The Mannerbund
The task of our age is to recreate the ancient Germanic Mannerbund - the Warrior Elite.
Once upon a time the young AEthelinga (nobleman) was sent out into the forests in order to survive on hunting, cattle-rustling
and warring with others of the same kind. Such warrior-bands were made up of youthful freccas or warriors under the
cultic leadership of Woden - the One-Eyed Hunter-God.
Although these young warriors were taken from the women-folk to be brought up by the
menfolk, they were not actually set apart from the tribe for good. They were set apart as wild youths, bound by oaths of blood-brotherhood
to one another, and bound to the Will of Woden. From around the age of 16 to 21 they were set apart in the wild forests
to roam as wild beasts, dressed in wolf-skins (or sometimes bear-skins or boar-skins etc.).
This is the secret that can be found in such mythical figures as Sigurd & Sinfjotli
who lived just such a wild life, dressed in wolf-skins and wild as the wild beasts of the woods. The figure of Merlin, or
rather the original figure of Myrrdin Wyllt (Merlin the Wild) was just such a figure, but whose tale was really the
end of this figure in "Celtic" Britain.
After such a period in the wildwoods the youthful warrior would return to the tribe,
then coming under the god Tiw - the God of the Teuta (Tribe). The god Woden is the cultic-god who lead the Wild Here
- the wild freccan who roamed the wildwoods as Ulfhedhnar - Wolf-Skins.
From Norse Lore we find that the AEthelinga was not merely taught the warrior arts, but
also the arts of hunting (which skills were used in battle too), and the ancient Runic Arts. Rune-Magic and Rune-Mysticism
were all part of the training, as well as being passed the knowledge of the tribe via their myths and legends.
Very often such warrior-bands would join together to harry new lands, and in doing so
to build new kingdoms. It is also true that such alliances also built new tribal groups, many of whom had the same Totem Animal
- such as the Wolf. When an inheritance went to the eldest son (or the youngest in some cases) the others would build
up their own warrior-bands in order to conquer new lands. This was all part of the Folk-Wanderings of eld-time.
There were more mature warriors (eldermen) who were responsible for the training of such
warrior-bands in the wilderness. These were life-long followers of the cultic god Woden.
The figures of the Long Man of Wilmington and the Cerne Abbas Giant are of this cultic
warrior-god whom we know as Woden, but who was the One-Eyed Hunter-God to various different Aryan Tribes. The figure of Rudra-Shiva
has the same stance and is the earliest Aryan Hunter-God. These figures and the Finglesham Man, Sutton Hoo "Dancing
Warriors", and similar figures all show Dancing Cultic Warriors dedicated to Woden as the Leader of the Wild Here.
Our carnival processions and such events as "Trick and Treat" stem from cultic practices
where the wild young warriors actually become the dead ancestors, becoming possessed by their spirits. This is the
origins of our own Einheriar Day on November 11th, which was the original time for what we now know as "Halloween".
At this liminal time of the year the veils between the worlds of the living and the dead were thin - this also applies to
the Winter Sun-wend. Such times are now honoured in a different way, and the Ancestral Spirits are no longer invoked in the
same way, and the "Trick or Treat" is a distortion of the rights of the wild warrior to obtain gifts for services to the tribe
- a right which, if not obliged, would lead to repercussions, as does today's "Trick or Treat".
The reason why these wild warriors were given such honours within the community or tribe
were that they actually became the Spirits of the Ancestors. Whilst the ancestors created the original order, these
warriors represented them in their return to their tribe in order to recreate that order or to protect that order.
This is the role of Thunor (Thor) at a mythological level, for he is the upholder of Order and it is he who opposes the Giants
who represent Chaos.
In order to understand this we have to understand that the part of the year from the
Summer Sunstead (June 21st) to the Winter Sunstead (December 21st) is ruled by the Ancestors and the Ancestral God, Woden.
The period from the Winter Sunstead to the Summer Sunstead is ruled over by the Gods, in the form of Thunor and the Dragon-Slayer.
The Dragon-Slayer represents the ultimate Hero-God who is not only Leader of the Wild Here but also defeats the Powers of
Darkness and ushers in a period of Light. The two periods blend into one another as the Dark Period is a prelude to the emergence
of the Hero of Light - the Dragon-Slayer.
It is noticeable that Sigurd not only slays the dragon, Fafnir, but also eats his heart
and drinks his blood - i.e. he then takes in the Soul & Spirit of the Dragon. He steals the Gold Hoard (Ancient
Solar Wisdom) and then goes on to learn the Runic Wisdom (taught by Sigrdrifa). Throughout the tales of Sigurd we find the
process of Initiation into the Mannerbund.
This is, perhaps, the secret behind the ALU Runic Formula. This formula has been found
written forwards & backwards, i.e. with its mirror-image. This would seem to indicate that an earthly image (here)
is mirrored by a heavenly image (einheriar). The Runic Formula is thus -
Ansuz - The Ancestral Spirits & the Ancestral God Woden who is the Totenfuhrer of
the Totenheer. This is the Ahnenkult (Ancestral Cult) and the Totenkult (Death Cult).
Laguz - The Leek which represents Tiwas with his Right Hand missing, i.e. Woden who uses
the Left-Hand Path to meet his ends in the Dark Ages. The Leek also represents the Virile Male Warrior (sea = semen) - the
youthful frecca who make up the Cultic Brotherhoods.
Uruz - The Ur-Ox (Aurochs), the Wild Beast that roams the moorlands (wilderness); represents
the Wild Warriors of Woden, the One-Eyed Hunter-God, who roam the wilderness. In eld-times the youthful frecca would
have to fight the wild ox in order to prove his manhood.
Ar-Kan Rune-Lag
