Thor
The son of Odin and a member of the Aesir, he was the god of thunder and the main enemy of the giants. He would smash their heads with his mighty hammer Mjollnir. To wield this awesome weapon he needed iron gloves and a belt of strength. Mjollnir would return to Thor's hand after being thrown and was symbolic of lightning. Thor would ride around middle-earth in his wagon drawn by two goats, His abode was Thruthheim [Land of Strength] and his hall, Bilskinir. His wife was Sif.
He was foremost of the gods to the common man, who would call on him to ensure fertility, and widely worshiped. Hammer shaped amulets, a symbol of Thor because it was his weapon, were worn about the neck well into the christianization of Scandinavia. There are molds from that time which contain both cross and hammer shapes, side by side. His name occurs in numerous place names, and it was his statue which was central in the great temple at Uppsala.
Thursday is named for him and he was associated by the Romans with Jupiter, therefore also parallel to Zeus. They were all the wielder of ligtning bolts. Some claim that Odin is the Norse equivalent to Jupiter / Zeus, however, one needs look not much further than the name given to the fourth day of the week by the Romans and then to its English equivalent to see that the ancients equated Odin with Mercury / Hermes.
Donar was an early version of Thor among the Germans and the anglo-saxons worshiped a thunder god named Thunor.
Showing posts with label Aesir. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aesir. Show all posts
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Saturday, May 19, 2001
Aesir (Norse)
Aesir
Alternative Names:
Æsir, 아사신족
In Old Norse, áss (or ǫ́ss, ás, plural æsir, feminine ásynja, feminine plural ásynjur) is the term denoting one of the principal gods of the pantheon of Norse paganism. They include many of the major figures, such as Odin, Frigg, Thor, Baldr and Tyr.
The cognate term in Old English is ós, denoting a god in Anglo-Saxon paganism. The latinised Gothic term used by Jordanes is anses. They continue a Proto-Germanic *ansuz. The a-rune ᚫ was named after the æsir. Unlike Old English god (and Old Norse goð), the term ós (áss) was never adopted into Christian use.
Norse mythology
The interaction between the Æsir and the Vanir is an interesting aspect of Norse mythology. While other cultures have had "elder" and "younger" families of gods, as with the Titans versus the Olympians of ancient Greece, the Æsir and Vanir were portrayed as contemporary. The two clans of gods fought battles, concluded treaties, and exchanged hostages (Freyr and Freyja are mentioned as such hostages).
An áss like Ullr is almost unknown in the myths, but his name is seen in a lot of geographical names, especially in Sweden, and may also appear on the 3rd century Thorsberg chape, suggesting that his cult was widespread in prehistoric times.
The Æsir stayed forever young by eating the apples of Iðunn, although they could be slain, as it was predicted that nearly all will die at Ragnarök.
Æsir and Vanir
A second clan of gods, the Vanir, is also mentioned in Norse mythology: the god Njord and his children, Freyr and Freyja, are the most prominent Vanir gods who join the Æsir as hostages after a war between Æsir and Vanir. The Vanir appear to have mainly been connected with cultivation and fertility and the Æsir were connected with power and war.
In the Eddas, however, the word Æsir is used to call gods in general, while Asynjur is used to call the goddesses in general. For example, in the poem Skírnismál, Freyr was called "Prince of the Æsir". In the Prose Edda, Njord was introduced as "the third among the Æsir", and among the Asynjur, Freyja is always listed second only to Frigg.
In surviving tales, origin of many of the Æsir are doubtful and unexplained. Originally, there are just three: Odin and his brothers Ve, and Vili. Odin's sons with giantesses are naturally counted as Æsir. Heimdall and Ullr's connection with the Æsir is not clearly mentioned. Loki is a giant with no evidences of being worshipped, and Njord is a Vanir hostage, but they are often ranked among the Æsir. The Æsir goddesses like Gefjon, Sif, Idun, Nanna do not have any background, and some of them do not even have a function. They are maybe just giantesses like Skadi and Gerd and ranked among the Æsir clan simply because they either married the Æsir or served them.
Given the difference between their roles/emphases, some scholars have speculated that the interactions between the Aesir and the Vanir reflect the types of interaction the were occurring between social classes (or clans) within Norse society at the time. According to another theory, the Vanir (and the fertility cult associated with them) may be more archaic than that of the more warlike Aesir, such that the mythical war may mirror a half-remembered religious conflict. Another historical perspective is that the inter-pantheon interaction may be an apotheosization of the conflict between the Romans and the Sabines. Finally, the noted comparative religion scholar Mircea Eliade speculated this conflict is actually a later version of an Indo-European myth concerning the conflict between and eventual integration of a pantheon of sky/warrior/ruler gods and a pantheon of earth/economics/fertility gods, with no strict historical antecedents.
List of Æsir and Vanir
All names in Old Norse form. Anglicized form in Parentheses.
gods:
Óðinn — (Odin) chief god, of wisdom and war
Þórr — (Thor) god of thunder and battle
Loki (a jotun) — the trickster, foster-brother of Odin
Freyr (a Vanir hostage) — (Frey) god of fertility and prosperity
Týr — (Tyr) one-handed, self sacrificing god of law and justice.
Heimdallr — (Heimdall) the watchman and guardian
Baldr — (Balder) god of radiance and rebirth
Ullr — god of hunting, a tracker and archer
Bragi — (Brage) the skald
Váli — the avenger
Vili and Vé — brothers of Odin, gave men thought and speech
Njörðr (a Vanir hostage) — (Njord) god of seamanship and sailing
Viðarr — (Vidar) god of silence, stealth, and revenge
Forseti — god of justice
Hermóðr - (Hermod) messenger of Odin
Höðr — blind god of darkness
Hœnir — the indecisive god
Meili — the mile-stepper
goddesses:
Frigg — chief goddess
Freyja (a Vanir hostage) — (Freya) goddess of fertility, love, beauty, magic, and death
Sif — golden-haired wife of Thor
Hel - the underworld goddess
Iðunn —(Idun) goddess of youth
Nanna — wife of Baldr
Skaði (a giantess) - second wife of Njord, goddess of snow and winter
Alternative Names:
Æsir, 아사신족
In Old Norse, áss (or ǫ́ss, ás, plural æsir, feminine ásynja, feminine plural ásynjur) is the term denoting one of the principal gods of the pantheon of Norse paganism. They include many of the major figures, such as Odin, Frigg, Thor, Baldr and Tyr.
The cognate term in Old English is ós, denoting a god in Anglo-Saxon paganism. The latinised Gothic term used by Jordanes is anses. They continue a Proto-Germanic *ansuz. The a-rune ᚫ was named after the æsir. Unlike Old English god (and Old Norse goð), the term ós (áss) was never adopted into Christian use.
Norse mythology
The interaction between the Æsir and the Vanir is an interesting aspect of Norse mythology. While other cultures have had "elder" and "younger" families of gods, as with the Titans versus the Olympians of ancient Greece, the Æsir and Vanir were portrayed as contemporary. The two clans of gods fought battles, concluded treaties, and exchanged hostages (Freyr and Freyja are mentioned as such hostages).
An áss like Ullr is almost unknown in the myths, but his name is seen in a lot of geographical names, especially in Sweden, and may also appear on the 3rd century Thorsberg chape, suggesting that his cult was widespread in prehistoric times.
The Æsir stayed forever young by eating the apples of Iðunn, although they could be slain, as it was predicted that nearly all will die at Ragnarök.
Æsir and Vanir
A second clan of gods, the Vanir, is also mentioned in Norse mythology: the god Njord and his children, Freyr and Freyja, are the most prominent Vanir gods who join the Æsir as hostages after a war between Æsir and Vanir. The Vanir appear to have mainly been connected with cultivation and fertility and the Æsir were connected with power and war.
In the Eddas, however, the word Æsir is used to call gods in general, while Asynjur is used to call the goddesses in general. For example, in the poem Skírnismál, Freyr was called "Prince of the Æsir". In the Prose Edda, Njord was introduced as "the third among the Æsir", and among the Asynjur, Freyja is always listed second only to Frigg.
In surviving tales, origin of many of the Æsir are doubtful and unexplained. Originally, there are just three: Odin and his brothers Ve, and Vili. Odin's sons with giantesses are naturally counted as Æsir. Heimdall and Ullr's connection with the Æsir is not clearly mentioned. Loki is a giant with no evidences of being worshipped, and Njord is a Vanir hostage, but they are often ranked among the Æsir. The Æsir goddesses like Gefjon, Sif, Idun, Nanna do not have any background, and some of them do not even have a function. They are maybe just giantesses like Skadi and Gerd and ranked among the Æsir clan simply because they either married the Æsir or served them.
Given the difference between their roles/emphases, some scholars have speculated that the interactions between the Aesir and the Vanir reflect the types of interaction the were occurring between social classes (or clans) within Norse society at the time. According to another theory, the Vanir (and the fertility cult associated with them) may be more archaic than that of the more warlike Aesir, such that the mythical war may mirror a half-remembered religious conflict. Another historical perspective is that the inter-pantheon interaction may be an apotheosization of the conflict between the Romans and the Sabines. Finally, the noted comparative religion scholar Mircea Eliade speculated this conflict is actually a later version of an Indo-European myth concerning the conflict between and eventual integration of a pantheon of sky/warrior/ruler gods and a pantheon of earth/economics/fertility gods, with no strict historical antecedents.
List of Æsir and Vanir
All names in Old Norse form. Anglicized form in Parentheses.
gods:
Óðinn — (Odin) chief god, of wisdom and war
Þórr — (Thor) god of thunder and battle
Loki (a jotun) — the trickster, foster-brother of Odin
Freyr (a Vanir hostage) — (Frey) god of fertility and prosperity
Týr — (Tyr) one-handed, self sacrificing god of law and justice.
Heimdallr — (Heimdall) the watchman and guardian
Baldr — (Balder) god of radiance and rebirth
Ullr — god of hunting, a tracker and archer
Bragi — (Brage) the skald
Váli — the avenger
Vili and Vé — brothers of Odin, gave men thought and speech
Njörðr (a Vanir hostage) — (Njord) god of seamanship and sailing
Viðarr — (Vidar) god of silence, stealth, and revenge
Forseti — god of justice
Hermóðr - (Hermod) messenger of Odin
Höðr — blind god of darkness
Hœnir — the indecisive god
Meili — the mile-stepper
goddesses:
Frigg — chief goddess
Freyja (a Vanir hostage) — (Freya) goddess of fertility, love, beauty, magic, and death
Sif — golden-haired wife of Thor
Hel - the underworld goddess
Iðunn —(Idun) goddess of youth
Nanna — wife of Baldr
Skaði (a giantess) - second wife of Njord, goddess of snow and winter
Friday, April 9, 1999
Odin (Norse)
Odin
Leader of the Aesir. Odin had a myriad of names including Allfather, Ygg, Bolverk [evil doer], and Grimnir. He also had many functions including being a god of war, poetry, wisdom, and death. His halls were called Gladsheim Valaskjalf and Valhalla. Odin's high seat, Hlidskialf, was in Valaskjalf. It was from this throne that he could see over all the world. Valhalla is where he gathered his portion of the slain warriors, Einheriar, whom the valkyries had chosen.
The valkyries would serve mead which forever flowed from the udder of Odin's goat, Heidrun. They also served the warriors meat that came from the boar Saehrimnir, which the cook Andhrimnir would prepare for eating by boiling it in the cauldron Eldhrimnir. The boar magically came back to life before the next meal. After eating, the warriors would go outside the hall and fight each other to the death. They were, of course, brought back to life before the next feast. All of this fighting was practice for when Odin would lead the Einheriar in the final battle, Ragnarok.
Odin had a spear named Grungir which never missed its mark and a bow which unleashed ten arrows with every pull. He also owned a magic ring called Draupnir which created nine of itself every night. It was this ring that Odin laid on his son Balder's funeral pyre and which Balder returned to Odin from the underworld. Another one of Odin's prized possesions was his wonderful steed named Sleipnir which had eight legs.
The horse was the offspring of Loki, who in mare form seduced a giant's horse named Svadilfari. Sleipnir could travel to the underworld and through the air. Odin also had two wolves, Geri and Freki, and two ravens, Hugin [thought] and Munin [memory]. He sent his ravens out every day to gather knowledge for him.
Odin sacrificed himself for knowledge by hanging on the world tree, Yggdrasil, which means Ygg's horse. Ygg is a name for Odin and horse is a metaphor for the gallows. He thereby learns the runes. Another sacrifice he made for wisdom was his eye. He gave it up in order to drink from the Well of Mimir which bestowed great knowledge. Because of this, he is typically depicted as having one eye. He is also depicted as wearing a cloak, being old, having a long grey beard, and wearing a wide brimmed hat down low over his face to conceal his one-eyed visage.
Odin was destined to die at Ragnarok; Fenris-Wolf swallowed him. Knowing his fate, he still chose to embrace it and do battle. Showing the true warrior ethic. He was the god of warriors and kings, not the common man. Many heroes genealogies start with Odin, including Sigurd. His name is not found in many place names and therefore it is believed that not many people worshipped him. He was thought to be a traitorous god, as shown in the sagas, who would strike down a warrior at his whim.
Leader of the Aesir. Odin had a myriad of names including Allfather, Ygg, Bolverk [evil doer], and Grimnir. He also had many functions including being a god of war, poetry, wisdom, and death. His halls were called Gladsheim Valaskjalf and Valhalla. Odin's high seat, Hlidskialf, was in Valaskjalf. It was from this throne that he could see over all the world. Valhalla is where he gathered his portion of the slain warriors, Einheriar, whom the valkyries had chosen.
The valkyries would serve mead which forever flowed from the udder of Odin's goat, Heidrun. They also served the warriors meat that came from the boar Saehrimnir, which the cook Andhrimnir would prepare for eating by boiling it in the cauldron Eldhrimnir. The boar magically came back to life before the next meal. After eating, the warriors would go outside the hall and fight each other to the death. They were, of course, brought back to life before the next feast. All of this fighting was practice for when Odin would lead the Einheriar in the final battle, Ragnarok.
Odin had a spear named Grungir which never missed its mark and a bow which unleashed ten arrows with every pull. He also owned a magic ring called Draupnir which created nine of itself every night. It was this ring that Odin laid on his son Balder's funeral pyre and which Balder returned to Odin from the underworld. Another one of Odin's prized possesions was his wonderful steed named Sleipnir which had eight legs.
The horse was the offspring of Loki, who in mare form seduced a giant's horse named Svadilfari. Sleipnir could travel to the underworld and through the air. Odin also had two wolves, Geri and Freki, and two ravens, Hugin [thought] and Munin [memory]. He sent his ravens out every day to gather knowledge for him.
Odin sacrificed himself for knowledge by hanging on the world tree, Yggdrasil, which means Ygg's horse. Ygg is a name for Odin and horse is a metaphor for the gallows. He thereby learns the runes. Another sacrifice he made for wisdom was his eye. He gave it up in order to drink from the Well of Mimir which bestowed great knowledge. Because of this, he is typically depicted as having one eye. He is also depicted as wearing a cloak, being old, having a long grey beard, and wearing a wide brimmed hat down low over his face to conceal his one-eyed visage.
Odin was destined to die at Ragnarok; Fenris-Wolf swallowed him. Knowing his fate, he still chose to embrace it and do battle. Showing the true warrior ethic. He was the god of warriors and kings, not the common man. Many heroes genealogies start with Odin, including Sigurd. His name is not found in many place names and therefore it is believed that not many people worshipped him. He was thought to be a traitorous god, as shown in the sagas, who would strike down a warrior at his whim.
Thursday, March 18, 1982
Forseti (Norse)
Forseti
Forseti (Old Norse "the presiding one," actually "president" in Modern Icelandic and Faroese) is an Æsir god of justice and reconciliation in Norse mythology. He is generally identified with Fosite, a god of the Frisians. Jacob Grimm noted that if, as Adam of Bremen states, Fosite's sacred island was Heligoland, that would make him an ideal candidate for a deity known to both Frisians and Scandinavians, but that it is surprising he is never mentioned by Saxo Grammaticus.
Grimm took Forseti, "praeses", to be the older form of the name, postulating an (unattested) Old High German equivalent forasizo (cf. modern German Vorsitzender "one who presides"). However, he later came to prefer a derivation from fors, a "whirling stream" or "cataract," connected to the spring and the god's veneration by seagoing peoples. However, in other Old Norse words, for example forboð, "forbidding, ban," the prefix for- has a pejorative sense. So it is more plausible that Fosite is the older name and Forseti a folk etymology.
Norse Forseti
According to Snorri Sturluson in the Prose Edda, Forseti is the son of Baldr and Nanna. His home is Glitnir, its name, meaning "shining," referring to its silver ceiling and golden pillars, which radiated light that could be seen from a great distance. His is the best of courts; all those who come before him leave reconciled. This suggests skill in mediation and is in contrast to his fellow god Týr, who "is not called a reconciler of men." However, as de Vries points out, the only basis for associating Forseti with justice seems to have been his name; there is no corroborating evidence in Norse mythology. "Puts to sleep all suits" or "stills all strifes" may have been a late addition to the strophe Snorri cites, from which he derives the information.
The first element in the name Forsetlund (Old Norse Forsetalundr), a farm in the parish of Onsøy ('Odins island'), in eastern Norway, seem to be the genitive case of Forseti, offering evidence he was worshipped there.
Frisian Fosite
According to Alcuin's Life of St. Willebrord, the saint visited an island between Frisia and Denmark that was sacred to Fosite and was called Fositesland after the god worshipped there. There was a sacred spring from which water had to be drawn in silence, it was so holy. Willebrord defiled the spring by baptizing people in it and killing a cow there. Altfrid tells the same story of St. Liudger. Adam of Bremen retells the story and adds that the island was Heiligland, i.e., Heligoland.
There is also a legend of the origins of the Lex Frisionum, the written Frisian law. Wishing to assemble written lawcodes for all his subject peoples, Charlemagne summoned twelve representatives of the Frisian people, the Āsegas ("law-speakers"), and demanded they recite their people's laws. When they could not do so after several days, he let them choose between death, slavery, or being set adrift in a rudderless boat. They chose the last and prayed for help, whereupon a thirteenth man appeared, with a golden axe on his shoulder. He steered the boat to land with the axe, then threw it ashore; a spring appeared where it landed. He taught them laws and then disappeared. The stranger and the spring are identified with Fosite and the sacred spring of Fositesland.
Fosite has been suggested to be a loan of Greek Poseidon into pre-Proto-Germanic, perhaps via Greeks purchasing amber (Pytheas is known to have visited the area of Heligoland in search of amber).
Justice gods | Peace gods | Æsir
Forseti (Old Norse "the presiding one," actually "president" in Modern Icelandic and Faroese) is an Æsir god of justice and reconciliation in Norse mythology. He is generally identified with Fosite, a god of the Frisians. Jacob Grimm noted that if, as Adam of Bremen states, Fosite's sacred island was Heligoland, that would make him an ideal candidate for a deity known to both Frisians and Scandinavians, but that it is surprising he is never mentioned by Saxo Grammaticus.
Grimm took Forseti, "praeses", to be the older form of the name, postulating an (unattested) Old High German equivalent forasizo (cf. modern German Vorsitzender "one who presides"). However, he later came to prefer a derivation from fors, a "whirling stream" or "cataract," connected to the spring and the god's veneration by seagoing peoples. However, in other Old Norse words, for example forboð, "forbidding, ban," the prefix for- has a pejorative sense. So it is more plausible that Fosite is the older name and Forseti a folk etymology.
Norse Forseti
According to Snorri Sturluson in the Prose Edda, Forseti is the son of Baldr and Nanna. His home is Glitnir, its name, meaning "shining," referring to its silver ceiling and golden pillars, which radiated light that could be seen from a great distance. His is the best of courts; all those who come before him leave reconciled. This suggests skill in mediation and is in contrast to his fellow god Týr, who "is not called a reconciler of men." However, as de Vries points out, the only basis for associating Forseti with justice seems to have been his name; there is no corroborating evidence in Norse mythology. "Puts to sleep all suits" or "stills all strifes" may have been a late addition to the strophe Snorri cites, from which he derives the information.
The first element in the name Forsetlund (Old Norse Forsetalundr), a farm in the parish of Onsøy ('Odins island'), in eastern Norway, seem to be the genitive case of Forseti, offering evidence he was worshipped there.
Frisian Fosite
According to Alcuin's Life of St. Willebrord, the saint visited an island between Frisia and Denmark that was sacred to Fosite and was called Fositesland after the god worshipped there. There was a sacred spring from which water had to be drawn in silence, it was so holy. Willebrord defiled the spring by baptizing people in it and killing a cow there. Altfrid tells the same story of St. Liudger. Adam of Bremen retells the story and adds that the island was Heiligland, i.e., Heligoland.
There is also a legend of the origins of the Lex Frisionum, the written Frisian law. Wishing to assemble written lawcodes for all his subject peoples, Charlemagne summoned twelve representatives of the Frisian people, the Āsegas ("law-speakers"), and demanded they recite their people's laws. When they could not do so after several days, he let them choose between death, slavery, or being set adrift in a rudderless boat. They chose the last and prayed for help, whereupon a thirteenth man appeared, with a golden axe on his shoulder. He steered the boat to land with the axe, then threw it ashore; a spring appeared where it landed. He taught them laws and then disappeared. The stranger and the spring are identified with Fosite and the sacred spring of Fositesland.
Fosite has been suggested to be a loan of Greek Poseidon into pre-Proto-Germanic, perhaps via Greeks purchasing amber (Pytheas is known to have visited the area of Heligoland in search of amber).
Justice gods | Peace gods | Æsir
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