The Soul Complex - Hamingja

One of the cornerstones of our faith is the concept of Hamingja, or luck. Now, to be clear, it’s not the same as the modern usage of the word “luck.” It’s a personification of a person’s success. And more likely the collective luck of a tribe, family, or nation. In many of the sagas, its usage applies to a collective.

Linguistically, the etymology is a small way to understand the concept. Let’s break the word down, Ham- stems from hamr which means shape, form, or skin. The second part of the word -ingja roughly means that which follows. So to define it, it should be viewed as the luck that clings to your form.

At the time of our birth, we are given a name. That name comes with Hamingja. The success and victories (or lack thereof) of your familial line is now affixed to you. I have often compared Hamingja to reputation, but that only tells part of the story.

We meet families that just seem to always have good things happen, or they just continually experience success, and we know families that seemingly can’t catch a break. This is the result of Hamingja.

So if it’s something we are born with, how can we affect it? That answer is simple. It is through our deeds. Even those with a negative Hamingja can experience success, obviously, through our own actions, we can increase the Hamingja of the collective, whether it’s that of the bloodline, our tribe, crew, or church. That increase has an impact on all of us whom our bound by Troth and by blood.

In the sagas, Hamingja isn’t just “good vibes.” It manifests as success, victory, things just “going your way.” Folk with good Hamingja have their presence felt. Others will want to follow you. This person is favored and it shows. That’s where reputation comes in. Repeated success is a proof of power, social gravitas, and those people will put their trust in you. Your reputation is the public evidence of your Hamingja.

Reputation builds upon itself—you win, people talk. Your name gains weight. People treat you as you are, blessed. Outcomes are often in your favor. More wins, more reputation, more Hamingja. Think of Hamingja as an engine, and reputation is the smoke trail.

When it comes to parts of the soul complex, I like to discuss how we strengthen the component we are discussing. I think this one is obvious. Do good deeds. Your Hamingja increases, your reputation follows, and the collective luck also increases.

Another topic on Hamingja, is your deeds impact the collective luck you pass to your children. They bear your name. If we choose an honorable and noble life, that becomes soil for our children to take root in. Their lives become fruitful or not based on the quality of that soil. They can become a mighty oak, or they can become a shallow rooted weed. We live a life of bravery, strength, and beauty, and that pays dividends for those that follow us. If we choose the inverse, live a life sluggardly, impious, or dishonest… then those who follow will be the bearers of that weight.

As members of the Asatru Folk Assembly, we share in the mighty Hamingja of the collective victories going back to Founder Stephen McNallen. Each victorious step taken over the past 5 decades is now our own.

An example of Hamingja negatively impacted is the breaking of Troth with our Gods. Someone in all of our bloodlines broke Troth with the Æsir, leading to the decline we see in Hamingja now. Just a quick search for suicides by race, overdose statistics...the victims are overwhelmingly White….. the soul sickness, as Allsherjargoði McNallen called it.

So this begs the question, how do we fix this? Well, you’re doing it now, actively engaging in the gift cycle with our Gods, the Æsir. By being the catalyst that revives the connective tissue to who we have been and we are fated to be. Ásatrúar. We have returned to the ancestral faith, reigniting that flame of Troth and Nobility. We are still on the ground floor of this revival. We are actively restoring our Hamingja. This is accomplished through both word and deed.

I’m a believer in the use of mantra. Mantra is more than a string of words, as words have power...if they are backed by action or deeds. An example of a mantra that puts Hamingja at the forefront of your mind —

I am more than flesh and bone

I carry the weight of my name

I will not stain it with weakness or excuses

I build a life that follows my children like a shield.

Or…

My name is not talk

It is the sum of my deeds

What I do in silence follows me into the world

My luck is earned. My strength is seen

My Hamingja walks ahead of me.

In conclusion, Hamingja is our spiritual might, a spiritual currency that we can increase, decrease and spend. How we invest this currency is of paramount importance to us all. Don’t waste it. Whether we are given good or bad Hamingja, we don’t just accept it, we seek to increase it through our deeds. Every action we take is an opportunity to make an impact.

We don’t simply possess Hamingja, we are the stewards of it. Carrying that luck of our forebears, and improving upon it, so that our children and their children can benefit from it. Our deeds carry weight, weight that our children will carry. Will you put weight upon them which is burdensome or weight they will be proud to bear?

For more on this topic, read Grønbeck’s Culture of the Teutons, Chapter 4 and 5.

Spekingr Daniel Young

dyoung@runestone.org

~ From The Runestone, February 2026 ~