Heathenry is sometimes called
“the religion with homework.” There is a process of enculturation that must take place when a
person returns to their Folkway. To
return to the world-view and way-of-life of our Ancestors, one must read and study, and begin putting
what they learning into practice. The
problem of course, is making sure that you are accessing the right resources. Much of the
information about Heathenry you find
on the internet or in books is misleading or just wrong.
Most Heathens will recommend
going to your primary sources first.These consist of the Poetic Edda, the Prose Edda, the
Icelandic Sagas, Beowulf, and other
contemporary source material. Then there are well-researched secondary sources that can be valuable in
fleshing out your understanding.
Beyond that, there are tertiary sources, such as story-books retelling the stories in the Lore, books of
modern Heathen poetry, etc. Below is
a list of books worth reading.
Some of the following books
can be read and downloaded for free from the Temple
Library here on our website. Some are
available as paperbacks, hardcovers, and free downloads in
the Heathen
Bookstore of our
website. Where possible,
we've provided links to where you can find the books for free.
Many of the others can be ordered on-line or
at your local bookstore. Over time, we'll be adding more
of these titles available for purchase or free download. There are a few books on this list that are a
real challenge to find, but well worth the
search. If there is a book here you've looked and looked for,
but can't find, email me at voidpulp@gmail.com
and I'll try to point you in the right direction.
The Poetic Edda
– This is available in various
translations. Larrington's is the easiest to
understand, but one of the least poetic.
Hollander's is one of the most poetic, but sometime difficult to understand. Bellow's translation is a pretty
fair balance of clarity and a poetic sense.
Larrington and Hollander's translations come
in one volume, while Bellow's translation is
split into two volumes.
The Prose Edda
by Snorri Sturluson – This is also
available in various translations. The
Byock, Faulkes, and Young translations are all fairly good.
Essential Asatru
by Diana Paxon
Heathen Gods by Mark Ludwig Stinson
Heathen Tribes by Mark
Ludwig Stinson
Our Troth: History and Lore
(Volume
1) by Kveldulf Gundarsson
Our Troth: Living the Troth
(Volume
2) by Kveldulf Gundarsson
Elves, Wights, and Trolls
by Kveldulf Gundarsson
Beowulf trans. by Seamus Heaney (I strongly suggested this
trans.)
The Sagas of Icelanders
(Penguin Classics Deluxe
Edition)
The Saga Hoard, Volumes 1-2
(Temple Library
Collection)
Egil's Saga and Njal's
Saga
The Saga of the Volsungs
translated by Jesse
Byock
The Sagas of Ragnar Lodbrok
translated by Ben
Waggoner
The Sagas of Fridthjof the
Bold translated by Ben
Waggoner
The Nibelungenlied
The Agricola and
Germania by Tacitus (available in
various trans.)
Heimskringla by Snorri Sturluson (available in various
trans.)
The History of the Danes, Books
I-IX by Saxo
Grammaticus
Ecclesiastical History of the
English Nation by the Venerable
Bede
The Culture of the Teutons
(Volumes 1 and 2) by Vilhelm Grönbech -
Collected into one book available in our
website's Heathen Bookstore.
Gods and Myths of the Viking
Age by H.R. Ellis
Davidson
The Road to Hel
by H.R. Ellis Davidson
Myths and Symbols in Pagan
Europe by H.R. Ellis
Davidson
The Well and the Tree
by Paul C. Bauschatz (hard to
find)
The Mead Hall by Stephen Pollington (hard to find)
The Norse Myths: Gods of the
Vikings by Kevin
Crossley-Holland
The Children of Odin
by by Padraic Colum
D'Aulaire's Book of Norse
Myths by Ingri and Edgar
D'Aulaire
True Hearth by James Allen Chisholm
Way of the Heathen
by Garman Lord
AFA Book of Blotar and
Ritual
The Book of Troth
by Edred Thorsson
The Rune Primer
by Sweyn Plowright
On Being a Pagan by Alain de Benoist
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