How to Make Pagan Offerings: What to Say and What to Give in Ritual

We are finally on to the practical aspects of ritual! This is part three in a series of articles about Pagan offerings and ritual. Part 1 and Part 2 are focused on the reasoning behind why we do ritual. Now, we are looking at how we do ritual. Per previous parts of this series, there

Celebrating the Wonnezeit Season and Frau Holle

Frau Holle If you’re a Heathen, you may have heard about Frau Holle. She is most famous (even today in Germany) for a fairytale about her collected by the Brothers Grimm. Similar to figures like Baba Yaga, many people argue that in pre-Christian times she was a goddess. Many other-worldly beings in folktales have been

Urglaawe (Germanic Paganism): Entschtanning and Groundhog Day

Entschtanning is one of several important holiday seasons in the Urglaawe calendar. The word “Entschtanning” means “emerging” and the season lasts for twelve days/nights. It is referred to as the single busiest of all holidays in Urglaawe, and it comes with layers of lore to understand. But much like other Neopagan traditions, it is centered

The Four Centers of Paganism Reimagined

If you ask the same question to 10 witches, you will get 13 answers. This truism has only ripened with age. But when our definitions of Paganism are so diverse, how do we know what Paganism is at all?

Racism in Paganism: The QAnon Guy and the U.S. Capitol

I wanted to write a different article this week. But I feel compelled to discuss a long-standing issue within Heathenry, as well as Paganism as a whole.

How Can a New Pagan Celebrate the Winter Solstice?

These are the darkest days of the year. Insofar as we today — and polytheists of the past — felt that it is important to celebrate the return of the sun, we have celebrated, feasted, and made offerings around this time. The word solstice comes from the Latin words meaning “sun” and “to stand still”

The Real History of Yule

There’s a lot of talk about Yule within the pagan community. And sometimes history and modern customs are totally conflated. We need to keep in mind what is historically accurate and what is modern invention. Here’s the problem: We know very little about what Viking-age people (let alone people further back in time) did during

Who are the Indo-Europeans?

World Tree Heritage is primarily intended to discuss modern paganisms which have their roots in Indo-European polytheism. I wanted to make this introductory article for anyone who is unfamiliar with this term or has questions about it when they see future references to the Indo-Europeans. Important disclaimer: There have beens heaps of articles and mounds

Sunwait (Väntljusstaken): Heathens Awaiting Yule

Yule will soon be upon us! And Heathens begin celebrating Yuletide earliest among Pagans because of a growing tradition called Sunwait. This modern tradition is maybe a few decades old, and it originated in Sweden. Sunwait is a mix between Christian Advent wreaths, the runes, and Thorsheldg, a Swedish Heathen tradition. It has only taken