Virtues

• Courage — To acknowledge and live ones beliefs.
• Truth — In order to uphold a code of honor, one must be brutally honest with oneself and others.
• Honor — On the outside it is reputation, on the inside it is a sacred moral compass.
• Fidelity — Faithful to God and to the ways of ones ancestors.
• Discipline — The exercise of personal will so it upholds honor and other virtues.
• Hospitality — Treating each other with respect and acting together for the good of community as a whole.
• Self Reliance — Being able to make your own way in the world and not to have to lean on others to fulfill ones physical needs.
• Industriousness — To work hard in order to achieve goals; to work with care and pride in all that we do.
• Perseverance — To be willing to keep doing whatever it takes to complete what we set out to accomplish. Through imperfections, through frustrations, through failure, through it all.

Asatru

There are many people who take the nine virtues very seriously and that work together in keeping these virtues as a community. Considering the roots in Norse and Germanic tradition, many people see this as a discovery of their cultural tradition and others see it as an alternative religion. There are people all over the UK, Canada, the US, and Germany that practice Ásatrú today. If you are interested in learning more, you should look it up on Google or read some of the resources below.

Opinion

Much of the Nine Noble Virtues come from a series of Norse poetry called the Hávamál. If you are interested in history or classical literature, or simply want to learn more about Germanic culture, then this might be a great read for you.

Here is one of the better-known quotes from the work to give you an idea. This quote is about honor, and how precious one's reputation and loyalty is:

• Cattle die, kinsmen die
• The self must also die;
• I know one thing which never dies:
• The reputation of each dead man.

Resources

D'Aulaires' Book of Norse Myths — by Ingrid and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire

The Norse myths present a way into a world of fantasy and struggle and charm that has served as inspiration for Marvel Comics and the Lord of the Rings.

Living Asatru — by Greg Shelter

Asatru is the Ethnic Religion of indigenous Northern European People. This concise book describes the ethics, the Nine Noble Virtues, and teaches how to apply Heathen concepts to day to day living.

Essential Asatru: Walking the Path of Norse Paganism — by Diana L. Paxson and Isaac Bonewits

Excellent read about the noble virtues, such as honor, truth, fidelity, and hospitality, that shape Asatru's tenets.