HEAVEN
from the upcoming “The Heathen Essays Vol. I”

In the modern Heathen lexicon one is likely to hear mention of any number of halls and hames where the dead may reside, but one rarely hears the word ‘Heaven’ in use with the afterlife. The word’s long association with Christianity makes this understandable, and to many undesirable, but if we as Heathens (another word loaded with negative connotations) are to ever reclaim our heritage we must also reclaim our language.

The word Heaven stretches far into the mists of antiquity, and is found in all the Germanic languages. Its associations with the afterlife predate Christianity, and we know it had associations with the concept of the afterlife… but what exactly were these concepts? To find out we need to look at the earliest form of the word: The PIE word ‘*ke-men-’.

The hypothetical word *ke-men– is made of the two PIE roots *ak– and *men-. The root *ak– is thought to have meant ‘sharpe’ and is the basis for the English words ‘axe’ and ‘edge’. The word also becomes associated with the substance of ‘stone’ most likely due to the heavy use of stone weapons and cutting implements in early Indo-European society.  In the Western Indo-European branch of the language that was to evolve into the Jastorf (and possibly the Harpstedt) cultures, the sound developed a metathetic change from *ak– to *ka- (*ke– being a variant form). This association is shown by words that share the same root, such as our English ‘hammer’ [*ka-mer- ‘a stone implement with which to kill’]. This particular metathesis only took place in the language that was to evolve into Proto-Germanic. The second part of the equation is the PIE root word *men– which is thought to have meant “to think’ and which also has derivatives referring to various qualities to states of mind and thought.  So then the word *ka-men– would likely mean ‘that which has a quality like stone’ and this reveals many interesting ideas and some perplexing questions. To which quality of stone were the early Indo-Europeans referring? While it is impossible to say for sure, we can look at some of the more obvious qualities and try to draw some conclusions.

Stone lasts forever, and was the most permanent substance the Indo-Europeans would have known. Most (if not all) the artifacts we have from the early Indo-European peoples are made of stone (like the “horse head” scepters of the Pontic peoples) and it is certain that these peoples would have been in possession of stone artifacts from even more ancient times. This would indicate a connection with the past, and hence the ancestors who created the artifacts.

Stone is viewed in many Indo-European cultures as ‘dead’ or inert. Even amongst modern day Zoroastrians we find the funerary practice of Dakhma-nashini, in which the corpse (a source of  physical and spiritual pollution) is placed initially on a slab of stone, a substance which can not be polluted, while preparations are made for the bodies disposal. The bodies are then placed with in the Dakhma, or  “Tower of Silence” which is a circular stone-lined well. The idea that stone is free from pollution is an ancient one (being found amongst the Vedic cultures as well), and probably goes back to the early Indo-Europeans.  There is also the archeological evidence from the Neolithic European peoples, where people were often buried under large boulders. Traces of red ochre designs have been found on the boulders and could show a connection with the funerary practices of the Germanic peoples who often used red ochre on their stone memorials.

The realm of the dead often lies at the top of (or in some cases in) a mountain. In cultures where the axis-mundi was not a tree, it is often a mountain, and the ancestors and heroes are often said to dwell there. We see this in the myths of Greece and India, and it is hinted in the Norse sources by the word “himinbjorg” or ’heaven mountain’, the hall of the god Heimdallr. There are also the stories found in the Landnambok where it is told that upon his death Þórólfr Mosturskeggi was said to enter into a holy rock to feast with his family and friends. Professor Hilda Davidson believes this to be a strictly local (and familial) legend because it is only found in this one source, but there are similar tales found in Gaelic folklore that can be used to dispute her theories.

When examined, all of the qualities mentioned seem to interrelate. The idea of ‘stone’ has strong connections with permanency, the dead, and the realm of the afterlife. Perhaps the early Indo-Europeans were trying to say that like stone, death is eternal… but an ever-existing part of the living world. So should heaven be for the modern Heathen. We must recognize that while death is for the most part a one-way trip, the spirits of the dead are an ever-present part of our religion and a fountain of knowledge for those who seek them.

Davidson, H.R.E. 1938. The Road to Hel. Greenwood Publishing Group

Eliade, Mircea. Sheed, Rosmary (trans.) 1996. Patterns in Comparative Religion. University of Nebraska Press.

Havewala, P. H. 1996. The Dakhma-nashini mode of Disposal of the Dead. Zenobia Patel: Bumbai, India

Pokorny , Julius. 1959. Indogermanisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch. Bern and Munich: Francke Verlag