Due to the lack of written information, other than what was recorded by Christian missionaries, we unfortunately have very little knowledge of the role of magic within Anglo-Saxon England during the two centuries that it thrived under heathen rule before the conversion in the 6th century. However, from the sources that have survived, we can confidently assume that the Germanic people who inhabited Britain "all had a view of nature of what we could call enchanted", as stated by Dr. Brian Bates in his writings in The Real Middle-Earth. It is believed that the people of heathen Britain were incredibly superstitious; believing in spiritual entities and supernatural forces that can change and affect the physical world, which is something we often struggle to understand in today's modern and scientific society.
One of the most prominent sources that we will find references to the use of magic and heathen beliefs during The Dark Ages can be found in Christian writings by authors like Bede, the Northumbrian monk, in books such as The Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation and De Temporum Ratione. Whilst they may often portray the beliefs of the Anglo-Saxons in a very biased light as they are often records of what should be punished, they still give give a good indication of what kind of practices may have taken place at the time. Some of the edicts passed were surprisingly late, which only showed how persistent some of the old pagan ways must have been at the time. A great example of this is a law passed by King Cnut in the early 11th century which forbade "all heathen practices. Namely the worship of idols, heathen gods, and the sun or the moon, fire or water, springs or stones, or any kind of forest trees, or indulgence in wiccecraæft or morþweorc, that is the compassing of death in any way, either by sacrifice or by divination." It is also very clear that Anglo-Saxon culture was heavily involved within mystical practices due to the amount of words that we know existed in their language such as lybcræft (magic), lybblác (witchcraft), begalan (to enchant) and morþweorc (to use poison and magic to kill someone), just to name a few.
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| Photograph: Beccy Dancer (2019) |
A rare piece of evidence for the practice of magic within Anglo-Saxon England that has survived all of these years is the Nine Herbs Charm, which is part of the larger Lacnunga; a collection of manuscripts written about the healing properties of plants within the 10th and 11th centuries. Although this does contain some Christian references, it is believed that the manuscript dates back to a much older time as descriptions of the god Woden (or Odin, in Norse Mythology) suggest a heathen origin. In general, the charm describes a number of potent herbs such as mugwort, nettle, chamomile and fennel and how they can be used for ailments, however, it is the following passage that really caught my attention:
"Fille and Finule, felamihtigu twá,
þá wyrte gesceop witig drihten,
hálig on heofonum, þá hé hóngode;
sette and sænde on VII worulde
earmum and éadigum eallum tó bóte.
Stond héo wið wærce, stunað héo wið éáttre,
séo mæg wið III and wið XXX,
wið feondes hond and wið færbregde,
wið malscrunge mánra wihta."
English Translation:
"Chervil and Fennel, most mighty two,
"Chervil and Fennel, most mighty two,
those worts were shaped by the witty Drighten,
holy in the heavens, where he hung;
set and sent (them) into seven worlds
for the wretched and the wealthy for all a cure.
Stands she against pain, stuneth (dasheth) she against venom,
that prevails against three and against thirty,
against the fiend's hand and against far-braiding (shape-shifting?),
against maskering (bewitching) by evil wights."
The story for Odin's quest for wisdom is well documented within the Scandinavian poem, Hàvamàl, which is what I believe is being referenced in the above verse. It is known within Germanic lore that the All-Father had a real thirst for knowledge and sometimes in order to obtain this, a sacrifice was required. In this particular story, Odin pierced himself with a spear and hung himself from the great tree of Yggdrasil for nine days and nights and refused any aid from the gods as a sacrifice, in order to prove himself worthy. In reward for his pain and suffering, he not only acquired the knowledge of how to wield the runes, but he became one of the wisest beings within the cosmos with the ability to heal emotional and bodily wounds, to bind his enemies and render their weapons worthless, to expose and banish practitioners of malevolent magic and to wake the dead, to name a few. It seems clear to me then, that this particular passage within the Nine Herbs Charm points to the fact that without Woden's sacrifice, perhaps the people of the land would not have been able to gain the knowledge of how to use these plants for healing and magical purposes.
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| Photograph: Beccy Dancer (2019) |
The practice of Seidr; a pre-Christian form of magic utilising aspects of shamanism in order to influence the course of future events, is a concept that is well documented within Norse Mythology and is most famous for it's use by the Norns. Although we do not know for certain if this is a form of magic that was practiced within Anglo-Saxon England, there is a strong probability that this, or something very similar, is what was practiced by the village's wise women during their time. The Anglo-Saxons shared many similarities to their Scandinavian counterparts, especially in their belief systems, so it is possible that from looking at the wide array of information we have for magic within Scandinavian culture, we may be able to better understand the Anglo-Saxons. Although there are many words within the Anglo-Saxon dictionary that describe a 'witch', one of the only terms that we have available to us that gives us some insight into their role within society is the term 'haegtesse', which the modern term 'hedgewitch' is derived from. This term literally means 'hedge-rider' and refers to someone who travelled between the physical and spiritual realms; perhaps using shamanic abilities to interact with long lost ancestors or the gods and spirits within the other world for help and guidance in earthly matters.
Whilst delving into the mysteries of Anglo-Saxon witchcraft and magic, it is very important to bear in mind the quote from Dr. Brian Bates as mentioned at the beginning of this article; that the Anglo-Saxons were accustomed to living very closely with the natural world around them and that they had an enchanted view of it. They lived in small communities surrounded by nature in timber framed buildings and relied heavily on the natural world, particularly the forests, for their building materials, good, shelter and protection. Therefore, it is no surprise that the natural world was heavily revered by the heathen Anglo-Saxon tribes and the spirits of natural world, such as the aelfar (elves), were often incorporated within their spiritual partaking. The Anglo-Saxons had a very different view of the world as we do today; they saw that there were multiple layers to this dimension and that a tree, a rock or a stream were not just that, but perhaps a home to a local spirit or an entrance to a dwarves' layer. It is this unique perspective of the natural world that they had that every spell, charm, or healing recipe they conjured would have been founded upon.
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| Photograph: Beccy Dancer (2019) |
I strongly believe that the only way to gain a true understanding of Anglo-Saxon magic is through ancestral insight and by using the ability to see beyond our material world. This form of magic is vastly different to what you will find taught in books on modern witchcraft, such as Wicca, and a deep and profound knowledge of this craft will not be obtained by reading alone. In order to fully embrace it, it is essential that you are able to listen to the natural world that is all around you; not only to be able to see beyond the veil in many respects, but to understand how the landscape surrounding you would have served you in a primitive community and how close that bond or relationship with the earth would be. The Anglo-Saxons arrived in Britain shortly after the Romans had fled, leaving their grand civilisations and innovative buildings like ghost towns behind them, to remain uninhabited in favour of much more simplistic, humble structures. It is believed that the Anglo-Saxons' relationship with the natural world around them was what was most important and no extravagant abode was worth it's sacrifice; perhaps this is a principal that would greatly benefit our lives in the 21st century.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and as always, please let me know your thoughts below.
Green Blessings,
Clare 🌿
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Hailsa, Kinswoman!
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for your comment! I do very much apologise for the very late reply, this blog hasn't been very active over the past couple of months! I very much hope you enjoyed my writings! Tell me, where abouts in the world are you from?
Delete- Clare.