Irminism

Irminenschaft (or, Irminism)is the embodiment of the Germanic Heathen expression as it has survived and evolved over the slow turnings of ages- deeply rooted in the ancient customs of Germanen Heathen of old, it strives to continuously build and evolve its traditions according to both historical precedent and the inherent needs of its modern-day practitioners.

Gods and Goddesses

Irminenschaft is a polytheistic religion, recognizing a number of Gods and Goddesses, including (but not limited to):

Wodan [An Odin] Wodan (also known as Irmin-Wodan) is foremost of all Gods and King of Ensigart. He is a master of wisdoms and runes, and expert in all manner of magan-crafts. Wodan is a God of War and Lord of Walhalla, The Hall of the Slain in which his chosen heroes reside. He is master of Wode - that which constitutes the ‘greater’ or ‘higher passions’, governing heightened states of personal awareness and self such as agony, ecstasy, and rage.

Ziu [An Tyr] The God of the Sword is the firm keeper of oaths, a God of triuwa (faith, fidelity, loyalty) and the fastness of an unwavering and unrelenting trust. He is renown for his great wisdom, is unrivalled in his sense of duty and nerve, and as the old tales tell us, was the only God brave enough to dare to approach and bind the Wolf of Chaos -and unflinchingly sacrificed his right hand in so doing! Ziu is a God of war, most often equated with Mars in Latin chronicles . German of old Sacrificed to him (and Zisa, his wife) for victory in battle, yielding the first spoils, captives, and the weaponry taken in the conflict. In keeping with his patronage over armed conflict, we find his hand in the settings of Thing, ordeal and trial-by-combat.

Donar [An Thor] Throughout the ages, this son of Wodan (with Erda) and husband of Sibba has remained amoung the most popular of Gods. The extraordinary distribution of place-names attributed to Donar attest to his popularity -the frequency is second only to those named for Wodan. Unrivalled in strength, Donar is the embodiment of pure, raw might.

Ing Fro [An Frey] The Frouwa's twin brother is Lord of the Earth, and a God of fertility and prosperity. He is strongly associated to the Being and maintenance of fridu (frith) and the institution of Sacral Kingship -a characteristic he shares with Wodan. As the lore tells us, he was given Alpaheim -The Home of the Elves- as a gift for having gotten his first tooth, and so he presides over the Elves as their King. His wife is the bright and beautiful Giantess, Garta.

Friia/Frija [An Frigg] While Frouwa seems to enjoy the greatest popularity within preserved mythological sources, it is undoubtedly Frija who is highest of all Goddesses. Frija is the wife of Wodan and queen of Ensigart (An Asgard). She knows all Urlag and what is to come, though never speaks of those dooms and wisdoms. Amoung the folk, Frija is known as a Matron of good, strong marriage, childbirth and child rearing, as well as the various necessary crafts of the home- spinning is especially attributed to her care, and the distaff / spindle are long-held symbols of the beloved Goddess from Heathen times.

Sibba [An Sif] Sibba is the wife of Donar and mother of Wuldar. Sibba’s name [based on Old High German sibba (also sippa)] is cognate to the Gothic sibja -both OHG and Go. Forms indicate a relation by blood, kindred and peace; from the OHG root comes MiHG and MoHG Sippe- kindred, blood-relation, clan. As Donar wards and supports society, Sibba is responsible for the kindred or clans (OHG sippâ; MoHG Sippen) within that society - she ensures their prosperity and well-being, gifting them with a true realization of frith: the peace, comfort and security which lies at the root of each -a firm foundation for the joy, strength, and furtherance which can only come from a hale and prosperous sippa.

Walburga Frouwa [An Freya] Walburga Frouwa is Ing Fro’s twin sister, and most popular of all Goddesses among Heathen of eldritch times as well as today. In the Norse sources, Walburga Frouwa is named strictly by her title (Freya) as is her brother Ing Fro (Frey): Lady and Lord, respectively, and its from this association of name that Wicca’s ‘Lord and Lady’ is drawn. The Frouwa is infamous for her abilities at magan-craft and witching, and its of no surprise to find her as the patroness of witches, and the center of praise on Walburganaht (a long-standing witches’ holiday). Walburga Frouwa’s wain is drawn by cats, which are thought to be sacred to her -the popular image of a witch accompanied by a (black) cat originates from the association of the felines to the Goddess.

Zisa Scandinavian sources acknowledge a wife of Ziu, though she is nowhere named. Among the Germans, however, we find a Goddess (seemingly unfamiliar to their Norse cousins) known as Zisa (Lat Cizae), whose name is the feminine variant of the masculine Ziu. The Roman chronicle, Excerptum ex Gallica provides us with at least one place-name attributed to her, Cizarim and also preserves an interesting account of a human sacrifice offered to Zisa for victory in battle. In this, she shares attributes known of her husband (having patronage over battle and warfare), likewise receiving prisoners of war and some portion of the spoils won.

Links to More Information

Irminenschaft -The homepage of the Irminen-Gesellschaft.

Irminic Lore Study Page -A collection of informative articles on or told from and Irminic perspective.