Tangled Up In Frith
by Ivy
I have
the luxury of interacting with my Gods in multiple paradigms, including Blue
Star, Ásatrú, drum-and-dance fires, Vodou fêtes, and eclectic and experimental
ventures like the Grove of American Gods. I worship and witchcraft with a
variety of pagans with differing interests, experiences, and mythological
"home turf". And in the midst of that, there's something
I've noticed over the years: I have frequently found myself very uncomfortable
with the willingness of some Neo-Pagans of varying flavors to call or invoke
Loki, the Trickster, the Strife-bringer, in rites, or really to work with Him
at all. As a witch with strong Norse leanings, devoted to Sif, the wife of
Thor, my hackles rise.
Some
context: in Skáldskaparmál, in the Prose Edda, we're told the story of Sif's
defining physical attribute: her beautiful hair. Loki cuts it all off while Sif
sleeps, shaming Her. Thor threatens Loki within an inch of His life, and
Loki promises to fix it, by having made hair wrought of gold for Sif, which
takes root and grows like the locks He'd cut off. This exchange also leads to
the creation of Mjöllnir, Thor's much-storied hammer, as well as many of the
Æsir's other treasures.
It
should be noted that cutting off a woman's hair was, in some parts of
Scandanavia, a punishment for adultery. This is not the only time the
mythology suggests that Sif has a lover other than Thor - and that said lover
may in fact be Loki. In a scene in Hárbarðsljóð,
Hárbarðr (either Odin or Loki in disguise; scholars disagree) discloses that
Sif has a lover at home while Thor is away. Loki makes this accusation
again in Lokasenna in the Poetic Eddas; which I'll examine in detail below.
In
light of all this animosity between my Patroness, Sif, and Loki, I think you'll
understand my reluctance to be in rituals focusing on Loki. So imagine my own
surprise upon feeling genuinely disappointed at a Pagan festival I frequent,
after hearing that the sponsor and facilitator of the annual blót for Loki was
unlikely to arrive in time, and that it might be cancelled. I ended up
chasing down a drinking horn so that a friend and occasional co-conspirator
could facilitate the blót.
This
gut-reaction reversal got me thinking about Sif and Loki. After careful
thought, I realized it boiled down specifically to how They interact in
Lokasenna.
The
premise of Lokasenna ("the flyting of Loki" or "the wrangling of
Loki") is simple: Loki is offended at not being invited to a party where
the Æsir and Vanir are guests. He take offense, having sworn an oath of
brotherhood with Odin that one would never drink and make merry unless the
other way included. Loki shows up anyway, and slays one of the host's
servants and proceeds to insult all those in attendance, calling out the
violation of the oath, and airing the Gods' dirty laundry in front of their
host. Æsir, Vanir, and elves alike either insult Him, insist that He
leave, or attempt to talk Their peers down in order to prevent the situation
from escalating to actual violence. Loki rebukes the men for cowardice, or
deception, or unmanliness, and generally impugns the virtue of the women. All
the women respond with indignance, or threaten Him with the might of Freyr, or
Thor, or taunt Him with the fates of His monstrous children.
Except
for Sif.
Rather
than angry, or confrontational, She greets him properly, pours Him mead, and
offers it without threat. She, who probably has as much or more reason as any
of the Æsir to disdain Him (for shaming Her), is the friendliest. Even
when He responds by repeating the accusation of adultery - and claiming it is
He who has known Her illicit affections - She neither escalates nor threatens
him.
Frith
is the concept in Anglo-Saxon and post-Anglo-Saxon law and culture for the
actions and social rules which maintain peace within a household, a kinship, or
a community. The word frith is strongly related to the the Anglo-Saxon
root wood sib-, from which we derive the modern English word
"sibling". The plural of Sif - the singular is only used to refer to
the Goddess - is sifjar, meaning
"affinity", or "connection by marriage".
So
much of how I, personally, relate to Sif is wrapped up in frith - it's right
there in Her name - and hospitality, and extended family, so I'm sort of
surprised this particular point took so long to click in my head.
Regarding Loki, I've come to the conclusion that even though He's
extremely good at pushing buttons, She still extends the cup of frith. It's Her
nature. Would that we all worked on making it part of ours.
Artwork by Peter.