Book II of the Heathen Soul Lore Series
Winifred Hodge Rose
Please scroll down below the following description for links to a detailed table of contents, and to sites where the book can be purchased.
Heathen Soul Lore: A Personal Approach is the second book in the Heathen Soul Lore series, following Book I: Heathen Soul Lore Foundations: Ancient and Modern Germanic Pagan Concepts of the Souls. In this second book, we move on from the conceptual and theoretical levels discussed in Book I, to the personal and practical levels of soul exploration.
When we become Heathen, we gradually become aware of a whole different world-view, one that includes views of what our souls are, and how they interact with all other beings and other Worlds of the cosmos. We have the basis for pursuing new and different understandings of the souls, and of all the aspects of our lives that are shaped by those understandings. Factual, scholarly study of ancient beliefs gives us a place to start, and guideposts to shape our path. That is the focus of Book I. But this scholarly endeavor must eventually provide links to living spiritual realities; otherwise it is an empty exercise for our purposes here. Book II offers options for pursuing a personal path to find such links.
The real test of the validity of what we are learning is what this means to us, to the conduct of our lives and our life-experiences, to the development of ourselves as spiritual beings rooted in a Heathen world-view. It is this soulful connection, this “aha!” moment of enlightenment, that validates both the scholarly enterprise and the pursuit of Heathen spirituality in today’s world. This moment when intellect meets inspiration in a flash of spiritual power opens great new vistas of understanding.
Book I lays the foundations for this enterprise, gathers the clues, shapes the concepts, and strives to communicate them intellectually and through the imagination. Here in Book II is where you can explore what all of this means to you, personally. Who are each of your souls? They are complex beings, and getting to know each of them is like getting to know another person, but a person who is yourself, expanded in directions you may not have known were there.
This book offers ways to explore and grow your souls in a Heathen context, and to integrate your conscious connections with them into your daily life. Each of the chapters about the souls includes a bind-rune to enhance meditation on that soul, for those who are familiar with rune-lore. There are also sections quoting the thoughts and experiences of study participants as they worked through this material, to offer different perspectives and examples.
This new book builds on the knowledge presented in Book I, which provides the necessary background for Book II. Each of the chapters about the individual souls in Book II lists the specific background reading for that chapter, which you can find either in Book I, or on this website in the Soul Lore articles. You will not be able to make good use of Heathen Soul Lore: A Personal Approach, without being familiar with the foregoing material, either in Heathen Soul Lore Foundations, or on this website.
I want to mention that most of the material in this book is already available on this website. As with all of my books, I want to make sure that people who are interested in what I write have access to my work, whether they can afford the books or not. But if you can afford the book, your purchase is a great compliment and support to me, and I thank you!
Here is a link to a detailed Table of Contents, to give you a better idea about what the book covers. https://heathensoullore.net/detailed-table-of-contents-for-book-ii/ (423 pages)
Though I am delighted if you choose to buy this book from any bookseller, in response to many queries, I will mention that I receive a larger portion of the proceeds if you purchase from Lulu.
Links to purchase this book:
Paperback book from Lulu: https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/winifred-rose/heathen-soul-lore/paperback/product-4gjm5r.html?page=1&pageSize=4 Available from Lulu and many other booksellers.
Hardcover book (this is available only from Lulu, in order to keep the price as low as possible. It would be almost twice this price if it were in general distribution, due to distribution fees). https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/winifred-rose/heathen-soul-lore/hardcover/product-q47gq5.html?page=1&pageSize=4 B&W illustrations.
EPUB e-book from Lulu: https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/winifred-rose/heathen-soul-lore/ebook/product-4ge8em.html?page=1&pageSize=4 This version has no special spelling characters; all the foreign names and words have been “englished” so there won’t be display problems for your e-reader. B&W illustrations. Also available through many other booksellers.
PDF e-book from Lulu: https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/winifred-rose/heathen-soul-lore/ebook/product-k2q87v.html?page=1&pageSize=4 The illustrations are in color, and this version has special characters as needed for Norse and other old Germanic-language words. Available only from Lulu.
Kindle e-book from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09WJM4ZWS The illustrations are in color, and this version has special characters as needed for Norse and other old Germanic-language words.
Here is a cover image of the book, with great thanks to Dale Wood for the painting on the cover.
