July For Loki Using 30 Days Of Deity Devotion Prompts, Day 7 Names And Epithets

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 7 • Names and epithets

•Loptr: airy one or lofty one, from the Old Norse lopt (air, sky, or heavens). One of my favorite bynames for Loki, it underlines its bond to the element Air and I find it so fascinating!

•Gammleið: Vulture’s-Path, possibly a kenning for Air itself too, but even more intriguing when we think that Vulture is a scavenger animal, and Fire, Loki’s main element, is also a way to the Otherworld through the sacred ritual of cremation. So, is Loki a Death god too? In my experience, he totally is.

•Lóður: some see Lóður as a god on his own, but I agree with Dagulf Loptson’s analysis and think that’s another name of Loki. Lóður, with Óðinn and Hœnir, basically creates humanity: as they were walking together on a beach they came across two fallen trees, Askr (ash) and Embla (elm). Each god blessed them with a gift: Óðinn with önd (breath), Hœnir with óð (spirit or senses), Lóður with lá (blood?) and litu góða (good color). When Loki meets the Jötunn Þrymr, he calls him Lóður

•Vé: in Gylfaginning, Snorri replaces the names Hœnir and Lóður with the even more mysterious names Vili (will) and Vé (shrine). Assuming Lóður and Loki are the same, so should be Vé and Loki.

•Hveðrung, Roarer, probably a reference to his being a god of Fire.

•Inn Bundi Áss: The Bound God, referred to Loki’s punishment of being imprisoned and tied in a cave, waiting for Ragnarök.

•Frumkveða Flærðanna: Father of Lies, which is funny, because though Loki is of course cunning and smart, and more than capable of using lies to get out of trouble, his devotees know him for being, in fact, the god of truth. Harsh truths, too, but true all the same.

•Inn Slægi Áss: The Cunning God, what were we saying? Yes, he’s sly as a Fox, and brings the Æsir precious gifts thanks to this, not to mention how often he gets them out of trouble.

•Goða Dólgr: Enemy of Gods, one can’t blow the Nine Worlds to Helheim without being considered an enemy of these touchy Æsir.

•”Föðurbróður, vársinna ok sessa Óðins ok ása”, from Skáldskaparmál, Prose Edda: “brother, comrade, and table companion of Óðinn and the gods”. This pretty much explains itself.

Art: Loki as Gammleið by Dagulf Loptson

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 13 • What modern cultural issues are closest to Loki’s heart?

Many. 

Loki has a big heart. It burns with love for the oppressed, and with rage towards the oppressors. If you're a victim of injustice, whatever form of injustice, you can trust him for help. He's very protective of his devotees, and he understands the burden of being an outcast; an innocent blamed for something they didn't do; someone cruelly punished for following their own nature. He understands. And he stands with us. He fights by our side for our chains to be shattered, he does so from the beginning of time itself.

There are many things that just don't work in our society. Hate and discrimination still go strong. So if you're among the hated, know that you will always find comfort in him. Maybe you're part of the LGBTQ+ community and you struggle with people around you; maybe your skin, or your accent, or your life choices are different from your judging neighbours'; maybe you're a woman fighting for her body; maybe you're a man who doesn't wanna be like the society taught you to be; maybe you're a frightened child, hiding in a corner, calling for their Dad. Well. He's there. Call him by his name, and he will comfort you. And his love will heal the bruises of the hate. And his flame will burn the haters' hearts. Call him. We should all call him to teach us how to set ourselves free and help us destroy this sick nightmare that's dying around us, before it drags us down in its own grave.

Art: Loki by Run1and1hide

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 16 • How do you think this deity represents the values of their pantheon and cultural origins?

In the surviving myths, Loki plays the Trickster: smart, intelligent, funny, full of tricks (resources), not following any rule. Crossing all boundaries, breaking all rules, the Trickster is the one who destroys what is old and stagnant. Of course he is also a jokester and a prankster, given the right circumstances, but I wouldn't recommend taking him lightly. Tricksters are common around the world: just to mention a couple of Loki's colleagues, we find Anansi the Spider, Br'er Rabbit and Leuk Rabbit in West Africa (and therefore in the Caribbean due to the slave trade), Hermes in Greece, Coyote and Raven among Native American and First Nations mythologies… they have very much in common, though of course each has their own specific character. They're not one and the same, no more than two people with the same interests are one singular person. So, what does a Trickster like Loki tell about the cultures celebrating him? That these people knew the importance of Change, and knew Chaos is often needed to bring it forward. It is necessary to accept Chaos in our lives along with Order, in a difficult yet essential balance, the infinite cycle of Life, Death and Rebirth. Not only that: in his adventures, Loki often displays useful virtues, such as intelligence, shrewdness, diplomacy… these bring amazing gifts to the Æsir, and often get him out of trouble (or into trouble, but nevermind). I assume these qualities were considered as important as physical strength, and it’s no surprise. Loki, as most Tricksters, is also very well versed in seiðr and magic in general. This may be a bit controversial since in the infamous Lokasenna the practice seiðr is brought up basically as an insult, but let’s not stop at the surface. The great goddess Freyja is a mistress of witchcraft and seiðr, and is said to have taught it, or at least some of it, to none less than Óðinn. We know Loki masters the art, since he can shapeshift into basically anything he wants. It would be logical to assume seiðr, witchcraft, and whatever kind of magic, were probably not only accepted, but held in great consideration among Nordic people, since great two beloved divinities like Freyja and Óðinn practiced them. So, even though being well versed in magic is part of the Trickster's job, I'd dare to say this knowledge was probably very much respected in Loki too. So, does this answer today’s prompt? No. I found this question rather dull myself, so a rather dull answer seemed appropriate. 

Art: Loki by Bubaben on DeviantArt

Just

Look

At

Them

look at this gif…

Hello Faðir. 🔥

Behold…a Norse trickster god.

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 9 • Common mistakes about Loki

Countless. So here are just a few I've heard myself.

•He's evil, "the Norse Satan" (as if Satan was originally evil himself, but that's another story). False. No deity is good or evil, but I guess it's easier to separate rather than consider the whole of reality.

•He's the bad boy of Ásgarðr, rebel without a cause, always messing around. False. He definitely knows how to create Chaos, and enjoys it from time to time, but he mostly loves to travel the Nine Worlds and take good care of his family and his people.

•He's dangerous to "work with". May be true, it wholly depends on your attitude - but isn't that so for any spirit/entity/deity?

•He will destroy your life. False. He will destroy what needs to be burnt, only to let what really matters grow free. That may include a huge part of the false truths you built around and for yourself. but would you rather live in constant denial of who you are?

•He will lie to you. Absolutely false. He will tear you apart with the hardest truths you never had the courage to face, he'll guide you and show you how to deal with them, and you'll be finally free.

•His devotees are dangerous people. Well. If I may say so myself. Just joking! Us lokeans generally tend to be respectful and inclusive people. You can always find the occasional arsehole, as everywher; but maybe because most of us experienced hard times in our lives, we tend to be compassionate towards others. Of course, Loki also teaches us not to take bullshit from anyone, so if you consider growing tired of your unfairness being a bad person, then yes, a lokean would probably very bad for you.

Art: Loki is scheming the murder of Baldr by joan789 on DeviantArt