Einherjar
In Norse mythology, the einherjar (lone-fighters[1]) are warriors who have died in battle and are brought to Valhalla by valkyries.[2] In Valhalla, the einherjar eat meat from the boar called Sæhrímnir.[3] Every day he is boiled and every night he becomes whole again.[3] They drink mead provided by a goat named Heiðrún.[3] Every day they dress for battle and go out and fight each other.[4] This is to prepare for the events of Ragnarök (the end of the world).[5]
The einherjar are written about in the Prose Edda[6] by Snorri Sturluson. Also in the poem written in the 13th century Hákonarmál, by Eyvindr skáldaspillir.
Einherjar Media
Three valkyries bearing ale in Valhalla (1895) by Lorenz Frølich
"Valkyrie" (1834–1835) by Herman Wilhelm Bissen
An illustration of valkyries encountering the god Heimdallr as they carry a dead man to Valhalla (1906) by Lorenz Frølich
The 8th-century Tängelgårda stone depicts a figure leading a troop of warriors all bearing rings. Valknut symbols appear beneath his horse.
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References
- ↑ John Lindow, Norse Mythology: A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs (Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2002), p. 104
- ↑ Kathleen N Daly; Marian Rengel, Norse Mythology A to Z (New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 2010), p. 111
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Paul Belloni Du Chaillu, The Viking Age (New York: C. Scribner's Sons, 1890), p. 427
- ↑ Collier's new Encyclopedia (New York: P.F. Collier, 1921), p. 154
- ↑ Charles Russell Coulter; Patricia Turner, Encyclopedia of Ancient Deities (New York; Oxford: Routledge, 2012), p. 164
- ↑ Ideology and Power in the Viking and Middle Ages, ed. Gro Steinsland (Leiden; Boston: Brill, 2011), p. 297
