Polytheism
by Trudi James, from Mountain Thunder, Issue 9, Summer 1993.
The Northern spiritual path, known most popularly as Odinism or Asatru, is of a polytheistic nature, which is reflected in the world of man. There are many forces at work in our lives and we recognize these forces as working through the various gods and goddesses of the Northern pantheon. We also recognize that not one of these gods contains or controls all of the forces of nature. Indeed, even if all the gods come together in perfect union, there are many things in their world and ours that they still cannot change, though there are many that they can. It also must he said that the gods and goddesses of the Northern pantheon are not just different faces of the supreme Male or supreme Female, but are rather, individual deities of a complex whole which reflects the idea of an even greater Divine. It could even he thought that the pantheon is itself searching for or reaching to this greater divine image, just as we reach toward them in our spiritual quest.
In this idea of polytheism, the gods are separate entities with specific strengths and weaknesses, working more or less together in a community which mirrors that of the world of man. Unlike the supreme, perfect gods found in the various monotheistic religions, the gods of the North have faults in character and physical appearance, which provide a type of creative tension or friction in the actions of the gods, and in turn give a multitude of combinations of actions and reactions to draw upon for our own personal growth. Unlike most monotheistic traditions, our gods have parents who are even less perfect than they are. Indeed, the gods of the North have evolved and are still evolving through their many limitations just as we hope we are.
Within the Northern spiritual path there are those who would argue with the above idea of polytheism, pointing out perhaps the many names which Odin calls himself by as an example of an "all-is-one" principle within the North. Some would go so far as to say that the many personalities of the Northern pantheon are but manifestations of the High God, Allfather, Odin. This thinking is very much a part of the NeoPagan movement which we are part of and is far from "new." Jacob Grimm stated in the Preface to the Second (1844) Edition of his Teutonic Mythology that it was natural that as man "progressed," he turn his head toward the oneness of all things. This reduction of greatness into a few simple formulas was a great attraction for the sophisticated-learned mind, according to Grimm, yet the simple mind needed the complex ideas represented through the personalities of the pantheon to calm his life questions. Similarly, the scientific spiritual contemplator looks at his world and sees the Divine and physical in the sameness of things. In the spiral of a sea shell and the spiral of a rose's petals, he would see divine order or law, proof that the world was part of a vast divine plan. The same speculator would perhaps see in the similar practices of "undeveloped" peoples, the same spiritual needs of mankind still in evidence, and would perhaps suggest a common spiritual and genetic ancestry link between the two peoples, though they were half a world apart and had many more differences than similarities. The "evolved" person has reduced his groups of similarities into small groups of sameness till he is left with "the one," and he is well within reach of the monotheism path of his choosing.
Reductionism is one of the greatest tools of monotheism, and in this time of the reemerging "pagan," it is amazing the number of people following the "all-is-one" tenant. It is with tragic irony that as hard as many of us have worked to get ourselves out of that great monotheistic tyrant, Christianity, many of us have worked our way spiritually around to a place not that very different or far from where we left. Certainly, much has been learned following the types of spiritual pursuits mentioned above, yet I can't help feeling that this type of spiritual seeker doesn't have all the pieces to the puzzle, and in fact ignores what doesn't fit into his or her preset patterns, or pushes such non-conforming information into the "local coloring" file of his studies. Perhaps, though, it is these variants which are really important. It is through the study of differences as well as similarities that we can learn to see and understand our world as it is rather than as we would like to see it (or not see it), and are closer to seeing the divine powers in action.
To simplify everything is not to feel much of the world, it is to shut down much of ourselves in the name of not mattering, or worse as not meaning anything, because we say it's "just the same as this." To say that one concept is just a smaller part of this "all-being" concept is just a fancy way of disregarding it, putting it up on the back shelf of ourselves. Monotheism, as reflected in the "all is-one" tenet, is a great way to escape the world as it really is. Polytheism, on the other hand, especially the type found in the North, is a spiritual system of facing the world as it is. It celebrates differences that are strengths. And it gives those of us drawn to its pantheon, a chance to complete ourselves through contemplation of and connection to its complex and plentiful archetypes.
This article copyright 1993 by Trudi James.
Web version copyright 1997 by Trudi James and Mountain Thunder.
This page maintained by bratwurst@vinland.org
Last modified on 31 Mar 1997.