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oak The largest tree of the forests that covered northern Europe, the oak was sacred to Thor, god of thunder and lightning, and a symbol of strength and endurance. There were no great oaks in Iceland, but early settlers from Scandinavia brought oak pillars with them and set up shrines to Thor. Early Christian missionaries such as Boniface( eighth century) considered it their duty to destroy oak trees and groves where the pagan gods had been worshipped.
Od( OÐr; Odur) The husband of Freya and father of Hnossa. Od left Freya to roam the Earth; it is said that Freya wept golden tears for her lost husband. Some scholars think Od may have been the god odin in one of his many guises.
Odin( OÐn) Chief of the Aesir gods. The god of war and death, as well as a sky god and the god of wisdom and poetry. Odin is sometimes called Alfodr, the father of the gods.
He was descended from one of the earliest gods, Bor, and the giantess Bestla. His brothers were Vili and Ve( also called Hoenir and Lothur, respectively).( See creation.) Odin’ s Aesir wife was Frigg. His sons included Thor, Vali, and possibly Tyr. Odin had many other wives and children.
Odin’ s hall in Asgard was Valaskjalf. From his throne, Hlidskjalf, in the hall’ s high tower, Odin could survey all Nine Worlds of Norse mythology.
His ravens, Hugin and Munin, brought Odin news. He gave his food to his two wolves, Geri and Freki( see wolf), for Odin needed nothing but the sacred mead for nourishment. Odin’ s eight-legged steed was called Sleipnir.
Gungnir was Odin’ s spear. On his arm Odin wore the marvelous ring Draupnir, from which dropped eight other rings every nine nights. When he rode into battle, he wore an eagle helmet and armor. When he wandered peacefully on Earth( as he often did), Odin wore a sky-blue cape and a broadbrimmed hat.
Odin had only one eye, for he gave his other eye to Mimir( 1) in exchange for wisdom. Odin could compose poetry, for he had drunk the mead of poetry.
Odin was also thought of as a magician, for he was a master of the magic songs known as Galdrar. He knew the secrets of the runes( the earliest alphabet used by the Norse), which he had obtained by hanging himself from the World Tree, Yggdrasil. For this reason he is sometimes called Lord of the Gallows( see below).
Odin( 1825 – 1827) by H. E. Freund in Copenhagen, Denmark
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