Does anyone know where the roots of the World Tree go? No one does and there's only one tree for everyone. I used to practice asatru but only for a short time. I found that most who had a passing interest were into it because it was a vent for their failures in life and hate for anyone 'not of aryan stock' whatever. They had no clue about the poetic literature, system of values,etc. Odinism to them was just as you say, like satanism. My current interest in anything of the old Norse religion is the literature and of course, the runes!
> . I found that most who had a passing interest were into it because it was a vent for their failures in life
This is generally true for *anyone* with a "passing interest" in *any* religion.
> hate for anyone 'not of aryan stock' whatever.
I've yet to see anybody come up with a really good explanation for the attraction of Odinism to the skinheads. The sagas and lore, as I said, have none of that, and quite the contrary. The best explanation is that it's linked to Germany, and the skinheads seem to be of the same stock that gave the world the Nazis. The old Norse would *not* have flipped out at the presense of a Jew or a "blauman" ("blue-man," what they called black sub-Saharan Africans). They would, instead, have been intrigued, and probably would have wanted to make the Viking-with-two-backs with any exotic hotties the visitors had with 'em.*
What's really funny are skinhead Odinists. Being shaved bald was a sign, back in the day, that you were a slave. Freemen had hair. Those who were doing well were able to take care of their hair better'n most, so they tended to have longer hair. So a skinhead Odinist is telling you that he is a loser who can't even groom himself.
*Note: the Vikings would have sailed for months and beaten the crap out of each other for the chance to court the IDF babes...