Summer Solstice Poem
Let us rejoice for the day of light
A veil of green utop the bride
A crown of gold upon the groom
The world blooming, fresh and new
And now we dance like flames in the fire
We leap and jump higher and higher
As we bound over the hand of grasping heat
The crops grow tall, our summer feat.
“Na Moey Zemle” A Folk Metal Journey Across Pagan Lands
Arkona’s Na Moey Zemle translates into “My Land”
In this song, a man leaves his home in Russia in search of happiness. He travels through Sweden, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany, and the Netherlands in that order. Yet in his journey he learns that true happiness is back at home where he belongs.
A surprising number of guest vocalists have contributed to this Arkona ballad. We have the vocalists from Heidevolk, Menhir, Månegarm, Obtest, and Skyforger participating in this song.
Hrmm… so we have six vocalists and six countries. Does each vocalist in this song represent their home country?
In examining this idea, I matched voices to lyric and for the most part it is true. There are some instances, where other members of a band – in addition to the vocalist – are singing. Like I think the bassist of Skyforger might be singing the part for Latvia. So this makes matters slightly complicated. But for the most part, I’m sure each of these bands is representing their home country.
Masha Scream of Arkona is obviously the Russian traveler. In order, we have Månegarm (Sweden), Obtest (Lithuania), Skyforger (Latvia), Menhir (Germany) and Heidevolk (Netherlands).
At the end there is a chorus where different vocalists all sing “lai la la lai” together. They all come from different lands, but they are all happiest in their mother lands.
Notes on the lyrics:
* Nerthus: Germanic Earth-goddess
* Svitjod: An Old Norse name for Sweden or its people
* Sunna: Germanic Sun-goddess
* Veles: a major Slavic god
* The One-Eyed: Odin, the chief Norse god
* Žemyna: Lithuanian earth-goddess
* Velinas: Lithuanian creator-god, represented as a blacksmith
* Ąžuoliniai mounds: earth mounds in the village of Ąžuoliniai
* Thuringia: a German state, renowned for its natural beauty.
Examining the Lyrics:
(Russian Traveler,Vocals Masha Scream of Arkona)
Oh, Once at dawn the scarlet sun was rising. The sun was scarlet, that early morning
The maid was seeing her fellow off, To far, far away. Far, far away distant lands.
Seeing him off, giving her tender word. A tender word, and a word of protection.
“Oh darling, oh I will, I will wait for you I will wait for you, And meet you at the crimson sunset.”
The maid’s fingers trembled, And caught the tears And caught the tears Flowing from bright eyes.
With gentle hand she removed her amulet Removed her amulet and prayed for good fortune.
“I pray, I enchant this And give it to my beloved for the journey in that distant place, Protect my beloved from death.”
And that fine fellow departed to foreign lands to seek happiness for the years, hey!
Trail after trail, toward the sun. Through cold and heat, in light and dark.
Into gray mist, Into Fading light, Again turning to the Gods.
Bare feet worn bloody. You follow an unknown road.
And hearing the sea’s call. You fell into the embraces of Northerly winds.
You went after happiness! Again you ask this land about it.
(Sweden, Månegarm Vocalist)
Hear Nerthus* breathe heavily
Svitjod’s* primordial soul
The North Star’s bleak light
The wolf in the night wind
The dawn over the Northern Land
Raven’s wing in Sunna’s Sea
Here my forefathers stand guard
By the one-eyed’s side*
Here I sacrifice to my Gods
the soil of my roots
(Russian Traveler,Vocals Masha Scream of Arkona)
This house is beautiful
But foreign and cold
I hear the voice of winds of other countries
Reveal the roads thither, O Veles*!
The voice of a new land
Your foot treads upon it
Again, you turned from the road
Far off a foreign river I lured you.
People! Pray tell,
For what is your joyous land reknowned?
The Gods, who are they?
What do these lands hide?
(Lithuania,Vocals could be Obtest, I’m not entirely sure since they sound slightly different.)
Boundless woods raised us
Like horses of the wind, in freedom
Black bread like the soil,
Thick foamy mead…
Žemyna’s* falcon
Protects our children in the sun
One-eyed Velinas*
Teaches us of steel, awakening us…
The Ąžuoliniai Mounds*
Look into the distance
As Far as the eye can see-
The land of our forefathers.
(Russian Traveler,Vocals Masha Scream of Arkona)
Gazing on the beauty of golden fields
I will bend the knee
I will offer tribute to this land
Again, I will leave without a trace.
In the sunset’s brilliance again
A new land’s expanse will blaze
For what is your joyous land reknowned,
Dear to a foreigner’s eyes?
(Latvia, Maybe Skyforger…but the vocals don’t sound like their typical vocalist. I do know that they also have their bassist singing…so that might be him.)
I have no problems living
on the edge of the great sea
Just as the sea washes in
So it washes out silver
I put on a coat of water
A pelt of pebbles
Now I go to the sea
To play with the northern wind
(Russian Traveler,Vocals Masha Scream of Arkona)
And again I run off
From a land foreign to my heart
Though the expanses are great
They are not mine
I run far off
Away from the blue seas
Again I ask the people my question
(Germany, Menhir Vocalist)
Thuringia*, how beautiful you are,
Like a young maiden.
Your limbs are the valley and hill,
And the pretty meadows your dress.
The fresh forest is your breath,
Your speech, birdsong.
The pond, that is your bright eye,
Your greeting is bell-ringing.
The forest, it is your green coat,
Your glossy hair, golden grain.
In colorful bouquets here bloom
Many flowers delicate and rich.
The pretty meadows are your dress.
Your limbs valley and hill.
You are like a young maiden.
Thuringian* land, so beautiful,
So beautiful!
(Russian Traveler,Vocals Masha Scream of Arkona)
Trail after trail
Toward the sun
Through cold and heat
In light and dark
I run off…
I run off to foreign lands
Bare feet chafing
In my heart keeping hope
I think of my land
Expecting a wonder, again I run
To the seashore
To the new land I’ll pay respect
For what is this land reknowned?
(Netherlands, Heidevolk Vocalist)
You followed the sun, guided by your gods
Westwards you have traveled
To the boundaries of the land
Where the sea swallows the ground
To the land of the dragon’s cry,
The place fused with my soul,
Your path as led you
Welcome to my fatherland
Warm yourself by the fire, my guest
And refresh yourself with our beer
Far away too we have traveled
But our happiness is here
Where my brothers are around the fire
Drink in this night hour
Where stories and laughter
Sound until the break of day
Our joy we can find
In the woods, in the field of the heath
Our joys we can find
On the shores of the Rhine
(Russian Traveler,Vocals Masha Scream of Arkona)
Oh, how the scarlet heart yearned
Oh, for its native country
Oh at dawn, hurry
To your Mother, dear heart
And there you sight Rus’
With a song in your heart
Through a maelstrom of emotion
Here they are – your native lands.
In chains of Oblivion
Of the oncoming force of happiness
You cry: “Here is my land!”
You cry: “Here is my land!”
Ethics and Values in Druidry
ALL TEXT BELOW CAME FROM THIS SOURCE
1. Every action has a consequence that must be observed and you must be prepared to compensate for your actions if required.
2. All life is sacred and all are responsible for seeing that this standard is upheld.
3. You do still live in society and are bound by its rules.
4. Work with high standards.
5. Make an honest living.
6. Be a good host as well as a good guest.
7. Take care of yourself. (Health was held in high esteem amongst the Celts, so much that a person could be fined for being grossly overweight due to lack of care.)
8. Serve your community.
9. Maintain a healthy balance of the spiritual and mundane.
(Nihtscad writes: ‘Ethical and self respecting Druids did nothing without being properly schooled or aware of the consequences ahead of time. They knew when it was appropriate to visit the Otherworld and immerse themselves in the spiritual as well as when it was appropriate to be fully in this world.’)
10. Uphold the Truth, starting with yourself.
11. Be sure in your convictions, particularly when judging or accusing someone, but also when debating. Ask yourself: are you really sure? Do you really know that this the case?
Similar Posts
What Does Druidry Mean to Me?
Northern Runes Radio
Northern Runes Radio is a podcast and blog about the Ancient Norse Ways.
Here you will find a discussion of religion, magical practice and philosophy.
There are tales about Norse Gods such as Thor and Loki.
There is also a discussion about how myth and saga is a representation of the inner soul.
Du Hast Me Rammstein
You have me – you have me hooked Rammstein, with your wacky videos, your over the top pyrotechnics in which you light your keyboardest on fire, your simulated sodomy on stage, your crazy gimmicks (such as selling a box set of six penis replica dildos for each member of the band) and of course your well written punny songs. I have been a large fan of yours for the last 13 years. After watching a few silly Rammstein videos today, I decided to give a piece of my blog to this bizarre and fascinating act.
Since their formation in 1994, the band has not experienced any changes in line-up, which is pretty remarkable for a band that has been in business for almost 20 years.
Genre: The best way to describe Rammstein as a genre is “Neue Deutsche Härte,” which means “New German Hardness.” They are also Industrial, Hard Rock.
The Name: The band itself was named after the “Ramstein air-show disaster,” but the extra ‘m’ in the name makes it sound like “ramming stone.” A Ramming stone truly is the best way to describe their sound, it is hard, heavy, chock full of blatant sexuality, aggression and apologizes for nothing.
The Du Hast Debate: Most people became familiar with Rammsetin after “Du Hast” was popularized by the Matrix. Thus starting the never ending debate on whether the song meant “you have me” or “you hate me.” “Du Hast” actually means “you have,” but it is a play on words. The German word for hate is “hassen.” So if you pronounce “hast” like “haasst,” it sounds a little like hate. While it is true that they sang “you hate me” in an English version of the song, this was not a direct translation. Rammstein often creates puns like this to cause confusion and humor among those who try to understand their lyrics.
Why Does Rammstein Only Sing in German? Well…that’s not exactly true all the time. Rammstein has written some lyrics in English, Spanish, Russian and French. Yet a majority of their music is decisively in German. This is big for a world famous band with 7.2 million fans on facebook. Most bands that become global start singing all their songs in English to be more universal and sell more albums. Yet Rammstein has enjoyed tremendous success despite their refusal to abandon their mother tongue.
The Bassist, Oliver Riedel states “German language suits heavy metal music. French might be the language of love, but German is the language of anger.”
Download 2013 Festival: Rammstein will also be headlining in the Download 2013 Festival this weekend. Don’t miss it! Download is a three day festival in England that really makes me wish I was European. This festival includes a diverse array of musical giants, including Iron Maiden, Satyricon, Devin Townsend and more.
Shows: Rammstein has all kinds of zany antics in their shows. Key among these are their pyrotechnics and blatant simulations of sexual acts and BDSM on stage.
Bück Dich (Uncensored)
In Bück Dich, Till Lindeman (vocalist) simulates sodomy with Christian “Flake” Lorenz (keyboardest), then proceeds to ejaculate on the audience. Of course Till is actually using a dildo and the “seamen” is just water mixed with Ouzo. This act even got the two arrested at a concert in Massachusetts, where they were each fined $200 and spent the night in jail.
Videos: Rammstein also delivers several injections of insanity and bizarre humor in their videos.
Sonne (Sun): Snow White is a dominatrix of sorts who spanks the seven dwarfs and overdoses on sparkly gold cocaine.
Rosenrot (Rose Red): Some advice. If you happen to be a priest in a Rammstein video, don’t fall in love with a 14 year old girl. She will convince you to kill her parents and then have you burned at the stake. “Rosenrot” itself contain lyrics from Johann Wolfgang Goethe’s poem “Heidenröslein.” The plot of this video mirrors the songs lyrics, in which a man embarks on a pointless and dangerous quest for his lover’s amusement.
Engel (Angel): This is for the folks out there with foot fetishes. At 2:07 you’ll understand what I mean. However, the singing children in the cage might be a little bit of a turn off. Also, I learned when Rammstein goes to strip clubs, the strippers can magically turn into band members at the end of the video. Pretty cool!
Amerika: This song may seem like an ode to America at first. It contains images of different cultures around the world dancing and celebrating American culture. Buddhist monks eat burgers. An African family eats pizza and watches TV. Yet true to Rammstein’s sense of irony, the song is the farthest thing from a ballad to “America.”
Most of the song is in German, but one of the few English lyrics states “This is not a love song, I don’t sing my mother tongue.” It is clear that the undertones of this song are something darker. Examine the following lyrics:
when there’s dancing I want to lead, even if you’re whirling around alone. Let yourselves be controlled a little. I’ll show you how it really goes. We’re making a nice round dance…I know moves that are really useful and I will protect you from missteps. And whoever doesn’t want to dance at the end, doesn’t know yet that they must.
Links
A Map of World Mythology
Not sure how accurate this is. For example, I would’ve placed Islamic in the Arabian/Semite category since it emerged in the Arabian continent first. Yet overall, this map is still pretty cool to look at.
Metal Gaia 