The Great Misunderstanding - Asatru Versus Nazism
Written by: Jón Júlíus Filippusson
Translated by: Ulv Tore Skaar
I grew up in Iceland where the people live in close contact with nature and their
folkreligion, and this became a part of me also. The strength of the nature, the elves,
the trolls and other figures in the hills and the stones where just as real to me as
anything else. Odin and Thor was to me vigorious gods and protecters, and they were
also my forefathers who lived somewhere in the neighbourhood. The Icelandic sagas and
Snorri's Edda was my fairytales and childrens' books. Later on when I grew up to be
an adult, I decided to declare myself out of the statechurch and into the
Ásatrúarfélagið in Iceland. To me this was quite normal as it is for so many other
Icelanders, nobody thought there was anything wrong in doing that. This is because;
in the inner soul of the Icelandic population the old Æsir, elves and other beings,
are just as important as Jesus Christ. This was something I had to take care of. When
I moved to Norway some two years ago, I got a culture-shock. Nazism, racism and
satanism was something I had never experienced before in my home country. Extremists
had put my gods in disrepute and used my culture in order to legitimate their dreadful
intentions. Asatru had suddenly become something evil .......
In the begynning there was nothing besides the big emptiness of Ginnungagap, which lies
between the icy realm of Nifilheim in the north and the fiery realm of Muspellheim in
the south. There, where the warm and the cold did meet, the destructive jotun/troll
Ymir got created out of the melting ice. That's also how the cow Audhumla came into
being. Audhumla nourished herself by licking the ice and on the third day she had
licked a complete man out of the ice. That was Buri. He became father to Bor. Bor got
his three son's, Odin, Vili and Ve, with the jotun-woman Beistla. The three brothers
hated the destructive Ymir so much that they killed him and created the world out of
his body. That's how the creation came into being in the Norse mythologi which most
Asatruar will confess themselves to.
The first gods Odin, Vili and Ve could not tolerate the destructive Ymir in the same way
as many people today refuses to tolerate, and will distance themselves from nazism.
Asatru today is above all a religion, based on the old Scandinavian folktraditions and
their folkreligion. Politics has nothing to do with it. But what we does know about the
heathen times, is that the governing system was similar to modern democracy, where the
people did meet every year at the "Ting" (= convention). They did not talk like leftists
or rightwings at the ting, and the Scandinavian people where certanly far from
submissive at those times. To them freedom meant everyting. In Iceland they kept this
way of governing untill the 13th century without any big problems. A democratic anarchy
(one might say), independent from a "strong" leader, or any king (apart from a short
period where they paid tribute to the norwegian empire), there were further on no
emperor, no Mussolini nor any Adolf Hitler.
In the opposition to the Nazi and the Fascist ideology which is based on being
submissive to a diktator, the Asatru is based on an individual freedom within democratic
bounds. All individuals are responsible for themselves and their own doings regulated by
the laws. This is the main ideology of Asatru. That is how it was thousand years ago in
the heathen society. Nobody was above the laws, not even the king or other chieftains,
who like anyone else could be judged and punished according to the demand of the people.
Only with the influence of christianity power was taken away from the people and was
then transferred to a central diktatorship represented by the church and the christian
kings. Why the nazis then are inspired by heathen culture and Norse mythology is totally
incomprehensible. There is absolute nothing in the heathen culture or in the mythology
which is comparable with racism or the nazi ideology. The nazi ideology is at odds with
Asatru at all levels. The individualism which Asatru is based on, does not describe the
nazis. The nazis are like "sheep": dependent on a "stronger" leader. They doesn't have
any honour, which was (and still is) the most important property of the individual.
Asatru is a humane religion, where the Asatruar ascribe to them selves a certain moral
behaviour based on the old Havamal, Odin's sayings. Havamal teaches us, among other
things, worthy conduct, how one should behave reasonable, with justice, hospitality
and benevolence. There isn't very much of this one will find within the nazi ideology.
Or is there someone who think of a nazi as justice, or means that theirs task is
carried on with good-will and hospitality? It's quite clear that the nazis lack both
honesty and dignity to be compared to or to have anything in common with the Asatruar.
To the Asatruar Odin is god for knowledge, poetry and art. Nazism has nothing that
could be compered to this. Nazism is without culture and artificial possibilities.
Nazism despices art. This we did see when they burned books and intellectuals prior
to and during world war two. One should neither think that the neo-nazis are
especially engaged in poetry or anything else culturally. One thing is quite certain:
They have not learned anything from Havamal.
Since 1996 in Norway and since 1973 in Iceland, Asatru has been officially recognized
as a religion. Most Asatruar from these groups distance themselves from all types of
exstremism. This is documented by their laws, because this could never combine with
their view of life nor with their religion.
In 1994 the Icelandic Ásatrúarfélagið declared this: "The Asatruar wish to lift up
to dignity again the old customs and the cultural heritage. This they do without
expense to other religions, old or new, or to the cultural heritage of other people.
Fanaticism and hatred against others is not familiar to / holds no part with
Ásatrúarfélagið's ideology....." and further on: "The old customs is based on
tolerance, honesty, fidelity and respect for nature, and all life therein. The
main principle of the heathen custom is that every human being is responsible for
itself and its own doings...."
In 1996 the members of Åsatrufellesskapet Bifrost in Norway agreed on this:
"Åsatrufellesskapet Bifrost is a fellowship of åsatru-groups trying to create a
viable community for those who want to honour the old norse gods and keep the
heathen customs alive. Bifrost would like to promote the modern understanding of
the pre-christian northern traditions, art and culture in general. We want to
preserve our cultural heritage and keep it alive and updated through practice
based on the old sources, scientific research and new insights into the history,
the ethics, the myths and the Powers seen through modern heathen eyes. Bifrost
strongly oppose neo-nazic or satanist interpretations of the norse traditions as
well as any attempt to discriminate on racial, sexual or gender-based grounds."
The same attitude is shared by "Sveriges Asatrosamfund" in Sweden. Further on
The Grand Godhi of Gladsaxe Blotsguild in Denmark witten an interesting articlel
about nazism inside Asatru, where he describes nazism as one of the most
unNordic systems there ever was. The Nordic Asatru-associations do all have
their web-pages on the internet where one can visit if there still should exist
any doubts about this.
Jón Júlíus Filippusson and Ulv Tore Skaar are members of Åsatrufellesskapet
Bifrost in Norway. Jón Júlíus Filippusson is also a long standing member of
the Icelandic Ásatrúarfélagið.
E-mail: jonjf@online.no
