The interaction between the Æsir and the Vanir is an interesting aspect of Norse mythology. While other cultures have had "elder" and "younger" families of gods, as with the Titans versus the Olympians of ancient Greece, the Æsir and Vanir were portrayed as contemporary. The two clans of gods fought battles, concluded treaties, and exchanged hostages (Freyr and Freyja are mentioned as such hostages). It is tempting to speculate that the interactions described as occurring between Æsir and Vanir reflect the types of interaction common to v ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - Norse mythology

Bilskirnir, Breidablik, Élivágar, Eliudnir, Fensalir, Fólkvangr, Gimlé, Ginnungagap, Gjallar Bridge, Gjöll, Gladsheim, Glasir, Glitnir, Gnipa, Himinbjörg, Hindarfjall, Horgr, Idavoll, Jotunheim, Ironwood, Hlidskjalf, Midgard, Muspelheim, Mirkwood, Nastrond, Niflheim, Noatun, Sessrúmnir, Singasteinn, Slidr River, Sökkvabekkr, Thrudvang, Thrymheim, Utgard, Valhall, Vanaheim, Hvergelmi ...

Including:

• Norse mythology - Sources
• Norse mythology - Cosmology
• Norse mythology - Supernatural beings
• Norse mythology - Völuspá: the origin and end of the world
• Norse mythology - Kings and heroes
• Norse mythology - Norse worship
• Norse mythology - Centres of faith
• Norse mythology - Priests
• Norse mythology - Human sacrifice
• Norse mythology - Interactions with Christianity
• Norse mythology - Modern influences
• Norse mythology - Bibliography

Read more here: » Norse mythology: Encyclopedia - Norse mythology

In Norse mythology, wargs are in particular the demonic wolves Fenrir, Skalli and Hati. In the Hervarar saga, king Heidrek is asked by Gestumblindi (Odin), What is that lamp which lights up men, but flame engulfs it, and wargs grasp after it always. Heidrek knows the answer is the Sun, explaining She lights up every land and shines over all men, and Skalli and Hatti are called wargs. Those are wolves, one going bef ...

See also:

Warg, Warg - Norse mythology, Warg - J. R. R. Tolkien

Read more here: » Warg: Encyclopedia II - Warg - Norse mythology

The interaction between the Æsir and the Vanir is an interesting aspect of Norse mythology. While other cultures have had "elder" and "younger" families of gods, as with the Titans versus the Olympians of ancient Greece, the Æsir and Vanir were portrayed as contemporary. The two clans of gods fought battles, concluded treaties, and exchanged hostages (Freyr and Freyja are mentioned as such hostages). It is tempting to speculate that the interactions described as occurring between Æsir and Vanir reflect the types of interaction common to v ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir all names in Old Norse form, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - Norse mythology

In Norse mythology, golden apples grant immortal life to the Gods. They are cultivated by the Goddess Iðunn. Golden apples are an important element in Richard Wagner's opera Das Rheingold, prelude of the tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen. After building the Walhall for the gods, the giants Fafner and Fasolt asked Wotan to give them Freia, the goddes who cultivates golden apples, as Wotan promised them. When the giants took Freia away, the gods suddenly became old and weak. It convinced Wotan to go to Nibelheim with Loge in order to steal the ring from Alberich, thus getting a su ...

See also:

Golden apple, Golden apple - Greek Mythology, Golden apple - Atalanta, Golden apple - The Garden of the Hesperides, Golden apple - The Judgement of Paris, Golden apple - Norse mythology, Golden apple - Modern literature, Golden apple - Golden apples in other languages

Read more here: » Golden apple: Encyclopedia II - Golden apple - Norse mythology

In Norse mythology, the earth is represented as a flat disc. This disk is situated in the branches of the world tree, or Yggdrasil. Asgard, where the gods lived, was located at the centre of the disc, and could only be reached by walking across the rainbow (the Bifröst bridge). The Giants lived in an abode called Jötunheimr (giant realm). A cold, dark underground abode called Niflheim was ruled by Hel, daughter of Loki. According to the Prose Edda this was the eventual dwelling-place of mos ...

See also:

Norse mythology, Norse mythology - Overview, Norse mythology - Sources, Norse mythology - Cosmology, Norse mythology - Supernatural beings, Norse mythology - Völuspá: the origin and end of the world, Norse mythology - Kings and heroes, Norse mythology - Norse worship, Norse mythology - Centres of faith, Norse mythology - Priests, Norse mythology - Human sacrifice, Norse mythology - Interactions with Christianity, Norse mythology - Modern influences, Norse mythology - Bibliography

Read more here: » Norse mythology: Encyclopedia II - Norse mythology - Cosmology

In Norse mythology, the earth was believed to be a flat disc. This disk is situated in the branches of the world tree, or Yggdrasil. Asgard, where the gods lived, was located at the centre of the disc, and could only be reached by walking across the rainbow (the Bifröst bridge). The Giants lived in an abode called Jötunheimr (giant realm). A cold, dark underground abode called Niflheim was ruled by Hel, daughter of Loki. According to the Prose Edda this was the eventual dwelling-place of most of the dead. Located somewhere in ...

See also:

Norse mythology, Norse mythology - Sources, Norse mythology - Cosmology, Norse mythology - Supernatural beings, Norse mythology - Völuspá: the origin and end of the world, Norse mythology - Kings and heroes, Norse mythology - Norse worship, Norse mythology - Centres of faith, Norse mythology - Priests, Norse mythology - Human sacrifice, Norse mythology - Interactions with Christianity, Norse mythology - Modern influences, Norse mythology - Bibliography

Read more here: » Norse mythology: Encyclopedia II - Norse mythology - Cosmology

In Old Norse Warg (vargr) is an euphemism for wolf (ulfr), still used in modern Swedish as a word for wolf. Also cognate is Old English warg "large wolf". The Proto-Germanic *wargaz meant "strangler", and hence "evildoer, criminal, outcast". Warg - Norse mythology. In Norse mythology, wargs are in particular the demonic wolves Fenrir, Skalli and Hati. In the Hervarar saga, king Heidrek is asked by Gestumblindi (Odin), What is that lamp ...

Including:

• Warg - Norse mythology
• Warg - J. R. R. Tolkien

Read more here: » Warg: Encyclopedia - Warg

The Germanic gods have left traces in modern vocabulary. An example of this is some of the names of the days of the week: modelled after the names of the days of the week in Latin (named after Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn), the names for Tuesday through to Friday were replaced with Germanic equivalents of the Roman gods. In English, Saturn was not replaced, while Saturday is named after the sabbath in German, and is called "washing day" in Scandinavia. Norse mythology also influenced Richard Wagner's use of literary themes from it to compose the four operas that comprise Der Ring ...

See also:

Norse mythology, Norse mythology - Overview, Norse mythology - Sources, Norse mythology - Cosmology, Norse mythology - Supernatural beings, Norse mythology - Völuspá: the origin and end of the world, Norse mythology - Kings and heroes, Norse mythology - Norse worship, Norse mythology - Centres of faith, Norse mythology - Priests, Norse mythology - Human sacrifice, Norse mythology - Interactions with Christianity, Norse mythology - Modern influences, Norse mythology - Bibliography

Read more here: » Norse mythology: Encyclopedia II - Norse mythology - Modern influences

The most famous dragons in Norse mythology and Germanic mythology, are: Níðhöggr who gnawed at the roots of Yggdrasil; Jörmungandr, also called Miðgarðsormr, a form of serpent so big that the earth-disc can be encircled by it; The dragon encountered by Beowulf; Fafnir, who was killed by Siegfried. Fafnir turned into a dragon because of his greed. Lindworms are monstrous serpents of G ...

See also:

European dragon, European dragon - Dragons in modern times, European dragon - Roman dragons, European dragon - Dragons in Slavic mythology, European dragon - Dragons in Germanic mythology, European dragon - Dragons in Catalan mythology, European dragon - Dragons in Italian mythology, European dragon - Dragons in fantasy fiction

Read more here: » European dragon: Encyclopedia II - European dragon - Dragons in Germanic mythology

The inherited form of alliterative verse was modified somewhat in Old Norse poetry. In Old Norse, as a result of phonetic changes from the original common Germanic language, many unstressed syllables were lost. This lent Old Norse verse a characteristic terseness; the lifts tended to be crowded together at the expense of the weak syllables. In some lines, the weak syllables have been entirely suppressed. From the Hávamál: Deyr fé || deyja frændrSee also:

Alliterative verse, Alliterative verse - Common Germanic origins and features, Alliterative verse - Old English poetic forms, Alliterative verse - Accent, Alliterative verse - Alliteration, Alliterative verse - Survivals, Alliterative verse - Old Norse poetic forms, Alliterative verse - Fornyrðislag, Alliterative verse - Ljóðaháttr, Alliterative verse - Dróttkvætt, Alliterative verse - Hrynhenda, Alliterative verse - German forms, Alliterative verse - In Old High German and Old Saxon, Alliterative verse - Modern use, Alliterative verse - References, Alliterative verse - External links

Read more here: » Alliterative verse: Encyclopedia II - Alliterative verse - Old Norse poetic forms

The name ouroboros (or, in Latinized form, uroborus) is Greek ("ουροβóρος") and means "tail-devourer". Ouroboros - Antiquity. The serpent or dragon eating its own tail has survived from antiquity and can be traced back to Ancient Egypt, circa 1600 BC. However the pig dragons of the Hongshan culture (4700–2200 BC) of China are older and may have been transmitted in one way along the Silk Road. From ancient Egypt it passed to Phoenicia and then to the Greek philosophers, who gave it the name Ouroboros ("the tail-devourer"). See also:

Ouroboros, Ouroboros - Throughout history, Ouroboros - Antiquity, Ouroboros - Norse mythology, Ouroboros - Other mythologies, Ouroboros - Christianity, Ouroboros - Alchemy, Ouroboros - Ouroboros in modern culture, Ouroboros - Chemistry, Ouroboros - Film, Ouroboros - Games, Ouroboros - Literature, Ouroboros - Music, Ouroboros - Societies, Ouroboros - Software, Ouroboros - Television

Read more here: » Ouroboros: Encyclopedia II - Ouroboros - Throughout history

Slavic mythology - Supreme god. The original supreme god of the Slavs was probably Rod. Information about Rod worship is scarce. In some branches of the Slavic religion, the supreme god is Svarog (senior member of Triglav). But exactly because of his nature he was not the most worshiped: that was Perun, while tribes that were occupied mostly with cattle could pay most attention to Veles and so on. The Wendish people are said to have had the three-headed Triglav as their supreme god. Sometimes this god is referred ...

See also:

Slavic mythology, Slavic mythology - Primary sources, Slavic mythology - Cosmology, Slavic mythology - Major feasts, Slavic mythology - Gods, Slavic mythology - Supreme god, Slavic mythology - Pantheon, Slavic mythology - Locations, Slavic mythology - Mythical creatures, Slavic mythology - Mythical persons, Slavic mythology - Spirits, Slavic mythology - Slavic folk medicine and magic, Slavic mythology - Circles

Read more here: » Slavic mythology: Encyclopedia II - Slavic mythology - Gods

List of fictional swords - Greek mythology. The Sword of Peleus, a magic sword that makes its wielder victorious in the battle or the hunt List of fictional swords - Christian mythology. The Sword of Michael, a sword used by the archangel to defeat Lucifer in heaven (Christian mythology) The Sword of Yahweh, the sword of God which is mentioned in the tale of the destruction of Leviathan. (Christian mythology) < ...

See also:

List of fictional swords, List of fictional swords - In mythology, List of fictional swords - Greek mythology, List of fictional swords - Christian mythology, List of fictional swords - Celtic mythology, List of fictional swords - Arthurian mythology Matter of Britain, List of fictional swords - Norse mythology, List of fictional swords - The Song of Roland Frankish mythology, List of fictional swords - In fantasy fiction, List of fictional swords - David Gemmell, List of fictional swords - William Golding: The Princess Bride, List of fictional swords - M. John Harrison: Viriconium, List of fictional swords - C.S. Lewis: Chronicles of Narnia, List of fictional swords - Robert Jordan: The Wheel of Time, List of fictional swords - Michael Moorcock: Eternal Champion, List of fictional swords - Raven Night, List of fictional swords - Fred Saberhagen: Books of the Swords, List of fictional swords - J. R. R. Tolkien: Middle-earth, List of fictional swords - Tad Williams: Memory Sorrow and Thorn, List of fictional swords - Roger Zelazny: Chronicles of Amber, List of fictional swords - various authors: Forgotten Realms, List of fictional swords - In historical fiction, List of fictional swords - Bernard Cornwell: The Warlord Chronicles, List of fictional swords - In computer games and video games, List of fictional swords - In MangaAnime and Cartoons, List of fictional swords - The Zanpakutō of Bleach

Read more here: » List of fictional swords: Encyclopedia II - List of fictional swords - In mythology

In Norse mythology, the dísir (sing. dís) are a collective of divine female beings of whom little is known with certainty except that they are mentioned in concurrence with death and demise. Dís is believed to correspond to the idisi mentioned in the Old High German Merseburg Incantations as well as to ides, a poetic Anglo-Saxon synonym for "woman." Possibly, it is also etymologically related to the dhísanas, a group of female deities in the Yajur Veda. Dís could be u ...

Including:

• Dísir - Corpus
• Dísir - Dísir Valkyries and Norns
• Dísir - Dísablót and dísaþing
• Dísir - Notes

Read more here: » Dísir: Encyclopedia - Dísir

The earliest date given for a Viking raid is 787 AD when, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a group of men from Norway sailed to Portland, in Dorset. There, they were mistaken for merchants by a royal official, and they murdered him when he tried to get them to accompany him to the king's manor to pay a trading tax on their goods. The next recorded attack, dated June 8, 793 AD, was on the monastery at Lindisfarne – the "Holy Island" – on the east coast of England. For the next 200 years, European history is fille ...

See also:

Viking, Viking - Etymology, Viking - Historical records, Viking - Adam of Bremen, Viking - Rune stones, Viking - Icelandic sagas, Viking - 13th century, Viking - Viking ships and Viking longships, Viking - The Viking Age, Viking - The Viking invasions: a commercial war?, Viking - Decline, Viking - Modern revivals, Viking - Romanticism, Viking - Fascism, Viking - Living History, Viking - Myths about Vikings, Viking - Horned helmets, Viking - Skull cups, Viking - Uncleanliness, Viking - Famous Vikings, Viking - Books, Viking - Movies, Viking - Culture, Viking - Historians, Viking - Archaeology, Viking - Place names, Viking - Military, Viking - Popular Culture, Viking - Bibliography

Read more here: » Viking: Encyclopedia II - Viking - Historical records

Afterife - Life After Death

An encyclopedia of different cultures mythology  around afterlife, including : Adiri, Ama-No-Hashidate: , Asamando, Asgard, Astral Plane, Avalon, Bralgu, Chalmecacivati, Ching Tu, Chinvato Peretav, Dilum, Djanna, Elysium, Fortunate Isle, Gwenved, Happy Hunting Ground, Hawaiki, Inkolwe, Isle of the Blest, Kevala, Khun-Lun, Ki-Agpga-Pod, Kotluwalawa, Land of the Moon, Lewu Liau, Limbo, Mizumu, Moksha, Mormon Heaven, Mount Kailasa, Mount Meru , New Age Afterlife, New Jerusalem, Nirvana, Otherworld, Sheol, Summerland, Tain, Tamoanchan, The Pole Star, Tlalocan, Tum and Valhalla.

Read more here: » Afterlife: Encyclopedia of Afterlife Mythology in Different Cultures

Valhalla (Scandinavian) Valholl (Icelandic) [from val choice, death + hall, holl hall]

In Norse mythology, the hall of the chosen or of the slain where Odin's heroes, the One-harriers, are brought by the Valkyries at the end of each day's battles to feast with Ropt, the maligned or misunderstood god (Odin). "The hall of the chosen glows golden in Gladhome," one of the superior "shelves" or ethereal planes which are closely related to our planet earth.

The walls of Valhalla are built of the spears of the warriors, it is roofed with their shields, while inside the hall "the benches are strewn with byrnies." Over the entrance door are transfixed the wolf (bestiality) and the eagle (pride). All of these are symbolic of the sacrifice of properties that have been relinquished by Odin's chosen warriors, for these represent, in the Norse tales, the initiated adepts who have elected to serve the cause of universality and aid the progress of human evolution. Abandoning progressively all weapons of offense, then of defense, and finally all personal protection, exemplifies the universal service of the chosen.

The One-harriers of Odin emerge daily to do battle on the plain of consecration (Vigridsslatten, life on earth) and by night return to feast with Allfather Ropt in the sacred hall on the mead brewed from their experience of life.

At the feast of the warriors in Valhalla they are served three boars, representing three elements as well as three principles of cosmic life: Andrimner (air, spirit), Sarimner (water, mind), and Eldrimner (fire, desire). A suggestive verse in Grimnismal may then be read as: "Spirit lets mind be steeped in desire. Few know what nourishes the One-harriers."

The tales concerning Valhalla have been sadly misunderstood in popular mythologies. Far from being an account of gross debauchery, there is mystical meaning hidden in every detail of the description of Odin's domain and of the feasting of his warriors. For example, Valhalla is said to have 540 doors, through each of which 800 warriors issue abreast. This makes the number of One-harriers total 432,000, an oft-recurring number in Hindu and Babylonian time tables dealing with mystic and mythic history. Their message is in fact one of the noblest and most inspiring of mythic tales, when read between the lines of allegory, for here the warriors of emerge willingly to be "slain" daily in the cause of humanity's evolutionary progress.

(See also: Valhalla , Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)

For more dictionary entries, see » Norse Mythology Dictionary

AKASHA

The fifth tattwa (Hindu Element). The black egg of the spirit, i.e. the ether, whereby everything is written down. In the Akashic records, found on every plane, no event, however insignificant, goes unmarked. If time be not a closed, self-repeating cycle, then the Akashic Records are of infinite length, having no beginning. The Guardians of the Akashic records have been equated with Thoth and Hermes as well as with Mnemosyne and the Muses. These were the guardians of the Well of Memory, from which the initiate must drink. In Norse mythology, the Guardian of the Well of knowledge, beside the root of the world-tree, Yggdrasil, was Mimir (to whom Odin paid his eye).

HPB describes Akasha as "The Second Differentiation of evolving substance Chaos, Aether, Matter of the Monadic Plane...often used where chaos or aether would be indicated. Akasha is located in the sphere of Vibratory Sound, whence all auras derive.

Lest those who feel they have contributed positively or negatively to the Akashic records be prideful on the one hand or discouraged on the other, it should be understood that all such actions are dualistic and the expansion of the darkness automatically ensures the expansion of the light and vice-versa.

(See also: AKASHA , Magick, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body Mind and Soul,)

For more dictionary entries, see » Norse Mythology Dictionary

According to the tenets of voodoo, a dead person can be revived by a houngan or mambo. After resurrection, it has no will of its own, but remains under the control of the person who performed the ritual. Such resurrected dead are called "zombies". Zombi is also the name of the voodoo snake god of Niger-Congo origin; it is akin to the Kongo word nzambi, which means "god." In 1937, while researching folklore in Haiti, Zora Neale Hurston encountered the case of Felicia Felix-Mentor, who had died and been buried in 19 ...

See also:

Zombie, Zombie - Zombies in voodoo, Zombie - Zombies in folklore, Zombie - Zombies in fiction, Zombie - Zombies in literature, Zombie - Zombies in film, Zombie - Zombies in gaming, Zombie - Zombies on the Internet

Read more here: » Zombie: Encyclopedia II - Zombie - Zombies in voodoo