SCANDINAVIA. 
m 
adopted by degrees new gods, at the same time that they re¬ 
ceived new masters. It is probable, then, that it was not till 
the arrival of Odin in the North, that the Scythian religion 
among the ancient Danes and other Scandinavians began to 
lose the most beautiful traits of its original purity. Though 
the fact itself is probable, it is not so easy to assign the causes 
of it. 
The most striking alteration in the doctrines of the primi¬ 
tive religion regarded the number of the gods who were to 
be worshipped. A capital point among the Scythians, was 
the pre-eminence of one all-powerful and perfect being over 
all the other intelligences with which universal nature was 
peopled. But their descendants, abandoning this simplicity 
of religion, associated to the supreme God many of those 
genii or subaltern divinities, who had been always subordi¬ 
nate to him ; and by degrees they selected, as the object of 
their peculiar veneration, that divinity, whose dominion 
extended over such things as were most dear to them, or 
which appeared most worthy of admiration. This happened 
in Scandinavia. Accordingly, that supreme being, the idea 
of whom comprehends all existence, was restrained to one 
particular province, and passed apaong the generality of in¬ 
habitants for the god of war. This was the character ascribed 
to Odin. The principal deity after Odin was Frigga, or 
Frea, his wife, denoting the Earth. She is supposed to 
have been the same with the Venus of the Greeks and Ro¬ 
mans ; and the sixth day of the week, which was consecrated 
to. her under the name of Freytag, Friday, orFrea’sday, 
was rendered into Latin, Dies Veneris, or Venus’s Day. The 
third principal deity of the Scandinavians was Thor, whose 
authority extended over the winds and seasons, and particu¬ 
larly over thunder and lightning.' Such a deity is mentioned 
by Caesar under the name of Jupiter. He is supposed to have 
sprung from the union of Odin, or the supreme being, and 
the Earth. 
The three deities now mentioned formed the court or su¬ 
preme council of the gods, and were the principal objects 
of the worship and veneration of all the Scandinavians. 
There were other deities of the second order, of whom the 
Edda reckons twelve, besides twelve goddesses, to whom 
divine honours were due. Loke was regarded by the an¬ 
cient Scandinavians as their evil principle, and ranked 
among the gods. To their gods they attributed the creation 
and government of the world; and they considered all na¬ 
ture as animated and moved by one or more intelligent 
causes, which was, in their system, nothing more than the 
instrument or organ of the divinity, and a kind of book in 
which they could read the will and design of their deity. 
Hence they were led to regard various phenomena, of an in¬ 
different and of the most trivial kind, as intimations which 
the deity gave of his will to mankind. Hence proceeded 
oracles, divinations, auspices, presages, and lots, and also 
magic in all its different degrees and forms. Every man, in 
their system, had his peculiar destiny, who assisted at the 
moment of his birth, and marked before-hand the period of 
his days; but Odin, or the supreme god, they probably re¬ 
garded as the author and arbiter of the destinies. The effect 
of this principle was, to produce in those who were fond of 
war, a blind temerity, which disregarded danger. They 
had also another principle, the influence of which was no 
less barbarous; and this was, that the term of a man’s life 
might be prolonged, if any one would put himself in his 
place and die in his stead. This was often practised when a 
prince or illustrious warrior was ready to perish by some ac¬ 
cident. Odin was appeased by such a sacrifice, and con¬ 
sented to revoke the destinies and to lengthen the thread of 
the life that was to be saved. The other precepts of this re¬ 
ligion probably extended no farther than to be brave and 
intrepid in war, to serve the gods, and to appease them by 
sacrifices; not to be unjust, to shew hospitality to strangers, 
to keep their words inviolably, and to be faithful to the mar¬ 
riage-bed. 
The Scandinavians adopted, as a principle of their religion, 
the belief of the immortality of the soul, and of a future 
state, which would be happy or miserable according to 
Vol. XXII. No. 1536. 
men’s present conduct. Upon this principle they founded 
the obligation of serving the gods, and of being valiant in 
battle. After this concise statement of their principles, it 
is no wonder that the Scandinavians should carry their valour 
to the utmost excesses of fanaticism. 
Although the Scandinavians had at first no inclosed tem¬ 
ples for worship, they formed by degrees new connections 
and intercourse with the other nations of Europe, either by 
their expeditions, or by foreign colonies which were esta¬ 
blished among themselves, and thus admitted a change in 
their religion, which tolerated temples and idols, and in- 
process of time adopted them without reserve. The three 
principal nations of Scandinavia, viz., Sweden, Denmark, 
and Norway, vied with each other in erecting temples, but 
none were more famous than that of Upsal in Sweden, which 
glittered with gold. A chain of the same metal, or at least 
one that was gilt, ran round the roof, although the circum¬ 
ference was not less than 900 ells. Hacon, earl of Norway, 
built another near Drontheim, which was not inferior to 
that of Upsal. Iceland also had its temples, altars, and- 
idols. The great temple of Upsal was particularly conse¬ 
crated to the three superior deities, each of whom was cha- 
racterized by some peculiar symbol. They had also three 
great festivals in the year, which were celebrated in honour 
of their gods, and on these occasions, sacrifices, feasting, 
dances, nocturnal assemblies, and all the demonstrations 
of a most dissolute joy, were authorized by general usage. 
These corresponded to the Saturnalia of the Romans. In 
the earliest ages the offerings were simple, such as shepherds 
and rustics could present: they loaded the altars of their gods 
with the first fruits of their crops, and the choicest products 
of the earth. Afterwards they sacrificed animals. At length 
they proceeded to shed the blood of men, nor was this bar¬ 
barous practice, which was ancient and almost universal, 
entirely abolished among the northern nations till towards 
the ninth century, because before that time they had not re¬ 
ceived the light of the gospel, and were ignorant of those 
arts which had softened the ferocity of the Romans and 
Greeks even whilst they were still pagans. 
In every ninth month this bloody ceremony was renewed; 
it lasted nine days, and every day they offered up nine living 
victims, whether men or animals. But the most solemn 
sacrifices were those which were offered at Upsal in Sweden 
every ninth year. Then the king, senate, and all the citi¬ 
zens of any distinction, were obliged to appear in person, 
and to bring offerings, which were placed in the great temple 
above mentioned. Strangers also flocked in crowds from all 
parts, and none were excluded but those whose honour had 
been stained, and especially such as had been accused pf 
cowardice. Then they chose among the captives in times 
of war, and among the slaves in time of peace, nine persons 
to be sacrificed. In great calamities, such as an urgent fa¬ 
mine, they sacrificed the king, as the highest price with 
which they could purchase the divine favour. These abom¬ 
inable sacrifices were accompanied with various ceremonies. 
When the victim was chosen, they conducted him towards 
the altar, where the sacred fire was kept burning night 
and day, and he was killed at the foot of the altar. When 
men were sacrificed, they were laid upon a large stone, and 
instantly strangled or knocked on the head. The body was 
opened by the priests, who read in the entrails, and espe¬ 
cially in the heart, the will of the gods, and the good or ill 
fortune that was impending. The bodies were afterwards 
burnt, or suspended in a sacred grove near the temple. Part 
of the blood was sprinkled upon the people, and part upon 
the sacred grove; and with part they bedewed the images 
of the gods, the altars, and the temple. Sometimes these 
sacrifices were differently performed: in the neighbourhood 
of the temple was a deep well; the chosen person was thrown 
headlong into it. The whole ceremony was concluded with 
magnificent feastings, at which they drank immoderately, 
and indulged in licentious practices, which shocked the 
wisest men among them, and caused them to refuse giving 
their assistance at them. 
Tacitus supplies us with an account of the most prominent 
9 B and 
