| Goddesses of the World |
| Freyja (Freya), the goddess of love, beauty, and fertility was also associated with war, battle, death, magic, prophecy, and wealth. |
In Norse mythology, gods and goddess are divided into two groups,
the Vanir and the Aesir. The peaceful Vanir grew food from the
earth; they were worshipped during the agricultural Bronze Age. In
the Iron Age, when human beings developed the first weapons and
hunting tools, the combative Aesir were worshiped. The Aesir
brought war and discord into the peaceful world of the Vanir. To
settle the war between them, the Vanir agreed to give the Aesir
Freya, the goddess of beauty. Freya is the daughter of Njord, the
god of fair winds.
Freya became the link between the old world, before the invention
of iron tools, and the new, as well as the mediator between peace
and violence. She also became known as the goddess who presided
over the living and the dead.
Freya is honored mainly as a goddess of beauty and love. However,
she is also responsible for half of the warriors who die in battle and
are claimed by the Valkyries. They go to her great hall Folkvangr.
The other half of the warriors go to Odin’s grand hall Valhalla.
Freya's hall is also open to women who have suffered a noble death.
Women are not accepted in Valhalla. (See Gods of the world - Odin)
The afterlife of folks brought to Freyja is filled with joy and pleasure.
They are brought delicious food and drink by her serving maidens
and listen to the goddess's favorite poems about brave deeds.
Despite the cheerful company of her warriors, Freya was often sad
because her husband Od, vanished after the birth of their daughter,
Noss, whose name means "delight”. Od is also known as Odur, the
summer sun god. He loved his promiscuous Mrs. Freya but he was
a little bit of a flirt himself. Being tempted away by warmer climes,
he headed south and left her out in the cold.
Freya was terribly upset and searched high and low for her missing
husband, weeping golden tears as she went. When her teardrops hit
the ground they hardened into golden nuggets. But, as usual, Freya
made the best of a bad job and really went off the rails. She ran wild
with gods, mortals, giants and dwarfs. Sometimes she looked for
Od, riding through the sky in her golden chariot drawn by two grey
cats. At other times, she wore her falcon-skin cloak which enabled
her fly through the air like a bird.
After many months she eventually found him in a distant land
sunbathing under a tree. As soon as he saw her, Od’s heart
softened. He tore up the pending divorce papers and they were
reconciled.
This might all sound like a half-hearted attempt to explain the origin
of winter. But the story of Od is odd. It all comes down to the fact
that he may not even exist. Ancient sources give a very garbled
account of him, and he is constantly mistaken for Odin. This is all the
more confusing as he may actually be Odin.
In addition, the stories and allegations of how she gained
possession of Brisingamen, the golden amber necklace of desire,
are scandalous, especially the one about her bedding four dwarfs in
turn before they would give it to her. Freya was said never to be
seen without her favorite necklace. So beautiful is this piece of
jewelry that the Norse still refer to the Milky Way as “Freya’s
Necklace.”
the Vanir and the Aesir. The peaceful Vanir grew food from the
earth; they were worshipped during the agricultural Bronze Age. In
the Iron Age, when human beings developed the first weapons and
hunting tools, the combative Aesir were worshiped. The Aesir
brought war and discord into the peaceful world of the Vanir. To
settle the war between them, the Vanir agreed to give the Aesir
Freya, the goddess of beauty. Freya is the daughter of Njord, the
god of fair winds.
Freya became the link between the old world, before the invention
of iron tools, and the new, as well as the mediator between peace
and violence. She also became known as the goddess who presided
over the living and the dead.
Freya is honored mainly as a goddess of beauty and love. However,
she is also responsible for half of the warriors who die in battle and
are claimed by the Valkyries. They go to her great hall Folkvangr.
The other half of the warriors go to Odin’s grand hall Valhalla.
Freya's hall is also open to women who have suffered a noble death.
Women are not accepted in Valhalla. (See Gods of the world - Odin)
The afterlife of folks brought to Freyja is filled with joy and pleasure.
They are brought delicious food and drink by her serving maidens
and listen to the goddess's favorite poems about brave deeds.
Despite the cheerful company of her warriors, Freya was often sad
because her husband Od, vanished after the birth of their daughter,
Noss, whose name means "delight”. Od is also known as Odur, the
summer sun god. He loved his promiscuous Mrs. Freya but he was
a little bit of a flirt himself. Being tempted away by warmer climes,
he headed south and left her out in the cold.
Freya was terribly upset and searched high and low for her missing
husband, weeping golden tears as she went. When her teardrops hit
the ground they hardened into golden nuggets. But, as usual, Freya
made the best of a bad job and really went off the rails. She ran wild
with gods, mortals, giants and dwarfs. Sometimes she looked for
Od, riding through the sky in her golden chariot drawn by two grey
cats. At other times, she wore her falcon-skin cloak which enabled
her fly through the air like a bird.
After many months she eventually found him in a distant land
sunbathing under a tree. As soon as he saw her, Od’s heart
softened. He tore up the pending divorce papers and they were
reconciled.
This might all sound like a half-hearted attempt to explain the origin
of winter. But the story of Od is odd. It all comes down to the fact
that he may not even exist. Ancient sources give a very garbled
account of him, and he is constantly mistaken for Odin. This is all the
more confusing as he may actually be Odin.
In addition, the stories and allegations of how she gained
possession of Brisingamen, the golden amber necklace of desire,
are scandalous, especially the one about her bedding four dwarfs in
turn before they would give it to her. Freya was said never to be
seen without her favorite necklace. So beautiful is this piece of
jewelry that the Norse still refer to the Milky Way as “Freya’s
Necklace.”
