Perhaps no figure has generated as much rancor in the Heathen community in recent years as Viktor Rydberg. This mythologist, poet, and author, who lived in Sweden between 1828 and 1895, published a two-volume study on Norse Mythology entitled Investigations in Teutonic Mythology in 1886. The first volume was translated into English and published as Teutonic Mythology.
Within modern Heathenry, there seems to be no middle ground when it comes to Rydberg; one either loves him or hates him, and this is unfortunate. His theories on the structure of Norse mythology are certainly unconventional, and most modern scholars have dismissed them. There remains, however, a hard core of believers who refuse to be silenced. Certainly, while the whole of Rydberg's work must be taken with many grains of salt, there is still much of value to be found. What follows is presented in the hopes that it will lead some into new avenues of thought. But as with everything, it should be read with a critical eye, and be neither accepted nor rejected wholesale.
Chapters 50-59 (forthcoming)
Chapters 60-69 (forthcoming)
Chapters 70-79 (forthcoming)
Chapters 80-89 (forthcoming)
Chapters 90-99 (forthcoming)
Chapters 100-109 (forthcoming)
Chapters 110-119 (forthcoming)
Chapters 120-123 (forthcoming)
The Æsir and the Elves:
Gullveg-Heid: Volluspa 21-27 Examined
Nerthus: Towards an Identification
Urd's Well: In Heaven or Hell?