Odin is the king of the gods in Norse mythology . The one who represents divine strength is revered by the Viking peoples. He is both the god of war and victory , of the dead and knowledge , but also of hunting and poetry . Creator of the world, one-eyed old man and wise man , who really was Odin, the king of the Gods?
Who is Odin?
In Norse mythology, Odin is the king of the gods . He is part of the Aesir group and is the most respected god. Odin lives in Asgard , the domain of the gods. He owns his palace, Valaskjalf , where his throne, Hlidskjalf, is located. From there, Odin can observe the nine worlds .
Odin is the sky god. But not only. The king of the gods is also the god of death and victory. Before each battle, Odin comes to deliver his precious advice to the armies. After the fights, the god welcomes the souls of half of the warriors who died during the battle . Specifically, warriors who died in battle while attacking. These will join him in Valhalla to fight during Ragnarök . They are called the Einherjars. The other half goes to Freyja , goddess of love. Being also the god of death, Odin has the power to communicate with the souls flown away, and to resurrect them.
Odin is the god of knowledge . Patron of hunting and magic. As well as the patron of poetry. He is therefore able to compose poems through which he expresses himself brilliantly. How ? Quite simply after having stolen the mead of poetry allowing the giants to speak and write magnificently well.
If many mortals call him Odin, the king of the gods has many nicknames.
List of Odin names :
- Alfadir (the father of everything)
- Bolverk (doommaker)
- Harbard (gray beard)
- Farmatyr (god of cargoes)
- Baleyg (Blazing Eye)
- and many others...
It is good to have the protection of the god Odin when you honor the gods. This is why, at Ervald, we work with a craftsman to provide you with a Wooden Statue of Odin.
Click here to learn more about the Statue of Odin for your altar.
Genealogy and descent of Odin
Odin was born from the god Bor and the giantess Bestla . He has two brothers, Vili and Vé . They were all born in Ginnungagap , the original nothingness.
Norse mythology gives Odin a wife and four lovers .
We find in literary sources Frigg , his wife, with whom he had five children :
- Balder
- Hoder
- Hermod
- Bragi
- Tire
From his mistress Jörd is born:
- Thor , god of thunder and war.
Then Odin gives Grid a child, which they name:
And finally, the King of the Gods has two children with Rind :
- Vali
- Bous
Odin's Attributes
The god Odin is often depicted as a bearded old man , blind in his left eye.
Why is Odin one-eyed?
Indeed, Odin is missing one of his eyes. Curious about everything, the king of the gods is constantly on the lookout for new knowledge. One day, against a sip at the source of wisdom, Odin leaves one of his eyes that he threw into the well . He could then drink the water and access the wisdom of the world.
Her jewels and animals
Odin has many attributes. A magic ring , first, called Draupnir . Inside this eight other rings become identical every ninth night.
Odin also possesses a spear , called Gungnir . It is with her that the Norse god puts an end to the life of his enemies.
Alongside Odin, two wolves : Geri and Freki . But also two crows , almost always represented on his shoulders: Hugin and Munin . The latter come to whisper in his ear what they have seen while flying over the 9 worlds .
When on the move, Odin is often depicted riding Sleipnir, his eight-legged horse . The legend says that the king of the Gods can take the appearance he wants to move.
Discover our Odin jewelry . These all refer to a passage in the life of the god or his attributes and will bring you protection.
Odin, creator of the world
In the beginning and the birth of Odin and his brothers, there is only chaos , called Ginnungagap . This world separated two kingdoms: Muspell (world of fire) and Niflheim (world of ice). These last two ended up joining and creating a clay material, which took shape. Thus is modeled and created Ymir .
Ymir feeds on the four rivers of milk , spilled from the udders of Audhumla , a giant cow. From under Ymir 's armpits are then born ice giants. Thus began the battle between the giants and the gods.
Odin and his two brothers end up killing Ymir . Blood spurted from his body. And this with such power that all the giants ended up drowned, except for a couple. With Ymir's body, Odin makes the current world (Midgard) . With the blood it composes the seas and the rivers. With the flesh he composes the earth, with his bones the mountains, with his teeth the rocks, with his brain the clouds and with his hair the vegetation. The worms gnawing on Ymir's lifeless body turn into dwarfs.
While walking on the shore, Odin and his brothers found two tree trunks. With these, the three gods create two human beings: Ask and Embla. Ask is carved from ash, Embla is made from elm. Satisfied with them, Odin gave them the soul, Vé the thought and Vili the blood, the life and the beauty. Ask and Embla were placed in Midgard, the name of the Earth inhabited by humans.
King of the Gods and Master of the Runes
The god Odin is the master of the Runes (sacred alphabet). Indeed, he gets to know them in every detail by hanging nine days and nine nights from the Yggdrasil tree .
Legend has it that after casting his eye into the Fountain of Wisdom, the other gods wound him with his own spear. They hang it on the Yggdrasil and Odin stays there for nine days and nine nights. He has neither to drink nor to eat. The king of the Gods ended up collecting the runes in the roots of Yggdrasil, and breaking through its secrets . Odin then allowed Men to know and use them.
Odin's death
Odin loses his life during Ragnarök against the legendary Wolf Fenrir , a battle announcing the end of the prophetic world. This war opposes two camps: the gods of Asgard against the invaders and creatures of darkness.
