Vallyar
Vallyar (Delkoran: Valjar) is the main religious tradition of Delkorans. It is a polytheistic tradition with animistic and nature religion aspects. An alternate term for it is forn sið (Delkoran: "old custom"); the two terms are sometimes used to distinguish official and popular aspects.
It is a polytheistic and orthopraxy-based religion, with worship directed at a pantheon comprising the Æsir and Vanir, with a secondary belief in other mythical entities known as jötnar. The distinctive pre-Delkoran element, which lends the religion its name, posits Vallyar as a divine and impersonal force that pervades the universe. Various cultic spaces are used, ranging from outdoor sites such as vé and hörgr to temples, known as hof.
Vallyar emerged as a syncretism of pre-Delkoran belief systems and Nordic religion brought by Viking settlement. The Vallyar Order was established as a state religion in the 16th century, and Delkora's subsequent history was marked by the fusion of religious and secular authority. Although state patronage benefited the Order, it also produced a rupture between official Vallyar and forn sið. Various liberal reforms, undertaken from the 19th century, reduced the gap between the two, although formal secularization of the state took place relatively late, from the 1960s.
Today, Vallyar remains the state religion of Delkora, albeit with a largely ceremonial role. Vallyar has exercised a great influence on Delkoran society and culture. Only a minority of Delkorans identify as religious or are registered members of the Vallyar Order, while a majority are culturally Vallyar, participating in rituals and invoking the deities as symbols regardless of actual beliefs.
Etymology
"Vallyar" is the conventional name for the religion, which is shared by the Vallyar Order. It is of pre-Delkoran origin, predating the Vassens, and its exact derivation and etymology cannot be determined.
An alternate term for the religion is forn sið ("old custom"). Similar terms are in use among other polytheistic religions such as Æþurian polytheism and Concordianism, reflecting the emphasis on traditions, rituals, and behaviour rather than belief. Forn sið was first attested as a result of Delkoran encounters with non-polytheistic religions, which generated consciousness of Vallyar as a distinctive religion.
In modern use, forn sið refers mainly to the folk religion aspects of Vallyar — outdoor worship, Norse mythology — while "Vallyar" refers to the formal practices and organization of the Vallyar Order.
Texts
Vallyar was initially transmitted through oral tradition, and later began to be written down. Significant textual sources for Vallyar mythology include legendary sagas, skaldic poetry, and the early kingdom-era compilations Edda and Gylfaginning.
The Seven Sagas (Syv sagaer) are a core set of texts of the Vallyar faith, which detail the origins and nature of the Vallyar force. Somewhat unique among religious texts, the Seven Sagas are considered an ongoing work, and are regularly updated in the form of "findings" issued by the Vallyar Order.
Archaeological and toponymic evidence also yield vital information regarding Vallyar practices, cultic sites, and especially burials. Most of Delkora's runestones date to the early kingdom period and contain Vallyar references, particularly those raised as memorials or sponsored by nobles and monarchs.
History
Origins and development
Vallyar emerged in antiquity as a synthesis of Trønstad or Vassen beliefs with the Nordic religion of the Viking era. Most of current Vallyar is Nordic in origin; only the idea of "Vallyar" as a spiritual essence is reliably established to have originated before the Viking era. This aspect of the religion has been traced back to the panentheistic traditions of the Vassens.
Much of the archaeological evidence of Vallyar expansion comes from Delkoran runestones. Significant written accounts from this time include those from Gutþiudaháims and the Liúşai League. Hellene observers during the ancient period mentioned Vallyar deities through equivalence with their own.
Delkoran expeditions and emergence as a trading power helped drive the emergence of Vallyar communities outside Delkora. During the emergence of the Delkoran Kingdom, there was a fusion of religious and secular authority. Public cultic activity was carried out by prominent community members. Nobles and monarchs supported the establishment of hofs and organization of lavish blóts. King Haldor III relied on religious authority while promulgating the Peace of Aberald.
The Vallyar Order was established during the renaissance period in 1346 by King Oskar II. In its early years, the Order functioned mainly as a scholastic order devoted to compiling and studying ancient Vallyar texts.
State religion
While Vallyar's early contacts with like-minded religions such as Sofianism, Megelanese witchcraft, and other indigenous traditions were peaceful and occasioned some syncretism, contact with monotheists brought conflict. In the 16th century, Queen Astrid IV carried out a series of purges of monotheist missionaries, seeing the spread of non-Delkoran religions as a threat to her authority.
Astrid made the Vallyar Order the state religion of Delkora. The Order became a means of citizen registration: all Delkorans had to be affiliated with a Vallyar hof and provide financial support. This hof registration system (hof registreringssystem) was enforced by a magistrate of religion, and relied on a standardized registry.
Elevation to a state religion had a mixed effect on Vallyar. While the Vallyar Order benefited from the registration system, the greater degree of organization that resulted from its absorption into the state apparatus caused a split between the formal Vallyar Order and the informal forn sið. Various unofficial Vallyar groups emerged, since most Delkoran monarchs focused solely on stamping out monotheism and tendencies that challenged the political status quo.
Reforms
The Delkoran Civil War brought the chasm between the Vallyar Order and forn sið into the political sphere: the former came to be identified with conservatism and the latter with liberalism and radicalism. Many of the liberal philosophers agitating against King Vallgaar's reign incorporated forn sið concepts into their writings, while Vallgaar relied on findings promulgated by the Order to justify his despotic rule. The reformist era affected the Vallyar Order as well; although the mainstream labor movement was largely secular, tendencies within it made appeals to forn sið principles.
With the adoption of parliamentary democracy, pressure for reform of the Vallyar Order began to build. The government of Torsten Branting reorganized the Order's administration to match the state, based on elections, and ended religious education in state schools. The government of Sofia Westergaard abolished hof registration, transferring civil registration duties entirely to the state. Automatic registration into the Vallyar Order was abolished under Geirbjørn Feldengaard.
These reforms succeeded in reducing the gap between the Vallyar Order and forn sið. However, outright secularization of the Delkoran state advanced more slowly, taking place mostly in the 1960s. While Vallyar remained a state religion, legislation was passed strengthening religious and irreligious freedom laws, and it was reduced to a mere ceremonial role in government. Government funding of the Vallyar Order was ended in 1972, and another law passed later that year simplified the procedure for resigning from religious orders.
Lawsuits filed by freethinker and irreligious groups led the Federal Constitutional Court of Delkora to issue Decision no. 584 of 1977, formulating a doctrine of ceremonial deism: formal religious references in a state context were now unconstitutional, except if the respective speech had lost its religious connotations through customary usage, such as deities being invoked as symbols of certain concepts rather than deities.
The cumulative effect of the reforms was to reduce the Vallyar Order's adherence and eliminate its official sponsorship, while at the same time undoing the centralizing tendencies caused by Astrid's policies and strengthening the decentralized, orthopractic character of Vallyar as a whole.
Beliefs
Deities
Vallyar is polytheistic, and shares the pantheon of the Nordic–Germanic mythologies common to Acrea, Æþurheim, and the Goths of Akashi. The traditional distinction between Æsir and Vanir endures, although the differences between them remain unclear and have been subject to debate and interpretation.
Vallyar adherents worship the deities and honour ancestors and other divinities — the latter includes the nornir (fate goddesses), vættir (spirits of nature), fylgjur (guardian spirits), hamingjur and dísir (protective and tutelary spirits). One notable god who is not worshipped is Loki, the trickster god imprisoned until Ragnarok. Jötnar worship may also occur, although this is not widespread.
Cosmology
According to Vallyar creation myth, the universe emerged out of the Ginnungagap, when the divine and impersonal force known as "Vallyar" manifested and helped create life. Two realms emerged, the icy Niflheim and fiery Muspelheim, and a river connecting the two formed the giant Ymir. Fed by the primeval cow Auðumbla, Ymir begat the giants and the deities, who in turn created the first humans, Ask and Embla.
Vallyar cosmology conceives of nine worlds, connected by the mythical tree Yggdrasill. Humans live on Miðgarðr.
Uniquely among the polytheistic traditions of Tyran, the Nordic–Germanic is the only one to have an eschatological component: the harsh Fimbulvetr precedes the events of Ragnarök, a series of natural disasters and great battle that causes the deaths of gods, following which the world will be repopulated by the human survivors Líf and Lífþrasir. The story of Fimbulvetr was inspired by historical extreme weather events in Eracura, while Ragnarök reflects the traditional Vallyar cyclic conception of time and belief in rebirth.
Afterlife
Vallyar has a complex series of beliefs and practices related to death and the afterlife. Mythology refers to multiple otherworlds: warriors who die in battle become Einherjar, half going to Odin's hall Valhalla and half to Freyja's hall Fólkvangr. Other deities associated with death include Hel, who owns a realm in Niflheim; Rán and her daughters, associated with death at sea; and Gefjon, the patron of those who die virgins.
Delkoran funeral customs revolve around cremation. Burial mounds and runestones were historically erected in memorial, but are less common nowadays. The sjaund feast is held seven days after a person's death. Ancestor worship is common in Vallyar, with a tradition of putting out food and beer by burial mounds.
An erotic interpretation of death is a notable theme in Vallyar beliefs. "Hel's embrace" is a common metaphor for death; Hel, Rán, and Rán's daughters are depicted on many image stones as erotic partners in death.
Practice
Vallyar is based on orthopraxy, and features a spectrum of rituals from large events to private and family rites, intervowen with daily life. Some rituals, particularly large-scale festivals and observations, have been standardized through the Vallyar Order, while others retain their historic traditions and variations which emerged in the absence of a professional priesthood before the 16th century.
The blót is the primary ritual, typically held outdoors and consisting of an offering of mead to the deities and a communal meal. Historic blóts involved animal sacrifice, which was abolished in the 19th century. Second in importance is the sjaund, a ritual drinking ceremony where the deities are toasted.
The hof is the primary public religious building of Vallyar. Due to its emphasis on the spiritual essence of nature, much worship takes place in outdoor sites such as vé, hörgr, and various sacred trees, groves, and worship sites for landvættir.
The mystical and magical tradition of Vallyar is known as seiðr. It contains notable elements of shamanism and ancestor worship.
Vallyar uses the ancient predecessor of Delkoran as a sacred language, particularly for the names of mythical beings, rituals, and reciting sagas and poetry.
Vallyar Order
The Vallyar Order (Valjarorden) is the main religious organization of Vallyar, and formerly a state religious order. It administers the formal aspects of Vallyar, including buildings and major rituals, and is responsible for training, oversight, and organization of Vallyar goðar and gyðja.
While it was a state religious order, it adopted an administrative structure modeled after the state. Direct elections are held to the General Assembly (Generalforsamling) and the county assemblies (Amtsforsamling). Elections are held according to standard electoral law, and voters are members of the Vallyar Order. Order elections are contested by nominating groups (nominerende gruppe), which are affiliated to political parties or non-partisan (tværpolitisk).
The Council of Elders (Ældsteråd) is the highest authority within the Order and consists of experienced goðar and gyðja appointed by the General Assembly for ten year terms. All decisions made by the Council are subject to review by the Assembly. By custom, the Delkoran monarch holds the title of "Lord Grand Master of the Vallyar Order", but this is now a strictly ceremonial title.
The Order no longer receives direct government funding, instead relying on member contributions. As with all other religious institutions in Delkora, it is treated as a nonprofit organization for tax purposes, making it exempt from many taxes.
It has an affiliated institution, Vallyar Order Abroad (Valjarorden i utlandet), for Vallyar adherents who live outside Delkora.
Politics
Vallyar's impact on Delkoran society is reflected in politics. There are spiritually-based groups and parties throughout the political spectrum. Those on the right tend to emphasize the doctrinal and ritual aspects of Vallyar, while those on the left tend to emphasize its more humanistic elements. Many Vallyar adherents have been notable supporters of Delkora's environmental movement.
The Vallyar–forn sið split has had reverberations in politics: during the early 20th century and 1950s depression, a perception emerged that the Vallyar Order was right-leaning whereas forn sið was left-leaning. Subsequent Order reforms and an amelioration of the split have reduced these differences.
During the Delkoran counterculture movement of the late 1960s, many groups emerged that made appeals to forn sið concepts in advocating for issues ranging from women's rights and anti-racism to drug liberalization.