Tyr, Fenrir, and anger in 2025
I've been thinking about Tyr and Fenrir a lot lately. To me, they seem like a divine pair/twin motif. You're handed an emotionally impossible situation and you both do whatever you can to do what you think is right.
Note: below is my UPG, inspired by the myths and my interpretations of them as they relate to my own experiences. The following are not concrete facts/universal.
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Tyr earnestly believes that, despite how much he loves Fenrir and remembers the pup he once was, he is now too dangerous to the community to be fully free. Fenrir is not killed, but is restrained to the point of being out of sight out of mind for many of the gods--whether this was an act of mercy requested by Tyr is something I wonder. Was he holding out hope that the prophecy wouldn't come true? Despite the emotional pain of betraying someone who trusted him, despite the physical pain of losing his dominant hand, Tyr believes the greater good and safety of others trumps his and Fenrir's individual suffering.
"Sometimes it hurts like hell to do the right thing," is the mantra I come away with.
Fenrir believes that he is just existing as he always had. It's not his active plan to harm anyone and when he grows to his full size and begins to step into his power, how he is seen by others changes drastically and without his knowledge. All of a sudden he is seen as a monster and a threat, despite the only "proof" of his violence being a premonition. His betrayal, confusion, and rage eventually leads Fenrir to enact the violence determined for him by how he was treated and what he was expected to be.
"My existence is not a threat, but I will fight like hell if you threaten my existence," is the mantra I come away with.
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Perhaps it's not hard to see why these messages and myths would be top of mind for me and perhaps other members of marginalized and terrorized communities in the US in 2025.
I have let loved ones and other people go who have become dangerous to me and my loved ones. Letting these people go hurt and often continues to hurt, and I know they feel betrayed and abandoned by me in their own confused ways. However, I have been abandoned by my loved ones, elected officials, coworkers, and peers due to them suddenly deciding I am dangerous.
I look to them both for strength. I look to Tyr for conviction, bravery, integrity, and honor. I may be irate, I may be wrathful, but I will never let my heart darken. There is a light in my soul fueled by my loved ones, the gods, and the earth that I won't allow to dim. I look to Fenrir for courage, finding effective channels for my righteous anger, and remembering the undeniable truth that I deserve love and dignity.
Hail the Warrior! Hail the Chain-Breaker!
Hail the Protector! Hail the Liberator!
Hail Tyr! Hail Fenrir!












