{"id":113,"date":"2023-09-28T15:38:25","date_gmt":"2023-09-28T20:38:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/lightyourpath\/?p=113"},"modified":"2023-09-28T15:41:39","modified_gmt":"2023-09-28T20:41:39","slug":"lokis-unexpected-twist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/lightyourpath\/2023\/09\/lokis-unexpected-twist\/","title":{"rendered":"Loki’s Unexpected Twist"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
In a couple of weeks, I will be in the woods at a local Pagan festival, enjoying the lack of cell phone service and not stressing about work. During the festival, I will be leading a ritual to Loki. The origin of my Loki bl\u00f3t (Norse style ritual) is somewhat of a funny story and one I think worth sharing.<\/p>\n
Altar for Loki Blot<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
I practice various Pagan traditions, with Norse Paganism or Heathenry being one of those. I am dedicated to Odin and my personal practice focuses on Odin, Freya, Freyr and Hel but I do honor many of the Norse gods. Needless to say, Loki was not on my radar. I have never been anti-Loki, Loki is typically welcome at my rituals if He chooses to come, and attendees are welcome to toast to him. Although there are some Norse groups are not comfortable with Loki and do not include him in their practice. I work with similar deities from other cultures, such as Set from the Ancient Egyptian pantheon. I am not afraid of a deity with a chaos label. That doesn\u2019t mean you should not be cautious with them. In my experience, it is a good rule of thumb to be cautious when dealing with any deity. But I am not going to shun a trickster deity simply because they are tricksters. As a child of Odin, I am also aware that there are dark aspects of Odin that I will likely never call on or want to see. In her book \u201cOdin: Ecstasy, Runes and Norse Magic\u201d Diana Paxson talks about the dark, trickster aspect of Odin and says that if you need a trickster deity it would be better to call on Loki than Odin in this guise.<\/p>\n