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ODIN

The King of the Aesir Gods

Odin is one of the most complex and enigmatic characters in Norse mythology. He’s the ruler of the Aesir tribe of deities, yet they often ventures far from their kingdom, Asgard, on long, solitary wanderings throughout the cosmos on purely self-interested quests. He’s a relentless seeker after and giver of wisdom, but he has little regard for communal values ​​such as justice, fairness, or respect for law and convention. He’s the divine patron of rulers, and also of outlaws. He’s a war-god, but also a poetry-god, and he has prominent “effeminate” qualities that would have brought unspeakable shame to any historical Viking warrior. He’s worshiped by those in search of prestige, honor, and nobility, yet he’s often cursed for being a fickle trickster. Odin embodies and imparts is the unifying factor behind the myriad areas of life with which he is especially associated with: war, sovereignty, wisdom, magic, shamanism, poetry, and the dead.He maintains particularly close affiliations with the berserkers and other “warrior- shamans ”whose fighting techniques and associated spiritual practices center around achieving a state of ecstatic unification with certain ferocious totem animals, usually wolves or bears, and, by extension, with Odin himself, the master of such beasts.Odin is often the favorite god and helper of outlaws, those who had been banished from society for some particularly heinous crime. One of the most striking attributes of his appearance is his single, piercing eye. His other eye socket is empty the eye it once held was sacrificed for wisdom.Odin presides over Valhalla, the most prestigious of the dwelling-places of the dead. After every battle, he and his helping-spirits, the valkyries comb the field and take their pick of half of the slain warriors to carry back to Valhalla.

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THOR

The God of Asgard

Thor, the brawny thunder god, is the archetype of a loyal and honorable warrior, the ideal toward which the average human warrior aspired.He's the indefatigable defender of the Aesir gods and their fortress Asgard, No one is better suited for this task than Thor . His courage and sense of duty are unshakeable, and his physical strength is virtually unmatched. He even owns an unnamed belt of strength that makes his power doubly formidable when he wears the belt. His now famous possession, however, is also his hammer Mjöllnir. Only rarely does he go anywhere without it. For the heathen Scandinavians, just as thunder was the embodiment of Thor, lightning was the embodiment of his hammer slaying giants as he rode across the sky in his goat-drawn chariot. His activities on the divine plane were mirrored by his activities on the human plane (Midgard), where he was appealed to by those in need of protection, comfort, and the blessing and hallowing of places, things, and events. Thor was also regarded as the god of agriculture, fertility, and hallowing. Pertaining to the former, this aspect was probably an extension of Thor’s role as a sky god who was also responsible for rain.

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VIDAR

The God of Vengeance

Vídar is a god associated with vengeance and is the son of Odin. Vidar is called the silent god who wears a thick shoe, is almost equal in strength to Thor, and can always be counted on to help the Aesir in their struggles.Incredibly enough, he is also counted among the very few major Norse gods who would survive the final conflict.

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TYR

The God of War

The deity of war and heroic glory, Tyr was regarded as the bravest of the Norse gods. And in spite of his association with wars - more specifically the formalities of conflict, including treaties, his origins are rather enigmatic, with the deity possibly being one of the oldest and now important of the ancient pantheon, until he was supplanted by Odin.

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IDUN

The Goddess of Rejuvenation

Idun is the wife of Asgard’s court poet and minstrel of the God Bragi. She was considered the Norse goddess of eternal youthfulness. This aspect was represented by her strikingly exuberant long golden hair. Beyond her personal attributes, it was the latent power she held that is arguably more interesting to the myth lovers.

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LOKI

The God of Trickster

Loki is the son of Farbauti and Laufey, who presumably lives in Jotunheim, his father is a Jötunn, and his mother is an Asynja not much else is known about them, besides the meaning of their names, Farbauti can be translated into, dangerous / cruel striker and Laufey is best known by her nickname At which means needle. Loki also has three horrible children, Jörmungandr, The Fenrir Wolf, and Hel, the queen of the underworld. The female Jötunn, Angrboda is the mother of all three. Loki is not evil, nor is he good, he lived in Asgard even though he is from Jotunheim (the land of the giants). He loves to make trouble for anyone and everyone especially, for the Gods and Goddesses. Loki as a strange alluring frightening figure, who is unreliable, moody, teasingly, a cunning trickster, but also intelligent and sly. He has mastered the art of illusions, some sort of magic, which gives him the ability to shapeeshift into anything, and yes, I mean into any living creature he wants. However, in spite of Loki’s complicated character and narrative, he is foretold to be responsible for the deaths of many Norse gods during Ragnarok.

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HEIMDALL

The God of Asgard

Beyond his superlative aptitude for seeing and hearing, Heimdall, befitting his status as a guardian of Asgard, also had the power of foreknowledge. In a sense, the guardian god looked out for invaders not only on the physical plane but also on the plane of time, thereby alluding to his accepted fate during the rigors of Ragnarök. 

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FREYR

The God of Fertility

The gods of the ancient world are often neither good nor evil but, as with human beings, they are fallible and can sometimes do bad things. The Norse god Freyr is no different, but if there ever was a competition for most beloved deity, Freyr would stand a good chance of walking away with the prize.

Freyr is usually depicted as a virile, muscular man with long flowing hair. Often, he is carrying a sword and he is almost always accompanied by his gigantic golden bristled boar, Gullinbursti. Since Freyr is both the son of the ocean god and himself the sun god, we can see both of those themes in artwork that depicts him. Some images will show him holding an antler, since in one of his myths he is forced to give his sword away and must make do with an antler instead. As a god of fertility, Freyr is sometimes shown as a man who is very well-endowed One of his greatest treasures was his ship, Skithblathnir. This ship was an amazing magical vessel that always had a favorable wind, no matter what. That, however, was not its greatest trick: Skithblathnir could be folded up into a tiny object that could fit inside a bag. This amazing ship let Freyr travel the seas easily. On land he wasn’t forced to go on foot, either. He had a magnificent chariot drawn by boars that brought peace wherever it went.

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FRIGG

The Queen of the Aesir Gods

Frigg was the wife of Odin.She was the Queen of the Aesir and the goddess of the sky. She was also known as the goddess of fertility, household, motherhood, love, marriage, and domestic arts. Frigg focus on her family life. While she was greatly blessed, she also faced a terrible heartache, which would eventually serve as her legacy. While Frigg was believed to have been an honorable wife, she did take hold of an opportunity to outsmart her husband and end a conflict between outsiders. Odin was known for being incredibly strong-willed but in this myth, Frigg found a way past this.

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BALDER

The God of Light and Purity

Balder, son of Odin and Frigg. The god of Love and Light, is sacrificed at Midsummer by the dart of the mistletoe, and is reborn at Jule. He was also hailed as a fair, wise, and gracious divine being whose beauty even abashed the elegant flowers before him. Matching his physical attributes, his abode Breidablik in Asgard was considered the most exquisite of all halls in the stronghold of the Norse gods, flaunting its gilded silver components and embellished pillars that only allowed the purest of hearts to enter.

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BRAGI

The God of Asgard

Bragi the skaldic god of poetry in Norse .. Bragi possibly shared traits with the historical 9th-century bard Bragi Boddason, who himself might have served in the courts of Ragnar Lodbrok and Björn Ironside at Hauge. The god Bragi was perceived as the bard of Valhalla, the magnificent hall of Odin where all the fallen heroes and warriors are gathered for the ultimate ‘showdown’ at Ragnarok. To that end, Bragi was hailed as the skillful poet and god who sang and delighted the hordes of the Einherjar, warriors who died in battles and were brought to Odin’s majestic hall by the Valkyries.

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HEL

The Goddess of Underworld

Hel features as the goddess of the underworld. She was sent by Odin to Helheim / Niflheim to preside over the spirits of the dead, except for those who were killed in battle and went to Valhalla. It was her job to determine the fate of the souls who entered her realm. Hel is often depicted with her bones on the outside of her body rather than the inside. She is typically portrayed in black and white, as well, showing that she represents both sides of all spectrums. Among the Norse goddesses, she was said to be most powerful, even more than Odin himself, inside her own realm the Hel. The tragic episode of Balder’s death confirms such an association to power since it ultimately falls upon Hel to decide the fate of the soul of a god who was considered the wisest and now pure of all the Norse gods of Osir.

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NJORD

The God of Seas and Wealth

Njord is primarily the Vanir god of the wind, seafaring, fishing, and hunt, but he is also associated with fertility, peace, and wealth. He lives in Asgard in a house named Nóatún (Ship-enclosure) which is right next to the sea. This is most likely his favorite place, they can listen to the waves all day and night, and enjoy the fresh salty wind from the sea. Njord has been a very important deity throughout Scandinavia, many areas and towns have been named after him. For instance, the suburban district Nærum north of Copenhagen means Njords home.

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FREYA

The Goddess of Fate and Destiny

Freya is famous for her fondness of love, fertility, beauty, and fine material possessions. Freya was a member of the Vanir tribe of deities, but became an honorary member of the Aesir gods after the Aesir-Vanir War. Freya was also regarded among the Norse goddesses as the ruler of the afterlife realm Folkvang, which allowed her to choose half of the warriors who were slain in battlewho would outline the future outcome of such military encounters by her magic.

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