The Return of Odin: The Modern Renaissance of Pagan Imagination

by Richard Rudgley

A controversial examination of the influence and presence of the Norse god Odin in contemporary history and culture

• Documents Odin’s role in the rise of Nazi Germany, the 1960s counterculture revolution, nationalist and ecological political movements, and the occult revival

• Examines the spiritual influence of Odin in relation to Jesus Christ

• Profiles key individuals instrumental in the rise of the modern pagan renaissance

Exploring the influence of the Norse god Odin in the modern world, Richard Rudgley reveals Odin’s central role in the pagan revival and how this has fueled a wide range of cultural movements and phenomena, including Nazi Germany, the 1960s counterculture revolution, the Lord of the Rings, the ecology movement, and the occult underground.

Rudgley argues that it is Odin and not Jesus Christ who is the single most important spiritual influence in modern Western civilization. He analyzes the Odin archetype--first revealed by Carl Jung’s famous essay on Wotan--in the context of pagan religious history and explains the ancient idea of the Web--a cosmic field of energies that encompasses time, space, and the hidden potentials of humanity—the pagan equivalent to the Tao of Eastern tradition. The author examines the importance of the concept of wyrd, which corresponds to “fate” or “destiny,” exploring techniques to read destiny such as the Runes as well as the existence of yoga in prehistoric and pagan Europe, which later produced the Norse Utiseta, an ancient system of meditation.

Rudgley documents how the Odin archetype came into play in Nazi Germany with the rise of Hitler and the pagan counterculture of the 1960s. He examines how the concept of subterranean and mythic realms, such as the Hollow Earth, Thule, and Agartha, and mysterious energies like Vril were manifested in both occult and profane ways and investigates key occult figures like Madame Blavatsky, Guido von List, and Karl Wiligut. He provides pagan analyses of Tolkien and the Lord of the Rings and documents the impact the Odin archetype has had on nationalist and fascist groups in America and Europe.

Examining pagan groups in Europe and America that use the Norse template, Rudgley reveals true paganism as holistic and intimately connected with the forces at work in the life of the planet. Showing how this “green” paganism can be beneficial for dealing with the adverse consequences of globalization and the ongoing ecological crisis, he explains how, when repressed, the Odin archetype is responsible for regressive tendencies and even mass-psychosis--a reflection of the unprecedented chaos of Ragnarok--but if embraced, the Odin archetype makes it possible for like-minded traditions to work together in the service of life.

Genres: History, Religion, Philosophy, Paganism, Mythology, Occult, Nonfiction

336 pages, Paperback

Published March 13, 2018

Reviews

[Megan · Rating 1 out of 5]

This whole book is just a hodgepodge of vaguely related thoughts and even more vaguely related events in recent history stated like they are persuasive facts about culture. You really need to believe wholeheartedly in Carl Jung's theories to find any of these arguments persuasive, and even then you might not.

There's not much structure overall, and it seems like the whole concept depends on essentially saying 'this modern thing/event' is sort of similar to this 'very broadly defined old thing.' I thought, going in to this, that I was in for a (hopefully compelling) description of a resurgence of pagan mythology in modern peoples. Based on the examples given here, I have to conclude that it really isn't happening, since otherwise why would we need to rely on small subsets of, for instance, white supremacists, in order to find anyone referencing these supposedly returning ideas?

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mainly a summary of how lost Nordic traditions have seen resurgences throughout history guided by various wannabe cult leaders and narcissistic, self-aggrandizing blowhards. Not the least of which were the few occultists play-acting as magicians for each other in pre-Nazi Germany. And this book talks a LOT about the Nazi and Neo-Nazi obsession with Norse myths and the occult. Almost too much. The author frequently summarizes Nazi and Neo-Nazi writing in excessive and probably unnecessary detail.
If you're interested in paganism of the specifically northern European or Scandinavian variety, this might be an ok primer. But you will be reading an uncomfortable number of pages/chapters about Nazis.

[⊹ ࣪˖⁩ flora ⊹ ࣪˖⁩ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the most unique books I've read. it's a compilation of scientific research pertaining the philosophical and psychological findings that vaguely relate to one another under the banner of Odin. Like one big conspiracy theory that someone made over the course their life. It's interesting despite how confusing it was at times. Kept me intrigued.

[Paul · Rating 1 out of 5]

There is no structure or plan to the book, it randomly lists events, ideas, history, beliefs and any trivia related to paganism. It mentions Viking dildos, Hitler's secret Antarctic base where he escaped after WW2 and many crazier things that I have already forgotten. Technically the book never claims anything it describes to be true, everything is couched in ambiguous unsourced claims. In which case why bother writing about any of it if it's all bollocks?

The book mentions Carl Jung more times than I can count. If you're interested you can cut out the middleman and just read Carl Jung's "Essay on Wotan" which is widely available online.

[Peter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting hypothesis. Not knowledgeable enough on topic of worldwide mythology and creation stories to determine validity of conclusions. Explores “foreign” topics of interest. Whether they are all tied together or not hard to determine.

[Lance Schonberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

A strange and interesting read, collecting sometimes related and sometimes disparate chunks of myth, history, culture, and philosophy. Jungian theory plays a huge part in connecting the dots, but isn't needed by the reader to find this engaging.

[Kjǫlsigʀ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ambitious in scope, but compromised preemptively by kowtowing to the spectre of political correctness.

[Silas · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a pretty scattered book with the idea that the archetype of Odin has shown up in modern times in two waves, once in Nazi Germany and once as modern Asatru, which is viewed through the lens of some of the ideas of Jung. Some of the ideas that came before Nazi Germany were things I might otherwise not have heard about, but I found the book frustrating and unenjoyable, as it spent a great deal of time looking at figures from Nazi Germany and then modern white supremacists, and then did a tiny section at the end that was like, "oh yeah, some people who care about Odin are also not racists." The author's position is telling based on the amount of attention he gives to different things. I wanted to give up and get a refund on this book about halfway through, but had just passed my window, though I was heartened to see it was no longer available on Audible, even if I couldn't get my money back. This book would have you believe that the majority of followers of Odin are white supremacists, and that just isn't the case. I really can't recommend this book, because it's a sloppy mess full of racist ideas.