Norse Goddess Magic (4 page)
4
How to Do Trancework
Because tranceworking is so similar to self-hypnosis, many of
the same induction methods can be used. Classical occult texts on astral
projection are another source of hints on what conditions might be helpful in
achieving a trance state. The best method is to carefully prepare and record
your own experiences, noting things like weather conditions, outside noise, your
physical state, and the events of the day, especially those immediately
preceding the trance. Write down the details of your own induction, including
what methods you used and your reaction to them. When you review these notes
later on, you will begin to discern patterns that will help you figure out which
methods work best for you.
Many people find that certain weather conditions affect their trance. In
general, weather that is dry, clear, calm, and mild (say, in the middle to high
70s) provides optimal trance conditions; weather that is hot, muggy, damp, or
stormy inhibits trances. Fortunately, thanks to modern technology, we can
artificially create our own weather right inside our homes. An air conditioner
is a great boon for eliminating both heat and mugginess. Even if you tend to
keep your house as cold as an icebox in the winter, you'll probably want to turn
up the heater just before attempting a trance, especially since the body tends
to get colder than usual during a trance session. Lightning and thunder are
generally disruptive to a trance, and there's not much you can do about that
except wait it out or pick another night.
The time of day can affect a trance as well. It usually seems easier to
achieve a trance state at night, perhaps because there are fewer outer
disturbances then. Some occultists believe that the night also contains fewer
psychic disturbances, since most other people are asleep. Various phases and
astrological signs of the sun and moon also might affect your trances. If you
record such details over a period of time, you'll soon get an idea of which
conditions are best for you. I personally find it harder to get good results
during a waning moon.
Your own personal condition can greatly affect your trance results; in fact,
I find that this is the most important factor affecting the trance. First of
all, it is best to be in good physical health and in fairly good shape. You
shouldn't be too tired or sleepy, and you should be moderately well fed,
although it's wise not to eat too close to the time you trance (allow an hour or
so, as you do with swimming). Avoid alcohol or any kind of drug beforehand,
particularly depressive drugs. However, I have found that sometimes a small dose
of caffeineâsay, a cup of teaâcan be helpful shortly before a trance,
particularly if I'm tired (not too close, though, or you'll wind up having to go
to the bathroom in the middle of everything).
Besides your physical condition, your emotional and mental state can also
affect your success in trancing. Strive to be fairly serene emotionally, in a
state of assurance, confidence, and harmony. If you have some pressing or
disturbing matter on your mind, or even if some trivial incident fires you up
emotionally shortly before a trance, those feelings will start to intrude on
your concentration once you begin your journey. Likewise, if you become mentally
stimulated shortly before a trance, you will find it much harder to quiet your
thoughts and your inner dialogue when you start to go under.
PREPARING FOR A TRANCE
Therefore, it's best to spend a little time before the actual
trance preparing yourself. Try to pick a day when you will be rested and not too
stressed; eat a light and healthy supper early in the evening, maybe along with
a cup of tea. You might bathe or shower beforehand, or just wash your face,
brush your teeth, and comb your hair. Then try to sit quietly for a quarter of
an hour or so, perhaps listening to soothing music. Avoid watching TV, reading,
or chatting with others, even about light or trivial matters; those thoughts
will stick in your mind and interfere with your concentration once you try to
trance.
If you have any physical problemsâaches and pains in your lower back, a bad
knee, or the likeâtake steps to ease the discomfort before you actually start
the trance; it's very disruptive to have to interrupt your induction process to
do backstretching exercises before you can go on. Try doing any standard
relaxation exercise and you'll soon feel where your troublesome areas are. For
some reason, the minute you start to quiet your mind, your body feels obliged to
speak up about its various problems.
Different cultures throughout the world and throughout history have employed
a variety of aids to trance and magic: various drugs, sleep deprivation, sensory
deprivation or sensory overload, and even physical suffering, to name a few.
1
For the level of tranceworking I am talking about here, I don't think any of
these are necessary or advisable. Most of the time drugs, fatigue, stimulation,
and pain interfere with the ability to trance. What you want is to take care of
the needs of your body and mind as completely as possible so that nothing will
interfere with your concentration.
HELPFUL AIDS TO TRANCEWORKING
Some other traditional aids to tranceworking that are more
helpful are various forms of music and dancing, particularly very rhythmic,
monotonous music. Shamans of many cultures have long used drums and dancing as
aids to getting into and staying in trance, though there is little evidence that
drumming was a traditional trance method among Norse seið-workers. The one hint
that such an instrument was used is found in a passage from the Lokasenna (24),
where Loki taunts Odin with “beating on a
vet
like a völva.” It's not
clear what a vet was, but it seems to have been some sort of musical instrument
that could be struck or tapped. It could also have been some other sort of
surface, like the lid of a container of some sort, for no drums have yet been
excavated from Norse archaeological digs.
2
Ritual chanting, which was
used by the old Norse wisewomen, among others, can also be useful, as can soft,
barely audible music or a spoken phrase repeated over and over, like a mantra.
Incense can also be a powerful trigger; I have always used it in my trance
rituals and now I find that just a whiff of certain incenses can put me into the
beginning stages of trance.
This is another area where you need to experiment to see what helps you and
what doesn't. Unlike religious rituals or magic, where you might want to include
only those things that fit the tradition with which you're working, trance
journeys are so personal and so difficult to accomplish that just about anything
safe and legal that helps you go into trance is fair game. Drumming was not a
traditional trance method among Norse seið-workers, for example, but if you're
following a Norse path and you find that drumming helps you achieve a trance
state, you might as well try it.
You will want to do the actual trance in a room with a comfortable
temperature, perhaps a tad warmer than you'd usually keep it, because
tranceworking tends to make the body cold. Your setting should be dimly lit,
fairly quiet, and safe from interruption or intrusion. Because you are going to
withdraw your attention from the outside world, you will not be able to protect
youself as you normally would. Therefore, unless you have a trusted companion to
keep watch for you, you should probably avoid doing a trance outdoors in a
public park or campground, or in any other location where you will not be
private and secure.
A RITUAL BEFORE THE TRANCEWORKING
In addition to being physically safe, you also want to make sure
you are psychically safe. Once you are ready to begin the trance, you should
first set up a ritual space. This can be a very simple or a very elaborate
procedure, but you should do some kind of beginning ritual to give yourself a
safe place in which to open yourself psychically; otherwise, you run the risk of
letting in undesirable forces while your soul is journeying and your physical
body is left unattended and vulnerable. A very simple type of opening ritual
from the Norse tradition is to light a candle, signifying the beginning of the
ritual, and then do a form of hammer-hallowing. A sample opening ritual might go
as follows:
- Chant
AnsuzâLaguzâUruz
and light a single candle to begin the
ceremony. These are the names of three runes whose initials together spell
alu
(“ale”). Together they form an old rune charm for general vitality,
magical force, and inspiration. - Sit before the candle and relax, composing yourself and centering your
energies and will on the ritual. As you do this, chant
WodenâWiliâWe
three times. These are the names of Odin and his two brothers, often thought to
be aspects of Odin, in their roles as shapers of the universe. The names can be
roughly translated as “divine inspiration,” “will,” and “holy space.” They are
used here to call upon Odin as the god of magic and inspiration, since you are
about to perform a magical ritual. They also symbolize the fact that you are
about to shape your own private universe, as these three god-forces shaped the
greater universe. - Stand and face the North. With your ritual knife or sword, wand, hammer, or
the first two fingers of your right hand (or any other magical tool suitable for
hallowing the rite at hand), draw a hammer shape before you. Start at a point
overhead and draw the vertical bar toward the ground, stopping at roughly the
same level as your solar plexus. Then begin the horizontal bar at a point to
your left and continue across to the right (see fig. 4.1).
   The hammer is used as a symbol of Thor, the guardian of the
homes of the gods and goddesses and of Midgard, our world. Thor's hammer
protects the worlds of order from the forces of chaos. It is used here to
protect the boundaries of your sacred space from unwanted and chaotic
influences.
   As you draw the hammer, say or chant: “Hammer in the North,
hold this place from ill, hallow this place for good.” - Repeat this process in the East, South, and West. You might also draw a
hammer above and below you, visualizing a kind of globe of protection around
you. I prefer to draw the hammers above and below in a vertical manner, so that
the shaft of the hammer is coming straight down toward the head or up toward the
torso, and the head of the hammer extends horizontally toward either side (see
fig. 4.2).
Figure 4.1. Protecting your sacred space by drawing a single
symbolic hammer.
Figure 4.2. Protecting your sacred space by drawing a double
symbolic hammer.
This is just one simple version of a common ritual done by
some Germanic Pagans. You can substitute any similar ritual to set apart and
protect a magical or ritual circle. I would recommend using those symbols and
ceremonies with which you are most familiar and which make you feel most secure
and comfortable. Again, this is not a public ritual, but a very private one, in
anticipation of your tranceworking. This type of practice is hard enough to
achieve, so anything you can do to make yourself more secure should be done. If
you feel you need a very elaborate circle-casting, use whatever is necessary to
achieve a safe sacred space for you. Whatever you use, be sure to perform some
sort of rite to set apart a ritual space before you begin the trance.
A CALL OR INVOCATION
The next thing you should do is to recite a call or invocation to
the god or goddess you intend to visit on your trance. This can be an elaborate,
poetic invocation you've already written out or a simple, impromptu one you make
up on the spot. The kind of call you use depends on your skills as a poet and
writer, how much information you have on the deity, and the nature or style of
the god or goddess you are addressing. For example, Odin is the god of poetry;
you probably want something pretty snappy for him. On the other hand, Frigg, his
wife, is a mother goddess involved with the family, the home, and practical
skills and crafts, so with her you might be able to get away with something more
simple and homespun. A simple invocation is better than an elaborate but poorly
done one, so if you're not especially good at wordcraft, don't feel you have to
concoct something too elaborate for you to execute well.
The invocation serves several purposes. By reiterating the qualities and
aspects of the deity, you are reminding yourself of what that god or goddess is
like and setting the scene for your imaginative mind to build upon. You are also
shaping the direction of your trance, ensuring that you will journey to the
destination you intend to reach, rather than wandering off just anywhere on the
astral plane.
Once you have defined both your sacred space and the purpose of your ritual,
you're ready to start the trance. In hypnosis the steps of creating a trancelike
or hypnotic state are called an induction (from the word
induce
). This is
a process geared toward focusing and enhancing the concentration and imagination
until an altered state of consciousness is reached. The three basic elements of
induction are the reduction of sensory reception, the restriction of movement,
and the guiding and directing of the attention. By these steps the attention is
shifted from the outside world to the inside, and as the conscious mind relaxes,
the inner thoughts can arise.
