In the music video for “Merry Christmas Everyone” by Welsh
rock ‘n’ roll singer Shakin Stevens we see a clear example of the dormant Jungian
Odinic archetype manifesting in popular culture. It begins with a towheaded
Anglo-Saxon youth boarding an aeroplane and flying to Hyperborea aka Tomteland
near Mora in Darlarna county, Sweden. Tomte land is translated by the “elves”
who greet him as “Santa world” however this is only partly true. Jultomte is the Swedish translation of
Santa Claus, but neither Santa Claus nor Father Christmas (yes, they were once separate
things) were part of Nordic culture until recently. A Tomte or nisse is nowadays
seen as a cute elf like thing, but, like elves themselves, are an echo of a
forgotten cult of the ancestors. Tomte
were associated with midwinter and with ancestors who first claimed and cleared
the land, often ancient farmers. Another name for Tomte is the haugkall or haugebonde, from the Old Norse haugr meaning a barrow – so we see a clear
Indo-European connection to the worship of ancestral spirits at mounds.
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| Tomteland aka Valhalla |
After disembarking from a bus, the metaphorical vehicle to
the Hyperborean land of the ancestors, we see that the youth is now accompanied
by an Odinic figure in a grey coat, perhaps an echo of Odin’s other name Hárbarðr “grey beard”. After a shot panning across the frosted lakes and snowy
pine forests of the Nordic landscape, the shot fades to the man himself, the
Odinic spirit made flesh to communicate the divine poetry, Shakin Stevens. The English
child is a symbol of the Nordic soul, and his journey to Hyperborea is that of
the aristocratic soul to the afterlife, which is guided by the psychopomp,
Odin, over the rainbow bridge, Bifröst.
Shakin’ Stevens is clearly a psychopomp who is guiding the souls, hence his prefix
“Shakin”, for Bifröst is consistently
referred to in Norse poetry as a bridge which “trembles”, thus Shakin’ Stevens “shakes”
or “trembles” with the path to the beyond.
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| Utterly Odinic |
Next we see Shaky on a horse drawn sleigh, being pulled through the forest at night, like Odin who leads the wild hunt. At his side is a Nordic “elf” who drives the horses on through the darkness. The association of Odin and elves is attested in the skaldic poem Austrfararvísur, by the Norwegian skald Sigvatr Þórðarson who describes encountering a sacrifice to the elves in Sweden which one of the participants relates to their “fear of Odin” – thus Odin is appeased via a sacrifice to the elves, which was at that time a broad term, describing many supernatural entities, including the souls of noble ancestors.
The lyrics at this stage reveal Shaky’s desire to “find that
girl underneath the mistletoe”. Those familiar with Norse mythology will be
well aware that mistletoe is the one entity, living or dead, in the entire
cosmos that did not swear to Frigg
not to harm Baldr, son of Odin. This leads to a dart of mistletoe being
used to kill Baldr and causing all of
creation to weep with sorrow. Baldr’s death is described differently in Völuspá, Hákonarmál, Eriksmál, and
in Gesta Danorum by Saxo Grammaticus,
yet each hint at the resemblance between Baldr’s death and that of the noble
souls of war dead, Einherjar, whose
sacrifice on the field of war wins them a place in Valhalla. Loki does not weep
for Baldr’s death because it would annul the sacrifice, for only Loki knows that
Baldr’s death is a necessary sacrifice for the renewal of the world. The poet
of Völuspá specifies that Baldr will
return:
All horror will be mended, Baldr will come; The two of them Baldr and Hodr
Will inhabit the victory settlements of Hroptr,
sanctuaries of choice-slaughter deities.
Thus the association of the death of Baldr with a human sacrifice “choice-slaughter” which is necessary
for renewal can also be seen in the context of the midwinter sacrifice and appeasement
of “slaughter deities” for renewal of the earth for the following year. Thus
our Odinic guide’s lyrics refer to his desire for a human sacrifice, hinted at
by reference to the mistletoe used in the sacrifice of Odin’s son Baldr.
In the following verse he sings “Oh, I wish that Everyday
was Christmas, What a nice way to spend the year” in a clear reference to the
coming Fimbulvintr, a terrible winter
which will last for three years and heralds the coming Ragnarök in which Odin will lead his army in battle against the
forces of Chaos and trigger the death and renewal of the earth for the next
cycle of time.
Next, in a workshop, the children (souls)
are put to work creating toys, a clear metaphor for the einherjar training in
Valhalla for the great battle of Ragnarök.
They are guided now by Santa Claus, or as we say in Britain, Father Christmas,
which is interesting because Jölföðr “Yule
father” is one of the names of Odin, as is Jölnir “Yule figure”.
Much has been written about the grey-bearded god’s resemblance to Santa Claus, but
even if there is no direct historical link between them, the similarities can
still be read from an esoteric perspective as a manifestation of the Odinic
spirit, which Jung called an archetype, and which resides within the unconscious of
all Northern Europeans. The metaphor of training for the final war is made
explicit three minutes in to the video when Shaky and the children engage in a
snowball fight. Shaky even throws a snowball at a snowman, which clearly
represents Hrym who shall lead the
opposing forces of the frost giants at Ragnarök This is
followed by a tragic foreshadowing of Odin’s death at Ragnarök - Shaky is struck by a snowball and falls, representing
Odin’s defeat by the wolf Fenrir who
shall consume him.
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| Press F |
After
the training session, the souls of the dead return to the great hall to feast
with Odin. Shaky is shown accompanied in his sleigh now by the Yule father
himself, as it draws him to the great feasting hall. We are to assume it
is as this point that the “girl beneath the mistletoe” is offered to Shaky but,
sadly, this is not shown.
Any arguments that this video merely depicts a pop star taking some children on a festive holiday are rendered totally invalid by the final sequence. Shaky, Yule father, his elves and the Nordic looking souls of the noble dead all leave the hall and brandish flaming torches as Shaky mounts the sleigh once more, and an elf drives it away into the dark forests of the Nordic night. The children and the Yule Father wave him goodbye and remain at the hall, for Shaky must return to Middle Earth to obtain more einherjar for the fateful war when he shall be no more, but the earth will be renewed by his son Vali the avenger, just as the earth is renewed each year with the cycle of the seasons and the coming of Spring.
Any arguments that this video merely depicts a pop star taking some children on a festive holiday are rendered totally invalid by the final sequence. Shaky, Yule father, his elves and the Nordic looking souls of the noble dead all leave the hall and brandish flaming torches as Shaky mounts the sleigh once more, and an elf drives it away into the dark forests of the Nordic night. The children and the Yule Father wave him goodbye and remain at the hall, for Shaky must return to Middle Earth to obtain more einherjar for the fateful war when he shall be no more, but the earth will be renewed by his son Vali the avenger, just as the earth is renewed each year with the cycle of the seasons and the coming of Spring.
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| looks like Xmas in 1930s Germany tbh |
Hail
the Yule Father! Hail Shakin’ Stevens! Very Indo-European!
