Viking Gods
The Viking age covered the period between 9th and 11th century. During this period, Scandinavia was the centre of Vikings world, and they traveled as far as Black Sea eastwards and North America on the coast using Viking ships. They were involved with constant invasions piracy and journeys related to settlement, commerce and exploration. This paper has reviewed literature to determine the role of Viking gods in foundation of Viking society, and hierarchy. The paper has analyzed different types of the Viking gods, their origin, powers, and impact to the Viking society.
Viking Gods
The spiritual beliefs and religion of Vikings had important role in culture and living standards of Vikings. Vikings were polytheistic especially before 1100 AD. They believed that Odin (the god of death, poetry) was the leader and father of all gods, and presided over the Viking heaven Valhalla. Vikings believed a warrior maiden escorted those who died in the battle. After their arrival in the Viking heaven, the dead warriors started new lives which were involved with all-day fights and all-night feasts. This belief shows that the Viking society had a very high consideration of feasting and fighting. Vikings believed gods lived at Osgard. This was termed as the Nordic mythology Olympus. They believed that Osgard was the central part of a very big ash tree whose roots were capable of reaching the underworld, and leaves capable of piercing the heaven.
During the Viking age, Thor was known as the Norse god for thunder, and he was son of earth goddess Odin and Jord. In the principal race of Norse gods which was also referred as Esir, god of thunder was the strongest. These gods lived in Asgard, and together with All-Father Odin, they ruled mortal mens lives. The god of thunder lived in Bilskirnir hall whose location was in Trudheim region. Archaeological information shows that the god of thunder married a goddess of fertility known as golden-haired Sif, and kept Jarnsaxa as mistress. The god of thunder and Jarnsaxa had two sons Modi and Magni, and a daughter Thrud.
The god of thunder was powerful, large man characterized by flowing hair, red beard, eyes of lightening, and hearty enjoyment of drink and food. The Vikings considered the god of thunder as the main protector of other gods and human beings against evil forces. The appearance of god of thunder was ferocious. His need for human sacrifices made him popular beyond his father who did not ask for human sacrifices. The temple of the god of thunder was built at Uppsala where a statue showed his father on right. According to the Norse beliefs, the god of thunder used a chariot which was pulled by two goats Tanngrisni and Tanngnost (gap-tooth and tooth grinder respectively) to ride through the heavens. They believed lightening occurred when the god of thunder threw Mjollnir (his hammer was known to smash) while at the heavens. The hammer of the god of thunder, together with other gods magical objects was made by two dwarfs Eitri and Brok. The god of thunder wore a Megingjard belt which was believed to contribute considerably to his strength. He had strength to conquer and kill almost everything that lived. The end of the Norse mythology was attributed by Midgard serpent which was the gods greatest enemy. On Ragnarok day, the god of thunder killed the Midgard serpent which poisoned him to death leaving his sons to inherit the hammer. Ragnarok is considered as the end of Norse mythologys cosmos or rather the doom of gods.
The gods of thunder and the giants were enemies. The two were involved in constant revenges, and conflicts. The god of thunder was known for his hot temper which was frequent even after a slight provocation. The temper was mostly vented on giants, and in many occasions the god of thunder smashed the heads of the giants using his mighty hammer. The hammer was wielded on regular basis to maintain its shape and sharpness, a practice which involved iron belt for extra strength, and iron gloves for wielders personal safety. Interestingly the mighty hammer could be thrown several times and return to the gods hands freely, an exercise which symbolized lightening. The hammer was also used to shape amulets. In the life of common man, the god of thunder was the foremost of all gods, may be due to his strength and involvement in issues related to fertility and personal strength. People worshipped the god, and sought him in matters related to fertility. Amulets shaped by the mighty hammer were worn on the neck throughout Scandinavian countries before, and immediately after the introduction and spread of Christianity as a symbol of worship of the god of the thunder. This is evidenced by presence of both hammer shapes and the cross side by side on the molds which were developed during the Viking age. Many places names include the name of the god of thunder, and the great temple at Uppsala had the statue of the god on centre before it was replaced by Christian church after the introduction of Christianity. The god was common and popular in many European countries. The Romans associated him with Jupiter, Anglo-Saxons with Thunor, and Germans with Donar.
Although the religion realm of the god of thunder elapsed, the god of thunder has lived on our calendars as the name Thursday -which means the day of the god of thunder, was derived from the god.
Vikings made sacrifices in honor to their gods. The sacrifices were conducted by a Chieftain-priest in sacred locations either inside or outside the temple. A wide range of valuable things were offered for sacrifices. The sacrifices involved throwing, or burying inanimate items such as clothes and precious metal, offering animals which were eaten after the sacrifice, or offering a son which was termed as the greatest sacrifice. Although the sacrifices were offered in many occasion, the one which was offered during the war between the Vikings and Earl Hakon and when the Norway ruler had promised to give up his son for sacrifice stands out in many archeological data. In this battle, the Earl Viking won the battle against the neighboring Vikings without a lot of losses. However between 1050 and 1100 AD many Vikings converted to Christianity and practices involving sacrifices ended. Adam of Bremen a Christian missionary in the 11th century, was not happy to see the great temple of god of thunder at Uppsala. The missionary was against idol worship and in 1080 the great temple of the god of thunder was replaced by a Christian church.
Freya was the goddess of love and beauty. Her statue was made of blonde, showing beautiful, blue-eye woman. She later became the wife of Odin. The goddess claimed most of the slain in war. The giants made many attempts to abduct her. She was also associated with the goddess Frigg. The name Friday was derived from Frigg.
Njord was the god of sea, winds and fire. The Viking believed that he was responsible for good fortune in hunt and at sea.
Viking society and hierarchy
The mythological tradition developed and preserved subgroups in Scandinavia from the time material and religious culture occurred to the time Christianity was introduced. The information within the mythological context show that the culture of Vikings was not unified as it involved military and physical prowess. Considering the framework of Norse cosmology, there were three separate clans the Jotum, the Vanir and the Aesir. Their respective area of influence differentiated Aesir and Vanir clan. The Aesir were associated with conquest and war. They worshiped the god of thunder to give them strength and power to conquer and win in war, and sometimes Tyr. The Vikings in the Vanir were associated with wealth, fertility and exploration. They traveled across the Scandinavian countries and European nation to explore trade and search for fertile land. They settle in land which they found fertile to sustain agriculture and livestock needs. Vanir worshipped Freya -the goddess for love, beauty and fertility, her brother Frey the god for fertility and summer, and Njord.
Both Aesir and Vanir clans exchanged hostages, made peace, intermarried and lived together after wars. The distinction between the two clans involved the gods of commerce and agriculture, the gods of warrior, and the gods of rulers. This distinction is illustrated in their social patterns within the society. The Jotun clan was different from both the Aesir and Vanir in that they were malefic giants. The Vanir were associated with sea and earth as the major sources for their wealth and fecundity. On the other hand, the Aesir symbolized values related to the god of thunder such as Odin was chief among other gods, he was a magician, and heroes patron. They believed that the god of thunder presided over work as he was a god of hammer and atmospheric deity. Although Aesir had a fierce war with Vanir, they lived peacefully later, and both participated in cooperative enterprises
The structure of Indo European mythology played a role in the warfare and division of deities in the Viking society. Thor and Odin divided functions of Tyr the god of warrior, Vanir as fertile producers and magical lawgiver. According to the Viking beliefs there was a conflict between gods in the Norse cycle which started when Thor and Odin who were considered as the greatest gods refused the godhood status in Vanir. The Vanir responded by sending Aesir to Gullveig (woman) to corrupt them. This caused a, fierce war between the two clans, and after a long period of war, the two clans were exhausted, and they exchanged their clan members. Vanir sent Frey and Njord the gods of the sea, and Aesir sent Hoenir and MIMIR. The two clans held a meeting to celebrate the exchange. While in the meeting, the gods spat on a bowl, an action which they believed had created a giant known as Kvasir. Kvasir symbolized harmony and peace among the two deities. The gods sacrificed Kvasir later and they used the blood to make drink for the gods. The Vikings believed that Kvasir changed to drink which inspired poets, and inebriated the two deities.
The Viking society was composed of three classes of people the Thralls, Jarls, and the Bondis. The Jarls composed of priests and military leaders, the Thralls were slaves captured in battle or born into slavery, and the Bondis were merchants or farmers. The Jarls were more powered financially as they could own large farmland and many Thralls. They hired poor freemen to work in their large farmlands. The Thralls were subjected to constant mistreatment by the Jarls who were allowed to beat them to death. Provided they report their cruel acts to the public within that day. Unlike the lives of the Jarls which were smooth and comfortable, the Thralls lives were very hard as they were assigned the most heavy farm labor. The Thralls were expected to be in white coats and to have their hair short throughout.
Despite the fact that Vikings shared common religion, customs and language, their society was not unified, but they had definite behavior code. They were loyal to the clan, and community. They held a yearly meeting (called thing) which enabled them to vote on law and leaders. The law controlled Vikings and provided safe society. The law was recognized from the family level to the community level. Their laws came from peoples opinions and traditions. People voted in lawmen who were expected to memorize the laws and explain them to the people in the community. It was until 1100 when the laws were written and made ready for everybody in the community to read.
Initially the Viking tribes were scattered but as time went on, their kingdoms took shape. Each of the Viking kingdoms had individual hierarchy of leadership, and no central government. The society of the Vikings was organized in tribunal communities. Although the communities joined in special occasion, in day- to day life they were independent. The communities were ruled by kings, and a legislative body composed of members who owned land. The legislative body had the power to sack and approve kings. Earls seconded the king in power and land.
Trade kept the Viking strong and healthy. To meet quest for wealth, the Vanir clan grew vegetables such as flax, peas, cabbages, and herded pig, sheep, cattle and poultry which they used for food and production of hides and fur which they wore. The land had enough natural resources which sustained high production. They relied on the produce for food, and traded with the surplus. The Northern areas of the region were cold to support farming. In these areas the Vikings hunted rabbits, dear, elk and boar, reindeer, walrus, seals and polar bear for both food and hides. Those who lived on the coastal parts of the region, used ship to attack sea fish, traps and nets to get coast fish. They relied on sea fish, coast fish and shellfish for food. They traded with people in near and far communities. In the north Vikings got whales skin, fur, iron walrus ivory and timber. They built ship using the timber, and built other weapons and tools using iron, bones skins and ivory. They also used fur and skin as source of warmth in cold winters. From Britain they got food, and in Russian markets they bought slaves, silk and spices.
As the population continued to increase, the size and quality of farmland continued to decrease pushing the Viking to set out for new land. They also set out for adventure. They moved from one Scandinavian country to another. Many of the runic inscriptions dating 11th century were found in Sweden. Many runestones in Scandinavia contain the names of the Vikings who participated in the in expedition, and a few bear the names of those who lost their lives during expedition. The Turinge and the Kjula runestones indicate the names of the people who participated in expedition, and the Ingvar runestones in Sweden were established as way of commemorating participants who lost their lives in disastrous expedition in11th century Existence of runestones of Viking age has facilitated study of early medieval Scandinavia, and in Norse study.
Conclusion
The Viking gods played a major role in foundation of the Viking society and leadership hierarchy. During the Viking age, people were organized in three major clans which were involved in different activities and lifestyle in the society. The Aesir were associated with conquest and war. They worshiped the god of thunder and sometimes Tyr. The Vanir were associated with wealth, fertility and exploration. They traveled across the Scandinavian countries and European nation to explore trade and search for fertile land. They settle in land which they found fertile to sustain agriculture and livestock needs. The Vanir worshipped Freya -the goddess for love, beauty and fertility, her brother Frey the god for fertility and summer, and Njord. The Jotun were malefic giants.
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