Folksidr

Often just referred to as Paganism, the faith of the Northmen is a celebration of nature and humanity. Outside of the establishment of official priestly orders, the faith is highly decentralized and focuses heavily on individual celebration and ceremony.

## Deities

Folksidr religion venerates and worships the numerous ascendant deities that they refer to as the Aesir. According to folklore, the Aesir once dwelt among mortals before fleeing across the seas to Lintukoto.

The faith is the most ubiquitous of the many syncretic faiths among the Nordgangr people, having been the only one to become organized with a scripture and official doctrine. The beliefs focus on the worship, veneration and history of the Aesir; as well as a codified understanding of the afterlife, sorcery, and the soul.

## Old Folk Faith

Transmitted through oral culture rather than through codified texts, The Old Faith religion focused heavily on ritual practice, with kings and chiefs playing a central role in carrying out public acts of sacrifice. Various cultic spaces were used; initially, outdoor spaces such as groves and lakes were typically selected. Nordgangr society also contained practitioners of Seiðr, a form of sorcery which some scholars describe as shamanistic. Various forms of burial were conducted, including both inhumation and cremation, typically accompanied by a variety of grave goods.

## Afterlife

It is believed that life is created from a combination of several living elements:
Breath - The spark of life
Spirit - A guardian spirit which marks an individual
Fate - The potential of a being
Body - The physical body
Mind - The personality of the living thing

According to traditional theology, individual life is brought about when a Spirit weaves Breath into the body using the strands of Fate. Throughout life this combination of living elements generates the mind over the life of the individual, which is the sum of their personality, and the interaction of their living elements with their experiences.

At the point of death the Mind is separated from the Body and travels to Lintukoto, while the Spark of Life is returned to Irminsul. The separate of the Mind and Body leaves behind a shadow or echo, which is a sort of non-sentient spirit which some (notably the Skalds) can communicate with.

While most of the principles behind the creation of life are agreed upon, there are some variations. The most notable of which is the nature of the Spirits, with the interpretation of their origin and characteristics being left mostly to local folklore.

The Fates are another topic of contention. In traditional Skaegr folklore, the Fates are servants of the Primordial Time, while others refer to the Fates as autonomous beings unrelated to the Primordials or Deities. As with the Spirits, their nature and characteristics are subject to local interpretation.

## Seiðr

The Seiðr are a one of the 3 castes of the priesthood in Folksidr. They are sorcerers and magic practitioners, with their primary responsibility being communion with the Gods.

## Völva

The Völva are one of the 3 castes of the priesthood in Folksidr. They are seers and ritualists, with their primary responsibility being communion with Fate. The Völva are made entirety of women, and among the more secretive of the 3 castes, living in enclosed compounds for most of their life.

## Skald

The Skalds are one of the 3 castes of the priesthood in Folksidr. They are warrior poets, and rememberers of the dead, with their primary responsibility being communion with the dead, and the keeping of their memory on earth. The Skalds are more similar to the Knightly Monastic orders than the priesthoods of other faiths.