WHITE WOLF & PAULA

About White Wolf:

Raised in the Appalachian country of Pennsylvania in the 70s and 80s, I was exposed to a great many layers of this life. Starting on my own in the woods, fields and mountains around my childhood homes; romping, exploring, sitting quietly and observing the natural world around me.

It wasn’t long before I realized I felt far more comfortable in those woods, fields and hills; surrounded by the plant people and animal people than I did in human society and around humans. Without worded description I knew by what I could feel that I connected more easily and naturally to the natural world rather than the modern human one.

I spent great amounts of time outside observing my surroundings and feeling and recognizing what and how it made me feel inside. It was the only place I truly felt safe, fully accepted and understood. It was a world free of judgement, bias, ridicule or expectation to be anything beyond what I was.

At the age of ten I began learning physical skills and spiritual skills from my Native American mentor, Meechgalanne, son of Pischk. For almost a decade I learned the ways of the land through the deepest layers of open spirituality rather than any organized religion. I grew up in all rights and definition, a heathen, or pagan if you prefer, even if I've lived so long in this country that I don't remember the Old Country. My first attempts at, and workings of nature based spiritual ceremonies were for the passing of love ones; my childhood dog companion, two friends at school that died, a grandmother and others. I would steal away into the woods and hold ceremony when still just a child. I knew then at such an early age what I felt inside me and where my beliefs were drawn.

Beyond learning, connecting with and living nature spirituality through more of a Native American ideal, if you will, I also was fascinated by my bloodline, my lineage. My paternal grandfather had done intensive work tracing our bloodline through an incredible family tree. He had a strong love of the Old Country, a love that flowed down to me. I took his research many steps further with the aid of many old students and acquaintances of mine around the world, and their contacts, some of which are in the archeologic and historical fields as professors.

I’ve heritage of both northern Germania and Scandinavia, primarily Norway and Iceland.
My name does not come from Native American background as many assume. Both sides of my family have detailed family trees documenting strong genetic linage in Teutonic, Norse, Dane, Germanic Saxon, Helvetian and Swede. Through my family tree my blood has been traced back to Ingólfr Arnarson, who was a Norse Viking who sailed to and settled the land and created the White Wolf Clan of Iceland. It is within those lineage traditions where my name originates.

Also I found through communications with Professor Fischer that even my last name points heavily to Scandinavian-German connection. The name was created from pieces of other words around the end of the crusades to hide from the oppressive and lethal Catholic church. Long story made very short - Fischer confirmed the surname means “of Yggdrasil (Læraðr in Old Norse)/Irminsul”, or of the World Tree, which in the case of Scandinavian history is Yggdrasil (Læraðr in Old Norse), and in ancient Germania prior to the bloodline migrating northwest, the world tree was named Irminsul. The pluralization of the von Atzigen name ( von {of or from} Atzi - gen {Germanic pluralization}) is then said to refer to the family being of both Irminsul and Yggdrasil (Læraðr in Old Norse).

A large part of my life is led in the traditions of my ancient Scandinavian and Germanic ancestors. Even though the Viking Age only lasted about 250 to maybe 350 years, the culture, beliefs and traditions from which it grew remain strong in my life today. A culture must evolve to live.

The culture of my ancestors does not live within the limitations today of the “weekend Viking” dressing up for faires. It lives in my daily actions of heart and mind; focus, intentions, beliefs, codes and virtues. To me pretending has no part in it. I live the beliefs, study the old ways, work the craft through VikingWolfCraft and have even incorporated old fighting styles into my lifelong martial art. I continually study not only the Eddas, but also the works of people such as Gundula Adolfsson, Inga Lundström, Tove Hjørungdal, Brit Solli, Niel Price and Anne Stine Ingstad, and many others for their wonderful insights as well as archaeological facts from a lifetime of research.

I am very proud and respectful of my ancestry and I truly believe the energy of my ancestors lives through me still today.

A song I wrote and sang concerning ancestors: on my Vimeo site:  Red Rivers

Another song I wrote and sang concerning my heritage:  Urds Well

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For years people have been trying to call me a shaman. For years I’ve done my best to avoid connecting with that term. Not that I do not feel and know the depth of my practice/deeper way of life doesn’t fit the olden aspects of the term. It was more avoidance of the cliché title to what I do and am. To me, ever since I was in my late teens, I knew I aligned with the ancient pathways of Seiðr, and my ancestral roots therein. Being raised/trained in the ways of northeastern Native American spirituality, I was equally involved with the ancient spirituality of ancient Germania and Norskk, the roots of my blood. My coat of arms clearly shows that my ancestors were not only renowned warriors, but also heavily connected to and honored the energy of Freyja… and the practice of Seiðr, directly connected to and from the energies of Freyja.

I even found an old shred of paper; old and yellowed and frail with pale pencil writing on it from a box of file scraps from my childhood. It contains part of a small but potent dream I had when I was quite young. And there on that old fragile paper is the dream and date written down. Tiny cursive writing with lots of misspellings. I was in 6th grade I think. It shows my first dream encounter with Freyja and the mention (though both are misspelled) Seidr. I used to date everything because a few years earlier a local town dug up a time capsule and I thought it was so neat to see all the old dates, I start dating everything! Funny what we do as kids. Image can be seen below.

I started traditionally studying the old ways of western Scandinavia in 1992 under Gunnar Gunnarsson, and later his brother Guðmundur Gunnarsson.  Through my studies I was fascinated to find just how many connections and parallels there were between the western Scandinavian pre-Christianity ways of life to that of northeastern Native American ones. This is NOT to say that indigenous Native American and ancient western Scandinavian beliefs were/are the same. They are not. I'm simply saying that underlying patterns within the living spirituality of the cultures have similarities, as do many indigenous spiritual lifestyles. I'm not talking about organized religion, but rather what I like to call Living Spirituality. It is a non-structured, or non-organized compilation of lose beliefs that are both based on cultural history as well as practiced in everyday living. Nobody in that culture is forced to or expected to adhere to those beliefs, and they vary in practice and emphasis from household household, and clan to clan.

In autumn of 2005 I had my fourth near death experience when I was poisoned. My body and life changed dramatically after that point in time. The old world of my ancestors within and its practices through me for almost 40 years have been strongly flooding upward to encompass not only the internal world, but my all. As my body changed after being poisoned, from the intense warrior that I was, the opening and rapid growth of my spirituality, sight and return to ancestral Seiðr practices has flourished. The Runes and Seiðr are as much a part of my life as food and water; breath and the beat of my heart.

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Jeg er stolt av min arv og tror at skjebnen er alt.
På ørnens rygg, i bjørnenes fotspor, ulvenes ulv, skogens dybde og de skiftende årstidene, bugner det av magi.
Vinden i lungene og ilden i våre hjerter; vann som renner gjennom venene våre og jorden i beinene våre - vi tilhører denne verden.

Seiðr Practice:

Since the year 2000 I’ve worked with many people from around the world in the layered capacity of guidance, healing, sight, ceremonial practices and teaching. In my Seiðr practices I call upon and work through the Runes, Elements, Bones, Animals, Plants, Minerals, Seasons, Directions, Ecosystems, and the dynamic components of each and the relationship between all. For my own part I also honor the Jontar, Dverger, ‘Alfar, Landdisir, Landvaettir, Natturur, Fylgjur, Hamingjur, Nisse as well as major energies called Odhinn and Huginn, Muninn, Freki and Geri, Sleipnir; Frigg, Frejya, Freyr, Thorr, Siff, Njordh, Skaði, Tyr, Idunna, Baldr, Heimdallr, Nerthus, Hella, Hodr, Ullr, Vár and others. If working with any of the above becomes necessary in the Seiðr work, then it is made so. The traverse through hamr and hugr are utilized as well. There is no absolute format or structure. The practice is fluid, and though there are some simple guide-points, the practice flows as it is meant and dictated to become by everything involved.

I’m also a legally certified non-affiliated minister who can perform marriages, funerals, birth blessings and the like in States requiring such certification.
Over the years I’ve guided traditional Lenape Vision Quests, guided traditional Medicine Wheel ceremonies; through both Native American and Seiðr practices I’ve helped and guided people on inner spiritual journeys, guided people in spiritual and physical healings, worked with animals, plants and the land.

I adhere to the ancient Norskk Virtues of Courage, Truth, Honor, Loyalty, Discipline, Hospitality, Industriousness, Self Reliance and Perseverance. I also hold in the highest regard the virtues of Integrity, Strength, Humility and Simplicity.

I teach the runes and rune casting, as well as bone casting. I also teach the many layered dynamics of the Elements, Bones, Animals, Plants, Minerals, Seasons, Directions and Ecosystems within the Seiðr practices. These teachings get into not only origins of the energies, but also the very nature of them, how they self structure, the intricate relationships between each, the multidimensional existence of each and how to read the life before us through these energies.

I strongly feel that to learn about the primal forces of life we must touch them, feel them, wander through them and bask in them like children do in their hearts. Only when we learn how to shed our armor can we truly experience the reality of who and what we are; find our deepest connection to the medicine of the elements that literally create all that we experience and set ourselves free from illusions.

For the last few years my wife, Paula, and I travel to Renaissance Faire’s in New England as Norskk merchants selling my handcrafted wares found at VikingWolfCraft on ETSY. We are branching out our Faire offerings to perform Rune Casting and Bone Casting for people. This is something I’ve been doing for people for years, and offer it to people are Renaissance Faires. My wife has been training in and practicing Runes and Rune Casting. She has a heavy Celtic lineage and for decades has been immersed in the ways of her ancestors and Heathenry. Since Runes started as the Elder Futhark in ancient Germania, where northern Celtic tribes flourished, the Runes have become part of her life.

Paula

Paula has been living and studying Celtic and Druidic ways for over 20 years. Having a masters degree in chemistry she’s also been studying herbs and natural supplements (vitamins and minerals) ever since we met in 94. Friends, family and coworkers have asked her advice on many things through the years concerning health, spirituality, lifestyle and greater wellbeing because they not only trust her, but believe in her wisdom and insight. She is well traveled, well rounded, of high intelligence, deeply caring, compassionate and of a very quiet introspective and private nature - hence the short bio.

A bit more:

White Wolf's life is dedicated to teaching the ways of the wild, defending the medicine balance in life and seeking always to attain his highest purity. He has lived within the remote areas of the Green Mountains with his wife and son since 2007. During that time White Wolf has guided wilderness explorations and excursions, mentored traditional Lenape Vision Quests, taught Small Circles of 5 Animals Jujitsu and Combat Survival, written over 1,000 articles and a few e-books as well as travels with his family and continues to work diligently on his healing processes. He is in all reality a warrior and guide; a Mountain Man and Vikingar very much immersed in the depth of his genetic history and the deep spiritual energy of the wilderness.

WHITE WOLF & paula