The best way to help the A-S Wikipedia is to edit it, to be frank. I’d love it if you would do that, and it can be just a few words here or there.

It is possible that both the Völuspá author and Snorri were both classical trained, we know as fact Snorri definitely wanted to appear Classically trained, as such the parallels to the Greek stories of Cerberus may have influenced both authors however as I stated it would seem that both Garmr and Fenrir share a whole lot in common. That is not to say that Garmr does not exist, the real question is does the hound actually rival Fenrir or are these elements of lost stories which involved another wolf or hound.

And for clarification I am not suggested any sort of monotheism; I am simply pointing out that I believe there is a misinterpretation resulting in the death of one of our Gods that may not have happen.

The linguistic history can be confusing, but in this case is pretty clear: Tiwaz was the “proto-Germanic” or Common Germanic form of the god’s name, and the Old Norse, Anglo-Saxon, and Old High German forms are all descended from it, reflecting the divergences between the languages. Nobody forgot the god’s name in this case (as opposed to Freyr and Freyja, where their names were evidently concealed or simply fell into disuse.) We don’t have enough evidence from the languages other than Old Norse to be sure, but it looks as if only in Old Norse, his name also came to be used to simply mean “a god” – and that usage is very clear in the fact they use the plural, “tívar,” for “gods.” That and the frequency with which his name and Ullr’s are used in kennings suggest how old they both are. And how dear. I do not think tehre is any implication of forgetting him, rather the reverse. The Völuspá poet writes very allusively and unclearly, and was a major source for Snorri, who has demonstrably misinterpreted and simplified the poem in places. So I think the misunderstanding here is Snorri’s, probably encouraged by Classical models of a dog in the underworld who is a guard dog, although it’s possible it was already the Völuspá poet’s view. (The “cave,” “hellir,” in Gnipahellir is an old view of the nature of the underworld that it is possible the poet had from a poorly understood source. It’s also possible the poet was deliberately combining contrasting pictures – as with the two views of the world sinking under the waves and being blasted by fire.)

Since Old Norse poetry does use kennings, it’s possible to read it either way around – as testament to how important Týr was or as evidence of how his importance had faded. I think both are probably true, depending whether we’re talking about a king and his sycophantic followers or a person who realized hierarchies like that were not progress

Frith,
M

Good point about the stopping of breath, and about not eating asphyxiated meat – that confirms it then, both bits refer to killing the animal for blót, even though blót as a word is related to blood and sóa is not.

Dronke . . . was the best we had, as far as I know. She herself made the point in class that when you study a “mythology” you have to hone a fine feeling for it, because that’s ultimately the basis on which you decide which interpretation is better. (Compare Dumézil. Huge amounts of knowledge about many, many related cultures – but no real sense for any of them. Just the determination to make pretty patterns. He also kept changing his mind – but most of it’s concealed by the French tradition of reissuing books with tremendous changes but only a new date, not a new edition number.) But Volume 2 was already less sure in touch than Volume 1. That’s why I started writing about Völuspá – because I was finding myself disagreeing. And as I say, on this evidence she’s lost her insight, her sense of what fits. Too much mucking about with Celtic stuff. Too much influence from her husband’s interests. Damned shame.

Suffocation was used on humans; in terms of the manner; generally humans were hung or left to drown in a bog, in either case the cause of death is asphyxiation. For animals the “suffocation” if it occurred was likely accidental; there is a belief within farming you never eat an animal that has suffocated; in part it is because the muscles tense up making the meat tough and if the animal is not immediately bled it can poison the meat.

The holding of breath / control of breath is generally done by the person doing the sacrifice, by controlling ones breathing you can control the speed of your heart this allows you to deliver a single death blow without screwing it up because your arm trembled due to your breathing and heart beating. Striking between the beats of the heart ensures no tremble at the last moment before executing the delivery of the blow. This practice is still done in modern military by elite troops such as snipers.

As to the meanings of the passages; like all of the lore it is subjective to tampering by the Christian scribes. I think it is best to ask of the Gods and Goddesses only in great times of needs so great that your own might and will can not over come, nor the use of runes can overcome the obstacle presented to you. It is then and only then that a request should be made. Often enough a man’s / woman’s luck will see them through a scrape; if need be great the runes can see a person through. But should odds be overwhelming and all else has failed then the Gods and Goddesses aid should be sought.

I am not much in to blind faith; and I think it is a mistake to assume that Ottar was just going about blindly offering. Give an offering with out expectation as a sign of respect yes, but to blindly follow and hoping that the Gods and Goddesses hear you is a Christian mindset. The signs are all around us with the interaction of the Gods and Goddesses, all one needs to do is open their eyes and ears and look and listen and turn off the distractions in our daily life and then you will see and hear and will give nothing to blind faith for you will no longer be blind or deaf.

Our ancestors knew the trap falls of monotheistic mindsets imported from foreign lands, a mindset I see is on the rise again in this modern age. If only those who pushed so hard for one place of worship and one person for the medium of the worship would open their eyes and see that spirituality is everywhere around them, from the moth that hovers to the trees and creeks.

While dreams do provide a means of interaction it is not and shall not be the only means for megin absolute insures that this will never be as the gifts provided to us by the Gods, Goddesses and Wights derive from the physical world and not the metaphysical existence of a dream state. The wishing of such a metaphysical state only does not fit with the current ill prepared minds of the populace which can not handle transcendence to such a condition let alone comprehend the true nature of such a state. Which is precisely why the metaphysical argument always fails and falls down because when it comes down to it …. we are what we do … the doing provides the evidence of our existence, without it we are nothing more then aspirations upon a solar wind.