Norse Pantheon

Sjöfn, Stirrer of Affection

She Who Turns the Mind to Love

The Turning of the Mind

Sjöfn, gentle of the Ásynjur, whose care is to turn the minds of men and women toward love, come quietly to this hall. Where there is coldness between us, thaw it. Where there is pride, soften it without shaming. I ask nothing forced and nothing owed — only that affection be given room to return.

Spoken low, once, with mead or clear water raised and then poured; leave the horn or cup unwashed until morning.

Ideas for Offering

  • Pour mead or ale on the earth when a reconciliation is made
  • Write the grievance on wood or paper and burn it at her altar
  • Spin, knit, or braid while speaking her name; hers is patient work
  • Say aloud the affection you have been withholding — that is the offering

Accepted Offerings

  • Mead, ale, and cream
  • Linden and apple blossom
  • Barley bread and butter
  • Wool, spun thread, and braided cord
  • Amber beads and small carved wood

Offering Taboos

  • Never ask her to compel love; she turns minds, she does not bind them
  • Do not break an oath sworn at her altar
  • No mockery of another's affection in her hearing
  • Do not offer what you took unfairly or grudgingly