Lewis Stead

The Ravenbook

toast the 9 virtues to the new member in the hope that they will apply

them to their life.

The Odinic Rite lists the 9 Noble Virtues as Courage, Truth, Honor,

Fidelity, Discipline, Hospitality, Industriousness, Self-Reliance, and

Perseverance.

It would be hard to get much argument on any of these values from

anyone. They simply and briefly encapsulate the broad wisdom of our

Gods and ancestors.

Courage

In virtually every statement of values applied to Asatru, Courage is

listed first. As Stephen McNallen has said, courage and bravery are

perhaps the values which the Vikings are best known for. However,

despite our history, few of us face such turmoil as a literal battle

for ones life. In fact, I believe it might be easier to manifest

courage in such a situation than to do so in the many smaller day to

day occurrences in which courage is called for.

The most common of these occurrences for modern Pagans, is the courage

to acknowledge and live ones beliefs. It is also, sadly, the one that

we most often fail at. While we may often be full of the type of

courage that would lead us to face a shield wall, many of us quake at

the thought of the topic of religion coming up at the office or a

friend asking what church we attend. We wont offer easy answers, but

we ask this: if you toast the courage of your ancestors to fight and

die for what they believed in, can you trade away your religious

identity for a higher salary or social acceptance?

In an essay on values there is also the question of moral courage. The

way of Tyr is difficult--to lose ones hand for ones beliefs--but, Tyr

thought the price worth paying. In a million ways modern society

challenges our values, not just as Asatruar who are estranged from

mainstream religious practice, but for religious people in an

increasingly not just secular, but anti-religious culture. Values are

also not in favor in modern society. Breaking or getting around the

rules is encouraged to get ahead. Living honorably is simply too

inconvenient. I think most people, Asatru or otherwise, find this

repugnant, but the only way to change it is to have the courage to

refuse to take part in it.

Truth

The second virtue, that of Truth, is the one that most led our kindred

to embrace the Odinic Rites statement of values as our own. Early in

our discussions, we decided that no matter what values we chose to

hold out as our own, truth must be among them. It is a word that

holds so much in its definition, and includes such a wide variety of

moral and philosophical beliefs that we were all drawn to it as a

simple statement of what we stood for.

At least one of the reasons we wanted to adopt it was the simple issue

of honesty. As Bill Dwinnels said at a recent sumbel while toasting

truth and honesty: if you dont want people to know about something,

dont do it. Truth, in the sense of honesty, is essential to personal

honor and also to any system or morality that is not based on rigid

legalism. If one is to uphold an honor code, one must be brutally

honest with oneself and with others.

Truth is also the Truth that comes with a capital T--the kind of Truth

that one talks about in terms of religion or morality. Its common to

talk of different peoples having different truths, but its equally

important to remember that while we acknowledge that each person or

people has their own belief as to what Truth is or where to find it,

there finally is a single Truth. This is not the Truth as we believe

it, but ultimate Truth. While we may respect other peoples truths

and seek our own, we must never forget our search for The Truth. Like

the Holy Grail of Christian legend, it may never be ours to reach, but

when we cease to search we perish.

Honor

Honor is the basis for the entire Asatru moral rationale. If anything

comes out in the Eddas and Sagas it is that without honor we are

nothing. We remember two types of peoples from ancient times: those

whose honor was so clean that they shine as examples to us and those

who were so without honor that their names are cursed a thousand years

after they lived. Good Asatruar should always strive to be among the

former.

However, honor is not mere reputation. Honor is an internal force