Modern asatro : att konstruera etnisk och kulturell identitet

The purpose of the study is to examine contemporary followers of Asatru in Sweden. Central to the study is the way Asatru today can be seen as an ethnic religion. Due to this will the ideas about Asatru as a folk religion among followers and the idea of Asatru as a form of “sed”, a term that can roughly be translated as a form of custom, be explored. Related to the idea of ethnic identity and Asatru is the question as to why people living in Sweden today feel a connection and identifies themselves with a culture that ceased to exist around a thousand years ago. In order for such a relationship to exist is it necessary for a follower of Asatru to imagine some form of essential cultural identity that defies other cultural changes. That is some form of cultural and ethnic essentialism. The study deals primarily with Sweden but Asatru in other countries, especially the United States are also included due to the influence they have on the Swedish scene.
Chapter 1 serves as an introduction; discussion of methodology, previous studies and also presents some definitions used. Chapter 2 deals with the theories used in the study. Chapter 3 presents an historical background from which Swedish Asatru appears. Chapter 4 gives an historical background to the Swedish Asatru scene. Chapter 5 presents an overview of the Asatru scene in Sweden today regarding numbers of followers, why people join, and so forth. Chapter 6 presents ideas about culture in the Swedish Asatru scene. Chapter 7 deals with the attitude towards nature. Chapter 8 deals with the ideas about gods and goddesses in Asaru. Chapter 9 is about religious rituals like modern forms of “blot”. Chapter 10 discusses the use of magic, like rune magic and sejd, in Asatru. Chapter 11 serves as a form of analysis and deals with the relationship between Asatru and other social fields.