Valkyries, the Choosers of the Slain

In Norse mythology, Valkyries are the maidens following Odin‘s orders, and roaming the battlefields, deciding which warrior’s soul to take with them to Valhalla. Valhalla is a hall in Asgard where brave souls of warriors went, feasting with the great god Odin. Valkyries look fierce in the battlefield, while in Valhalla, they are the ones attending to the warriors’ needs, serving them while partying and feasting with Odin.

Below are some of the great renditions and illustrations of a Valkyrie, each art done by talented artists from DeviantArt. So, take a look at the illustrations below and make sure to visit each artist‘s page. Believe me, these artists really are great and talented! Enjoy! 🙂

Yggdrasil – The World Tree of the Norsemen

Yggdrasil.

Sounds familiar, right? We may hear this somewhere, but do we know exactly what Yggdrasil is?

Yggdrasil is a huge, ash tree that is known to shelter the nine worlds:

The Four Goddesses of Dioses

The Four Goddesses of Dioses

Listed below are my characters in Dioses, the following being some of the goddesses found in the manga. Each goddess is unique and bear in mind that these goddesses are of my own version. So, there, enjoy reading! 🙂

ATLATONAN : There are confusions regarding her domain. Some say she is the Aztec goddess of lepers and those who are born with physical deformities. On some accounts, an Earth goddess or goddess of the coast. She is also known as Atlatonin. She is also one of the four wives of the Jaguar-god Tezcatlipoca.

BASTET :  The Egyptian Cat goddess. There are also confusions, though. On some accounts, it is said that she is the one sent by Ra to destroy the mankind. The humans, at that time, are all wicked and cursed Ra’s great name. So, the council of the gods, with Ra, decided to destroy them and thus Bastet was sent to slay them. That’s one version, come say the goddess Hathor did it. She is also called Bast. She is the goddess of music, dancing, pleasure  and merry-making.

FRIGG : The queen-wife of Odin, king of the Norse gods. She is the goddess of marriage, also of love (though some accounts say that Freya is the goddess of Love) . She is seen as the goddess who weaves the clouds. She also has the capability to see the future but told no one about what she sees. She has lots of attendants, the most popular is Fulla. When Balder is terrified by his nightmares, it is his mother, Frigg, who extracted the oaths from all the living and non-living things not to hurt Balder. But this failed because Balder is killed by a tiny twig of mistletoe. By the way, Friday is named after her.

HERA :  The queen of the gods, she is Zeus’ wife. She is also the goddess of marriage. Their union produced Ares, god of war, Hebe, goddess of youth and cupbearer of the gods, and Eileithyia, goddess of childbirth. She bore Hephaestus alone. Some of the popular stories about her is her jealousy and anger towards her husbands’s women. Her sacred animal is the peacock, whose eyes once belong to Argos, her faithful follower whom Hermes killed.

Related articles

• The Dangerous Mistletoe
• Odin and Frigg
• Tezcatlipoca and Xilonen
• Hathor and Ra
• The Eleven Most Neglected Deities in Egyptian Mythology

DIOSES chapter 1 page

ch 1.1 QUADRANTS

Here is DIOSES chapter 1: Quadrants, hope you enjoy.

Click on the image to enlarge and read. ^_^

Cover Page   >>>Chapter 1<<<   Title Page

DIOSES cover page

here is the cover page, enjoy! ^_^

DIOSES cover page

 

>>>COVER PAGE<<<   Chapter 1   Title Page

click on the image to enlarge and read

enjoy 🙂

Odin and Frigg

younger versions of Odin and Frigg

Odin, the Norse god of wisdom, is known for being a one-eyed god. One-eyed? It is so because he sacrificed his eye to take a drink in Mimir’s well to gain wisdom and see what the future holds for them. He also has Munnin and Huggin, two ravens that fly across the world (Midgard) and then rest at his shoulders, telling him what the mortals did and some knowledge from the world, too.

Frigg (sometimes Frigga) is his queen-wife. Odin, like Zeus, indulged in several affairs. However, Frigg, unlike Hera, feels no hate and jealousy on her husband’s whereabouts. It is she who encouraged Odin to do so, for the sake of wisdom and knowledge. Frigg is the goddess of the sky, in which she spent her time weaving clouds. She is also a seer, with the ability to see the future, but never dare to tell it to anyone.

Related articles

• The Dangerous Mistletoe
• The Real Hel
• Ode to the Aesir Odin

The Dangerous Mistletoe

Image via Wikipedia

Balder, Odin and Frigg‘s son, was bothered by nightmares, and when they learned of it, Odin and Frigg decided they have to do something. They knew that their son was destined to die, and with all their powers they decided to prevent his death.

Frigg extracted an oath to every living and non-living thing: the oath is not to cause pain and even death to Balder. Almost everyone had said their oath, however, Frigg neglected the small shrub called mistletoe, for she thought it’s too small to harm her beloved son.

When the gods and goddesses heard of this, they rejoiced, for they believed that their beloved Balder was saved.

Loki, the famous trickster disguised as an old woman, went to see Frigg. Upon doing so, he learned that only the mistletoe was discarded. So, Loki helped himself by cutting a small twig of mistletoe, sharpened its tip and proceed with his trick.

Loki found the gods and goddesses throwing swords, aiming arrows and other things to the invincible Balder. These weapons brought Balder no harm. Far from the crowd stood Balder’s brother Hod, a blind god. Loki went and ask him why he’s alone and not joining in. Hod replied bitterly that obviously, he’s blind. Loki told him that he must join the group in throwing weapons to Balder, and that he would guide him, too. Hod agreed and Loki handed him the sharpened mistletoe, aimed it at Balder’s heart, and let it go.

The twig went straight to Balder’s heart and everyone was shocked and horrified to see Balder dropped dead.

Such was the story of the mistletoe.

Related articles

• Ode to the Aesir Odin
• Odin’s Affairs

The Real Hel

the Jormungandr(the Midgard serpent), Fenrir wolf, and Hel

Considering Odin as the Chief Norse god, still he had no power or control over Hel, the Norse goddess of the dead.

This goddess was not considered an Aesir nor a Vanir, instead, she, with her brothers Jormungandr (the Midgard serpent) and Fenris (also known as the Fenrir wolf) was seen to bring destruction to the gods. A prophecy once was foretold that they would bring harm and destruction not only for Asgard but for the 9 worlds as well(the 9 worlds will be discussed soon). With this prophecy, Odin decided to get rid of them(these, I will discuss sooner), giving Hel the underworld as her realm.

Hel was often recognized with her half body decaying or black in color, sometimes similar to that of a corpse, and the other half normal like a god’s.

Related articles

• The Dangerous Mistletoe
• Ode to the Aesir Odin

Ode to the Aesir Odin

Image via Wikipedia

In the land of just and right,

gods live in their holy plight.

Guardians or Aesirs they are called,

protectors of the nine worlds we are told.

In this holy realm rules a king,

noble and wise, he cares for all the living.

In a battle that he had not known,

an enemy wants him to be overthrowned.

His heart crying for revenge,

he seek for help and the four pillars merge.

And to end this dangerous game,

this king joined the battle

and Odin is his name..”

useful link:  Lee Gyul’s profile – get to know more Lee Gyul

Odin’s Affairs

Image via Wikipedia

Odin, like Zeus, indulged in various affairs. But unlike Zeus, Odin would ask his wife’s permission first and sometimes he also let Frigg choose his mistresses. There is an account wherein Odin spent a night with a giantess in exchange for wisdom. Talk about trust!!

Related articles

• The Dangerous Mistletoe
• Ode to the Aesir Odin