July For Loki Using 30 Days Of Deity Devotion Prompts, Day 11 Festivals, Days, And Times Sacred To Loki

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 11 • Festivals, days, and times sacred to Loki

To my knowledge, there are no historical traces of sacred days/times dedicated to Loki.

Some modern lokeans celebrate him especially during the month of July, as you can see. This is a recent tradition, dating back to the summer of 2012 and a blogging project by Galina Krasskova. July is not a casual month though, since it’s the month preceding/seeing the heliacal rising of Sirius (usually late July/early August). As we already saw, Sirius is known as Lokabrenna (“Loki’s burning”, “Loki’s Torch”), and it’s a star that has always been celebrated by ancient cultures, Nordic included. So, here’s a good reason to dedicate these hot days to our beloved firey Trickster. 

But that’s not all, as Loki loves to be celebrated throughout the years, and each devotee has their own special days/festivals dedicated to him. Many see Saturday as a good day to homage him. Saturday was known in Old Norse as Laugardagr, “bath day”. Some suggest that Laugardagr was named after Loki, an adaptation from Lóður, but there is no certain evidence of this. What we know for sure is that Laugardagr was replaced by the Latin “dies Saturni”, Satur(n’s)day. Many modern practitioners notice similarities between Saturn and Loki, so it kinda makes sense to dedicate the Saturday to him. I personally feel he enjoys this day as much as I do, so I try to celebrate him even more on Saturdays, but it’s not a rule - there are no rules when it comes to Loki.

Apart from this, in my practice (UPG) I noticed he loves the Winter and Summer Solstice, possibly because of their connection with the Sun, and therefore with the Fire, but what I felt both times was so personal, I won’t share it here. Last year I also felt him very active around Samhain, of course in his Vulture form. But then again, I always feel him near, so I might not be the best one to talk about this specific topic.

Art: LOKABRENNA II by ErgiGoat on DeviantArt

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 18 • How does Loki stand in terms of gender and sexuality? (Historical and/or UPG)

“A heart ate Loki,-- | in the embers it lay,

And half-cooked found he | the woman's heart;--

With child from the woman | Lopt soon was,

And thence among men | came the monsters all.”*

{{*Hyndluljóð (The Poem of Hyndla), Poetic Edda}}

Loki is famous for being a shapeshifter, and shifting through genders is one of his abilities for sure. In the myths he is usually described as male, and a very handsome one too, but there are a few exceptions. In Þrymskviða (“The Lay of Thrym”), Thor and Loki pretend to be Freyja and her handmaiden to get Mjölnir back from Jötunn king Thrym. Thor is in disguise and keeps his pronouns, but for Loki the text uses female pronouns when in disguise, which suggests a slightly deeper transformation on his (her) behalf. Another famous example you might be familiar with: in Gylfaginning (“The Beguiling of Gylfi”), Loki turns himself into a mare to lure the stallion Svaðilfœri away from his work. They run away together, and when Loki returns to Ásgarðr he is pregnant with Sleipnir, the eight-legged horse destined to become Óðinn’s steed. Speaking of Óðinn, it’s good ol’ Grímnir himself to reveal, in the Lokasenna, that Loki spent 8 years in a cave as a milkmaid tending cows, and there gave birth to a number of children while in female form. Curiously enough, Loki reminds Óðinn that he spent quite some time among men “in witch’s guise” as well. So you see, even the mighty Óðinn is not strictly male, according to such myths. What does it tell us? That these two are blood brothers for a reason, just for a start. Then, it gives us lots of food for thought.

Last but not least, the one that for me is among the most fascinating episodes in all of Norse mythology. In the above mentioned Hyndluljóð, Loki eats the heart of a woman and then gives birth to monstrous children. As the story goes, an evil woman (a “witch”) had been burnt (three times?) by the Æsir. Is she Gullveig? Is Gullveig Angrboða? Not the place to discuss this. What matters here is, her heart survived, half-burnt. Loki finds it and eats it - but why? Is it a metaphor of the crematory Fire? Maybe there is a deeper reason in the fact that the heart was considered the home of the principle of life and of the soul itself, so by eating the woman’s heart Loki was probably able to absorb her female magic and wisdom… So much so that he then gives birth to children, monstrous ones of course - much like their siblings born from him and Angrboða. Or maybe, just maybe, such monstrous children are a metaphor for magical powers and actions that were believed to be evil as the tales were being written down later in time? Who knows… who knows… 

In my personal experience, Loki remains mainly male. I call him Faðir (father), and refer to him with male pronouns, but as you can see using female or neutral ones is not wrong at all. 

I’m sorry there’s not enough space here to discuss these themes in a more elaborate ways, there would be plenty to say, but I hope I gave you some interesting hints to think about.

Art: The God of Mischief by NickRoblesArt

Or maybe you'll cry your eyes out.

Or maybe both.

why don't you listen to simon and garfunkel and maybe you'll calm down

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 10 • Offerings – historical and UPG

Only historical offering that I know of is from Telemark, Norway, where people used to throw the skin from boiled milk into the hearth fire as a sacrifice to Lokje (source: Dagulf Loptson, Playing with Fire).

In my personal experience, Loki enjoys lots of different offerings on his altar, and not only that! 

Friendly reminder: of course this post is not meant to be all-comprehensive, nor valid for every devotee! The best way to find out what he likes from you, is giving him offers yourself and listen.

UPG appreciated offerings from my practice: lava rocks; sulphur; obsidian, carnelian, fire opal/agate and dark/firey crystals in general; dandelions; Fox/Snake/Hawk/Spider-related "things" (jewels, bones, fur, skin, feathers…); horns/antlers; cinnamon; coffee; whiskey; rhum; candles; tobacco; sweets; chili pepper; smoked salmon; raw meat; phallic shaped stuff (anything does); red, orange, black, green things; music.

There are many other ways to make offerings to him though, in everyday life!

Easy example, don't kill spiders/flies/critters around our home, free them. Consider making a donation (or some volunteering) to a local animal shelter housing animals related to him. Help those in need, especially children and women. Help people having a hard time, even by "just" acknowledging their feelings and listening to them. Always be true to yourself, the best and possibly most difficult offering you can give Loki.

Pic by fistina-marina

Just

Look

At

Them

look at this gif…

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 6 • Other related deities and entities associated with this deity.

Besides his family (see previous post of this for reference), Loki interacts with pretty much the whole of the Nine Worlds. You can easily find more in any mythology book, I’d rather tell you my own personal experience. Remember, this is my perception and you’re not asked to agree with it, just be respectful, as usual.

Loki’s tied to Jötunheimr, a realm he visits often. There he meets various locals, like Skrýmir, or Þjazi, whom he kills. The killing of the latter leads to a bit of trouble with Þjazi’s lovely daughter Skaði, but that’s another couple of stories. He also appears to enjoy visiting Svartálfaheimr, and seems to love the beautiful creations of the Dwarves, though sometimes this leads to a bit of trouble. No surprise here. Lord Surtr, king of Múspellheimr, is an important figure in Loki’s story: his realm keeps the ship Naglfar, the ship Loki will steer at Ragnarök. Coming to Æsir and Vanir, Thor is definitely worth mentioning among Loki’s friends. Loki and Thor live marvelous adventures together and go along easily. Given Loki’s tie with lightning and Thor’s bond with thunder, their friendship is also kinda symbolic of the natural elements they’re related to. Freyja is someone whose company I feel Loki enjoys, reciprocated. They’re both masters of magic and seiðr, sometimes share her feathered cloak, and I think they’re good friends. Óðinn, well. Loki and Óðinn go way back to the beginning of time, when they used to roam the Nine Worlds with Hœnir. They're blood brothers, yet some feel Loki and Óðinn can’t possibly get along. I respect this opinion, but that’s not what Loki’s shown me. Total UPG here, but my senses (and Loki) tell me that though they have no doubt a complicated relationship, the bond is very much there, both ways. It’s just something a bit beyond our understanding.

Art: Brothers' Oaths by Hellanim on DeviantArt