Glowing candles burn around a wooden table covered in parchment and scrolls

The Catechism of the Giantess

1. Who is the Giantess?

The Giantess is many things. She is an elemental force of nature; she is the personification of that nature, to interact with we humans. She is neither deity nor monster. She is a living manifestation of aspects of nature, and at the same time she is removed from that nature, with her own individual motives, desires, and agenda. These will never conflict with her upholding of the natural order, however. The Giantess is the eternal concept and quintessence of the giantess, and she may manifest in various ways, such as the Archetypes (e.g., the Crone, the Warrior, the Sage) or as individuals (e.g., Skaði, Iðunn, Þorgerðr). We may petition Skaði for her domain, we may appeal to the Lover for her influence, and we may commune with the Giantess to bring us closer to the earth and the natural order. Lastly, there is the Giantess within us, connecting us with the Giantess and offering strength and support in our doings.

2. What does it mean to embrace her?

To embrace the Giantess is to acknowledge, support, and submit to the natural order of the world. This does not mean resignation or submission to a perceived fate—the Giantess supports our agency when our hearts are open to her and we act within the best interests of our community, the living environment, and the betterment of our condition. Embracing the Giantess also means accepting her boundless love for us, admitting that we are deserving of this love and honor, not only because she has chosen us but because we are alive, exploring varied aspects of humanity. If we cannot accept this love, we do the Giantess a dishonor by questioning her judgment and injuring ourselves as her beloved subjects. To embrace the Giantess is to surrender our doubts and fears to her and see ourselves as she sees us, to allow her to move and act through us when we are confused, weak, or frightened, and to regard others with compassion and gratitude.

3. How can we honor her in our daily lives?

We honor the Giantess in our daily lives by living truly to our nature, knowing and accepting who and what we are, earnestly expressing our personal truths, and looking forward to bettering ourselves. We honor her through our work and creative acts, supporting others in their journey and inspiring them to explore, accept, and express themselves. The Giantess is honored when we are her diligent and noble representatives, and she is honored when we care for each other. When we are mindful of her existence and her presence in our lives, when we call upon her in our labors and share our leisure with her, when we pray to her and feel her in our hearts, she is honored.

4. What are the origins of Gygratru?

Asatru ("faith in the Æsir") is the name of the faith in the Norse gods, originating in the Bronze Age; the giantesses were worshipped along with Oðinn, Þorr, Frigga, etc. As with any pantheistic religion, Scandinavian heathens chose among the gods, goddesses, and giants to pay tribute to, depending on who spoke to them personally or what they were trying to accomplish. Gygratru ("faith in the giantess") aspires to divest from the godly pantheon, the Æsir and the Vanir, and focus strictly upon the giantesses who govern the elements of our world. Further, Gygratru interprets the old texts after the influence of Christianity, reading past the misinformation and libel to determine the truth of ancient, female-centered, pagan worship of the giantesses. Both Asatru and Christianity cast the giantesses mostly as monstrous agents of chaos; the truth is that these male-dominated systems resented the power of women whom the gods themselves could not control. Three giantesses appeared at the creation of the dwarves and the dawn of mankind; one giantess nursed the wolf that would devour the moon and bring about Ragnarok. The gods claimed to represent order, even as they resisted fate and the natural order of the world. Christianity used these qualities to underscore the false dichotomy of the structures: Order vs. Chaos, Gods vs. Giants, Man vs. Woman.

Gygratru holds that women are sacred and have been maligned through the centuries by those who crave power, either to subjugate women and their power or to claim that power for their own. The opposite of a male-dominated society is not a female-domianted society: that is merely patriarchal structure in disguise. When women hold esteem and influence, society become equitable and all members are encouraged to develop themselves to their fullest potential. It is in Gygratru's agenda to address and heal the injury that has been done, to the benefit of women and men alike and at the expense of no one.

5. Why was her worship forgotten?

The worship of the Giantess was eradicated with Asatru and Norse culture with the spread of Christianity in the 10th century. Perhaps this is sufficiently represented in the Flateyjarbók codex ("the book of Flatey," a western Icelandic island) of the Prose Eddas, telling the Vǫlsa þáttr ("a short story of the Vǫlsa") from the year 1029. In this, the mother in a remote rural household had the opportunity to instruct her family in the pagan ways of giantess worship. Soon after, King Óláfr II the Stout and his retinue arrived in disguise, interrupted their ceremony, and converted the family to Christianity. The mother tried to preserve the old ways and was likely one of the last adherents remaining in the country, while Óláfr jarl went on to defile sites sacred to giantesses like Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr, proselytization providing a vehicle for his misogyny.

6. How does the Giantess support us in trials?

The Giantess shares her strength and experience with us as we progress down life's journey. She has seen civilizations rise and fall; she has endured through millenia. If we can open our hearts and minds to her wisdom, she will show us the path through trouble and lend us her strength to persevere. The Adversary calls into question traditions that no longer serve us but which evade scrutiny; the Nurturer embraces and heals us with her endless love; the Seeker kindles our curiosity and stokes our bravery as we move into the unknown. This is a difficult world on its own, and we have labored to make it even more oppressive for ourselves, or stood idly by to witness the dissolution of our society, refusing to recognize our connection to each other and the planet. When we are weary and frightened, the Giantess cups us in her warm hands, shielding us and giving us rest. When we are indecisive or irresolute, the Giantess shines her torch both to show the path and reveal what we have within ourselves to follow it. When it's time for action, the Giantess is beside us and around us, resolute in her vision and unyielding in her defense of what truly matters.

7. How can we invoke her wisdom?

To invoke the Giantess's wisdom, we must permit ourselves to receive her love, we must invite her into our hearts and minds, and we submit to her will as agent of the natural order. We commune with her through nature and spaces sacred to her, even those we create or carry within ourselves. We connect with her by holding her in our hearts and speaking to her, and we petition her with our plans and questions. Having spoken, we listen to her in good faith, watching for patterns and signs, accepting her word even when it seems to run against our judgment. We follow the Sage to her books and study; we invite the Muse to open new doors we could not perceive; we submit to the Mystic and resolve to follow her between worlds, with nothing but our intuition guiding our steps. To invoke her wisdom, we recognize our connection to all things and listen to her counsel as it benefits all.

8. What offerings please the Giantess?

Chiefly among that which pleases the Giantess is the manifestation of our truest selves. Singers sing, writers write, artists illustrate, dancers dance, actors perform—all of these reflect our world and the human condition back to us, and we watch and listen with curiosity and a desire to grow from the experiences of others. And not just the expression of our true selves but also the love of ourselves, just as she loves us; to hate ourselves is to deny a fundamental truth that she has never lost sight of.

Service to others and to the living planet pleases the Giantess as well. To learn from that which has gone before, to question and truly understand that which happens around us now, and to act with compassion and gratitude, as well as reverence for the future, these all please the Giantess. We must love each other just as she loves us; to wrong another person is to slight the Giantess and question her judgment.

Respect for the living planet pleases the Giantess, for she is its warden and agent. Recognize the culture and agency of all living creatures. They are not dumb or savage: we lack the faculty to speak their language. Even in darkness and amid the unknown, act and engage with respect for the world and its creatures, and you will please the Giantess.

9. What are the ethical principles in relating to the Giantess?

Relating to the Giantess is always done with respect, consent, and integrity. Respect the Giantess's authority and wisdom; respect her agency and personhood; respect her and yourself by being honest about your intentions and motivation. We never willfully exploit or manipulate her archetypes for petty or perverse ends, nor for vengeance or malice. We seek to cultivate a positive, nurturing relationship with the Giantess, holding ourselves to high standards of ethics, morality, and honesty. In this, we show respect for ourselves, honoring the Giantess, and at all times we show the utmost respect for the Giantess, accepting with gratitude her wisdom, support, and gifts.

When we do not interact with the Giantess in good faith and with integrity, the only one wronged is ourself. The Giantess has withstood hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires: the selfish contrivance of a human is nothing compared to these. If anything, she is wounded only because we have sold ourselves short and embodied the worst qualities, and it pains her to see us suffer by our own hand. Should we continue to engage with deceit, selfishness, and malice, we risk disconnecting ourselves from the Giantess and isolating ourselves from the realm of nature. We subject ourselves to guilt, fear, and inner conflict, and we have rejected the sovereign one who loves and heals us.

10. How can one prepare to connect with the Giantess?

The Giantess exhorts us to tend to ourselves, to strengthen our bodies and respect our souls. These strictures are simple and eternal: eat nourishing food, hydrate sufficiently, exercise every day, and get enough sleep. Thorugh this we honor our mortal vessels and we prepare ourselves for service to the Giantess. We prepare to commune with the Giantess through a mindset of openness, respect, and intention. When she speaks, we listen honestly; when we act, we do so with consideration and forethought; we are present and conscious in every move we make and decision we take.

Again, the methods by which we listen and converse are simple and eternal: practice meditation to clear your mind and reclaim your power; visualize the face of the Giantess and hear her voice, visualize the outcome you wish to shape through her support; journal your thoughts and observations during the day and record your dreams each night. Do these to perceive and understand yourself more clearly and to enable the Giantess to speak through you.

11. What lessons does the Giantess teach?

The Giantess inspires personal growth by challenging us to love and accept ourselves, to love and accept others, and to acknowledge our role within greater community. She lends us her strength as we undertake self-discovery, bringing to light that which we would keep hidden, forgiving ourselves for the wrongs we have done while ignorant, and finding compassion for those who have wronged us, in the course of their own struggles. She cultivates in us the vastness of our inner strength, a powerful and demanding strength required to humble ourselves, lay ourselves vulnerable, and practice true empathy for others. The Archetypes of the Giantess teach us the balance between power and humility, caring for others without losing ourselves, the vulnerability of the powerful and the strength of the small.

12. What is the role of compassion in her path?

Compassion is at the core of the gygratruan ("giantess worshipper"). We practice sincere love for our flawed selves, we extend love those who do not resemble us and those who have harmed us, and we treat all forms of life in our living ecosystem with reverence, admiration, and love, for we understand our inextricable connection to all things. The Giantess loves us as we are while encouraging who we could be. We do not hold ourselves back from progress with the burdens of the past; we forgive our suffering selves and aspire to do better, to honor the Giantess and her gifts. We show compassion for others, we practice compassion for ourselves, and we receive without restraint the compassion of the Giantess.

Without compassion, we cannot survive, and we will be erased and forgotten by the world.

13. How does it feel to stand in the presence of the Giantess?

It takes time to open oneself to the Giantess, to feel her in the earth, to hear her words. It takes discipline and considerable faith to accept that such a being could exist, and has for at least four millennia. There isn't a place you can go to visit the Giantess, and there isn't a flag or a beacon with which you can attract her attention and summon her forth.

When the Giantess approaches, when you have prepared yourself and caught her attention, be aware of coincidences in your environment, little ones that grow more intense. Other things may manifest like heightened intuition or reflexes. Things that have been lost for a while may suddenly turn up. You may start remembering your dreams (write them down!). When you have a question or a need, you may bump into someone who has the resources to fulfill your lack. Things begin to fall into place. Don't look for each of these specifically, but as you move through your normal life, be open to signs that you are successfully aligning yourself with the universal flow.

When you are in the presence of the Giantess, you may feel incredible peace or love. It's one thing to visualize her huge palms around you; it's another to feel her warmth and the affection flowing through her. You may be filled with an overflowing sense of pride, which is a reasonable response when one has been chosen by a figure of such majesty. You may experience an unreasonable sense that things are going to be okay, at least in your environment. You recognize the conflicts around you and the trouble ahead, but there comes the sense that events may play out with less severity or that you will rise above conflict and come out stronger. You may easily envision the Giantess smiling upon you, looming behind you to support you, or you may feel her footfall on either side of you as you walk around. There is the sense of someone massive and benificent hovering around you, and you'll feel loved and safe. You will also feel an increased sense of duty and an urgency to find ways to please the Giantess.

14. Why would the Giantess care about such tiny people?

I've asked this of her quite a few times. It is difficult to reconcile that such a tremendous person of unlimited power and grandeur should be at all concerned with us bugs wrapped up in our petty dramas, little cancer cells pillaging and marring the landscape, acting without concern for each other or the future. Why would an ancient, beautiful, powerful force be bothered with us?

The Giantess insists that we are still precious, as is every living thing in this planet. It is more than a distant amusement to see us scuttling around in our business. She loves us as fragile, temporary things that are nonetheless capable of fantastic creation. Our weakness does not diminish us, nor does the relatively short time we spend in this world—she feels this makes us precious. She is proud to see us rise above our weakness, turning weakness into strength, developing astonishing qualities and achieving impressive work. She loves our aspiration and imagination, and her heart races to see us work at our passions, to make our dreams real, to endeavor to express our perspectives and dreams to others, making us a greater force together than we are individually. She wishes the best for us, and she is deeply touched when we can attune to her presence and acknowledge her influence in our lives.

It's also a matter of perspective. The Giantess has lived for millennia, but every creature on this earth has its own discrete lifetime of experiences and a perspective through which it is filtered. She is enticed by the varied stories our lives tell. She is fascinated by the endless capacity for individuality we manifest. We wish to be seen, and she wishes to see.