeping the embers of hope and faith quickened.
No, I don't claim this as direct inspiration from Odin. It's merely a direct inspiration from óðr, my poetic imagination.
This world has seen a lot of chaos, and it's probably not over yet. There will be generations who will know little but mayhem and dearth, and who will forget the great potential for planetary blossomings. Things can go bad, and you might have to protect yourself. It could get pretty hairy. Do what you gotta do, but never get pulled down in the mayhem or find yourself aligned with the forces that want to tear down the world, because there is still good in the world. Cherish it. Help it. Spread it if you can. Protect it against the mayhem, and if it's possible, put the mayhem in check. Many are not going to remember the good, will lose all good judgement, will give themselves over to cruelty or hopelessness. Try to keep a level mind, and exercise common sense. Don't lose your heart. You might get scared from time to time. You might need to bunker down somewhere where it is safe. You might get drawn into melee to protect that which is valuable to you. But don't lose your heart in the process.
That's going to be hard at times, because the forces that long to tear down the world will goad you into battle again and again, and you must choose wisely where you shall engage, and where you shall not. Do not be drawn foolishly into battles that waste your strength and erode your resources. Know that in battles, even righteous ones, hearts often go astray, and in the trauma, greed and unwholesome revenge beyond proportion often insinuate themselves within. You will have to be very careful with the trauma the forces of mayhem create, and hold your strength with heart in a world where not only has the best been forgotten and passed over as impossible, but even the good which still pulsates here and there within the world shall be denied and despaired.
It will not feel like it, but a restoration will come in time. For many ages, dark and foul deeds will be working out their own unwyrd, with faltering tripping out like ripples upon a murky pond. You will wonder where the divine is. It will be difficult to see. In these times especially you must be sure to come together in wholesome places to recommune iwth all that is good, so your folk will remember. For the Foulness makes forget. But we have not forgotten, and never shall we. Long beyond your lifetime, a restoration will come, and in this time of misfortune, your deeds are not without worth. Every success in keeping some good alive, every struggle waged to keep love true, every stand made to preserve some of the original good that has come on down through the long line of ancestors will prove worthy. For even in the midst of winters there may be some small islands of thaw, and there green may grow. Cherish these islands.
Something great is being prepared. Let that remain a mystery for now, but allow yourself to draw full strength from it. Your good deeds lead up to that time, seen or no. Keep the good in the world. The foul will run its course in time, and then there shall be an unveiling of hope as the world has never seen. For now, cherish what hope remains. Keep it locked tight in your heart coffers, and share it out only to those who shall not abuse it. For while hope remains, the darkness is not so dark. But there will be trials that test your soul. Know this, and be cheered by the prospect of meeting the challenge well. It will, at times, be the best you can do. Yet that best is very good indeed!
Hew to right, your rights are precious gifts. Much will go wrong ; do not allow that to erode right. Let even the grim keep the good cherished tight within them, for cynicism that undoes all right will do no good ; do not let that flourish in your midst. Bring cheer to men when you can. Over the long course of time, the stains of unwyrd shall wash themselves out in the tide, but be certain you do not add to that poison stream. Let it wash out, and keep yourself safe, huddling and holding together in the cold and the dark, keeping the embers of hope and faith quickened.
No, I don't claim this as direct inspiration from Odin. It's merely a direct inspiration from óðr, my poetic imagination.
posted by SiegfriedGoodfellow at 3:07 PM
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