Asgard - Home Of The Aesir - 9th Part

This is the last part of Asgard (finally) and the places of great importance.

Breidablik

The hall of  the deities Baldr/Baldur and of Nanna his wife, was called Breidablik and it was given to them as a wedding gift. As you know, Baldr was killed and Nanna comited suicide after this tragic event, as such the goddess Frigga sealed all the entrances to the Hall so it might stay as it was by the time Baldr and Nanna lived there. No one is allowed to enter it and it is guarded to keep away anyone who tries to go in.

Landvidi

This is the hall of the god Vidar, which is one of the Norse deities that is seldom heard. Landvidi is where he lives with his mother called Grid. She is one of Odin's lovers, it was she who gave Thor his magical iron gloves and his famous belt of strength. Like some of the halls in Asgard, the name Landvidi also refers to the land around the Hall. A place with deep green woods, tall trees with permanent leaves the entire year and vast fields with tall grass.

Glitnir

The hall of Forseti the god of justice is called Glitnir. This hall is seen from a great distance, not because it is a large hall, but because the roof as the color of silver and it shines like a lighthouse, the porch pillars are made out of gold with beautiful carvings. Forseti is the son of Baldr and Nanna and he is the god of not only justice but also laws, arbitration, judgment, oaths, honor and alliances. If there is any kind of conflict, or law breaking or anyother thing concerning such subjects, the problems are brought to his hall, because it is here that peaceful solutions can be arranged to avoid bloodshed.
Every kind of problem that is fit to have judgement, can be presented in the court of Forseti's hall, even if it is a grievance between a mortal and a deity.

Brimir

In Asgard there is a land called Gimle which has a large lake, and right at the center of the lake there is an island called Okolnir which has a hall called Brimir. This hall might seem empty, but in it lives the giant with the same name of the hall, who won the land in a game of chance with Odin. It was Brimir who built the hall after he won the land, or at least the island.

Gimle

 As mentioned above, in the land called Gimle, there is also an Hall with the same name. It is devoided of any denizens.

Isle of Counsel

The name of this island is unknown, at least for me, but this place lies where the Thund Thvitr river meets the ocean. In the small island lives a mortal man (or once mortal) called Hildolf, who has his own hall in this island. For some reason, many of the Einherjar come here to visit him, so he must be a man of great importance, and to own a hall in Asgard, he must really be of great importance to Odin himself.

Urdabrunnr 

Beyond the forests of Ydalir and passing the small mountain range, there lies a great mountain which is in fact one of the roots of Yggdrasil, covered with small trees which are actually the sprouts of the root, this creates a large grove.
Below the curve of the great root, lies Urdabrunnr, the well of fate. A large spring with bubbling water which feeds the root of the world tree. Near the well its keepers live there and guard it, the Norns.
Beyond the great root and the spring there is a small hall called The Hall of Fate. No one has ever got in, only those who work with the Norns.

Asgard - Home of the Aesir - 8th Part

Noatun

In the previous post I wrote about Freyja's hall, and as she is one of the Vanir also living in Asgard, now it is time to also write about her father, another Vanir deity that has a hall in Asgard.


Njörd's hall in Asgard is called Noatun and it is located outside the walls of the realm in the coastal zone to the west and southwest. In this coast his hall stands in a small bay and ships from the distance can see the hall of Njörd, a white structure with a few ships anchored in the bay below it. This structure is filled with open windows and the ceilings are different from the ones of all the other halls in Asgards, these are arched, resembling the bottom of a ship. 
There are fishing tools all over the place even hanged on the walls, and a salty wind blows inside. There are many seabirds around the area and often fly to the insides of the structure. Most of the furniture is made out of parts of ships, even the tables, and there are many colums that were once masts.

In this hall along with Njörd, others live there, most of them are sailors. Apart from the hall and the docks, there are also workshops behind the hall and all manners of sea working is made there, such as woodcarving, shipbuilding, net-mending, barrel-making and so on.

As you might imagine, this is the harbour where many ships from different lands take rest after great voyages, the many denizens of the Nine norse worlds come here, and others as well. This is a haven for those who love the sea and everything connected to it.

Sokkvabek

There is a goddess that few know, she is called Saga, the goddess of lore and knowledge through learning from the lore and study. This goddess also lives in Asgard by the sea. Her hall is called Sokkvabek. This is also a place of learning while relaxing at the same time, for those who love the sound of waves and seabirds and the whales during the night, and of course, refreshing the body and the soul in the waters which are near the hall, in fact, the hall is so close to the water, that there isn't sand or rock to place the feet, the hall goes directly into the water.
Inside this hall, there are many written memories such as poetry, songs, tales of old and so on. This goddess keeps the records of the past, some important, some irrelevant.

Thrymheim II

The tale of Skadi is one that people have heard so often, but summarizing it, there was a giant called Thjatsi who married an Aesir woman, by doing so he inherited all that was hers when she died. Thjatsi was slain by the Aesir but he had a daughter called Skadi who came all the way from Jotunheim to demand her inheritance and have her vengance upon the Aesir for killing her father.
She also wanted a husband of Aesir blood, so she could be accepted quickly into the Aesir tribe. She was married with Njörd but it didn't work out, but she still owns and lived in her father and stepmother's hall. Being a goddess who loves winter and can't stand another type of weather, during the summer of Asgard (which is quite long) she leaves the mountains of Asgard and goes back to her halls in Jotunheim.
Her hall in Asgard is called Thrymheim in honor to the giant Thrym the king of Jotunheim. Her hall in Jotunheim is also called by this name.
Her hall, is found in the great mountain chain of Asgard to the north and all the way to the east. There weather there is cold and snowy, but in lighter proportions, nothing compared to the weather of the mountains of Jotunheim where her other hall is placed.

Ydalir

Ydalir is the home of the god Ullr, the god of winter and hunting and also skiing. It is more like an hunting lodge in a grove surrounded by trees.


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Working with the Gods: Ullr

As i left December writing about Skadi the goddess of winter, it seems proper to start the year, writing about Ullr, the god of winter, since we are still very much into the winter season.

Ullr is the northern god of Winter, Hunting, Archery, Skating and Skiing. The sound of the snow falling and the cold winter wind that follows it, along with the sound of the ice breaking and moving in the mountains or beneath your feet in any frozen lake or river, the silent atmosphere in the woods after a snowstorm and the scent of wet trees, it all has the magic touch of Ullr.

Ullr is a very old god, he has been in the northern tales far beyond memory, when the world was still in the Iron Age, the northern peoples start to write the myths about Ullr and his powers were already the stuff of legend back then. All over Scandinavia, his name can be heard in many places still, regions and sites, so he must have been a very important god. He was associated with skiing, a very important way to move from one place to an other in the snow, because the snow is very thick and with the weight of our body, we are buried under the snow and its too hard to move, it can take days and people often died. So skiing was a safer and faster way to move and also to hunt. Ullr was also associated with the shield, maybe because shields were used as a ski board or because when winter comes, it involves the world as a shield.

Ullr's name comes from the word wuldor, the Old Hight German word for "glory". It was once pronounced "Ool", and to the Anglo-Saxons, his name was Vulder and in some places in Germany, he was known as Holler, and some say that he was the husband of the Germanic goddess Holda.
Ullr is seen as an Aesir because he is the son of Sif and his stepfather is Thor, but als may be seen as a Vanir because of his nature for being an hunter.
Ullr lives in Ydalir, meaning, Yew-grove, for the yew wood has always been good for the making of bows.

Odin was once exiled and Ullr was chosen to seet in the throne of Valhalla and lead in his place until Odin returned. Since then, Ullr seets in that same throne every time Odin isn't around, the shows the importance this god may had over the northern peoples in ancient times.

As you may guess, Ullr is the god of winter and winter sports, and as such, he can be called upon those who need safety when dealing with such matters, climbing a mountain, hunting in the woods, even winning a contest of skiing, fishing on ice and he is also a god of oaths, when making an oath, he will watch over it and make sure that your oath or the oaths others made to you under Ullr's watchful eyes, won't break.