The Bear in Sami and Old Norse Religion

[@Kai_kmk]

Thank you for interesting video. In Finnish language there are over 1000 nicknames for bear. Bear was respected spirit and deity. The real name of it was not allowed to speak out loud. Bear hunting was a sacred ritual. When a bear was killed a feast (Karhunpeijaiset) for the bear was held. The skull of the bear was set to a best place on the table. Poems were sang to it asking forgiveness for the hunters and to make sure that the would reincarnate back to the forest. After the feast bear's skull was lifted up to a breath tree closer to it's original home.

[@colinm2056]

Very interesting!

[@padraig88]

Can you please list a few of those nicknames?

[@Kai_kmk]

@@padraig88 Sure, here's few of them: Tapio, Metsän kuningas, Metsävanhus, Metsän ukko, Ukko, Metävoari, Mettänäijä, Äijä, Vanha, Vanhamies, Mies, Aikamies, Metsänmies, Kultaherra, Aika Poika, Nalle, Nallepoika, Nalli, Tapiotar, Nokinen neiti, Neitoseni, Kaunoinen, Kaunoseni, Hän, Itse, Se, Matti, Maurihinen, Suuripää, Leilipää mies, Kiirasilmä, Halliparta, Harvahammas, Kultahammas, Hallavanahka, Pitkävilla, Karvahousu, Vihtahousu, Kultarinta, Musta Rinta, Rusko, Karvajalka, Suuri Jalka, Kärmenjalka, Jalkakyntylä, Mesikämmen, Mesikäpälä, Mezikäpälä, Mesiloappa, Kämmen imijä, Kultakämmen, Leviä kämmen, Käpälä, Kynnet, Isommainen, Isompi, Kusiaistennuolija, Musta mulkku, Luukyrpä, Kontio, Kondio, Kontian, Kontiainen, Kondii, Kontii, Kouko, Kouvo, Koltso, Kuntsa, Autuas, Hyvä, Hopii, Kulta, Källervöinen, Källeröinen, Käretyinen, Kääröseni, Könninkäinen, Köntiäinen, Kirmijäini, Lallokki, Lullamoinen, Misko, Mömmö, Mönni, Mönningäinen, Menninkäinen, Möntti, Mönttö, Mörkö, Mörri, Mössi, Mössikkä, Mötti, Mött, Pöppö, Putkitar, Sykkö, Töötötöö, Metsä, Mehtä, Mettä, Iso Metsä, Isoomettä, Metsähinen, Metsäläinen, Metällinen, Metsänpekko, Metän elukka, Metsän otus, Metsähippa, Metsän hevonen, Metsän hiisi, Metsän härkä, Metsän kirjava, Metsän lieko, Metän mälvi, Metsän omena, Metsän onni, Puhdas Metsä, Puhas Elävä, Metsän väri, Metsänmörkkö, Metsänmyyrtäjä, Metsänpitäjä, Metsänvieri, Metsän kissa, Eläin, Härköinen, Hurta, Koira, Rakki, Lintunen, Iso Kurki, Kurki, Uuhi, Uuho, Otso, Otsonen, Ohto, Otto, Ohtonen, Ohtoseni, Osmo, Otava, Paha, Paha karsi, Pataryssä, Peto, Vihasesi, Lehmän syöjä, Lehmänpelko, Maan kavala, Metänpeto, Ryökämöinen, Pöykäre, Pöykär, Riista, Saalis, Sualis, Erä, Metsän vilja, Jumalan vilja, Vilja.

[@padraig88]

@@Kai_kmk Impressive! Especially that they are so different from each other linguistically. Thanks Kai!

[@2scrimble9]

@@Kai_kmk En kyllä lähtis 100% varmuudella väittämään että noilla kaikilla tarkoitetaan karhua...

[@Kwodlibet]

Thank you Arith! Btw, a Russian friend gave me 3 simple tips that may be useful to you, or your viewers, if you ever happen to be in any area with significant bear population: 1. Attach tiny bells to your clothing! - Their sound warns nearby bears that you are approaching and they won't startle and charge. 2. Carry a can of Pepper Spray with you at all times! - In the unlikely event that a bear does charge you, spray it towards the animal as their noses are very sensitive. 3. Inspect bear droppings to know what kinds of bears are nearby! - Bear droppings are easy to recognize as they often contain tiny bells and smell strongly of pepper. Hope that helps ;)

[@megalopagus777]

Lmao. 😂

[@fellipecarvalho1479]

Good joke 😂

[@catnotpat3693]

Thanks for the tip! I thought all I had to do was yell “Hey bear” repeatedly. Would garlic spray be better, or simply make me more tasty?

[@air9221]

I'm Chinese. I've never been abroad. But in the summer of 2018, someone suddenly taught me runes in my dream, and from that moment, my life changed forever. I've been watching your videos these days, and fortunately, I'm really starting to learn the old stuff with a new identity. Maybe I used to be a shaman and I had a man's body and a woman's soul,or I could be an Seiðr. And I came here as a foreigner to learn about Norse shaman and runes, and I was a totally embarrassed existence, and I really felt the pressure. Thank you for your teaching and sharing.

[@air9221]

I felt as if I had broken all the taboos : (

[@air9221]

If it hadn't been for that dream, I might still not know what runes are, and I live in an environment completely devoid of any information about the original Nordic beliefs.

[@tordlindgren2123]

In that case you might want to watch out for ash trees in your dreams. (It's the kind of tree the tree of life was supposed to be). Also there's a story about how Odin retrieved the runes from the void that you might enjoy reading. You can find translations on google

[@deedeewimley]

i had a similar experience! I wasn't being taught runes.. but i was shown by a being who called herself the REINDEER mother.. we were in the cosmos and she pointed out the reindeer constellation to me.. and it was flashing in christmas colors.. and she told me this was conencted to shamans in her tradition.. she told me she was SAMI.. i shortly started dreaming about polar bears as well! and a very interesting blue and silver robe for ceremonies.. dreams are quite interesting in connecting us all around the world :)

[@KristenKras]

Bear came to me years ago in a dream beckoning me to follow Her, She was calling me to motherhood. I had to step forward and leave behind my old ways. Sad but yet rewarding. She is in my ancestry, I also have Finnish and Scandinavian DNA as well as Celtic, I didn't know until recent years. I am also drawn to Wolf and Raven/Crow. I am a sort of outsider, I have a child with autism, he is similar. Sad but humans can really be cruel and unaccepting.

[@Westmannia]

"Peijaiset (in dialectal forms peijahaiset, peijaat or peijaajaiset) is a Finnish concept, dating to pre-Christian times, denoting a memorial feast that was held in the honour of a slain animal, particularly the bear, the animal most sacred to ancient Finns. In modern-day usage, it often refers to the celebrations following a successful elk hunt or a feast at the end of a hunting season. It may also be used in a figurative sense, denoting any memorial held for things that have come to an end ("peijaiset" over e.g. bankrupt companies). Traditionally, it referred to wakes for humans and animals, but also other celebrations, depending on the region in question. Karhunpeijaiset are a celebration held for the soul of a bear after a bear hunt. Traditionally, a bear was never "hunted"; it was merely brought down. A single man could claim to have hunted and killed a bear, but when the entire community was involved, the bear was simply said to have died. The bear's spirit had to be told that it had simply fallen into a pit or that it had otherwise killed itself by accident, not by the hunters: this was done to appease the bear's spirit so that it would not be offended and possibly enact some kind of revenge upon the hunters. The ceremony was always a much more elaborate affair than what the most influential member of the community would have merited. In eastern Finland it would have copious mourners and wailers, and the people would address the bear as a relative, or the son of a god. Its flesh was not eaten - that would have been cannibalism - or, if it was, an elaborate show was made to symbolically render the meat into that of another animal, e.g. venison. The bear's head was usually mounted on the top of a young tree, or on a pike, so as to help the bear's spirit climb up into the stars, where it was believed bears' souls had come from. Carrion-eaters would then eat it, leaving only the skull, which would then become an object of veneration. A courtyard would also be cleared around the skull. Traditionally, only bears were honoured thus."

[@colinm2056]

Thank you! Is there a book or resource that you could recommend with this type of information?, i find it very interesting & would love to find out more.

[@Kai_kmk]

@@colinm2056 www.taivaannaula.org/in-english/ you'll find E-book on the Finnish tradition

[@mjtuomainen]

Lots of other smaller animals were highly respected in the culture having their ancestors praised as they were hunted. For example Käreitär is the foremother of the fox and Hillervo is the foremother of the otter. Even trees have their ancestors; Lemmes is the ancestor of Alder. All these ancestral beings were seen as spirits living in the forest and protecting their decendants so there had to be prayers made to them so the hunters could have their catch. "Kohussansa koiran kantoi, Suven muissa suolissahan, Penin alla pernohinsa..." This little part of a larger poem depicts how the mistress of Pohjola is the foremother of the wolf. If you can read finnish I highly recommend checking out the book Suomalainen Mytologia by Martti Haavio

[@walgekaaren1783]

In Estonia it would be called "Peied" as in the party or feast you hold after a loved one of your family dies, only close relatives/friends can attend. Because for many shamanic traditions, the bear was the great ancestor and family member of the tribe. And bear meet was also eaten, then you wanted its strength and blessing; why would you let something that precious rot away! It was a long time, I drawn intrest and studied it, so much of it has become fuzzy... Refreshing to rediscover that topic...

[@_thatkat]

This was the exact video I needed today, strength & health of the bear to you, Arith

[@dendlefiends]

The amount of time and effort put into these videos always amazes me. Thank you, Arith, once again for your hard work and dedication, it is surely appreciated.

[@lyndabruce8105]

I appreciate your courage and integrity in your research and analysis. This talk was another example. Thank you!

[@rosegoi360]

Speaking of praising Bears, Artio the bear Goddess in the celtic culture of the Le tene, if i'm not geographically wrong lol.

[@johnlomax2502]

I got so much out of this. Thank you for Illuminating our collective northern European memories. John Lomax

[@sppdallas]

I’ve been watching you for several years now, always loving the information that you present and the manner in which it is presented . I know it’s tricky when you start trying to endorse or recommend other artisans of the same genre. So I appreciate the trust factor when you do recommend something. Always great job

[@hawklord100]

For those who wish to investigate further and understand the wide appeal of Bear worship and veneration in ancient N. European cultures, there is a great book investigating this subject, called 'The secret land' by Paul Broadhurst and Robin Heath, the first chapters discuss and provide some very interesting proposals of Arthurian legend (the Bear) and landscape markings along with the associated astrology.

[@colinm2056]

Thanks, i was looking for something like that.

[@kalteisen6185]

Awesome video. I learned a lot on my morning commute to work just then!

[@siobhanmacdermott]

The Bear and the Maiden Fair...historically accurate!

[@siobhanmacdermott]

Oh gurl, he went there...*dying*

[@whatevahman]

I have to say, as far as religion and culture goes, what I like about the Sámi is the idea and apparent truth that life permeates everything, that all of it is sacred and we ought to revere it. Thank you for making this video Arith Härger. Secondly, I like your coat and beard.

[@teresafigueiredo]

Rethinking concepts is important, it must be part of the growth and evolution of mentalities, to save the Planet we must appeal to everyone's conscience, Well there Mr. Arith excellent video, excellent demonstration of concepts! Thanks. Health!

[@DavidLee-pp4bg]

Hope you are well .love the content take care so we can get more

[@torstenscott7571]

Thanks for the distinction between the Sammi and the Norse regarding bears. Personally, growing up in the Rockies, I've always seen the bear as the king of the forest.

[@cralixthegameking4408]

Some people would see tigars and bears as equally scary the difference is omnivores don't kill their prey before eating it carnivores generally do

[@torstenscott7571]

@@cralixthegameking4408 I certainly think that they are unique in how dangerous each species is. When I talk about bears of the Rockies, I specifically think of Grizzlies ( which I fear more than Tigers). Their temperament, size, speed, and raw power ( they can push down small trees and rip a horse's head off with ease ), not to mention resilience to damage makes them formidable in the wild. Louis and Clark documented many Grizzly encounters after being warned by various Native American tribes, it's a fun read.

[@wolfganggugelweith8760]

The king of the forest is the Sasquatch!

[@torstenscott7571]

@@wolfganggugelweith8760 lol, I imagined the sasquatch from the beef jerky commercials.

[@thewhiteboar3840]

In an Swedish book I read it said that you didn't become a Bärsärk. You was born as one. And some of the characteristics and behaviors described elsewhere it sounds like people with a type of "diagnosis". As we say nowadays. Some diagnosis would be a plus in those days. I have one of them. And something that I've seen in more place than one is that it was a type of "special force". I'm part Sami as well but have not studied it that much. But my grandmother told me about when they came and burned their drums "trolltrummor" the Christians called them. That was in the 1800s iirc. My oldest book is from 1895 that was passed down by relatives to me. Great video! Have ignited something again. I have been spirituality numb etc for a number of reasons.

[@roseyork2435]

I appreciate how much you focus on historical evidence and differentiate that from neo-pagan revivalism!

[@stevechappelle2453]

Thank you for the link to Ravengaard- their work is beautiful!

[@LordGrotesk]

Another excellent informational video, Professor! Thank you! 😺✌💪

[@jon-paultaylor]

Another good one , thanks for the vid.....👍

[@lukedanaher5359]

This was such an enjoyable, informative video about this noble beast's influence on these cultures. Thank you Arith.

[@ronakane9959]

Take care Arith as my mom would, "you have sick eyes", this was her way of saying your not sick yet but you will be soon, I greatly appreciate your candor and the high quality content of your channel. Be well. Best of everything to you and yours.

[@tarenmauga9582]

this is one of my most favorite vids of yours!!!

[@Lawrence_L.A._Auble]

Great video. I am learning so much about my ancestry the Saami people from you. Thank you.

[@mountaingoattaichi]

Fascinating and in-depth video!! One thing you should look into that may add more depth to this is the Chinese shamans had a religious dance called the Pace of Yu. During this “dance” the shaman performed, he wore a bearskin and shuffled like a bear in a spiral pattern towards the center and then added a pattern of the Big Dipper. If you could find out more and add it to your discussion of the bear.

[@TheYeti308]

Thank you for delveing into this subject .

[@wakinyanredwolf6949]

Thank you for the wonderful video. I will say that both the bear and wolf are sacred to me, but that's because of personal experiences and interactions with them while grieving the loss of my mother and dealing with trauma from wounds I received downrange and a post military life. I find it fascinating to see how the ancient cultures regarded both and I believe that your interpretation is quite accurate and makes sense from the Old Norse worldview. The facts don't make them less sacred to me in my personal relationship with them, but merely gives me another viewpoint from an ancient people's perspective. Thank you!

[@skiker6828]

I really enjoy your videos. I think you could do a relaxation/meditation/sleep for people to listen to. I enjoy watching the videos then line up a couple videos just so I can hear you ur voice. It is kind of nice. 👍

[@tuaylahten2295]

Norse bed time stories!

[@stewartthomas2642]

Love your stuff kick on love it

[@curtismiller437]

A Great lesson Thanks you for sharing. Got a kick out of your cough joke 😆 good one.

[@smallcryingchild9322]

ive been having so many dreams about bears, so im glad to hear some spiritually related things about the great animal

[@vergil8833]

The disollution with the bears in the viking period likely comes from the general christianization of the zeitgeist. People, even the pagans, were further away from animism than they had ever been. The survival of bear-transformations in both pre and post christian stories and folklore shows that it is at the very least a true concept of norse beliefs. Same goes for the transformation into other things like dragons aswell as half-creatures like fauns only with different animal combinations. That of course does not excuse any claims of grand cults venerating a single animal in the viking age.

[@marcrhodes-taylor5347]

please take care arith, i hope that the cough is just that, nothing more. another highly informative video. this has told me a lot. i am a bit of a film person, in that sense your explanation has clarified a few things for me. i was wondering why the bear in midsommar was so important. this is just a story of course not history, but with this information it makes a lot more sense. there is of course the thirteenth warrior, where bears play an important role. and then there is beorn in the lord of the rings; tolkien must have known something about bear lore.

[@alaskabornheathen8902]

Great video. This interpretation of Berserkir and Ulfhednar being criminals makes a bit of sense to me. Every year one of my favorite radio programs does an episode about Krampus. While talking about Krampus he also speaks a little about Mountain people in older times in Europe that wore the skins of bears and came down to attack villages. Maybe they wore Bear hides, but maybe like you said they were banished criminals that preyed upon innocent people in the harsher times of the year. Hope your cough isn’t anything serious. Take care sir.

[@mrbenn2209]

Could you do a video about Snakes in Norse culture please? Thank you!

[@teresafigueiredo]

he has already done, you can find in his KZbin channel!

[@teresafigueiredo]

Nidhogg & Jormungandr - The Old Gods

[@teresafigueiredo]

The Serpent of Paganism

[@SilverArtemis]

Thanks so much for making this. I dont know why I get such a chuckle considering the beast and criminal element with this in relation to my possible heritage... I'm realizing the bear must have, generally speaking , been feared and considered dangerous to have this association with the norse, meanwhile the Sami took it to a deeper place. A certain quality persists: untamed , non-discriminatory violent perception of natures rules....when applied to a human...nature can seem cruel...

[@y-vonnebruneau2044]

I loved this video! I need to watch it again, troubling times... But, am excited to hear you are doing a video on the berserkr and ulfhedinn! I am very interested in this. I do not know why. There are so many wild theories, I can not wait to hear from someone that I can trust! Be well, and thank you for your time!!

[@Fiachbuay1987]

Another great video! I am curious what you know about the Continental Celts such as the Gauls and Artio. Since she is the matriarch of the bear symbology in that culture.

[@arnareriksson5077]

Ah, sieidi.. We have a few of those around the village forest where i grew up in northern Sweden, I remember as a child my mother would tell of buried treasure and offerings underneath them but that spirits would take me if i ever tried disturbing them.. It can clearly be seen on at least two of the ones close to our farmstead that they have been ''bent'' out of the earth like someone would have buried something underneath the rocks.. If you ever pass through Mensträsk or ''the newborn reindeers lake''(in Sami it is called Mensijaure or something like that) I would gladly guide you to some cool things in around the old forest roads :) Also there is a rock nearby to these sieidi that has a small hole in it with a circle around it, perfectly shaped and the hole is by all means man made.. but i have no idea what it is and neither my mother who is an expert..

[@MariaVieira-kg2dk]

Your work is amazing! Is it possible that the videos return to subtitles in Portuguese or Spanish?

[@bottlesparks1024]

As an arctolator, this was a very informative video. Thank you!

[@kcmentpatty5718]

Soooooooo glad I came across this channel I’m new in learning about Norse paganism and all that intels great info and easy to fact check love the content

[@bethmyers7485]

Thanku so much for this Arith .. very informative

[@magalipearl7]

Truly informative, inspirational and fun, thank you!

[@dsala2614]

THANK YOU FOR "SAYING IT" ANOTHER GREAT VIDEO

[@EiriktheNordAndersen-ju4gl]

Samw

[@danyellerobinson5940]

For my Salish ancestors of the Interior Plateau, the bears were seen as two-legged brothers. To eat them was cannibalistic. Bears are seen as protectors.

[@annalisalundberg4561]

Fascinating video...but I must have missed when you explained the relationship between the bear and the god Freyr...if so, my mistake, if not, please explain a bit more!!! Third week of quarantine, no work for me, money are getting more than short, otherwise I would gladly be one of your patrons. I'm still counting on your channel to learn something new and exercise the grey matter that is said to reside between my ears 😁 please keep on doing your wonderful job, and let us learn your thoughts and hypothesis, since they are more accurate than the average new age gibbering certainsies. Ah, btw, love to learn something about Sami culture, they are the closest European people that still have an animistic view of the world, right? Tack så mycket!!

[@grim.darce.future]

Hello, thanks for this video. What is the name of the dynasty descended from the bear and young girl, mentioned around 11:30? I'd like to look more into that.

[@dentonstalesofthevikingage8945]

Excellent video, very interesting. I am always struck by the respect shown to animals by ancient peoples, very different to our modern attitude that so often cares nothing for them. The old peoples often were more 'civilized' than we are.

[@juggaloscrub365]

Hope you get well soon. Be safe out there Brother

[@elainemblakely282]

Greetings from the Texas Gulf Coast. Take care of yourself. Are you in an area affected by the COVID-19 outbreak?

[@SwampFeet678]

Im in east central Louisiana. Great to see other Americans that are still interested in the Old Ways!

[@gripp8572]

What was the significance of the bear in midsomer? I know u had a video on this subject as well

[@MrEnaric]

'Þrýmr satt a haugi/ Greyiom sínom gullbánd snöri...' : (Þrýmskvíða, stanza 6) '...'and spinning/twisting golden ropes for his (she) wolves'. This describes Þrýmr, lord of the þursar, sitting on a burial-mound, being surprised by Loki who visits him in Jótunheim. I consider Þrýmr to be the personification of death, a sort of Óðinn from another world. Óðinn's mirror image if you will. His mysterious practises on that burial-mound (twisting golden ropes for 'wolves' and trimming the manes of his 'mares', sound by the very activities he performs and the place where they are performed, like a sort of Seiðr ritual. The golden 'ropes' or 'bindings' as well as the setting indicate that he is not merely attending to his pets'. Could they be supernatural animals or indeed be human souls he fosters and fetters? Maybe it sounds far fetched (...) but could ulfhednar as viking ahe 'social outcasts', have connected themselves to Óðinn, Týr, Val-Freyja or even the likes of Þrýmr to secure a fitting place in the afterlife? No one, including themselves I reckon, would want theír fylgjur to go wandering about after death. Wouldn't a dedication to Óðinn e.g. then be a sacred or even cultic activity? So little is known about these 'outcasts' that it is not surprising, hardly anything is rendered to us from the past accept depictions on a 7th century helm-plate matrice, sword scabbards and even some rune stones (Price 2019). Maybe ulfhednar and berserkir wére cultic warriors but obscure and unpopular outside the service of a járl or king from the early viking age on. Depictions of wolf-men (warriors) are almost always pré viking. I think that once they might have been Wōdan-/Óðinnsworn warriors who lost their positions when petty kings lost their grounds to central ruling kings like Gorm and Harald Hárfagre. And they must have been rarities anyways. Losing their position made them slowly obsolete, deteriorating them to veterans, opportunists looking for war and booty. From initiated warriors with an ulf-húg turning into out of date classles 'guns for hire'. Without war, they had no place in (increasingly christian)society. They became a sort of hardcore 'Hells Angels'; moving within society, but leading a 'thug' life.

[@MrEnaric]

And about the she-wolves mentioned in Þrýmskvíða: going to another world, the world of the dead for example, was also moving in the 'contrary'. Where Óðinn is associated with stallions like Sleipnir (warriors rode stallions), the mares and she-wolves of the 'contrary Óðinn', Þrýmr, would have mares and she-wolves. Fylgjur after all, are female after all, even the toughest men had a 'female soul'.

[@netizencapet]

Rerefences to Ottar's chronicle and Egil's saga appreciated.

[@watcherofducks9866]

I agree that it is ignorant to make claims such as "practicing ancestral rites of the Berserker", and it is very ignorant to attempt to justify things that are just completely false. That mindset adds a very ridiculous toxicity to Paganism, many people who use the image of the "Berserker" are generally the ones who use the old ways to portray themselves as manly. I believe you mentioned in another video of people wanting to use the "Viking Society" as a claim to a "pure" and a "manly" society. Moving away from that topic... I think the plus side of Paganism is that you can practice however you want and this reflects to me because I personally hold the bear to be sacred, but I don't claim it is an ancient belief and part of my ancestors (I just find bears to be fascinating and symbolic). Anyway it was an amazing video and it would be cool if you did more videos about the Sami... And the Continental Germanic peoples.... Please?

[@TimZeTerrible]

No pun intended... Cheers to the passion flower. 🍻

[@MM-yl9gn]

And bear sex cult 🤣

As time goes on, I am glad im still trying to learn and distinguish between fantasy and history. This channel helped me a lot, and I will be waiting for nex videos about berserker rage, mushroom eating and berserkers themselves. If anyone got any good books about this topic, I will be glad for link.

[@sarahkelson8386]

We all have days like that. Nothing goes right.

[@markhansen6236]

I would like to know where you learned all of this. I want to do my own research about Norse paganism.

[@ArithHärger]

Bibliography at the end of the vídeo ;)

[@SigismundSonOfDorn]

I finally know how to pronounce the umlaut. I also know that theres no one way to pronounce it. One does not simply pronounce an umlaut, you could say. Edit: Beowulf, the bee wolf, the bear

[@daniellac.7588]

Doing a paper on the Great Heathen Army in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles. I'm trying to give a more appropriate portrait of Scandinavians who were present in England as other than Vikings. One of my points includes the notion of special elite warriors and berserkers, so I just wanted to thank you for the videos you uploaded for they will help a lot.

[@amanitamuscaria7500]

Poor bear. Beautiful creatures. Thanks Arith.

[@travellingwitch]

I love your wall hanging 😍😍

[@astrogypsy]

26:56. Special thumbs up.

[@fragranceofsound]

Thanks for calling it like it is as far as you can see.

[@missymoonwillow6545]

Bears and Lynx's enter my dreams all the time. Should I go rush out and eat their meat to fill myself up with their spirit? I primarily eat very little meat because it tends to make me feel angry and i move slower. My body just doesn't want to tolerate it like it once did. I don't think I could in good conscious ever eat a Bear after helping raise Brown Bears at a private zoo in Michigan either.... yeah. I think some rituals from the past should just stay there.

[@SigismundSonOfDorn]

I dream of people very often, but I doubt it means I should go and eat them haha.

[@DevonExplorer]

It might be interesting for you to look up the symbolism of bear and lynx as animal spirit guides or totems. Sometimes our subconscious selves can be trying to tell us something through symbolism. It might not be connected to spirit guides but you might find it useful anyway. Just a thought. :)

[@BaltimoresBerzerker]

Would you have a use for drawings inspired by indo European pagan themes? I want to share them but I'm not tech savvy. I don't want money, just acknowledgment it's my art. Or do you know where I could share?

[@CarlosSanchez-my7zg]

I love all artisans. So share away!

[@jimbrennan5252]

Hey Arith, does a lot of excavation/ archaeology occur away from known large centres? The rural folk are fascinating to me and how far their beliefs can appear from the noble narrative. Great vid mate. Better than bog butter😉

[@LaValkyRican]

Thank you always. 🥰🤗🍻

[@JVStorck]

is there any source you recomend to one who wants to learn Binderunen?

[@Janellabelle]

Aw :( clicked on Ravengaard's Etsy shop and they only have 1 item for sale. The Freyr pendant.

[@Dale_The_Space_Wizard]

Could you talk more about the lion replacing the bear as the king of the beasts please? This seems like it would be interesting to learn about.

[@johickey3158]

hello Arith GRRRRrr (i am bearing with you)

[@rawumber2098]

grizzly bear came to visit a few years ago, i was naked at the time and expected the neighbor dog i hiked with, it was a mature female grizzly within petting distance, i felt no fear...rather i wanted to reach out and pet it...but reconsidered...fun times

[@jackietripp1716]

love that tapestry

[@norseruna]

Please do a video on berserkers, as I'm really into totemism and fylgjas and that will be interesting. On a different(ish) note the criminal aspect does make sense... Kinda like the (very unpopular opinion) Frence Foreign Legion.

[@rawumber2098]

Many thank yous for this information. 3 times i have been struck in the head and blacked out, only to find from those around me what happened...in each case i was reacting to the blow, once lifted a larger person over my head turned 3 times and threw threw out a 2nd story window, once being held back by 6 people preventing me from attacking who made the blow, once totally destroying my own bedroom computer and everything...following ancestry to find out why..sami roots from hemnesnoya near mo i rana on paternal side, ireland, scotland, and normandy on maternal, nordic influence in all locations..i was thinking berserker before i watched this video...thank you for sparing me that..being a pacifist by nature...feel more like a herring choker than a berserker...

[@TheCovertsEnabler]

I'm super late, but there was a man in his 60's found near a stream in Tussoy, Tromso Norway in 1933 , buried with a sword in one hand, an axe in the other, and bear claws and bones. Its from between the 8-9th century. According to 23andMe I'm related to that guy, I came here looking for some info on bear claws in burials. It also said he likely came from a more forested area before moving to the coastal area he was buried in. Your very last comment, that i just got to lol, makes me wonder if it was a Germanic origin and he migrated to Tromso. Maybe the answer is in one of your other videos! 😊

[@JCResDoc94]

*Φ a fine entry*

[@BadgerFireMoon]

So what do you call it when you go out for a hunt take hallucinogens given to you by a shaman in ritual enter into this mindset of a wolf or bear while wearing skins to go out for a hunt what do you call that

[@justinwest2668]

How old are those drum skins? Why is there a depiction of a helicopter and snowmobile?

[@sarahkelson8386]

I always thought berserker was what the people who feared these warriors used, not what they called themselves. As a descendant I realize I can go a little wild when pushed too far. Never thought I was a bear or a wolf.

[@nerthus4685]

Now I can see where Tolkien derived his inspiration for Beorn.

[@LeviathanSpeaks1469]

Artio (Big Dipper) and Artaios (Little Dipper)=Frigg and Baldr

[@karlkuttup]

most armies used criminals and murders as the first line attacks the ww2 did it the romans ect so why not the norse makes sense

[@jaysonparkhurst7422]

@0:02 I am well, thank you.

[@darlebalfoort8705]

I would suspect that the Germanic folktales such as Bearskin might reflect some of these earlier beliefs.

[@0371998]

Some wiki source have a calcul that same neandertal had his cult for the bears. They liked them.

[@wanabyastick]

An outcast or criminal would fight with a great deal of feirceness to rejoin his group or family here or to be greeted with honor after death. Might be an explanation of why they fought so hard.

[@BartzAJohnsonJr]

My friend, look at my first name. Also notice I am a Jr. Bartz Sr was born to Albert Johnson and Doris Bartz and she came from Fred & Freda Bartz. Dad and I got our first name as grandma was the only child with no one to carry on the name. Etymologies vary on the origins, but you can easily see why your topic would grab my attention. Before last year, they only knowledge I had of the Sami was from glamorous documentary features as part of a larger narrative. Beautiful specimens of reindeer and their herders were trotted out for the camera. That was it, stereotyped physical features and affinity for reindeer. Then there was a drama/horror series produced by one of the BBCs along with Icelandic partners set on some wind blown island the Vikings once turned their noses up to. Now Arith, you would probably expect a Sami shaman to show up for dramatic and exotic flavor. But I did not, And while he committed an act of heroism, he was no good guy, very self serving. But no matter his hedonism, he was still driven by a higher purpose, which felt inherited, if not fully revered. His drive was very visceral, out of his hands. Let me add that he was portrayed by an actor I came to appreciate in Netflix’s Umbrella Academy. So there’s a bias. I did not fall in love with the romance of his life or even into morbid fascination with his darker side. I was simply triggered. I am not trying to borrow glory from vague histories, but I do enjoy folks shedding light and a lot of it has to do with my spiritual journey. But you cracked me up with debunking the bear and wolf cults. I don’t seek to practice old rituals, but I do hope to learn from them. I even find value in examining the mythologies that are 100% debunked. Stories from Grimm persist for reasons. It was this character that had me look inside and realize I am a shaman. Now, we can do the whole origin thing and say Shamans are only east of Scandinavia, what am I talking about in East Texas? I make no claims on the deeper meanings of the word and humbly submit that I am one who seeks to heal others, to test the bounds of knowledge, and to recognize deeper, spiritual meanings in mythos. I don’t even need my name involved. With all the German heritage mentioned in my family tree, I don’t really know where or when they originated from Germany itself and where their ancestors came from. I don’t know if I came from Sami stock that assimilated in Germany or if I have Norse thrown in there, heavily or not at all. I don’t know any of those bloodlines. If I go back on all lineages, I expect to amount to a European mutt. That’s what granddaddy called himself. I don’t care. But I do FEEL an affinity for Scandinavian forests and critters. And that Affinity also reache back into Tuskegan senses as well, MAYBE supporting my shamanic feelings. I have to sift through so much new age stuff and some of it gets sticky. That’s why I seek out nerds like you, because the nerd in me wants to hear all he can. I trust myself to go by contextual feel rather than to follow the dogmatic tales of a monk with a flair for history. You are pretty academic in your research and presentation, but know that you still serve my spiritual questing. Yeah, I liked and subscribed after watching just one of your videos. Thank you for earnestly sharing your work.

[@MrBlazingup420]

I was born in the bear state of California where I was shown the Big Dipper for the first time didn't know it was part of the Great Bear Ursa Major until I started studying the Stars. Funny thing is I don't know of any bear with a long tail but if you take a look at an ancient Babylonian Starmap you'll see it is a wolf riding a plow next to the Big Dipper, the Arabic saw the paws of the Great Bear as the three leaps of the gazelle somewhat of a reindeer the paws of the Great Bear are called Alula, Tania and Talitha, a little means first born or the thumb on a bird wing, Tania is the name of the fairy queen in Talladega is the magic word used by Jesus to wake the dead daughter of the king. Southeast of Bakersfield is Bear Mountain Christmas morning the sun rises off the top of that mountain, 12 noon that day you'll find Ursa Major standing on the northwest Horizon with that star Talitha. The hour and minute of my birth it is the star of Lula that is midheaven, it takes three trimesters to create a child 13 weeks times 3, go back 39 weeks using the hour and minute of my birth you find Talitha on the northwest Horizon oh, I moved almost a thousand miles away and now at the hour and minute of my birth it is Tania that is midheaven. The seven main stars of Ursa Major was seen by the Hindus as the seven Rishi saved by Manu and his Magic Fish. On an ancient Babylonian star map it is a wolf riding a plow next to the Big Dipper, maybe why the bear has a long tail, in astronomy Ursa major spins towards Sagittarius, next to Sagittarius is ophiuchus it's seven main stars form the shape of a cave door in ancient times ophiuchus was seen as a mountain. The goddess of the mountain was uraeus the sacred standing serpent oh, this is the location of the golden gates of the Gods, one leg of ophiuchus stand on the heart of the Scorpion the other is coming out of the center of our galaxy, only showing part of his right leg, that broken leg bone in the story he told. My name is Weylyn means son of the Wolf, the Big Dipper is somewhat of a cup, my mother's maiden name is Cupps

[@Lucky-nt7mg]

Thank you. :)

[@samimiettinen5539]

Damn it, I was expecting dice =) I love dice for some reason

[@wolfganggugelweith8760]

What’s about Bigfoot there?

[@brandon15808]

There are similarities with the first peoples of North America. The Nishnawbe people. We have a bear clan. The bear clan are the protectors of the people and medicine people. The magic is till real and exists today. Your people have forgotten it. Some are bear walked and turned into a bear shot then transformed back into a human form. The bear is medicine as its fat and meat can heal.

[@kafir2023]

Artaois, The Forgotten Shaman: Rediscovering the Celtic Tribal Bear God (Celtic Mythology Explained) kzbin.info/www/bejne/hJzFgKlsfbt7h5I

[@ericstone7607]

awesome

[@markwardle8772]

Constellations depiction of A man holding a SICLE = Bootes plus a man holding a Hammer (club) = Hercules are depicted on the Russian Flag