This article are the answers to questions posed to Ivar Hafskjold. Some of these quesitons will be put to other Stav practitioners next month so that we can try to show you a wide range of the thoughts and feelings about Stav.

Can you explain how Stav differs from structured religions?

Stav is not a religion, but rather more of a philosophy. However, because it uses runes and Norse Mythology in its teaching it can easily be regarded as such, and equally be utilized as a religion if an individual wants to do so. This is regarded as a private matter in Stav. Your question also shows one reason why so many people within Asatru seems to have problems with Stav, namely your use of the word "structured". The modern re-creation of the old Norse/Germannic belief systems seems to be heavely influenced by the dogmatic Christian Church, with its notion of right and wrong, though note that this is just my perception, and I admittedly know very little of the modern Asatru.

It seems that each practitioner feels different about Stav in the way they describe it. Is this right? How can it be so different for each person?

Because each person is different. Stav does not try to force anyone into an army of clones that thinks and acts the same way, but rather to help each person to think for him or herself; to say to anyone that Stav has the only answer would be arrogance on a monumental scale.

How is Stav beneficial to all people, including ones of different faiths?

If Stav is beneficial at all,it will be equally so no matter what is your faith; as long as you have not been brainwashed into believing that any work with runes and mythology is a sin. Regretably some fundamental Christians or Muslims will have a problem with this.

Does the Hafskjold Family celebrate all the same holidays as Asatru?

I don't know? What holydays does Asatru celebrate? The Hafskjold family's main holidays are the 2 weeks of Yule,the Winterthing around 2nd February,Summerday on 30th April, Baldersvaki on the 23rd of June, the Summerthing in early August and Winterday around 2nd November. Note that these are not specially just for the family, but are pretty widespread all over Scandinavia, though sometimes with different names.

Do the Hofs/Hovs and or Kindreds/Troths in Stav perform all the same religious ceremonies as Asatru; ie Blots? Naming Ceremonies? Handfastening etc.....?

This is left completely up to the individual Hov or Ve. Stav has no dogma on this one way or the other.

I have a martial art background and would like a few questions answered concerning items I have read on the Stav Websites.

Many people seem to have a bit of problem with the fact that I studied Martial Arts in Japan for 14 years, believing I have just dressed up what I learnt there in a European lingo. The principles of my family art has not been changed at all; what has changed is some of the way it is being taught. Traditionally Stav was always taught in an apprentice/master situation within the family with no set classes and no set curriculum. My first 4 students, which are now the Stav Masters, were taught like this to a certain extent, but for obvious reasons this would not be possible if Stav is to be taught on a wider scale. The Japanese way of teaching therefore provided the idea of a framework where Stav could be taught in a class-situation using to a certain extent a curriculum. Also of course, the fact that people are asking questions have forced us into building up a certain framework for Stav instead of the loose amount of knowledge that just seemed to be there, without anyone knowing exactly where it came from. Shaun Brassfield-Thorpe and Rodney Bennet have done sterling work in trying to make sense out of Stav.
As for the second part of your question I am not reviving or rewriting any "Viking Martial Art"; I wouldn't know how. I am just trying to teach to the best of my ability what I was taught as a young man before I get too old to pass on what I believe is valuable knowledge.

If Stav is a great martial system, then why would you go to Japan to train in their art?

I do believe Stav is a great martial system. One reason is that it is a living system that evolves and adapt to changing situations. Note the use of the walkingstick and the hikingstaff instead of sword and spear that can no longer be carried around, though the principles for the use has not changed. Also how do you know that what you are studying is great if you have no comparison to other system; do you just take your teacher's word for it? Having said that the reason why I went to Japan was that my wife was having our first baby and traditionally she would stay with her family for 3-4 months.

Do you follow a syllabus while training students?

To a certain extent, though it often changes as I judge the student's need. Having said that I rarely teach my own students these day. Mostly I teach seminars for second or third generation students, so I will then tend to stay within their teacher's syllabus.

Do you have to join the Stav-Web to learn Stav?

Of course not. You don't need a computer to learn Stav. It is just a way of trying to keep the farflung Stav community up-to-date regarding what is going on.

The Stav Websites differ greatly in the information they give about Stav.

Yes, I realise that the different web-sites sometimes use different words and spellings. This can of course be a bit confusing, but it started with the problem about what language to use. Different people have made different choices, some use Icelandic, some Anglo-Saxon, some modern(ish) English, myself I use standard Norwegian (Danish, actually). If I were to write a glossary defining all the words we use in Stav it would take me ages; how do you define "Stav" for example. It might be an idea for someone (not me, please) to write an article about this and put it up on the website.

If there really are so many aspects, why is the martial art focused on more than anything else?

There are 2 main reasons for this, really. Ten years ago,just after I moved to England, Harry Cook wrote an article about Stav in a Martial Arts magazine. As a result of that article Graham, David, Ronayne and Shaun contacted me so it was natural to start teaching what their main interest at that time was. The other reason is that a lot of the other aspects of Stav can be taught quite quickly and through books,letters and E-mail. The Martial Aspect comparatively does take a lot of hands-on-instruction to get right. Hopefully there will be books published shortly that delve more deeply into all aspects of Stav.

Why is there so little information about Healing and Seidr?

Because there is so little to teach, but so much to learn. Mott and megin can be taught in an afternoon, then one learns through doing it. Teinseid can be studied through any good herbal book once one has grasped the principles, though there is a lot of information in the Stav-web archives, but again experience is the great teacher. The principles and tecniques of Ljos- and - Myrk -Galder are probably more difficult to get across without working with a teacher, but it's not exactly rocket science, either. Look at it as a cross between hypnotism and councelling.
Lokk-Seid is a different beast again, either you can do it or you can't. The main thing is to teach someone to chant. We are looking into doing this in a big way at this years Summer Course.

Why does Stav look so identical to the system written by Jan Fries? Who published first, the Hafskjold Family or Jan Fries?

I read Jan Fries books 4 or 5 years ago, but having a look in my library just now I see that they were actually published in 1992 and 93, about the same time information about Stav was coming out. There are certain similarities, but also a lot of differences; I believe a lot of the things we are talking about have been fairly common knowledge, or at least available knowledge if you were interested, all over Northern Europe.

Why do you use the younger futhark?

Because I was taught it, and the whole Stav system is built around it.

Do the reading/divination change from one futhark to another?

Yes and no, probably. As any knowledge of the Elder futhark is just educated guess-work built on our knowledge of the Younger and the Anglo-Frisian ones, it is of course the most popular one, but as runereading and divination is personal I don't believe it really matters all that much; the runes ares just tools to help us to see reality and possibilities.

I have tried to send emails to a couple of instructors listed on your site and never received replys. Do you hold these people accountable since they do represent Stav?

I don't really, as I in no way try to control what people say or do, but if there is a problem, tell me, and I will take it up with the person in question.

Can we email you directly?

By all means; I'll try to answer as soon as possible, though if I am away teaching it might take some time, but usually I will try to answer within a day or two.

Do you have a chatroom where we can come and discuss questions and issues with you personally?

We do have a chat room as part of the Yahoo Groups Stav Forum. This is a free group and if email contact is made then an on-line chat can be arranged at a convenient time.

Is there any historical documentation on Stav?

Very few I'm afraid. There was a Norwegian Goverment Bureau that checked for it a couple of years ago and they found a few references in the archives, but they were very vague and as far as remember nothing earlier than the 13th Century.

Does your whole family practice Stav, like your mom, wife, children etc....?

My mother does tein-seid, my son practice (when he can be bothered), my daughter used to, and seems to start being interested again, my wife not at all though she has a fair theoretical knowledge.

Is there a required age to begin Stav training?

Not really, though we usually don't teach young children, at least not seriously. There are no 5-years old "Stav Kids" around. In the family there seems to be a serious interest from around 9 years of age until puberty kicks in, and then one tends to come back into studying in one's middle twenties or so.

In reading some items written by Stav Masters it seems that you have Stav divided into two paths Galdr and Seidr? Your family also divided the teaching into a male or female path? I don't understand why in your family none of the females followed the Galdr path of Stav? Were they encouraged not to? Is the martial or galdr path of Stav so difficult that women don't want to learn it? Or do the men keep them from learning? From all the writings of the Norse, the male and females were considered more equal than any other time period. I just find it fascinating that they were so different in your family, can you explain this?

Yes, there is this division into 2 paths in Stav, and it seems to be naturally gender-based, but it is no encouragement or disencouragement either way. Generally the Galder path is more accessible to both males and females, while the Seid path tends to be closed to most men, but only because men (including me) tend to feel uncomfortable with it.