Beginnings
by Gunther Hrafngrim

Long ago, at the beginning of all things, the universe was cold, dark, and empty. In the midst of
that darkness was a point of intense heat, a place we call Muspellheim. All the matter that would
become the universe was in that place of incandescent brightness. Also within this place existed
the souls of all beings who would ever be born. These souls were formless and weak, existing in
a massive pool of potential lives, yet immortal. Among these souls were three of unique strength
- Urdhr, Verdhandi, and Skuld.

In between the place of intense heat and the surrounding cold nothingness was a void called
Guningagap. As incandescent matter spun out of the place of fire into the void, it met with the
intense coldness of the outer darkness, and condensed. And so, the salty rime from which the
worlds were created was formed.

Now, during that very early time, a special set of physical laws existed. The forces we call
gravity and energy had not yet found their place, and were different than they are today. These
burgeoning new forces were like a giant cosmic mother, giving birth to the first matter. The name
we have given to these forces is Audumla. Like a huge bovine mother, Audumla gave birth to,
and nourished, the young primeval matter. This primeval matter was not like the material which
makes up our world. It had a yeasty life of its own, roaring with energy, existing outside the
boundaries of normal reality. This yeasty, roaring , mindless matter we call Ymir.

Ymir brought forth various entities we call giants or etins. These beings exist outside of time and
reality, like their master, Ymir. One can see this in their actions, their ability to bend time and
space. These were the first true living beings, and they ruled the cosmos.

As matter continued to be spun out into the void, the mother force, Audumla, brought forth a new
race of beings, beings we call the Vanir. We do not know their names or lineages, those early
Vanic gods, but we do know something about them. The Vanir were driven by the need to bring
order to the cycles of the earth, to shepard the newly created matter in its growth. The Vanir are
patient deities, content to await the long turning of the seasons for change and growth. Perhaps
the most

significant role of the Vanir is to watch over the souls of those unborn, as well as those of the
dead awaiting rebirth.

Ages after the birth of the Vanir, Audumla brought forth a new race of Gods, those we call the
Aesir. First among these beings was Buri, who begat Bor. Bor had three sons by the giantess
Bestla - Odin, Vili, and Ve. These beings were driven by a need to shape and order the cosmos.
But unlike the Vanir, they were not content to wait for change. These beings forced order upon
the cosmos, and in so doing destroyed Ymir and most of his kin. By this, the rule of the giants
was broken (and the Aesir earned their eternal enmity). A few of the sons and daughters of Ymir
escaped to the place where the expanding world of matter meets the cold void. We call that place
Jotunheim, home of the giants. The body of Ymir was reformed into true matter, and in so doing,
the rest of the nine worlds were born. And as these worlds formed and thrived, the Web of Wyrd
also grew.

The Web of Wyrd is the pattern of interaction of all beings and all matter. It is the link between
past action and the future, between all that was and all that might be. The three sisters who were
born in the depths of time, Urdhr - Verdhandi - and Skuld, watched the Web of Wyrd grow, and
tended it. They cared for it like a tiny sapling in the forest, watering and pruning it, and it grew
into a mighty tree that links all life and all worlds. The Web of Wyrd permeates all things, and
holds within it all that was, all that is, and all that will be. We call this tree at the heart of all
things Yggdrassil. The three sisters did not create the tree, yet they care for it, and find places for
the souls waiting to be born, within it.

After the worlds had been created, the Gods continued to bring change. They ordered the place of
the Sun in the sky, the rotation of the Earth, and the turning of the seasons. And though the Earth
was yet barely formed, they brought forth life - both plant and animal - to fill the worlds. The
Vanir influenced this new life, helping it to change and grow, thus bringing the gradual evolution
of increasingly complex creatures. The Gods lived and grew, and creation sang with the wonder
of it all. Much remained unfinished however, for at the heart of creation, a great many souls yet
waited birth.

Thus it was when, one day, Odin and his brothers, Vili and Ve, went forth into the world. As they
walked through a forest, they found the creatures that would become man. These creatures had
come down from the trees, for they were no longer suited to live there. They walked the earth
upright, and yet they did not fit in. They were different from other animals for they could use
tools and form thoughts. They were like rootless trees washed up on the banks of life, and like
Yggdrassil, they were made up of many things. They could walk like Elves, yet they were not
Elves. They could craft things like Dwarves, yet they were not Dwarves. They were capricious
as Giants, yet they were not Giants. They lived and bred like animals, yet they were not truly
animals. They were not yet man, for they lacked true reason, they had no will, they had no
inspiration, and they had no holiness. Odin gave them reason and inspiration, Vili gave them
will, and Ve gave them holiness. The first man they named Ask - or ash tree, because he was tall
and straight, and they knew one day he would carry spears in their cause. The first woman they
named Embla - or elm tree, because she was both strong and delicate, and would bring forth
many children.

Thus it was in elder days that the worlds, the Gods, and mankind were born.

The Kindred of Ravenswood
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