We have some people here today who are new to Odinism. So please bear with me if some of you have heard some of this before. I want to talk about what religions are, what they have been, and what our religion should be. Secondly I want to point out two ancient struggles that have dominated life in the Western world for thousands of years.

Religions are created to influence minds and thus control people. Period!!! This does not mean that a religion cannot be beneficial and necessary. But historically religions with noble motives have soon been corrupted by Kings, Emperors, Politicians, Priestcrafters, and of course the money powers who always rule from behind the scenes. Additionally of course, many primitive religions have been formed with no noble motives whatsoever.

But our major religions were originally created by Adepts in the ancient "Mysteries." In these religions the Adepts used Mythologies to both conceal and preserve their occult wisdom and power. The word occult means hidden. These myths sometimes incorporated historical events and old legends. However, the myths were also deliberately made so outrageous that men of perception would recognize that they were not meant to be taken literally.

The myths also served as a kind of emotional shorthand. For example, explaining concepts like courage, strength, or masculinity to a young boy is well nigh impossible. But planting images of mighty Thor smashing giants and dragons with his hammer, Mjollnir forms a masculine personality.

There are also common themes running through the various religions created by the Adepts. One of them being the one plus twelve scenario. In the religion forced on Europe by torture, murder, deceit and bribery, King Solomon has 12 tribes of Israel and Jesus has 12 apostles. Always it represents the sun and the 12 signs of the Zodiac to insiders. Christianity is of course poorly disguised Sun worship. Long before Christianity the Persian God Mithra was said to be born to a virgin at the winter solstice of the Sun. Born to a virgin, killed and resurrected. Mithra then replaced Sol Invictus, the mighty Sun God as the major deity of the Roman legions. So when the new Universal religion was created to unite the many races, nations and cultures of the degenerate Roman slave empire in 325 AD, the Mithra myth had to be included. Other myths included Odin who hung on a tree and was pierced with a spear, and Zoroaster hose birth was attended by wise men from the East.

So today Christians worship on Sunday to honor the Sun. Christmas is the birth of the Sun at the winter solstice. Easter is the resurrection of the Sun directly East at the spring equinox. Jesus is portrayed with a halo as was Horus, the son of the Egyptian God Osiris, and on and on.

Now about the two ancient struggles. The first is between Imperialism with its offspring called Universalism. The attempt to the rule the world as in "New World Order" is nothing new. Empires of the past include Persia, Greece, Rome, Spain, France, England and more. Today's dominate empire could best be called Judeo-America as America has occupation troops in over 130 countries and has 800 military bases world wide.

Universalists try to destroy the integrity of all races, nations, and cultures by mixing all people into one mass of obedient slaves and subjects.

Opposed to Universalists are those who remain true to Nature's highest law which is the preservation of one's own kind. Since this highest law requires exclusive territory as well as sovereign rule over that territory, conflict is unavoidable. Additionally because an indigenous religion that grows out of the soul of a people will preserve that people, a Universalist religion will tolerate no other.

So now you know why in 789 AD the "Holy Roman Emperor," Charlemagne called a treaty meeting with 4500 Saxon Chieftains, followers of our indigenous religion of Odinism. He then surrounded them with a Christian army, murdered them all, beheaded them, and threw their bodies in the Alle river.

The other ancient struggle, separate but related, is between Reason and Belief. The enemy of the Christians is sometimes called Lucifer. In an unabridged dictionary you will find that the word Lucifer is Latin in derivation. From Luci we get the word Lucid, meaning clear thinking. The exact Latin meaning of Luci is "The Light of Reason." While Fer is a Latin suffix meaning bringer. So Lucifer is the Bringer of the Light of Reason.

And now you see why the Christians spent 1500 years torturing, murdering and imprisoning every scientist, philosopher, voice of reason, or Pagan in Europe, thus bringing on the dark ages of disease, ignorance and suffering. In the 30 years war alone at least one third of Central Europe slaughtered each other over whether this alien anti-nature, genocidal suicidal religion should be Catholic or Protestant.

Understand that when the gates of the mind are opened to the first irrational premise then there are no barriers to a flood of insanity. But conversely when people are taught how to think instead of what to think, the rule of tyrants is in jeopardy. So for 1500 years our folk were forced on pain of death or torture to profess literal belief in the Judeo-Roman myths of an alien religion.

Who do you suppose hi-jacked a Mystery religion so that they could call themselves God's Chosen People? And who might have hired the Roman Empire to murder everyone in Europe who resisted?

Could it be the ones who claim they were holocausted in Egypt, in Persia, by Romans, by the Inquisition, by the Germans, by the Muslims, etc. etc. adnauseum infinitum?

History is a fable, conceived in self serving deceit and promulgated by those who benefit. The propaganda of the victor becomes the history of the vanquished. Always ask yourself, "Who benefits?"

So what should a religion teach? First of all the esoteric must serve and play second fiddle to the practical, because if a people cease to exist then all else is irrelevant. Secondly, a religion must teach that Nature and Nature's laws are the work of the "quote 'Creator' unquote," regardless of what one considers the originating force to be. God, or Gods, or accident, or intelligences grown out of eternity and infinity, it doesn't matter. Nature's laws are immutable and again the highest law is preservation of one's own kind as in the 14 Words. Call them a divine command.

One question that is constantly asked is what about a soul or immortality. I like to quote the words of Odin in the Havamal. "Cattle die, Kinsman die, I too shall die. What does not die is the fame of a great man's deeds." I translate that to mean the "effect of anyone's deeds."

Admittedly we are inconsequential beyond comprehension in the size of the universe. But on the other hand we can be valuable beyond comprehension as a link in destiny's chain. Our influence lives on forever in the lives of our children, in the philosophies we pass on to them and to others. Often our influence grows like ripples in a pond after a pebble is thrown into it. And some throw huge rocks into the pond and cause large waves.

As for survival of our personal egos, that is pure speculation. I'll dream of pleasures with beautiful Valkyrie in Valhalla and hope for the best. But I have little time to speculate when the survival of my folk is threatened now in this reality.

Let us discuss the Bifrost bridge which in Odinist mythology is guarded by the God Heimdall. This myth is an example of concealing yet preserving ancient wisdom. The bridge is the link between our conscious minds and our subconscious minds as well as perhaps a collective consciousness as science has proven with for example the 100 monkey experiment. This experiment proved a collective link between identical species despite total physical separation.

The subconscious mind is perhaps millions of times more powerful than the conscious mind. Even the example of so called Idiot Savants demonstrates the incredible unknown possibilities within our minds. An idiot savant may be unable to even tie his own shoes, but might be able to perform huge multi-digit mathematical computations almost instantly with the accuracy of a computer.

He who crosses the Bifrost bridge becomes a superman. But Heimdall guards that bridge carefully so that only the altruistic, the worthy and the self disciplined can cross. Fasting, mantras and meditation are among the steps across the bridge. This is nothing supernatural. All that exists is composed of electromagnetism at various wavelengths, vibrations, patterns and coagulations. Mantras align the patterns which comprise thoughts and ideas. Meanwhile fasting cleanses all cells of the body, including brain cells of toxins.

In the ancient Egyptian mysteries a prospective initiate spent three days in a coffin inside the Great Pyramid, devoid of all sensory stimulation. In the first or gnostic Christian mysteries the three days spent by Christ in a tomb are coding telling of the Initiation process. Again, recognize that religious myths have concealed meanings and only primitive minds take them literally.

But let me close by repeating, when the life of the folk is threatened, the esoteric must either serve the practical or take second place to the practical.

Hail the Gods, meaning the wisdom of our ancestors.

David Lane