North Sea Water in My Veins: The Pre-Christian Spirituality of the Low Countries

This entertaining if unorganized compendium by shamanic teacher Almqvist (Medicine of the Imagination) brings together non-Christian practices, beliefs, and stories from Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. The author provides an overview of the area’s history, from the first Frisian settlers around 400 BCE to Julius Caesar’s conquest of the area now known as Belgium. She explores the symbols and folklore of the “low lands,” describing, for instance, how pagans venerated trees and believed that the god Odin created the first humans out of two dead tree trunks. A particularly illuminating chapter provides a “directory” of ancient heathen deities, noting how god of light Lugus was popular among the Celts and the god Berchta was believed to be “a protector of women and children.” Almqvist peppers in personal anecdotes, such as when she reflects on her Roman Catholic upbringing while detailing how Saint Boniface converted pagan Frisians to Christianity. Novices will find some fun trivia, but the author’s tendency to drift from one topic to the next without a discernible flow or structure frustrates. This is best used as a reference. (July)