*A self-paced video version of this course is in development and will be released in 2024.*
Gather at the Well is a live, experiential, on-line program for creating meaningful relationships with the Norse powers and developing personal ritual practices modeled on Norse cosmological templates. We will gather in the Dísarsalr – the Hall of the Goddess – to work closely with Freya and meet with other wise and compassionate Norse powers who will initiate us into connection with the Norse cosmological mysteries. We will sing ourselves on journeys through Norse cosmological terrain and resource from the wells of origin, memory, and creation. We will join the lineage of staff-carriers and learn how to become resources of wisdom and blessing as medicine for the modern world.
Participants will receive:
- Training in the seiðr staff-journey method.
- An introduction to galðr – the use of sound/song in magical practice.
- An introduction to the runes.
- Training in trance-mediumship individual and group practice including oracular seiðr and the community High Seat.
- Instruction in working with the imaginal realm, strengthening personal boundaries, and developing healthy relationships with the spirits.
- Recordings of songs I have composed from medieval Norse sources that can be used for ritual purposes.
- Frameworks for personal ritual practice.
- Access to a collection of research material and guides to focal study topics.
- Access to Living Voice Wisdom Gatherings: a private platform for interacting with course participants and the broader community.
The course meets three weeks a month over the course of nine months and ends with a 3-day in-person or online retreat.
Awaken Wisdom! Awaken Wisdom! If you would hear our songs and our ancient tales.
From The Song of the Millstone
This program emphasizes foundational animist principles of relationality and reciprocity. Norse mythology and cosmology will be approached from the perspective of a wisdom tradition that speaks to universal principles of soul and spirit. Class time will emphasize experiential processes, skill development, and current perceptions of these living powers. Between classes participants will receive independent study materials on topics of myth, history, and pre-Christian practices. Historic information from early Germanic and medieval Norse times will be included but the intent of the class is to be informed by the past while fostering current relationships and ritual practices that are of benefit to the Earth at this time.
This course is for you if you:
- Have either ancestry or soul affinity for Norse/Germanic practices.
- Want to develop your relationship with the compassionate Norse powers in a contained ritual setting.
- Want to learn how to develop personal ritual templates from your own relationships with the Norse powers.
- Want to learn about Norse mythology and cosmology from a wisdom perspective that speaks to universal human experience.
- Are interested in the sources of modern Norse magical practices – runes, seiðr, galðr, staffwork – and wish to develop those practices.
- Appreciate knowing the distinction between historic information and modern interpretation and use.
- Are ready to engage a process of discovery, personal transformation, and initiation.
Participants should be in alignment with the ethics of this program:
We develop empowered partnerships with only the most compassionate aspects of spirit in service to the highest good of all sentient beings.
We do not use relationships with spirits or magical practices to infringe upon the boundaries and free will of others.
We maintain personal responsibility, free will, and sovereignty at all times.
We do the work of developing personal integrity and the authentic power that comes from alignment within ourselves and right-relationships with others.
This work is offered in the spirit of inclusiveness. Participants do not need to identify with any particular ancestral, cultural, or spiritual affiliation. While this class may be particularly appealing to those with Norse ancestry, it can also be relevant to people with other Germanic ancestry (English, Dutch, German), those who have a soul affinity for this content, those who are drawn to Norse mythology, cosmology, and history, and those who feel intuitively called to participate. Participants of all ancestral backgrounds are welcome. We are LGBTQ+ positive.
This course includes didactic content on subjects that can include:
Medieval and Roman Sources on Germanic/Norse Culture and Mythology, Old Norse Pronunciation, Myth as Allegory, Themes of Initiation in Eddic Poetry, Land Spirits and Sacred Places, Afterlife Cosmology, The Matronae and Early Germanic Seers, Oracular and Divination Practices, Norse Cosmogenesis, The Norse Deities, “Giants” as Cosmic Forces and Wisdom Keepers, Runes, Powers of Fate, Magical Practices and Practitioners
And instruction and supplemental recordings for:
Boundary and protection practices, energy body care, interface techniques for engaging the imaginal realm, útiseta (sitting out), galðr, creating ritual, staff work, oracular seiðr, and developing relationships with land spirits.
Attention I demand from all the sacred families; greater and lesser children of the Great World. You want me, Choice Father, to give a good account of the most ancient tales, those which I remember best. I remember giants born before time, those who in the old days fostered me. Nine worlds I remember, nine giantesses within wood, before the Fate Tree sprouted from the ground below.
From The Prophesy of the Völva
Prerequisites: Some experience with intuitive perception and journey work is helpful but not required. Ancestral Lineage Healing is recommended especially for those without a foundation in intuitive and imaginal perception.
Participants will need to register for Language, Myth, and Magic as that content will be used in this course. You do not need to complete this course before starting Gather at the Well as content will be assigned as we go.
Registration Deadline: January 1, 2023. If a minimum registration is not met by this date the course may be cancelled/rescheduled. Registration will remain open after this date space permitting.
Because this program is experiential, initiatory, and approximates a live ritual circle, regular participation and follow-up is required. Participants are expected to regularly attend classes in-full. Absences should be infrequent and for major life events, illness, emergencies or rare alternative events. Otherwise, we show respect and consideration to the spirits who come to share their wisdom, healing blessings, and guidance by showing up ourselves. Please only register with a good-faith intention to commit to the entire program.
On-line classes will use the Zoom conferencing platform, accessible from computers, tablets, or phones. Technology permitting – classes will be recorded and available for a two-week period after each class. Recordings are not a substitute for attendance.
For accessing course content, we will be using my Living Voice Wisdom Gatherings community platform. Participants will receive instructions for signing in and using this platform.
Rate: Five payments of $400 USD over the course of the training.
There is a limited number of sliding scale positions available for those in countries with unfavorable exchange rates (if the full rate is financially prohibitive), who come from disenfranchised demographics, who have economic hardship, and who are on fixed and limited incomes. Contact Maris with a rate proposal in USD.
Class Limit: 24
2023 Schedule:
Classes will be from 3:00pm – 5:00/5:30pm Pacific Time
January 12, 19, 26
February 9, 16, 23
March 9, 16, 23
April 6, 13, 20
May 4, 11, 18
June 1, 8, 15
No classes in July or August – People who have taken the six-month versions of this course can register for the fall series which will emphasize oracular seiðr and the High Seat.
September 14, 21, 28
October 12, 19, 26
Retreat: In-person and online: November 9 – November 12. The in-person location is in Southern Oregon. The current location has one cat and may have two cats by next fall.
Required text:
The Seed of Yggdrasill by Maria Kvilhaug
I will also recommend readings from these books:
Gods and Myths of Northern Europe by H.R. Ellis Davidson
Myths and Symbols in Pagan Europe by H.R. Ellis Davidson
The Road to Hel by H.R. Ellis Davidson
The Poetic Edda, translated by Carolyn Larrington
The Prose Edda, Penguin Classic
Optional Additional Texts:
Rudiments of Runelore by Stephen Pollington
Taking Up the Runes by Diana Paxson
The Poetic Edda, translated by Jackson Crawford, or Six Cosmological Poems by Maria Kvilhaug
Dictionary of Northern Mythology by Rudolf Simek
Questions? E-mail Maris at livingvoicemedicine@gmail.com
I am so thankful to you Maris, and to your guides for holding such a safe and intentional container. This is very important to me and should be for all ritual and spiritual work. I am also grateful for all the time and effort you put into creating this course and making it accessible for all who are willing to engage and show up in a respectful and open way. I hope to attend more of your courses…
Getting in touch with Earth based practices and deities linked to my ancestors has been very powerful. I believe that understanding and engaging with Animist practices rooted in Northern European traditions is an important antidote to the cultural appropriation that is prevalent in the western world due to a lack of knowledge and connection with pre-Christian ways.
I really enjoyed the balance of didactic and experiential, and getting to know the compassionate Norse powers in a positively different and more approachable way than I had previously imagined. I feel more deeply connected to my Scandinavian and Germanic roots and will continue to foster those relationships post-class.
The class developed beautifully from historical source material through experiential personal relationship building.