July For Loki Using 30 Days Of Deity Devotion Prompts, Day 24 A Time When Loki Has Helped You

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 24 • A time when Loki has helped you

Last Winter, I fell ill. I came to a point when the illness really began to take its toll on my mind more than my body. It was driving me insane, making me think thoughts that I knew weren’t mine, but still worked their way through my brain. It felt like having the most unpleasant voice whispering in my ear day and night. I was weak from the illness, and such thoughts were slowly but successfully eroding my mind. Then came a night, when the most amazing orange, firey, lava-like light embraced me and exploded all around me, destroying or at least chasing away whatever evil was causing me all that suffering. I instantly knew it was Loki, though I was too weak to call upon him. He just came to my aid in a most desperate time, like a loving father would do for his daughter. That night, I finally slept soundly. Next morning, my healing really began to speed up. I have confused memories of those days, of course, but that moment is one I’ll never forget. What amazed me the most was how he intervened without a word of prayer on my behalf - my mind was too crushed to even think about that, and why would I bother my god with prayers when I’m ill, after all? Nonsense, I’m strong enough to face it on my own, there’s no need to disturb the gods for such silly things. That’s what I kept telling myself, not able to see the damage that illness was causing to my own mind - or maybe it was the illness that made me think so? Who knows. Anyway, that’s a striking time when Loki helped me.

Art by Schaudwen

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 20 • Art that reminds you of Loki

Very tough choice, as there is a lot of excellent art that reminds me of Loki, both dedicated to him or not. Among all the spectacular pieces out there, I chose this picture called Ginger Trickster by erebus-odora on DeviantArt for a particular reason. It’s the closest portrait of Loki as he appeared to me the first time he showed his face (at least that I can remember of), between 2011 and 2012. I was perfectly aware that it was him, though he chose Tom Hiddleston’s face. Yeah, yeah, silly fangirl projecting pagan fantasies on an actor, right? Wrong. Because when you’re in the presence of a deity, you can FEEL their energy, no matter what face they choose. Btw, later on I discovered, talking with other people too, that Loki does enjoy Tom’s portrayal of his MCU version, so I guess it’s no wonder that he chose a similar aspect to show up to me that night. And he had flowing red/cinnamon hair, bright yet dark green eyes, lips with scars from the accident with the Dwarves, just like this picture. So, of course my heart skips a beat everytime I see this wonderful piece of art. And I know there’s lots of prejudice, lots of people thinking that lokeans enjoying MCU Loki along with being devoted to the god Loki are just fakes, wannabes or whatever; this post is especially dedicated to them and to the people who were victims of such prejudice. If my experience is worth anything, and I hope it is (otherwise I don’t know why I’m writing this stuff out here), that’s just not true. Some people may daydream of having spiritual experiences when they’re just not, projecting their own fantasies into those unreal experiences, yes. But just because a deity shows up in a modern or even fancy aspect, it doesn’t mean the experience is faux. Each of us is the only one that knows which deity is talking to them, deep down inside we can feel it. And no one can tell others what is right or what is wrong, or how a deity should manifest or not. So, the moral of this post is, nevermind the bollocks. Which, incidentally, is a great lesson Loki loves to teach to his devotees.

Art: Ginger Trickster by erebus-odora on DeviantArt

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 22 • A quote, a poem, or piece of writing that you think Loki resonates strongly with

“There’s an old Earth saying… a phrase of great power and wisdom, and consolation to the soul in times of need… ALLONS-Y!”

Ok, where are my Whovians? Reveal yourselves!

Well, I’ve managed to write down serious stuff for most previous posts of this July for Loki, but today I wanted to lighten up a bit. Anyone familiar with Doctor Who and Loki will see how the Tenth Doctor channels major lokean energy - I mean, of course, it’s David Tennant playing him... Those not familiar with the character may wonder what the Helheimr I’m talking about, but read the above quote again and you’ll see it doesn’t really need context to be understood and put in relation to Loki. It’s perfect for him and it kinda sums up his approach to many matters, and something he seems to repeat to many of us time and time again: allons-y! Let’s go! Move your Áss!

Pic by BBC

THIS!

Friendly reminder that you are not obligated to worship the Gods as they were traditionally worshipped. Incorporating modern practices of ancient religions is just as valid. Remember that you can create a regime that caters to your schedule, health, and financial situation. They understand and appreciate the acknowledgment you are able to give.

July for Loki using 30 Days of Deity Devotion prompts, Day 17 • How does this deity relate to other gods and other pantheons?

As a multi-pantheon pagan, honoring deities from Nordic and Celtic tradition, I can say they go along well - in my case, at least. Same for Loki and other deities from the Nordic pantheon, at least the ones I happened to celebrate outside his own family. I know some had different experiences, but that's so personal I think there's no other way to find out than try.

One thing I'll say, though. Each of us that is called to serve the deities, is called to do so in different ways. From some of us, one specific deity could claim a special kind of devotion. That's my case with Loki - obviously. He never asked me to celebrate him and him alone, but in my case he can be pretty exacting in terms of time and energy - which is lovely of course, feeling him present and near! Even so, I manage to dedicate some time to my other deities too, whenever I feel called to do so, and it's never been a problem. On the contrary, Loki is curious by nature, and often encourages us to explore beyond what we know.

Art: It's a Shapeshifter Thing by slysilver42 on DeviantArt