Norse Mythology: A Concise Guide to Gods, Heroes, Sagas and Beliefs of Norse Mythology by Carlson Robert

Author:Carlson, Robert [Carlson, Robert]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3, azw
Publisher: Hourly History
Published: 2016-02-09T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter Four

Valhalla

“Five hundred doors

And forty more

Methinks are in Valhalla.

Eight hundred heroes through each door

Shall issue forth

Against the wolf to combat.”

“A wolf hangs before the western door,

over it an eagle hovers.”

It is now time to talk about Valhalla, the Hall of the Battle Slain. This was the mythical place that inspired the most intrepid adventurers of the past, the Vikings, to hurl themselves into the most perilous journeys in uncharted waters and land on unknown shores, armed only with their swords, armor made of boar skin, and their lust for life, to protect them. Each warrior believed that the only proper way to die was in doing heroic deeds in battle. Those who fell would be swept up and carried on horseback by the Valkyrie, either to Valhalla, to dwell with Odin, or to Fólkvangr to dwell with Freya. There is some dissention about the exact location of Valhalla. Most sources place it in Asgard but there is a body of evidence that indicates that it might be elsewhere, perhaps even in Helheim! However all agree on what happens there. Odin certainly presides and the heroes’ wounds are healed; they live there forevermore, improving on their battle skills, feasting on meat and mead until the call to the great battle of Ragnarok – the end of the world. These heroes were known as Einherjar.

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