A Brief History of Urglaawe
To understand Urglaawe’s origins, you need to know at least a little bit of history. What became the Deitsch nation originated in the internal upheaval within the Holy Roman Empire before, during, and after the Thirty Years War. Significant movement of people from one principality, or duchy, to another led to an influx into the Palatinate, which is where the largest portion of the earlier migrants came from. The influx led to many regions of the Germanic lands and Switzerland having some bearing on the culture of the Deitsch. However, the largest contributing tribes were Franconian, Alemannic, and Swabian. The resettlement to the US led to a leveling off of language differences, and interdependency and intermarriage among the people, and the Deitscherei nation and language were born.
Some descriptions of colonial-era Deitsch settlers called some of them “idol worshipers” and scorned the magical practices that were common in the settlements. From the colonial era forward, Deitsch historians have left us a record of their understanding of the links between pre-Christian German practice and the living modern Deitsch culture outside of the Plain sects. The freedoms of the Pennsylvania colony allowed underground practices to flourish and to spread down the Appalachians, influencing other magical traditions in areas where the Deitsch settlers were in proximity to practitioners of those traditions.
Beginning in 1911, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania began attempts to suppress the Deitsch culture and language. Considering the deteriorating relationship between the US and Germany, many felt that having such a large and only partially assimilated population in a key state was risky, even though the modern state of Germany did not exist when our ancestors migrated. Indeed, there was not even a fully official German language at the time of migration, and the British authorities identified the setters not as “Germans” but as “Palatines.”
This suppression took the form primarily of mockery and ridicule of the Deitsch culture as backward and uneducated. German and Pennsylvania German were banned from use in schools. Braucherei was targeted by the nascent medical establishment, and the Commonwealth stopped issuing licenses to practice Braucherei; instead, authorities began to harass some practitioners. Then a murder took place in Pennsylvania that involved Hexerei, and the sensationalized reporting abetted the government’s efforts. The number of practitioners began to decline, and fewer and fewer people were taught the herbalism and “first aid” Braucherei for the home.
Braucherei is seeing a resurgence of interest. In this era, distance among interested parties and available masters complicates the more traditional student/teacher relationship, and the distribution of printed materials is hindered by Verbots (bans or taboos) on committing many core prayers, chants, and incantations to the written word. The Urglaawe incantations have far fewer Verbots, but we do honor any Verbot that is in place. To do otherwise is to break an oath.
It must be noted that Braucherei/Hexerei and Urglaawe are not the same thing. Urglaawe is a religion and belief, and it is the desire of its founders to be as open and inclusive as possible. Braucherei/Hexerei is a closed practice, but heavily influenced the emergence of Urglaawe as a reconstructionist pagan path.
Even with the Christian overlay and Gnostic influence, the Heathen core of many of these practices is evident and well-known within the Deitsch culture. Urglaawe is, therefore, a relatively new term used to describe the organization of ancient (or ever-evolving) beliefs and practices that live on in our folk culture. Our primary task was more deconstructionist than reconstructionist. We initially had at our disposal 88 interviews with elderly Braucherei practitioners, and we have, since 2012, conducted an additional 17 interviews of Hexerei practitioners and another 10 Braucherei practitioners.
These traditions sheltered a knowledge and even a relationship with certain deities (though they were often referred to as “helpful entities” by Christian Brauchers). The most common among these is Holle, Wudan (Odin), Dunner (Thor), Frigg, Berchta, and Oschdre, although there are references to other deities as well.
We also have tales of deities who are not widely known outside of our culture. A couple of examples: Ewicher Yeeger, for whom there is one reference in Swiss lore; Weisskeppichi Fraa, who is the embodiment of Megge (megin; life energy, life force — akin to “main” in other Heathen traditions).
Because of the central role that Heathen Braucherei plays in Urglaawe, it is a highly spiritual Heathen denomination. As a religion that arises from a primarily agricultural people, the relationship to land, nature, moon cycles, and seasons are central to the daily life and understanding of the world around us. The presentation and perception of some deities is a bit different from those of some other Heathen traditions, though not so drastic as to be unrecognizable. One difference is that Holle is a chief of the pantheon. This view may have some of its roots in a myth that credits Holle with the migration of the settlers to the United States, thus creating an understanding that she is the mother of the Deitsch nation.