Warding Work – Provide and explain one example of warding or protection magic from an Indo-European culture, and write an ADF-style warding working based on that example. (min. 150 words for example explanation)
In the Icelandic Lore according to Flowers (Flowers, 52), involves a lot of complex spells and magical working, some of which involves a protective measure. Typically the magician creates a magical “circle” that is wrapped around a triangle for ritual purpose. The circle acts as a “ward” of protection for the magician, and the triangle acts to constrain the spirit. However, it is also mentioned that the Icelandic magician does not typically seem to need to protect himself from the entities he calls upon.
One Christianized method or spell used for protection against wrath used a symbolic stave drawn over the forehead with your left index finger and then saying the following:
It is the helm of awe that I bear between my eyes-wrath runs away, strife is stemmed. May every mother be delighted with me as Maria was delighted with her blessed son when she found him on the rock of victory, in the name of the Father and the Son, and the Holy Spirit:
and then you read:
0lvir, Odhinn, Evil One All will you bewitch! May God himself, with skill Send love between us two!
Another form of protection in the Greek culture is the Herma-as. These phallic wooden figures were eventually migrated to stone and placed on top of the cairns as a form of territorial demarcation (Burkert, 156).
Using the Icelandic example above with drawn staves and incantations, we can replicate a modern version of a protective stave to use in our magical working. Obviously we will take away and rewrite the portion that attempts to paint Odin as an evil figure. We can still use the water on the forehead which is similar to passing of the waters in ADF liturgy. An alternative method in group ritual could also be drawing the symbol over the waters, or alternatively into a drinking horn to pass the waters for the ritual participants to drink. Especially since rune carving into drinking horns for consumption was already another popular method for magic in the northern lore.
We give our key offerings and invoke Odin:
Allfather, great seer of wisdom, you who hung on the tree and gave sacrifice to receive the wisdom of the runes. Blessed Odin, King of Asgard, I ask for you to bless this working with your magic. I offer you gifts of praise and aged whiskey. Allfather, accept this sacrifice!
With a finger dipped in water or oil, I would then draw the protective symbol on my forehead while chanting:
As this symbol is marked with oil/water between my eyes, wrath leaves and strife is quelled. May all be delighted with me as the Queen of Asgard, Frigga, was delighted with her son Baldur. Allfather Odin, with all your skill and wisdom, send love between us two.
And then we continue with our ritual work as usual.
(Word Count: 234)
