A/N: HAHA, you’ve come here. To hear Sy rant about pointless, stupid pieces of things I’ve read about and for me to dump it here. Below you can find my resources from books, websites, papers, blah blah blah on Viking and related culture in the Norse and interrelated world.
Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
✓ Live Streaming✓ Interactive Chat✓ Private Shows✓ HD Quality
Anya is LIVE right now
FREE
Free to watch • No registration required • HD streaming
Eddic [Mythology of All Races]: Hel and the Underworld
A/N: All content is from Mythology of All Races Vol. 2. There was quite a bit of talk of Christian influence from Snorri, so I’m a bit wary of his ass now. Still, here are some notes.
Hel
Ideology
Old and those who died ‘straw death’ in bed, Valhall for warriors, women to Freyja, maidens to Gefjun and drowned to Ran. (Snorri) However, some of those who didn’t die went to Valhall such as King Vanland slain by a Mara and king Halfdan who died in bed. Hel sent Halfdan to Valhall.
Location
Under the roots of Yggdrasil.
Many gates. Inside the hall is ‘a high house’.
Her hall is called Sleet cold.
Servant is hunger. Maid servant Tardy. Threshold Sinking to destruction. Bed is disease. Bed cover is unhappiness.
Gnipahellir
‘Cliff cave’ is near the entrance guarded by Garm.
Niflhel
Perhaps misty (Nifl meaning ‘mist’, ‘darkness.’)
Balder sits on a high seat.
Bright of rings and platforms of gold.
Dead ear and drink mead.
Helveg
A troublesome road. May be more than one.
Gjoll bridge
Brig o dread, na brader than a thread in Yorkshire belief, the dead had to pass.
Toilsome journey aided by equipment that the dead are buried with. Hel-Skor, Hel-Shoes were shoes given to the dead.
Etched with gold.
Guarded with gold.
Maidens of Hel
Solarljod ‘Song of the Sun,’ maidens of Hel calling men to die.
‘Hel will fold thee in her arms.’
Hel
Monstrous daughter of Loki.
Cast into Nilflhel/Niflheim by Odin. Garnered power over nine realms to apportion their dwellings to all who were sent to her, those who die of sickness or old age.
Heljarskinnn, Complexion of a deathly hue. Snorri might be behind this (Christian views).
Appearance of Hel
Half black, half flesh colour. Snorri May have used Christian thought here. Like in most shit, apparently.
Heljarskinn, “Black as Hel.”
Hel will fold thee in her arms: popular saying.
Pets of Hel
Has a dog Garm: barked at Odin when he came to consult to volva.
Chest sprinkled with blood and howls before Ragnarok.
Also a rust red cock that crowd to awaken dwellers.
Balder
Hermod rode to release Baldur from her but could not because Loki said, ‘Let Hel hold what she has!’ So Baldur is ‘the companion of Hel.’
Sits on a high seat.
The Dead
May ride on horseback over the Gjoll bridge as dead were buried with their horses.
Barrows
Dead inside are Haug-Bui or Barrow-wight.
Are a small underworld as a dead man’s abode.
Hel is an extension of their barrow.
The dead in narrows can reveal themselves to the living.
They resent desecration and can resent thralls buried with them.
Can also haunt or attack the living; Karr vs Grettir. Cut off their head and place it st the thigh. Burn the body and bury the ashes deep.
Can continue to haunt people though resembling vampires.
Much of the dead interested in their descendants as well as give information on important matters.
More famous the dead, the more revered they were.
Family barrows usually by dwelling to die into the hill in Iceland. Things and Dooms might be held on it.
The dead could also enquire of their future: Odin did with Balder.
Common thought that dead communicated with the living through dreams.
Dead could dwell in a particulator stone. In the Cristne-saga Codran and his kin worshipped at one specific stone.
**Note of Odin: knows a spell which might make hanged man talk.
Valhalla
Names
Hall of the slain
Hropt’s (Odin’s) battle hall
Abode of joy
Description
Gold bright and wide in Gladsheim.
Spears are its rafters, shields the roof and benches with corslets.
A wolf hangs by the west door and over it is an eagle (carved figures)?
Thund river (perhaps sky) surrounds Valhall and Thjodvitnir’s fish swim, the sun
The dead find it hard to swim through Thund.
Valgrind is the outer gate, behind it are 540 doors where eight hundred warriors each will go through to fight in Ragnarok.
Cooking
Cook of Valhalla is Andhrimnir whom cooks the boar Sæhrimnir in the cauldron Eldhrimnir. Odin’s wolves are known to sit beside him.
Not really known what the dead eat.
The Valkyries bring heroes mead
Life of Einherjar
The Einherjar become Odin’s osksynir, or wish sons. Odin is the Valhfather, father of the slain.
The rooster Gollinkambi ‘Gold-comb’ wakes the warriors.
Einherjar go and fight each other, then are healed by nightfall when they feast.
Whom?
For brave and noble fighters, those of high birth, heroes and freemen.
Saxo: (Bjarka songs) No humble and obscure race, no low-born ones, no base souls are Odin’s prey, but he weaves the fate of the mighty and fills Valhall with noble shapes.’
Thralls to Thor.
Freyja and Odin
Remember that Odin is the lord of ghosts! (drauga drottinn)
Also Man of the mountain and god of the fells (Fjajllgautr).
Odin appoints the dead to Valhalla or Vingolf.
Vingolf also contains the abode of goddesses by Gladsheim where warriors might share.
Freyja says who may have the seats in her hall Sessrumnir within Folkvang.
Vingolf is known as the Friend-hall, Wine Hall and Hall of the Beloved where the Valkyrie’s serve the warriors
Renewal of the world
Gimle will have an abundance of drink in the hall Brimir within Okolnir.
The fairest of all the halls and supper bright! Perhaps in the third Heaven Vidblainn where the fires of Surt cannot reach.
Sindri is a hall in Nidafells of red gold where the good and pure in heart will dwell.
Sindri’s people are dwarfs.
Nastrand
** Snorri may not have understood all his sources **
‘Corpses strand’
It’s doors face north.
It is a great and evil hall where snake-heads spurt venom into it, running rivers along the hall. Perjurers, men whom seduce other men’s wives and murderers must walk the waters.
In Hvergelmir the snake tears dead man’s corpses.
Oathbreakers must wad Vadgelmir’s waters.
Nidhogg
Nidhogg gnaws the root of Yggdrasil (Grimnismal).
Nidhogg comes flying from Nidafells with the bodies of the dead on its wings (Voluspa).
Gnaws a root over Niflheim below Hvergelmir which is a well in Hell (Snorri).
Odinsakr
Names
The Acre of the Not Dead
Land of beauty with a tower suspended in the air that can be reached by a ladder.
Tons of food and wine.
Society
Before going to war, warriors would wish each other a journey to Valhall ‘to show him the way to Valhall’
Sy’s note: I don’t trust Snorri as far as I can throw him so… I’ll try and mark things from here on out with Snorri if I find it.
A/N: All content is from Mythology of All Races Vol. 2, chp II. These are simply my notes of what I want to remember from this chapter.. Obviously things within this can be debated.
Who?
A small group of warlike gods, but wise ones as well.
Njord, Frey, Freyja and Heimdall. This number may also include others.
Heimdall might be debatable as he knows the future which isn’t attributed to the rest of said gods
Njord
The Vanir are said to have made Njord in Vanaheim.
He will return to the Vanir at Ragnarok.
God of the Vanir
Kingsman of the Vanir.
Father of Freyja
Freyja
Regarded as the Goddess, Bride and Lady of the Vanir.
Freyja first taught seidr according to the custom of the Vanir
Frey and Freyja married (incest of brother and sister) also in accordance with the Vanir custom.
Gollveig ‘Gold Might’ is suggestive to gold and its properties by fire.
Gollveig may also be Heid.
Freyja’s tears are red gold and so gold is called Freyja’s tears.
Introduced magic to the Aesir.
What sort of Gods?
Warlike gods like Odin.
Nature deities, rulers of prosperity.
Sea faring, commerce, hunting, peace (Frey) and love (Freyja).
Where?
The Vanir reside in Vanaheim.
Frey’s seat was at Upsala and thus, mostly a cult of those who considered themselves descendants of Frey and oppose Odin.
Vanaheim marks territory in Midgard and is one of nine worlds in Alvissmal.
War of Aesir and Vanir
In the Ynglinga-Saga:
The gods had a dispute with the Vanir.
Cause not mentioned.
Odin attacks the Vanir (defending themselves).
During a piece meeting, all spat into a vat and from that came Kvasir.
Hostage exchange: Njord and Frey from the Vanir and Hoenir and Mimir likewise. Both were to give their best-- but Hoenir was stupid without Mimir by his side.
Vanir cut Mimir’s throat and sent his head to the Aesir.
Odinn makes Njord and Frey Diar (Temple Priests).
In Voluspa
The seeress recounts the first war.
Gollveig had been burned and hurt with spears in Odin’s hall three times without death coming to her.
They called her Heid, a Volva, said to practice disturbing magic and sorcery.
The gods war between giving offering to the Vanir or Aesir AND the Vanir.
Odin wrecks that shit by chucking his spear over the host.
The wall of Asgard was broken down and the Vanir took victory.
Manuscripts vary from here.
Gollveig may have been Freyja and since she was treated so poorly-- it led to war.
Compromise was met with the exchange of hostages.
Sacrifices
Aesir and Vanir share sacrifices in the Voluspa.
In the Ynglinga-saga, the Aesir had blood offering.
Odin gave some places to the temple priests such as Njord and Frey.
Source Credit
MacCulloch, John Arnott. The Mythology of All Races: Eddic. Vol. 2, Cooper Square Publ., 1964.
